It’s difficult to know why some dogs are frightened during firework displays or thunderstorms – some reactivity may be caused by medical issues so a vet check up is a must. Then a focused plan of action for retraining your dog to create a new association about noises in your their brain. We explain how to proceed with training your noise reactive dog
Surely it’s the bangs, whooshes and rumbles? The noises?
Hmmm. Not always. It’s difficult to be sure in each case. It might not be the noise – some dogs may react to the electrical discharges in the air during thunderstorms, or to changes in barometric pressure, flashes of lightning, or even the smells associated with storms and fireworks.
You might also get noise reactivity if your dog is in pain, has gastro-intestinal problems or cognitive dysfunction (doggy dementia). Always ask for a full check up from your vet.
But all this makes it difficult to give advice that covers all eventualities and help every firework- or thunder-hating dog. What I do know for sure is that if nothing is done, these fears always get worse, unless you try to address them.
So what to do? First, prepare.
- Tell your family and friends what you are going to do and commit to it. You’ll need their help and support because it can be difficult to keep going with this training. You might forget one day – then that turns into two, then three, and weeks start to go by…
- Rather than say “I’m going to help my dog be less fearful with fireworks” say “I’m going to spend five minutes doing the training before breakfast every day.” A short, five minute session every day is far better than one long session a week. If you are specific and set up a habit you are more likely to do the training – and help your dog.
- Be prepared to improve the situation rather than cure it. Aim to help your dog cope better rather than expect them to enjoy it – you may still have to use some of the suggestions from my previous emails.
The basis of this approach is creating a new association in your dog’s brain. You want them to see these loud noises as nice rather than horrible. You’ll need bucketloads of patience and plenty of time – which is why I’d love you to start this training now.
This is how to proceed with the training:
1. Obtain a recording of the noise your dog hates – fireworks, storms, or whatever. If your dog hates many sounds, choose the one he finds the worst to start working with. You can download clips from YouTube or elsewhere online and Dogs Trust has a free “Sounds Scary” pdf and downloadable sound packages on their website which you can find here: https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/help-advice/dog-behaviour-health/sound-therapy-for-pets
2. Gather some treats your dog adores, that they find irresistible
3. Start your training session. Play the sound very low – at a level where you can’t see any reaction from your dog. Your aim is for your dog to be relaxed.
4. Every time the sound happens, reward your dog with their favourite treat.
5. Once your dog is ignoring the sound at that level looking to you happily for their treat, and has done for the past three sessions, increase the volume the tiniest amount and restart the training.
Please ask us for help if you are unsure about how to carry out this training – because getting it wrong can make things worse.
Next time I’ll talk about why prevention is better than cure – and how to do it.
Keep training and stay safe,
Carol
