New Year’s Eve calls for a celebration with loved ones to ring in the new year, and for many of us this includes fireworks. Beyond the beauty of fireworks for us, the loud bangs and flashes of lights can be frightening for our pets. Here are some tips from us on how to minimise your pet’s stress on the night:
Calming sounds and videos
- Spotify and Apple Music – If you search for “firework calming” you’ll be met with a great selection of desensitising playlists for animals.
- YouTube – This is another great tool to use during fireworks , if you search for “calming music for animals fireworks”, a variety of videos will come up, including some that are up to 20 hours long so you don’t have to worry about the video stopping at the wrong time.
- White noise machine – these devices offer many different settings to choose and lets you select a suitable volume.
- Putting on the TV during fireworks – This can also be helpful in masking the loud bangs.
Providing a safe place
A lot of animals will want to burrow and hide away when they feel frightened so as owners, we should make a place where they feel safe to do this.
- Finding a spot – Pick a room that you know your pet will feel comfortable in, perhaps a bedroom or spare room and set their bed up in here.
- Utilising their bed – Fill their bed with a blanket and even some cushions to make it as cosy as possible. You could also use a blanket to make a fort around your pet’s bed, this can help them feel even safer.
- Closing the curtains – This will help block out the flashes of light from fireworks
- Leave them be – Though it might be tempting to lure your pets out of their safe place once you know the fireworks have stopped, but you should let them come out when they’re ready
Outside time
Pets need their outside time for exercise and going to the toilet, so if you’re unsure whether to let them out at all during New Years Eve, you definitely should.
- Going out earlier in the day. If your cat goes out exploring at night time or you normally take your dog for a walk later in the day, we recommend you try to schedule these times earlier to avoid fireworks going off while your pets are outside.
- Providing a litter tray. If your cat usually uses the toilet outside, we recommend introducing a litter tray for nights like New Years Eve so they have somewhere to go to the toilet if they’re too scared to venture out.
- Making sure your pets are microchipped and has a tag on their collar, with your contact information on it. If your pet does get out during the fireworks and runs off in a panic, it’s important you have taken these measures so they can be returned to you if they get lost.
It’s important for you to remain calm if your pet is stressed, shouting at your pet if they’re acting out because of the fireworks will not help the situation, and can frighten your pet further. Follow these tips and be a good support system for your pet, and you won’t have to worry too much come New Years Eve.
