Happy 4th July – Fireworks And Fears
Firstly Happy 4th July to all our USA furfriends.
Now as with lots of celebrations there are going to be fireworks. Fun for hoomans, not fun for furries. Whee don’t want to put a downer on the day but whee have quick warning to those with small furries. Whee piggies are very small so any loud sudden noise is terrifying for us. As prey animals whee are very good at hiding fear and stress but sudden things like fireworks can cause us to show the following signs of stress:
- Darting around, running at the walls
- Or freezing and staying completely still
- Wide, wild eyes
- Stiffened body
- Rapid breathing, almost panting
- Hiding in a corner head first. The if-whee-can’t-see-the-scary-thing, it-can’t-see-us mentality!
- Digging at the floor trying to cover ourselves with hay or bedding.
If you see these it’s best not to try to handle us because you could make it worse. Instead, if you are fully prepared you can make sure whee don’t get stressed and scared.
- Hutches/cages should be brought into a quiet room indoors, or into a garage or shed.
- If you cannot bring our hutch inside, you should turn it around so that it faces a wall or fence instead of the open garden. But really this is only if there is absolutely no other choice.
- Provide extra hideys and things to do. Hay stuffed tubes, veggies, herbs and cardboard boxes etc. make good distractions. Extra bedding for burrowing into is furry impawtent too.
- Play some low level soothing music, or louder music to disguise the sounds of the fireworks. In the days leading up to firework night you can play music to get us used to it. Whee almost always have the radio playing or the tv on so whee are comforted by the noises.
- Black out the windows and put the lights on. That way bright flashes won’t frighten us. If you cannot black out the windows it may be worth putting a thick blanket over the cage to block out the worst of it and give a sort of secure feel.
Lots of people think about the effect of fireworks on cats and dogs because the results are far more obvious but please think of your small furries before you leave to watch a display. Whee worry too.
Stay safe furfriends and once again, have a wonderful 4th July!
Nacho
xxxx
Posted on July 4, 2014, in Piggy Blogs and tagged cavies, cavy, cute, firework safety, fireworks, guinea pig, guinea pig blog, guinea pig blogger, guinea pigs, guinea pigs and fireworks, keeping pets safe, pet, pet blog, pet blogger, pets, pets and fireworks. Bookmark the permalink. 20 Comments.
Good luck, little buddies. Hang in there.
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Luckily whee don’t have it here but firework night always scares us lots
xxxx
That is some great advice Nacho,Bunnies get a bit like it too,but not me I’m fearless,xx Speedy
You are furry furry brave!
xxxx
Guud advice n werdz Nacho!!!
Yer a clever G-Piggie n we lubz ya oodlez 🙂
Lub Nylablue n Mum too x0x0x0x0x0
Thank you, whee loves you lots too
xxxx
We are sorry to have to share a horrible trait with you- the fear of loud noises. We can commiserate. It has been the loudest 4th ever.
It is furry scary. Whee hope you got through it ok
xxxx
Thanks for the great tips! We don’t like loud noises either.
They are furry scary but luckily it’s only a few days a year 🙂
xxxx
Pawsum posty. Hope all went well fuw ya’.
Luv ya’
Dezi
Luckily whee don’t have it hear but whee did think about the USA piggies and hoped they were happy and safe
xxxx
Meez hopes all da animals wus happy and safe. 🙂
Luv ya’
Dezi
Great advice guys
Thanks Misaki, whee certainly do our furry best!
xxxx
**blowz paw kissez** to Nacho n Noah; Buddy n Basil 🙂
Lub Nylablue ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
I have a suspicion that even fishies in their tanks do not enjoy the thud, thud, thud of stoopid hooman fireworks.
We moved Annabelle, MollySue and our new little boy, Gus, into the back room where they could not hear the fireworks for the 4th and they did well.
Great advice. As whee are indoors, whee are used to dance/club music and the hoover, so I am guessing that is why fireworks don’t tend to bother us.
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