Firework Anxiety in Dogs – Immediate and Long-Term Solutions
The clock is approaching New Year's, and as usual, fireworks start long before midnight. For a dog afraid of fireworks, it's anything but festive. They tremble at the thought of going out, ears pinned back, and head lowered, searching for hiding places. The stress is strong, and the suffering is significant. Below are some tips that can help alleviate the anxiety in the moment and provide long-term solutions.
Causes of fear of fireworks
As with any mental dilemma, the cause needs to be investigated first when dealing with a dog's fear of fireworks. The reasons dogs develop fireworks phobia vary from one individual to another. Some breeds are predisposed, such as herding dogs with extremely sharp senses. However, more often, a traumatic event or pain is at the root of the problem.
Check for physical causes
Loud noises can cause pain, and whistling and banging can hurt the ears, especially if the dog has an ear infection and the ear canal is swollen. Or if the dog has a wax plug or any debris irritating the eardrum. This amplifies the sounds and makes it very painful.
Therefore, the top priority is always to have a veterinarian look into the dog's ears with an otoscope. During the examination, ask the vet for a sedative for the dog to keep them calm and avoid unnecessary discomfort. Sometimes, earwax plugs need to be removed. Always rule out physical causes, even if the dog has experienced something frightening that might explain the fear.
Dealing with trauma
Persistent anxiety or panic is common if the dog has experienced a very distressing event related to fireworks. In cases of severe trauma, there is often more than just a fear in the here and now. Typically, these dogs avoid anything that forewarns or reminds them of fireworks, known as trauma triggers. These dogs may react to camera flashes, be bothered by the smell of gunpowder, avoid anything coming from above, and become nervous about noises in general.
Trauma treatment to address latent shock may be necessary. There are dog psychologists and veterinarians with expertise in this area. Please read on but contact them afterward, as your dog will need more help than an article can provide. If you want to learn more about how to deal with frightened dogs, we recommend the article How to Handle a Fearful Dog – Should You Soothe, Encourage, or Support?.
Emergency solutions for fireworks fears
Rehabilitating a dog with a fear of fireworks is a demanding process that needs to start at least six months before the dreaded stroke of midnight. However, there are things you can do to alleviate the anxiety during New Year:
Use of food supplements
Give your dog a supplement that helps manage stress. Valerian, Max-relax, Aptus Relax, Tranquil, Surene-um, or Zylkene are options. Test to see which one works for your dog; if one doesn't help, another might. Combining the supplement with an Adaptil collar can provide your dog with physiological support to manage anxiety.
Note: Do not combine veterinary medicine with supplements without consulting your veterinarian.
Getting your dog used to fireworks preparations
Get your dog used to closing the blinds and playing loud music in the house. Do this on the nights leading up to New Year's Eve while letting your dog chew on a delicious bone or lick something tasty (like cream cheese) from a puzzle toy. It can help your dog relax.
Tactile massage for calm
Also, get your dog used to tactile stress-reducing massage (se the training here in Petli). Learn which acupressure points can calm anxiety. After a few sessions, your dog will associate your touch with calmness and relaxation, making it possible to use massage when your dog is stressed.
Greasy wadding as earplugs
Cotton wad are effective earplugs. You should get your dog used to the feeling of cotton in their ears before New Year's Eve. Insert a generous wad of cotton into the ears, press it into the ear canal, and then go for a walk, play, train, or let your dog chew a bone. Remove the cotton and continue with your daily routine. Keep the cotton handy and use it before the fireworks start or in emergency situations during walks. You want to use cotton wad with threads in it so that the whole ball of wad is easily removed after use.
Escape or soundproof your home
If you live in an area with intense fireworks and can't escape to the countryside on New Year's Eve, do your best to soundproof your home. Textiles absorb sound. If possible, consider staying at an airport hotel since fireworks are not allowed near airplanes.
Early resting with safety
Take your dog for their final walk early and make sure they are securely equipped with a harness and collar, preferably with double leashes (attach one to a waist belt and hold one in your hand) to reduce the risk of your dog getting loose. This is a nightmare scenario that should be avoided.
Calm and secure your dog
Try to remain calm when the noise starts. Breathe deeply and convey a sense of security. You don't need to worry about your compassion and support making things worse. Look at your dog calmly, sit close, provide support without pitying them. If your dog prefers to be left alone, allow it.
Cooperation with neighbors
We are responsible for our dogs' well-being, and the public should not have to adapt. However, if we ask kindly and explain the situation, most neighbors will empathize and reduce their use of fireworks. Contact them well in advance so they haven't already bought a lot of fireworks.
Contact them well in advance so they haven't already bought a lot of fireworks.
Use of sedatives
If your dog is severely frightened and suffering significantly, you can still follow the above steps, but also contact your veterinarian for prescription medications. For animal welfare reasons, we should not let dogs suffer when help is available.
Create a long-term training plan
When the new year has arrived and the smoke has cleared, it's time to look ahead. Let your New Year's resolution benefit your dog, and the next year, address the root of the problem. Book an appointment with a certified dog behaviorist to create a training plan that will help you achieve your goal.
Improve the general well-being of your dog
Your dog's treatment plan will likely include recommendations for general stress reduction, such as supplements and tactile stress-reducing massage that releases the calming hormone oxytocin. After that, increase your dog's overall happiness by regularly doing things that make them smile.
Sound games for control
Next up is the fundamental training. Sound games are a great start. Let your dog search for treats in a pot where you've placed wodden and metal ladles. Let the dog make noise themselves while enjoying tasty treats. Whether the dog is bothered by the sounds or not doesn't matter at first. It's all about the sense of control that comes with creating the noise. This helps reduce anxiety.
Gradual increase in noise levels
Afterward, it's time to desensitize your dog to sounds in general (leave firework sounds for a while). You can set down your coffee cup more forcefully than usual, slam doors, talk louder, and make more noise in the kitchen. Make noise a part of daily life. Maintain a relaxed attitude and act as if your new behavior is entirely normal. Finesse is essential; the dog shouldn't become fearful, as the opposite is what you're trying to train. So set the sound level to your dog's advantage, desensitization over time is the point.
Audio training with fun activities
When your dog is comfortable with the commotion, you can continue by playing various sound files on your phone or computer (an external speaker allows you to place sounds in different locations): revving rally cars, meowing cats, tree-cutting chainsaws, rising hot air balloons, and so on.
While the sounds are playing, train fun tricks, let the dog search for treats, or play your dog's favorite game. By this point, the dog will have started getting used to training with sounds, and only then is it time to practice with slightly more intense sounds like guns, party poppers, or firework sounds on audio files.
Training at the dog's level
During this kind of rehabilitation, it's crucial that the dog wants to train. If you don't have the dog's willingness, you'll only reinforce more fear. Dogs do best when they can control the sounds themselves. Therefore, train what's called a "start button behavior." This is a signal from the dog that they are ready and want to train. For example, they might glance at you, look toward the sound source, or even tap their paw on a target as a start button.
Train the start button separately and then connect the action with triggering the sound. After that, only trigger the sound when the dog performs the start button behavior. In the beginning, reward simultaneously as the dog hears the sound. Use super tasty treats or play. With time and training, reward a few seconds after the sound. Gradually lengthen the time between the sound and the reward, but only if you see that the dog is comfortable with the previous level. Over time, when the sound plays, the dog should appear positive and expectant, and be rewarded after the sound.
Create positive expectation
The goal is for the dog to eventually listen to the sound and automatically feel positively about it. So, it's crucial not to trigger fear more than moderately. You want to transform the fear into positive anticipation after a few repetitions. If that doesn't happen, the training might be too difficult. In that case, the fear will just become more entrenched. To succeed, lower the volume of the sounds or work with different sounds for a while. You need to be diligent with the foundational training as it equips the dog to handle more advanced sound training.
Realistic audio training
When you finally start practicing with firework-like sounds, stay far away from the sound source at first or keep the volume low. You can muffle the sound by using cotton in your dog's ears. This kind of sound dampening can be adjusted by using more or less cotton in the dog's ears until it's no longer needed.
If your dog is ready, you can proceed to train with a toy rocket known as a "lysocopter" (a child's toy in the shape of a rocket that lights up and makes noise when launched into the sky with a slingshot). Attach a treat to the end of the rocket so the launch becomes the starting point of a search activity your dog might come to enjoy.
Seek expert help and set realistic goals
Behavior therapy like this is challenging to explain in text because timing, training technique, and the ability to read your dog's feelings are crucial for success. It's wise to contact a certified dog behaviorist for guidance. Have a realistic goal in mind. A dog afraid of fireworks is seldom trained to enjoy a New Year's Eve under the open sky. However, the dog's stress in a protected environment can be reduced. We owe that help to frightened dogs. If you want to learn more about stress management, read the article Stress in Dogs: Displacement Behaviors and Solutions.
Tips and insights on dog fear
- Predicting which dogs are at risk is difficult. Both genetics and the environment play a role. If you're considering getting a puppy, it's wise to critically examine the family tree. Try to find out if the prospective puppy's parents were sound-sensitive.
- All dogs can become sound-sensitive. Even if last year's New Year's Eve didn't affect your dog, this year's might.
- Cotton wool in the ears is a training tool and not a long-term solution. The cotton dries out the ear, and if used too much or for extended periods, it can irritate the ear.
Written by: Caroline Alupo
Caroline Alupo is Petli's co-founder. She has a master's degree in ethology and is also a trained dog trainer and dog psychologist. She has 19 years of experience as a professional dog trainer. Read more about Caroline here.
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