KEEP YOUR PETS SAFE FROM FIREWORKS
Downright deafening and terrifying for animals
One of the most popular traditions of the Christmas/New Year holidays is the fireworks show that takes place at midnight on December 31 to signal the end of the year and the beginning of the new one.
This has become so entrenched that cities around the world have turned it into an official event, with cities such as Sydney, Australia being famous for their expensive and elaborate fireworks displays.
While fireworks are certainly impressive to behold, there is one group that finds them particularly less so and that is your pets.
According to the NSPCA, dogs and cats have a much higher hearing range than humans do. On their website, they list the human range as between approximately 20Hz and 23Hz, while dogs and cats can hear between 60Hz to 45Hz and 45Hz to 60Hz respectively.
They can also hear sounds at much lower decibels, with dogs able to hear roughtly five times more acutely than humans and cats being able to hear about twice as acutely as dogs. This is to say that what appear to be loud noises to us are downright deafening for our pets.
As Dr ME de Vries writes on the NSPCA website, an average firework sounds at least five times louder to animals than it does to us.
It is for this reason that the NSPCA goes out of its way every year to remind people to keep their pets safe when fireworks are expected to be used. They have also provided a neat list of safety tips to take to enusre their well-being during such a stressful situation.
The first thing they warn about is that pets may become so frightened during a fireworks display that they try to escape and run off.
The NSPCA encourages owners to ensure their pets have clear identification, such as a collar tag, that can be easily read. They also recommend staying at home with your pets to keep them company or, if that is not possible, to at least ensure they are kept in a room which they cannot escape from.
Owners can also take steps to dampen outside noises, such as drawing curtains or even playing calming music at a reasonable volume. While this won't completely eliminate the sound of fireworks outside, it will at least lessen their impact.
Another good idea is to make sure your pet has familiar and comforting things near at hand (or paw). Having some of their favourite toys (e.g. chewy bones for dogs, catnip for cats and so on) will also give them a nice distraction from what’s going on outside.
If possible, owners should stay home and take steps to dampen outside noises, such as drawing curtains and playing calming music