It's That Time Of Year Again...

Here in the UK we're once more about to fall headlong into the annual firework 'season'.

I know it's not the case in many parts of the world, but even if where you live you don't have fireworks at this time of year, chances are you *do* have them at some point, so what I'm about to say will still be relevant when that time comes.

Although I've written about this topic several times before I want to come at it from a slightly different angle this year.

Because of Molly's achilles tendon injury I've been an extremely regualr patron of my local vet's surgery these last couple of months. (For the benefit of new subscribers my family re-housed a 2 year old greyhound called Molly towards the end of August. Less than a week later she managed to tear her achilles tendon. She was stitched and bandaged for a few weeks. The bandages came off for a few days but then had to go back on again as her whole leg swelled up with acute tendonitis. The bandages finally came off again at the end of last week - thank goodness! For the whole of this time the dressings have had to be changed every 5 - 7 days so I've been in and out of the vets like a yo-yo. All the nurses and receptionists now treat Molly as if she was theirs and I think she's become the unofficial surgery mascot!)

When I was in the surgery last week I noticed they had no less than 5 different leaflets and pamphlets about 'animals and fireworks'. I picked up one of each.

One was of particular interest to me as it was all about using pheromones to induce calm in dogs. This is something I've heard about before but have never tried using on any of my dogs so cannot comment from personal experience. However, those people I've spoken to in the past who have used it have all spoken highly of the technique. I'm going to quote now from a leaflet from Ceva Animal Health Ltd. Their website is www.dap-pheromone.com but unfortunately there doesn't seem to be much happening there at the moment. It still seems to be under construction. (Can't help thinking they rather missed the boat on that front, seeing as Bonfire Night's only a few days away now.) -

Dog Appeasing Pheromone

"In mammals, all lactating females release substances called 'appeasing' pheromones, the function of which is to reassure the offspring. Canine 'appeasing' pheromones are secreted by the bitch 3 to 5 days after the puppies' birth. The substance is produced by the sebaceous glands in the inter-mammary cleft.

"This enhances attachment between the puppy and its mother and provides reassurance and comfort.

"As the puppy explores its environment it encounters new stimuli which set off emotional reactions. The puppy tends to react by looking for contact with its mother. The appeasing pheromone acts by stabilising the emotional state of the puppy.

"Research has shown that the reassuring properties of canine appeasing pheromones persist even into adulthood. They appear to modulate both emotional state and social interaction throughout the dog's life.

"Resulting from veterinary research, D.A.P. (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) can help your dog in a number of stressful situations. D.A.P. mimics the properties of the natural appeasing pheromones of the bitch. By replicating this signal of well-being, D.A.P. helps to alleviate fear and stress related signs in the puppy and the adult dog.

"D.A.P. helps stop fear and stress related signs in adult dogs such as destruction, vocalisation, house soiling and excessive licking.

"D.A.P. comforts the dog in stressful environments (visitors, strangers, visits to the vet, novel and unpredictable situations).

"D.A.P is an easy to use plug-in diffuser, which continuously releases the active ingredient into the dog's environment and allows trouble free treatment for approximately four weeks.

"D.A.P. is a natural solution. There is no sedative effect, and the dog's ability to interact and play is maintained.

"The beneficial effect of D.A.P. in puppies and adult dogs may be observed within the first week of use.

"In clinical trials, destructive behaviour and vocalisation were improved or resolved by 72% and 85% respectively.

"Clinical trials show an 80% improvement in the clinical signs of fear of fireworks most frequently observed by the owners (panting, trembling, cowering, hiding)."

The leaflet suggests you should actually plug in the D.A.P. diffuser two weeks before the anticipated problem. So the implication is that it's too late to do it now to be in time for 5th Nov. However, my feeling is that if you know your dog absolutely hates fireworks and you're willing to try anything to help with that, don't worry that you're a bit late but get one asap. Put it this way - it's certainly not going to make matters any worse, so nothing ventured, nothing gained.

You need to plug the diffuser in the room the dog uses to rest and relax.

The leaflet goes on to give the following advice regarding the actual day of the event -

• Feed your dog a good meal which is rich in carbohydrate with added vitamin B6 mid to late afternoon so he has a full stomach over the evening (don't try this if your dog is prone to diarrhoea when it is scared or at other times). If necessary don't fed him at any other time in the day, which will ensure a good appetite

• Move your dog to a blacked out room at sundown with some toys and preferably things for you to do as well, so he is not abandoned in the room. Blacking out the room removes the potential for additional problems from flashing lights

• Put some music on, preferably something with a lot of constant drumbeats. It doesn't have to be loud as long as there is a constant distracting beat to the music

• Ignore the noises yourself and try to engage your pet in some form of active game

• Don't punish your dog when he is scared, it only confirms that there was something to be scared of

• Don't fuss or try to reassure your dog when he is scared as this rewards the behaviour

• Ignore any fearful behaviour that occurs for no good reason

• Make sure your dog is kept in a safe and secure environment at all times so that it doesn't bolt and escape if a sudden noise occurs

• After the event leave the D.A.P. diffuser plugged in for one week

This is all good advice which I endorse wholeheartedly.

The only comment I would make is to bear in mind it's not quite as simple as just being a one-night problem. Although you probably know the time and date of any organised fireworks events in your locality, there's no saying when individuals are going to choose for their own private fireworks parties. Added to which of course you have the completely unpredictable problem of kids piling out of the pubs late at night and letting fireworks off indiscriminately.

Where I live I reckon the firework 'season' lasts about a month, the first sporadic ones being let off as much as ten days or a couple of weeks before 5th Nov, then they eventually tail off somehwere around the third week of November.

One of the other leaflets I picked up at the vet was for herbal remedies to induce calming. Scullcap and valerian tablets are supposed to keep dogs (and cats) relaxed throughout the whole fireworks period if given daily. And organic valerian compound is a quick acting product to reduce the trauma of a big fireworks night.

Unfortunately I can't tell you any more about either of these products - the leaflet didn't say anything else, and I have no previous personal experience of them. But you might want to speak to your own vet about it.

Night times in the UK will not be easy over the next few weeks for many dog owning families. I hope if yours is one of them some of the suggestions here will help alleviate the situation.

Recommended reading - "Dog Training Blueprint To Success".

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