As the Fourth of July nears, University of Washington psychologist James Ha provides tips on how to calm dogs with noise phobia using three simple techniques - management, treatment and drugs.
The Fourth of July calls for major celebrations including fire crackers. This causes many concerns for pet owners, especially those with dogs that have noise phobia. It is common for such dogs to hide under the bed when they hear the sound of firecrackers. University of Washington psychologist James Ha says that this problem can be handled using three simple techniques - treatment, management and drugs.
Treatment
Special wraps are available for dogs. These wraps apply gentle acupressure replacing the feeling of fear with a more positive response to stimuli. Previously, Ha conducted a study about the effectiveness of one such wrap - The Anxiety Wrap.
"The Anxiety Wraps work for some dogs and they work for acute situations, or short-term situations," Ha said of the research, which was funded by the company that makes Anxiety Wrap. "The distinction is, most dog bites and aggression is related to fear and anxiety - of children, of cars, of men - it's a chronic thing. So the Anxiety Wrap is not going to work on those situations. It's not a magic solution for all forms of anxiety."
Counter-conditioning is another great way of keeping your dog calm during those noisy firecracker parades. Though it is time consuming, it is very effective, Ha states. Counter-conditioning is the act of training your dog to react in a positive way to a scary stimulus and then rewarding it for its behavior.
Management
Management includes isolating your dog from places that could cause it to act up. For the Fourth of July, Ha suggests locking up your dog in the basement with loud music so that it can't hear the sound of crackers. Another alternative would be taking your dog to a kennel that offers special Fourth of July programs. The psychologist says that dog owners should keep in mind that he/she chooses a kennel the dog is familiar with.
Drugs
A tried and tested method to deal with dogs with noise phobia is having a veterinarian prescribe an anti-anxiety drug. Though this is a very effective way of keeping your dog calm, Ha clarified that it's only a one time solution. The drug is also very helpful when you are trying to counter-condition your dog.
© 2025 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
