Help Your Dog Cope With Diwali Sounds With These Tips

Pet Care

oi-Anwesha

By Anwesha Barari

Wednesday, October 19, 2011, 11:55

Dogs are sensitive to sound because it makes them anxious. Your dog is not going to like the ear splitting noise of bursting crackers. So for Diwali 2011 you need help your dog cope with sounds of fire crackers that are burst in abundance. Here are some pet care tips that will come in handy.

Tips To Help Your Dog Cope With Sounds This Diwali:

• Once you get past Diwali 2011 or even before, it is a good idea to start thinking about desensitising your dog to fireworks so that he can cope better the next time.
• Desensitization programs will not just work overnight and require lots of time and patience to be effective.
• You can buy CDs or tapes of fireworks sounds to help with this. These fireworks sounds for dogs should initially be played at a very low volume so you can barely hear them.
• While playing the sounds give your dog something enjoyable such as his Pedigree food, a treat or simply play with him. Repeat this for short periods several times per day.
• As long as your dog shows no negative reactions you can very gradually increase the volume over progressive sessions. With time your dog should stop associating the sounds with something scary and will begin to associate them with pleasant experiences such as eating.
• It may help in more serious cases to seek expert advice to help deal with these problems. The best way to find help is to ask you vet who can then give you an individual treatment program tailored to you and your dog.
• In extreme cases your vet may suggest prescribing drug treatment to help your dog cope with his fear of fireworks.
• Remember, drug treatment should only be used with veterinary advice. However, this is just a temporary solution and will not actually cure the problem.

Do"s & Don"ts For Stray Animals For Diwali 2011

• Do not tease them by tying crackers with their tails. Our fun can lead to the poor animal"s death.
• Do not throw lighted crackers at them. Also do not flung puppies or kittens into burning crackers. They can suffer significant burns and body damage.
• Do not terrorise dogs with fireworks, induced with fear they may run into the traffic and get injured.
• Bring to the notice of local / concern authorities in case you find a injured animal in your locality or on road.
• Help any animals on the road into your garden or garage and put food and water for them.
• Volunteer with a shelter homes for stray animals and help them for any emergencies.
• Burst crackers in a limited and a centralised location so that animals can be restricted or kept away from the place during the fireworks.

Help your dog deal with the sounds of Diwali positively.