The dog's sense of hearing is much more developed than ours, which means that it is much more sensitive to sound than we are. Firecrackers, if they are already annoying for many people, they are even more so for our friend. However, during the holidays it is very common for young people especially to buy, so there is no choice but to calm the furry.
Achieving it can be difficult, but not impossible. There are a number of things that we do not have to do, as we will now see, but there are others that will be very important. Let us know how to calm a dog's fear of firecrackers.
What is acustophobia?
Acustophobia is the fear of noise. Anyone can have it, have two legs or four legs. It occurs when we begin to relate that sound as a threat, when in reality it does not pose any danger, which is what usually happens to dogs.
These animals do not understand what pyrotechnics is, or why firecrackers are thrown, or why there is so much noise. All they know is that that sound makes them feel anxious.
How can we help our dog?
Trying to be as calm as possible. It is very important that we continue with our routine so that the furry man sees that he really does not have to be afraid, because his human continues to lead a normal life, as always. The dog is an animal that needs to follow a routine to feel good, so during the holidays we should not change anything in our day to day.
It is normal for a dog with fear and / or anxiety to be very nervous, to hide under the table, to cry or even to bark desperately. But even though I know it sounds very harsh, ignore him as much as possible and above all, keep calm.
Humans calm each other with hugs, words of encouragement, etc., but if we behave like this with the furry, what we will be doing is reward their behavior; that is, we will be telling you that being nervous or feeling fear is okay.
To help you, what we can do is put on relaxing music: go for a walk in a quiet area. If the latter is not possible, an alternative is to start play with him. This way, you stop paying attention to the noise. In addition, a collar (or diffuser) that relaxes you can also be very helpful, which we can find for sale in animal products stores.
If the dog becomes really very nervous and is seen to be having a very bad time to the point that he cannot avoid relieving himself at home and stopping eating, we will have to contact a trainer who works positively.