4th Of July..yikes

[maura]

Yes It Is That Time Of Year Again. I Heard Somewhere Along The Line That This Is The Time Where Alot Of People Lose Their Pets Due To All The Fireworks. I Have A Puppy 4 Months Old And A 10 Month Old Cat. Yes I Know This Isnt The Cat Discuss Lol ...but How Can I Make It So They Are Calm And Not All Freaked Out. Is It A Good Idea To Bring The Puppy Up To The Mountains Here In Utah To Watch The Fireworks With Us . Or Should We Leave Him At Home. Any Good Ideas On How You Guys Made Everyone In Your House Have A Great 4th Of July? Thanks And I Hope Everyone Has A Great 4th And Takes A Second To Remember What It Is All About Besides Beer And Brauts. Lol =)

[wyattabby]

I'd say bring him along but keep his leash on. the first time wyatt saw fireworks as a puppy we were on the beach together and he was fine and watched everything going on. now i've noticed when he's inside it freaks him out

[maura]

Right On. We Really Wanted To Take Him With So We Will. He Is A Really Mellow Guy Just Kind Of Takes Things As They Come And The Majority Of The Time He Is To Lazy To Care. But That Is A English Bullie For Ya. Hope Your 4th Is Great !

[wyattabby]

Right On. We Really Wanted To Take Him With So We Will. He Is A Really Mellow Guy Just Kind Of Takes Things As They Come And The Majority Of The Time He Is To Lazy To Care. But That Is A English Bullie For Ya. Hope Your 4th Is Great !

likewise. i envy you..my gf's english bulldog is...well to put it politely a mess! haha he is not the lazy mellow dog she thought she was getting that's for sure.

have a good and safe 4th :)

[pbrdog]

I'm glad Luke doesn't freak out. He just watches the fireworks and doesn't even flinch at the booms. Probably just thinks it's a gunshot. :)

[DiggityDogs]

Yeah, I personally think it's good to expose dogs to things like that, but you might try to prepare him for it by using a cd or something, kinda like we recommended for bixie and her staffie who's scared of loud noises. That way you can ease him into it instead of throwing him on the fire- you could end up in a situation like bixie is now. She said the thing that triggered her dog's problem was fireworks, so just take it easy and try to prepare him as best you can. If he gets scared of the noises, don't coddle him, just try to walk him around and get him moving to take his mind off of it. I use a free program called limewire to download sound effects that I use to train my dogs, you can get everything from thunderstorms to fireworks, gunshots and police sirens. Just google 'limewire', download the software, and search for 'sound effects' and take your pick! Limewire is shareware, so it's free to download the sounds, just be aware that there could be copyright issues, some of the files have licenses and some don't. I think you're fine as long as you don't make copies and sell them, but don't take my word for it, use it at your own risk!

[GSP4619]

I got lucky also Ava is great around fireworks.

[DiggityDogs]

If she was trained for hunting previous to your having her she was probably trained to be gun safe- meaning she was trained to hear gunfire without getting upset, since hunting dogs will be exposed to lots of gunshots. That would make fireworks no big deal for her at all! If she wasn't trained for it, lucky you! My dogs get alittle nervous with that kind of thing but they do OK. My boxer is more likely to go on alert and start looking for bad guys if he hears fireworks, my doberman would probably try to hide. :rolleyes:

[GSP4619]

LOL @ your boxer looking for the bad guy. Can she it now him on his hind legs with that boxing stance they do saying come on, I'm ready put em up LOL.

Yes I think your right and she points out birds realy strong. I still can not imagine why that family gave her to the SPCA :( . But I look at it this way, I am glad because I am the one who gets to have all the good times with her :) .

[maura]

Love Limewire ! And We Ahve Been Trying To Expose Him To A Little Bit Of Everything But Thaks For All Your Great Ideas!! hope Your 4th Rocks!! OUR LITTLE GUY IS REALLY REALY MELLOW. OUR CAT TRIED TO PLAY WITH HIM TODAY AND BAMPED HIM ON MAX'S NOSE AND THE DOG DIDNT EVEN CARE OR BUST A MOVE TO CHASE THE CAT. WE THINK IT IS A RIOT AND THANKS FOR ALL YOUR ADVICE. WE ARE GONNA TAKE HIM =)

[ClarkFarm]

I'd take him too, as long as dogs are permitted and he has a secure collar and leash on.

Just remember that though he may accept the noise of fireworks now, next year he may not like them at all.

lol, just had to add ... my old dog, a GSD, hated the sound of gunfire. If someone were even to pick up and/or carry a gun, she would hide behind me yet she never minded fireworks. My sister in law's dog is the opposite... she hates fireworks but doesn't flinch around gunfire.

[DiggityDogs]

Yeah, some dogs definitely go one way or the other. I think the lights from the fireworks also play a role in that fear. I used to have a dog that was scared of fireworks, but not gunfire as well, but I've haven't yet seen a dog who's been gun-trained that's been scared of fireworks. There may be some out there, I just haven't met one. My neighboring business (next door to my dog training facility) got robbed the other morning at about 8am. The owner of the place, an automotive shop, whipped out a shotgun and fired off two rounds at the guy. I heard the shots and knew immediately that it was a shotgun, but only one of my dogs even flinched. (the chihuahua) They weren't really upset over the situation until all of the ambulances/police/firetrucks/news crews showed up. Then they were barking hysterically. A couple of people made mention of the fact that they could see why it wasn't me that got robbed- I had a 65lb pissed off boxer and a 75 lb barking doberman in my lobby. I just smiled and said 'yep, that's why I have em'!

[wyattabby]

how did it turn out for you maura?

mine not so good..my siberian got freaked out and messed in his kennel which made him sick the entire night and i was up taking him out every 2 hours. the pepto seems to have resolved that though.

our bulldog..he "FREAKED" out when i was taking him out with my other dog abby (who was fine and looking at him like he was retarded for spazzing out) he pulled out of his collar and ran home.

aren't bulldogs considered "watch dogs"? he's still a puppy but i've never seen such a skittish dog haha

[GSP4619]

awwwww poor guy. Well thank goodness it is all over he can have some peace.

[maura]

He Sat Up In Our Laps And Watched Every Display In The Valley . If He Could Ahve Ooooo'ed And Ahhhhh'ed With Us He Would Have. No Bad Reaction At All. We Did Keep Him Super Close And Had Him On Our Laps. He Loved It Cuz Of All The Kids And Really Did Turn His Head And Watch Each Display. We All Laughed Each Time. Sat There Just Like A Person.