Fireworks & Thunderous Weather
From the perspective of many greyhounds (and other dogs), summer is the
scariest part of the year. Is it summer heat, biting gnats or the specter of a
family leaving on vacation that worries them? No, it’s noisy fireworks displays
and summer storms (with the accompanying thunder and lightning) that turn some
normally placid greyhounds into desperately panicked pooches.
More dogs are reported missing during the summer than in any other season,
due in large part to the terror induced even by storms of short duration. And
the week following the Fourth of July is the busiest week of the year in animal
shelters across the nation. All it takes is a shrieking rocket, a few peals of
thunder or a crack or two of lightning and suddenly that fence that has always
been tall enough is no more than a low hurdle for your running, frightened
pet.
Fourth of July:
* Be sure your greyhound always wears a full set of identification tags:
GPA’s tag, pet’s name/home phone tag, and your county/city licenses.
* Stay home with your pet – your reassuring presence might prevent panic.
If you can’t be there, leave your dog in an indoor area where he can neither
escape nor be injured if he panics. If he feels secure in his crate, use it.
Leave the light on in the room. Keep the radio on or music to mask the sound.
Close up the house.
* Reassure your dog in a calm voice; avoid having
other family members respond in an excited or frightened manner.
* Some dogs can be distracted from the noise by
playing a game of indoor ball or tug-of-war with
you – if your dog has trouble paying attention to
you due to the outside noise, don’t insist.
* Talk to your veterinarian about medication to help your greyhound get
through the storm season and the Fourth of July.
* Don’t take your dog to fireworks displays, even if you feel you will be a
distance from the firing site
or plan to stay in your car. From the dog’s perspective, he might as well
be sitting next to the firing range.
Thunderstorms:
* Check you gates and fences prior to letting your dog out. Blown down
fences and gates are the primary way dogs are lost during these storms. * Remain
calm yourself – your agitation will only increase your dog’s level of fear.
Giving your dog a slow comforting massage using long strokes might help you both
get through it.
* Desensitize your dog using a recording of a thunderstorm. Start by
playing the recording frequently at very low volume (almost out of hearing for
you) while you are home. Interact calmly with your dog every time you play the
recording. Over time, raise the volume slowly to more realistic levels. Then
play the recording when you are out of the house for short periods, eventually
working up to longer absences. Eventually, the noise of a real storm should be
just normal background noise for your pooch. (This works well for other scary
sounds as well, i.e. trash trucks and crashing trash cans.)
* Investigate the StormDefender Cape® (www.stormdefender.com). Many dog
owners report remarkable success using this product to calm thunder-phobic
dogs.
* We use the poor man’s version, which also seems to help a little bit -- a
t-shirt, tightened around Pearl’s body by rubber-banding the loose part up above
her haunches. We start using this well in advance of July 4, so she acclimates
to it, without associating it directly with the explosions.
NOTE: D.A.P. (dog appeasing pheromones) diffusers have been used with some
success to calm anxious dogs whether the anxiety is situational, such as
fireworks phobias, or general/non-specific. Many dogs are comforted by this
pheromone, which is similar to that secreted by a nursing bitch to calm and
comfort her puppies. Diffusers must be used over a period of time to be
effective. One commonly available D.A.P. diffuser is marketed as Comfort Zone™
by Farnam Pet Products.
Reprinted with the permission of Fast Friends Greyhound
Adoption
