Help your dog during fireworks

Help your dog during fireworks


Dogs are more than just a pet, they are a member of the family. They are there to greet you at the door, tails wagging and full of love and happiness. They are your companions, right by your side through thick and thin... dogs are keenly aware of your emotional state and are always looking to comfort and support you when you need them. So, when they need you... you need to be there for them.

Many dogs need help during fireworks and other fourth of July celebrations.

Dogs get scared during 4th of July celebrations because of the fireworks. According to many Veterinarians, dogs tend to get very scared during celebrations because of the noise, smells and flashing lights of the fireworks.

Many dogs tend to act out of character and can even become very aggressive during these celebrations, which can occur nightly and randomly in your area for several weeks.

Many dogs are sensitive to the knocking of a door, a ringing doorbell, motorcycles, vacuum cleaners and several other loud and aggressive noises. They get scared and sometimes start to act strangely or even aggressively towards the source of the noise. This type of behavior can be amplified during times of celebration involving fireworks to the point that the dog begins quivering in fear and just wants to hide. If your dog tends to react to loud noises, then fireworks may be a problem for them.

Dogs do not just get frightened during the large city displays of Chicago or New York. It can also happen during the smaller fireworks displays from the suburbs and smaller towns. Many dogs can also experience fear and anxiety when the neighbor next door has some fireworks for their family to enjoy or even when you do.

It can be a confusing and frightful time for you dog.

Your dog may look to you for help and you not being able to help them may further confuse and frighten them. This can be made much worse for your dog if they are left alone while you are celebrating the holiday with friends and family.

Being alone and unable to get any kind of support from you can increase the level of stress for your dog immensely. Many dogs will try to hide from the source of the noise because they simply do not understand what it is, and it is extremely loud and invasive to their sensitive ears.

Without a way to help your dog during these celebrations, they will have a very stressful and potentially, traumatizing evening. This is not only a troublesome thing for your dog to go through, but also a stressful and difficult thing for you to know that your dog is scared, and you cannot help them.

However, all is not lost...

We will discuss several options that may help your dog have a happier, healthier and calmer time during fireworks, celebrations and gatherings. But first, let's discuss what behavior to be on the lookout for so you can best help when your dog gets scared from fireworks.

Scary Dog Behavior:

Many dogs will have very shaky tails, they may pee on the floor, shake and quiver, soil themselves, hide, cower, be aggressive or try to bite their owners or family members.

They may try to hide behind furniture, in closets or any other place they can get your scent and feel safer. Many dogs will become very destructive during these times, chewing through walls, doors, shoes and anything they can get their paws on. Some dogs do not do any of these things but remain quiet and refuse to come out from under the bed or other furniture.

Dogs that are very scared may try to desert their owners and run away. We don't want that to happen and neither does your dog!

If you have been trying to train your dog to be calmer, this is a difficult time to try to train them. Just be aware of your dog's reactions during these events and remember, if your dog is not afraid to you, that is the best sign. However, should your dog exhibit signs of fear when loud noises are present, there is a distinct possibility that they will be very frightened at the sound of fireworks being used in your area.

Here are a few tips to help your dog stay calm:

What to do If Your Dog Is Scared During Fireworks:

a) Sit beside your dog and if possible, pet them, give them some gentle, loving attention and make eye contact. Try to stay calm yourself, don't raise your voice while trying to calm your dog down, they are relying on you to be strong and open the doors of communication.

b) Be as physical and visible as you can, so your dog will have a visual memory of you and feel safe. Have your dog see and smell you.

c) Try to keep your dog away from the source of noise or intrusion. Try to have them stay in a quiet room somewhere where they cannot hear the fireworks or other types of noise. Dogs have extremely sensitive hearing and even one burst of fireworks can be very frightening to them.

d) If you cannot be physically beside your dog, leave them in a room with a source of your scent or leave on item in the kennel with them. A t-shirt, pillow or blanket could be a good option, unless your dog chews things when nervous. If that is the case, a choking hazard will supersede the need for comfort from the item and you should not leave the item where they can reach it.

e) A Thundershirt® may be an excellent option as well, to make sure your dog is mentally in tune with you and has a sense of security from the sound. These may provide some comfort to dogs during thunderstorms and may also help calm frightened dogs during fireworks.

f) Veterinarians can offer medications for dogs that suffer from anxiety. Many of these are just human varieties such as Prozac and Xanax, however drugs are not always appropriate and generally have negative side effects. Also, realize some of these medications will be addictive and can lead to withdraw for your dog when stopping them.

All of the suggestions above are possible solutions for your dog. However, you may have been told to try a CBD product or read that they may help and are curious about them.

However, it is important to note that the FDA has not approved CBD use for animals. They are currently evaluating the safety and potential health benefits CBD may offer, so we encourage you to talk with your veterinarian before trying any CBD product for your dog.

Hemp based CBD typically contains a wide range of terpenes, cannabinoids and naturally occurring nutrients that may help your dog, however, some CBD products could have ingredients that are not good for your dog, so please do your research.

If CBD is new to you, Mellow Mammals CBD products are very high quality and created specifically for dogs. All of our products are organically-grown and non-GMO. Our hemp is grown in the United States on small, family-owned farms and tested for low levels of THC.

We also test our hemp to ensure no pesticides, heavy metals or contaminants are present. Every batch of every product is also tested multiple times to ensure potency, safety and quality are all met.

Mellow Mammals takes your dogs health very seriously and unlike other CBD companies that cater to the human population and "Oh, by the way... have a CBD product for your dog," our focus IS your dog. We understand that dogs are different than cats, cats are different than horses and all of these animals are different than a human being.

We consult with veterinarians for product development that is tailored to the needs and makeup of the particular animal we are targeting for the product, unlike most human brands that simply slap a different label on one of their products and sell it for dogs.

At Mellow Mammals, our focus is the animal's health and well-being. We understand that Dogs are VERY sensitive to the effects of THC and if they are exposed to too much THC, it will lead to a frightening experience for your dog that can be very traumatizing. That is why we remove the THC from all of our quick-absorption products, such as oils. Our focus is on helping your dog, not presenting a potential nightmare situation for them.


At Mellow Mammals, we love to hear the stories of people using CBD for their animals and we are happy to help however we can. Please do not hesitate to reach out with questions, concerns or stories about using CBD for your dogs. You can Send us an email, contact us on our website: www.mellowmammals.com, or through Facebook: MellowMammals.

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