Discussing The Best Ways To Keep Your Pets Happy, Healthy, And Safe This 4th Of July
As Americans, it’s important to celebrate the founding of our country every year on the 4th of July (aka Independence Day). With the 4th of July comes cookouts, backyard summer activities, and of course fireworks. While all of these things are fun for us, they can be dangerous for your pets. This article will discuss the many dangers that your pets face during the 4th of July weekend and how to best handle them.
An Important Holiday
Independence Day, also known as the 4th of July, is a federal holiday that commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence was signed by the second continental congress on July 4th, 1776 and it established America as an independent country. Therefore, we celebrate Independence Day every year on July 4th in honor of all those that fought and died for this beautiful country.
The Dangers Of The Holiday & The Solutions
Americans love to celebrate Independence Day with backyard cookouts, pool parties, and lots of fireworks. While these are all great things for people to enjoy, they’re not so enjoyable for our pets. We will break down all of the things you should watch out for this 4th of July and offer some solutions to keeping your pets safe from them.
Cookout/BBQ Foods
You can’t celebrate Independence Day without some backyard barbeque or cookout food! This includes things like hamburgers, hotdogs, corn on the cob, potato/macaroni salad, smoked meats, chips & dip, and more. While these are all delicious party foods, they can often be unhealthy for your pets.
Dangers:
Dogs and cats can’t digest certain foods the way we can. This is especially true when it comes to spices. Spices, such as onion and garlic, are often used in things like grilled meats and vegetables or various dips and sauces. Burgers, hot dogs, and cheese can also give your pets serious digestive issues such as pancreatitis.
Solutions:
Don’t give your pets any table scraps. If you’re having a cookout or bringing your pet to a cookout, make everyone at the party aware that your dog or cat is not allowed to have table scraps.
Fireworks
Nothing says 4th of July like fireworks! Fireworks are a staple of Independence Day tradition and you can find people shooting them off practically everywhere on 4th of July weekend. It’s hard to deny how beautiful and captivating fireworks can be. However, they are also excessively loud.
Dangers:
Dogs have incredible hearing and can hear high frequencies of sound up to 70 to 100k Hz, according to the University of Adelaide. By comparison, humans can only hear high frequency noises up to 20k Hz. This means dogs can hear sound frequencies at least three times better than humans. While this is usually a good thing, it’s quite terrible during firework season. Many dogs experience a great deal of fear and anxiety when fireworks are going off. This often results in dogs acting anxious or running away entirely.
Solutions:
There are several different things you can do to help keep your pets calm and less stressed out during the 4th of July weekend. Thundershirts are good for keeping dogs relaxed when exposed to loud noises. You can also use sedatives such as Acepromazine and Trazodone to help keep your pets calm and relaxed. Be sure to consult with your veterinarian first before giving your pet any kind of sedatives. CBD oils and CBD treats are also a good way to keep your pets calm and relaxed during fireworks. For more information regarding CBD oil for pets, check out the American Kennel Club website.
Heatstroke
Heatstroke is a very serious illness that occurs when the body can no longer control its temperature. Essentially, the body’s temperature rises, the sweating mechanism ceases to work, and the body is unable to properly cool down. Heatstroke can have serious side effects on both you and your pets.
Dangers:
Considering Independence Day is in July, you can expect sunny weather and hot temperatures. Because your pets will be exposed to the hotter weather, your pets are at risk of getting heatstroke. Being covered in fur certainly doesn’t help.
Solutions:
Be sure to provide your pets with a designated place for them to stay cool. If outdoors, be sure to have some kind of shaded area for them to cool off. If indoors, we recommend having some kind of air conditioning or fans for circulation. Keep a watchful eye on your pets to look for signs of heatstroke such as heavy panting, excessive drooling, vomiting, drowsiness, and lethargic/uncoordinated behavior.
A Fun & Safe Holiday
We hope you found this article helpful and informative regarding pet safety for this upcoming 4th of July weekend. We hope you and your furry family have a fun and safe weekend this Independence Day. For more helpful pet themed articles like this, click here to be taken to the blog section on the official ParaMount Pet Care website. Happy 4th of July to you and your pets!
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