Fireworks every night for weeks? My poor dog.

[Choppychop]

My Dog is becoming increasingly terrified of fireworks- she’s 10 years old and it seems to be far worse this year. They started around ten days ago, every evening from around 5pm till late. I know it’s Diwali which I understand and adore the celebrations, but it’s every single night for weeks and my dog has started shaking, tail between legs, not wanting to go out for evening walks (when she needs to relieve herself) upset tummy and nightmares! I feel like it’s gone from a few nights at this time of year to the whole of October and November for guy fawkes (and then December and New years). It’s so upsetting to see my normally confident dog become anxious. I’m not sure if it’s just my city but the fireworks are really on the increase. Anyone else?

Yeah they are on the increase I think as we hear them all through Summer too around midnight (makes me wonder if there's a wedding venue locally maybe?)

Either way, one of my dogs is petrified and the other loves them.

All we can do is make sure we let the petrified one out for toileting about 5pm before they tend to start, and then again around midnight as they tend to wind down a bit.

But all the white noise etc in the world can't block out bangs so loud they set car alarms off.

It’s a shame for your dog, but there are things you can do like not leave the dog alone and put the tv on loud, which will help.

I like fireworks; they brighten up the cold, dark nights. As long as people are sensible and not setting them off all night I think it’s fine. I say that as someone who has had young children. I didn’t expect other people to stop their fun because I was trying to put my baby to bed. As people always used to say, make sure you don’t tiptoe around your little ones when they’re asleep….do the hoovering, put the telly on and so on. Then they get used to sleeping through noise.

Even when she’s right next to me with me trying to comfort her she’s shaking and panting. I took her out earlier and there were several loud ones and she jumped out of her skin and refused to walk- I had to carry her. I know there’s nothing I can do about it and normally she’s very confident- it’s just sad. I agree fireworks are fun for people.

Loathe them. They are not good for the environment and scare wildlife as well as pets. Force birds away from where they roost, cause mammals to panic etc. must be terrifying for them. They are too loud and going too long.

Try desensitising her by playing them on YouTube at low volume in the daytime then increase the volume over time. Eventually she won’t hear them

Thank you - I’ll try this…

I’m with you, OP.

Got our pooch through some tonight at 7pm. Then some other twat let a load off at 11pm. WHY

And save most of her food and treats to gice her while this is on. We turned our dog around doing this.

My rescue cat is terrified of the noise and can't pee if she gets particularly shocked. She's currently on gabapentin, zylkene, cystease and metacam for cystitis because of them. I keep her in the living room and put classic fm on, but the bangs are so loud.

It’s not fucking acceptable. I’m half Indian and celebrate Diwali but it’s been about two weeks of fireworks. It should be banned entirely or restricted to the day of the event itself.

My poor dog is in recovery for a surgery and can barely move. Trying to get him to do his nightly wee in the garden whilst he has been in agony has been borderline traumatic. I was outside for an hour because he bunkered down and just shut down due to the fireworks. He’s a 40 kg I can’t pick up.

Have you tried a thundershirt or tight tshirt? AwkwardDog has been much better with his Equafleece on (its also tightfitting so has a similar effect).
An Adaptil collar or plug in, or Zylkene may also be worth a try.

The RSPCA are running a campaign for stronger regulation on fireworks, including lowering the maximum decibel level, & encouraging people to contact their MPs.

www.rspca.org.uk/getinvolved/campaign/fireworks

I sympathise OP. I lost my larger breed dog last year and she was terrified of fireworks. Every year they seem to get louder - like mortar bombs sometimes - so I'm glad she's not around to experience them this year. I couldn't have the TV loud enough to drown them out, or at least not without seriously pissing off my neighbours. I'm not a killjoy, and I enjoy a good visual display, but I think they need to have some restrictions on the noise levels. As a pp said, it affects, birds, horses and all sorts of wildlife. Lots of animals will die from shock.

I'm in the South East and they started at Diwali and gone on ever since. I expect it to continue until New Year. The only thing that seems to halt them is heavy rain.

Illegal to have fireworks after 11pm (a few obvious exceptions, but still illegal after midnight) so if you hear them report them immediately on 101. If enough people do this it may have an effect.

Have you seen your vet about a mild sedative for your poor dog? They’re quite effective in my experience.

But honestly, after 5 people were killed in a house fire in Hounslow two years ago, believed to have been caused by fireworks, and the countless injuries sustained each year, it beggars belief they are still available for the public to buy.

www.standard.co.uk/news/london/diwali-firework-deaths-hounslow-seema-kishen-children-b1253397.html

Try not to do what you believe is comforting her. There is a good chance your dog will interpret this as you being worried too, and it will make her more worried. Try to behave as if it is the most normal thing in the world to hear fireworks.

And the youtube thing mentioned above is also good.

There is disagreement regarding Thunder shirts as regards to how helpful they are. Yes the dog would appear to be calm but apparently they just shut down, so it might not be particularly kind to use. Worth researching though.

There are various plug in things you can get from petsathome. I haven't found one that actually makes a difference.

One of my dogs is terrified of fireworks.
It used to be absolutely fine because it has been exposed to pretty much everything as part of training, well balanced, well trained, calm creature.
until one day we heard and saw these incredibly loud fireworks out of the blue. There was no special celebration day, it wasn't even fully evening, just some fucker decided to set off these random fireworks and they were pretty close to where we were walking at the time, just a nice relaxing dusk walk.

This dog has never been the same since. If anything, it is gradually getting worse.
We tried everything. It's damaged for life.

Terrible to watch.
Treats don't do anything because the dog is so stressed there is zero interest in food at that point. It just goes to hide in various places and I try and comfort it as much as possible.
Basically I don't take it out after it starts getting dark this time of the year because we had too many incidents of the odd fireworks randomly going off. Very big dog, can't exactly pick it up and keep it safe. All it wants to do is be at home and hide. Full panic mode, not interested in anything.

I don't even know who does it and why.
I don't have a problem with celebrations but keep it to certain days of the year So we know to take the necessary measures.

De-sensitisation with YouTube made no difference whatsoever.
Someone on here suggested dog valerian drops which do make a slight difference.

The trouble is, you can't know when the fireworks go off so you can't give any medication from the vet beforehand apart from New Years eve or similar dates.

My other dog is absolutely fine. Both the same breed, trained the same way, similar age, similar life experiences.

I'm getting a rescue ex army dog next time. I can't be doing with this nonsense for the rest of my life. It's ridiculous.

Thanks for this. I've completed it and shared it on my FB feed.

Unless the fireworks are set off in the garden next to you it can be almost impossible to tell who is setting them off as it's typically rockets that are the noisiest things. Not sure what the police can do if they can't pinpoint who is doing it.

A dog is not a child and every day noise does not desensitise a dog to bloody fireworks so your point is irrelevant.
OP my Ddog is the same but he won't wear a thundervest ect, what I have learnt is he feels safe enclosed so now as soon as the fireworks start I call him over and he gets behind me ( he's a largeish dog) and I gently lean back on him so he is super close, turn the tv up and carry on doing what I'm doing,it's so weird he instantly calms and within 10 minutes is snoring! I used to hold him but my anxiety about him being scared made him worse plus he's too big now.
My other dog, same age and bred is completely ok, she just sleeps or plays throught the noise.

I don't get why it's legal in UK this way.

We relocate to a Scandinavian country around Christmas. Fireworks in this country may be set off from December 31st to January 1st. Outside this period it is illegal for private individuals to set off fireworks and may result in a fine.
I think it's brillant and we look forward to it.

No, the point is having a record of the quantity of fireworks set off illegally in a certain area would result in more patrols in that area. But it does mean that people do have to report. It can also be used as evidence in efforts to bring in more controls.

This is what I’ve been told by local police, anyway.

I wonder if you’d think it’s “fine” if you witnessed a terrified animal shaking at the noise of fireworks. But as long as it brightens up your evening PP.

A lot of people including veterans and kids are terrified too. Not fine.

You’re absolutely right and thank you for the reminder.

A well advertised public display I understand and accept. It's the back garden ones that should be banned. People set them off in tiny back gardens where houses are close together. It's dangerous, anti social, messy and terrifying for those who don't like them. My cats aren't bothered thankfully and dog can cope well with ones in the distance but the ones in neighbourhood gardens really upset him. Panting, scrabbling at the door because he doesn't understand the noise is outside the house. Our garden is then full of bits of cardboard, rocket sticks and lumps of what I guess is just gun powder. It's so inconsiderate. These big rockets honestly just shouldn't be on sale to the public.