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<\/a>Is your dog scared of fireworks? Don\u2019t wait until the holiday hits. Even with just two weeks of lead time, you can plan and act now to help your dog be less afraid of the scary,\u00a0unpredictable sounds of fireworks, firecrackers, whistles, and even guns.<\/p>\n
Get Ready<\/h2>\n
Here are some things you can do starting\u00a0today.<\/em><\/p>\n 1. <\/em>Most important: contact your vet,<\/strong> now<\/strong>. <\/p>\n If your dog\u00a0gets very anxious about noises and you have never talked to your vet about it, do so\u00a0now. They may be able to prescribe something to help. If your dog has never had a full medical workup for pain, that should be started. More and more evidence shows that a large percentage of behavior issues, including sound phobias, are because of pain (Mills et al., 2020). Diagnosis can take time, but in the meantime, your vet can likely help with some situational meds. Sound reactivity and phobia are long-term problems that usually get worse without intervention. They are not something to be taken lightly. More information about meds in this post.<\/a><\/p>\n 2. Countercondition to noises<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Get some great treats and start carrying them around. Whenever there is\u00a0any<\/em>\u00a0kind of sudden or startling noise, including stray bangs and booms as people test their noisemakers, rain treats down on your dog. Use those special treats\u00a0only<\/em>\u00a0for noises; don\u2019t pass them out for nice behavior (use something else for that!), and don\u2019t ask for any particular behavior from your dog when the noise occurs. Just give the special treats.<\/p>\n You may wonder why I am not recommending buying an app or CD, or using a YouTube video with fireworks sounds to \u201cpractice\u201d with. Performing\u00a0desensitization\/counterconditioning with sounds is tricky<\/a>.\u00a0 People who haven\u2019t done\u00a0DS\/CC\u00a0before run a real risk of scaring their dogs further instead of helping them. This is why I am suggesting\u00a0this method, which uses environmental noises that are happening\u00a0anyway. It\u2019s called ad hoc counterconditioning and there is evidence from studies that it is effective, including\u00a0this study that is specific to fireworks<\/a> (Riemer, 2020). Save the formal training for after the holiday, when your dog is less likely to experience accidental exposures to the sound.<\/p>\n 3. Create a safe place<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Make (or adapt) a\u00a0safe place for your dog<\/a>. They may even choose their own! Refrain from trying to get them to come out or change locations, as long as it is safe. Keep in mind that the flashes of light that come with big fireworks displays can be scary too, so consider a method to temporarily darken any windows nearby.\u00a0Also,\u00a0please know that acoustic foam and even sound blankets don\u2019t block the booms.<\/strong>\u00a0The big fireworks sounds\u00a0can\u2019t be \u201csoundproofed\u201d against<\/a>\u00a0except with materials that are much too big and heavy to use inside most houses and are not do-it-yourself friendly. Get the best protection you can in a basement or your most internal room. Despite the marketing claims, dog earmuffs<\/a> or dog crates with walls a few inches thick can\u2019t dampen low-frequency sounds to an effective degree, either. The walls of your house are probably five to ten inches thick and include insulation, but you can still hear thunder inside your house, right? But if a crate is your dog\u2019s safe place, that\u2019s great. And a blanket over it can muffle echoes and may create a cozy feeling for some dogs. Here are some examples of\u00a0safe places for dogs<\/a>.<\/p>\n 4. Play sound or music<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Experiment with\u00a0sound masking<\/a>\u00a0to find out what is most helpful for your situation. Try some kind of recorded white or brown noise, natural noise, a fan, or music to mask the pops and booms. (Even a noisy food toy can be helpful.) This approach is evidence-based and is called sound masking. You can even create your own recording of household noise or noises<\/a>.<\/p>\n And here\u2019s a tip: the lower the frequencies included in the masking or music, the better\u00a0it\u00a0can hide\u00a0those low-pitched booms (Kinsler et al., 1999, p.318\u2013320; Gelfand, 2017, p. 187). So, if your dogs are already habituated to pounding rock music, metal, or something else with a lot of\u00a0bass or percussion, play it! And play it on your best sound system to include those low frequencies. It can mask some of the scary noises coming from outside your house more effectively.\u00a0Before anyone mentions it: that\u2019s right, heavy metal has not ranked well in the dogs and music studies, tending to make shelter dogs more agitated (Kogan et al., 2012). That\u2019s not surprising. But\u00a0if you play it already and your dogs are fine with it<\/em>, they are habituated. In that case, this music could be the very thing for you and your dog.<\/p>\n Taiko drumming is great if your dogs are accustomed to it. You can buy a few songs and loop them or find some on YouTube. But be absolutely certain that the music itself doesn\u2019t scare your dogs first. If they are already sensitive to booms, it\u2019s a strong possibility.<\/p>\n Household appliances can help. Most fans hit low frequencies and can be helpful. You can run the dryer (no heat) with a pair of sports shoes in it for some booms that will probably be familiar and not scary. You\u2019ll need to find the line of best fit for your dogs. And you can use several of these at once, again, as long as they don\u2019t scare your dog.<\/p>\n The evidence supporting certain music being relaxing for dogs is comparatively weak (Lindig et al., 2020), and all the reviewed studies were performed in clinics and shelters, not homes. So it\u2019s best to choose music or sound based on its ability to mask, rather than for claimed relaxing qualities. <\/p>\n 5. <\/em>Make safety preparations and practice going out<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Many dogs bolt from fear and are lost in the first week of July in the U.S. Check your gate locks, keep your dogs\u2019 ID tags on, and create a redundant safety system. Make a plan for taking your dog out to potty. Do you know when the noise is usually at its worst and can you work around that? Are your fences and\/or leash and harness secure? If your dog is not used to being on leash for potty time, start practicing now, including getting the harness on. Dogs who are usually sedate may panic and\u00a0run off on noisy holidays. Don\u2019t let that happen. \u00a0<\/p>\n 6. Comfort your dog if that helps<\/strong>. <\/p>\n LOSE that idea that there\u2019s something wrong with comforting your dog, if that\u2019s what your dog wants.\u00a0Helping a dog through a tough time is not \u201ccoddling.\u201d Assess what is most helpful to your dog: a cuddle, food or a fun game after every scary noise, some lap time, sweet talk, being in their crate with a food toy, or hiding by themselves in a secluded\u00a0place. Then\u00a0help them do it. If they want to hide, let them.<\/p>\n Check out more resources and tips on my page\u00a0\u201cYou Can\u2019t Reinforce Fear.<\/a>\u201c<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>