[brilkyPlayday]

One of my neighbors lost their GSD last Fourth of July. Got out and got hit on the highway.

Only one of mine is scared, the rest could care less. Casper likes them, but he is deaf!

[UnmariKam]

My dalmatian growing up was terrified of fireworks. She would run around the yard barking frantically her heart would race to the point we feared she may have a heart attack so we got sedatives from the vet and made sure to give her them. We gave her a decent dose and she was totally 'drunk' but if I dared leave the room she was in she would frantically get up to follow me falling all over the place. We found that closing all the curtians and leaving the tv on helped a lot though but it was sad. Thankfully Harley doesnt seem bothered in teh slightest. We have gone camping and set fireworks off right by camp and he didnt care and the local high school right around the corner set off a bunch after their graduation ceramony and he didnt even wake up but I plan to stay home with him since this is our first 4th with him, better safe than having a lost or hurt dog I think.

[VoriEremiagem]

Thank you for posting this. Don't get me wrong, I love the 4th of July but I hate when people light fireworks with their dogs in their yard or go to 4th of july parties with their dogs and lighting noisy fireworks.

It scares the crap out of the dogs. We light fireworks by my house but never get the noisy ones. I keep my dogs inside with the radio on. My cats go outside sometimes, but I never let them out around the 4th of July, they get scared enough hearing them in the house.

I know the 4th is a fun time for people, hey it is for us we like to barbecue around that time but they need to look out for their dogs around this time and keep them inside. This is when we get a lot of dogs in my shelter because their dogs get spooked.

[loikrso]

I'm not looking forward to opening my inbox on the 5th

[karkinadze]

For those of us who have youngsters who have not yet experienced a 4th of July, how can you make the fireworks a positive experience for them??

I definitely would like a dog who can handle the 4th without being sedated as an adult..

[GrileVege]

For those of us who have youngsters who have not yet experienced a 4th of July, how can you make the fireworks a positive experience for them??

I definitely would like a dog who can handle the 4th without being sedated as an adult..

You can start desensitizing them to loud noises now. Start with a small bang, like cling a spoon on a pan, lightly. Since it's not a scary sound (just a small cling) the dog should simply be interested. Give it a treat.
Increase the loudness of it, once the dog is fine with you clinging the spoon and pan. You can bang two pans together. Every time something bangs, dog gets a treat for acting calmly.
Then, when he hears all those fireworks outside, he'll run to you looking for a treat lol.
Just my idea.

[GutleNus]

Here it is a week-long event and my dog is completely terrified of them.

He will spend each night indoors, in his safe spot (his bed), with the swamp cooler, and another fan, and TV on to mask the noise; on the worst couple of nights he will also be sedated.

Also important to get him out for lots of bathroom time before the crap starts, and also (LEASHED of course) about 1-2 AM because he will refuse to do any business after 5 or 6 in the evening when the first firecrackers start going off.

[id2008]

For those of us who have youngsters who have not yet experienced a 4th of July, how can you make the fireworks a positive experience for them??

I definitely would like a dog who can handle the 4th without being sedated as an adult..

Who else has a neighborhood besides me that light fireworks multiple nights the week of the 4th?

Whether you stay home or not, it is a good idea to keep your pets inside and turn cartoons or a rock radio station on NICE AND LOUD to help drown out the 'booms' and 'bams' going on outside. If you are home, don't get too hyped up about the fireworks or noise, I try and act like it's just any other ordinary day...break out the popcorn and watch your favorite noisy movies; if your dog is smart they will still hear and smell the fireworks but are comforted by a chill owner and stray pieces of popcorn.
OOH! ALSO, if your dogs love to chew give them their favorite chewies that day or right before dark, mine love raw knuckle bones strait from the freezer. Chewing keeps all my dogs preoccupied in all sorts of situations.

On rare occasion my small dogs go hide under the covers or in their open crates, but usually if I have the TV on they are able to tune-out the blasts going on. My danes on the other hand prick up their ears and look at me like, "what the heck?" from both the noise AND the smell; but soon after they all just conk-out for the rest of the night.

It has been years since I've driven anywhere to watch fireworks, there are enough people in a 25 mile radius launching rockets that I can just sit in the cul-de-sac for a couple hours with my own sparklers and check on my dogs as often as I feel comfortable.

I took one of my danes to a 4th of July parade one year, she was puzzled by the sirens going by and got enthusiastic when the horses went by; yet, was unfazed by children throwing those popper things in the street while waiting for the parade to start.

[MFSSCW2c]

This is totally off topic but I love your Danes!!!

Saw some guy while I was letting Lily blow off some steam at a field after herding lesson and some guy drove up looking for his yellow lab...

I had a really good 4th last year: road trip with the dogs out to the wilds of MT where there were zero fireworks and we watched MSIP perform The Tempest on the top of this gorgeous butte and then drank some beers with the actors. Happy safe dogs yay!

[MeeveStesia]

We live in apartment and people have been shooting off fireworks since friday night, mind you its prohinited to shoot them off inside the complex. There were some people in our building shooting them off from thier wooden balcony. Idiots. They are going to end up burning the place down. Then yesterday during the day thier kids were doing it. Sasha is a wreck and afraid to go outside. And believe me this week and next if we leave home Sasha is going with us. I'm not leaving her home alone with that kind of stuff going on. If they are going to burn down the place they aren't going to kill my dog in the process. Talked to management and they said they'd sent out a memo reminded evryone that fireworks are prohibited, but that won't do squat and our curtousy officer didn't do anything about it when they were doing it. Several neighbors called him while it was going on.
On the positive side Sasha is an indoor dog and never goes outside unleashed