01-10-2015 10:14 AM
Hello helpful people, I'm after a bit of advice. It's my little dog's first bonfire night coming up, and not knowing how he's going to react, can anyone suggest ways of making him feel safe?
01-10-2015 10:35 AM
01-10-2015 10:39 AM
Excellent, thanks for that Martin
01-10-2015 3:12 PM
My cat was absolutely terrified and would tear about the house messing everywhere. The vet gave us a sedative.
My sons dog however thinks it's all a big game, and leaps up trying to catch them from the sky. See how your little doggie is when the fireworks start (usually 2 weeks early round here) and then perhaps see if the vet will help before the big night, if necessary.
01-10-2015 3:25 PM
Thanks 023mjc, I'll do that. It's the same where I am, they start going up mid-October and finish mid-November, bloomin' nuisance!
01-10-2015 6:54 PM
We bought a doggy fireworks CD .
You are supposed to play the CD very quietly and then increase the noise levels gradually over a period of time .....
Not sure if it worked or not as our dog was not bothered at all....even at full belt.......
02-10-2015 8:45 AM
That's an interesting idea, I'll have a look for one, thanks millielilac.
02-10-2015 7:10 PM
think sometimes dogs pick up on their owners anxiety over fireworks, try to ignore them and you dog may follow suit, if not the vet may be willing to prescribe a mild sedative. I had one dog a few years ago that demanded to go outside to watch fireworks, but have had others that were terrified, hope you are lucky with yours
03-10-2015 4:02 PM
I must admit we have to give our Jack Russel a sedatve and close the Curtains,even turn the telly up, trouble is Fireworks are not confined to November the 5th, Any old excuse for a few bangs and whistles, though when my Eldest Son was a toddler ( he's 34 now) my Husband thought it would be fun to buy a few Fireworks so Matthew could see them and I voiced my concern over the Dog and the Cat being scared with it all, no totally wrong, Matthew screamed the House down and refused to have anything to do with it and said Dog and Cat were at the Window watching the Fireworks with fascination oh well we tried.
03-10-2015 5:54 PM
Our animals never had any problems with fireworks - cats or dogs: the current cats are totally fascinated, but there's not many round my parents, unlike here - where there's always some little so-and-so letting them off in the street.
My family, on the other hand, still go on about the time I was scared by a sparkler from an indoor firework set, and set the dining room table on fire - seriously, who uses flammable polish?! There's only a very little burn hole, so I think it's a total over-reaction - especially as it was over 35 years ago!
07-10-2015 3:40 PM
Our last dog (RIP Topper) was a nervous wreck whenever fireworks went off - throughout his 16 year life he never got used to them
We now have 2 dogs, litter siblings: soon after they came to us, there was a local large summertime display & we could hardly believe it when they both clamoured excitedly to get outside!!!!
I'd be in the 'wait & see' camp - just try to be at home with the dog when fireworks are planned locally - though not so easy to avoid the people who let them off at other times grrrrrr
10-10-2015 7:36 PM
When I read the title I thought ! "bloody hell what will they come up with next !" I thought they were now making fireworks that dogs would like
11-10-2015 10:54 PM
That would be quiet ones! If only.
12-11-2015 12:42 PM
Hi Wizilizi, turned out he was fine, took no notice of them whatsoever.Handy to know as I like going to the display but didnt want to leave him on his own this year.
12-11-2015 12:43 PM