Dealing with your dog’s fear of firecrackers

Let’s face it, for most of us Diwali is an occasion to be looked forward to with dread more than any other emotion. The sight of one’s pet trembling, hiding, refusing food, trying to run away and generally getting stressed out of his mind does not inspire joy, to put it mildly.

I asked canine behaviour consultant Shirin Merchant how to make the whole experience less traumatic for our dogs (and ourselves!) She sent me an excellent chart which I’ve posted here.

• It is not uncommon for dogs to be hesitant, or even frightened by loud noises.

• Often a dog will react to a noise as a direct reflection of his human companion. If you show fear, act nervous or scared of a loud noise, your dog will pick up on your subtle signals and learn that loud noises are to be feared. It can take only one incident for a dog to get scared of loud noises. A dog’s ears are sensitive, and loud noises can hurt them.

• Do not praise your dog when he shows fear of loud noises. If you do, you are not only praising him for being frightened, but you are making it more likely that he will be frightened the next time a loud noise happens. Many well-meaning dog owners increase their dog's anxiety by stroking, cuddling, and saying "It's OK" when their dogs act nervous. Instead spend some quality time with your dog being fun and playful. Try and distract him away from the noise.

• If your dog is already afraid of loud noises, then a process of desensitization will help. Desensitizing your dog involves exposing your dog to low-volume noises. Gradually increasing the noise level while giving him something pleasurable such as praise and a food treat. Over a period of time your dog will get used to the noise. This process is best carried out under the supervision of a canine behaviour counselor.

• Dogs instinctively seek out confining spaces when frightened. If your dog hides under the bed or behind a cupboard don’t drag him out in an attempt to comfort him. Instead put some clothing or towels with your familiar scent next to the dog for reassurance. It would also help if you play soothing, easy listening music relatively loud to help drown out the fear-producing noise.

• In severe cases of the dog being frightened, drugs and homeopathy can help your canine companion. You MUST consult your vet before attempting to give any drugs to your dog.

• Firecrackers can harm pets. Be extremely cautious when lighting firecrackers around animals. The gunpowder in firecrackers is potentially toxic to pets if they eat it. Also, there is always a danger of a dog getting hurt or burned if fireworks are accidentally shot at them.

For more information contact “Canines Cane Care” at k9cancare@hotmail.com

Note on homeopathy: We've found the remedy Borax 1M useful in reducing fear of loud noises. I described how to use it in my earlier post on homeopathy.

Some more homeopathy

Hi, it’s great to be part of such a committed group and thanks for inviting me. I’m particularly thrilled you are all interested in homeopathy! I’ve been lucky enough to have worked with a brilliant homeopath called Dr Padam for the last ten years. She cured a semi-paralysed kitten I had, which the vets told me to euthanize. Seeing the kitten racing around the house shortly after, of course I roped her in to help with stray dogs admitted at WSD. We also run a clinic for pets once a week. Thanks to her I’ve learnt not to give up on any animal. No, we certainly can’t cure them all, but the number of near-death cases we’ve pulled out is so astonishing, it makes you want to give them all a chance, because you can’t tell which ones will make it.

I went through your comments and lists of remedies, all of which are more or less what we use as well. Except we generally use higher potencies, 200 or 1M. Also Dr Padam is a classical homeopath so she takes a lot of time figuring out a single remedy which will work for a combination of symptoms, rather than using mixtures of medicines. In the first stage we treat only based on symptoms, but when the acute phase of the problem is over, she goes to the next stage of determining each patient’s unique constitution and finding their constitutional remedy. It’s fun watching pet-owner’s faces when she asks them to describe their dog or cat or parrot’s nature. You can tell no doctor ever asked them that before and they’re wondering whether we are a couple of lunatics. Even the kind of detailed symptoms homeopaths want to know about seem weird and outlandish to newcomers. I remember this Labrador with a skin problem. His owner listened with an increasingly uneasy expression while the doc asked him whether his dog smelt of mouldy cheese, fried eggs or a rotting corpse. Now I come to think of it, that man never came back. Pity.

Just wanted to tell you about our experiences and some remedies we use:

• Staphysagria 200/1M to heal surgical or other lacerated wounds. We give 3 doses daily.
  
• We use Phosphorus in the 200 potency for bleeding from wounds and cuts. We give it every 15 minutes to begin with, and once the bleeding reduces, we increase the time gap between doses to 30 minutes, then one hour, then 2 hours, then 4 hours and so on. We discontinue once the bleeding stops. I never saw a bleeding dog or cat who didn’t respond to this remedy. However, we don’t use it for nose-bleeds (unless the nose has a cut) or for bloody urine, as there are better remedies for those.
• Borax 1M. We use it for animals who are terrified of sudden loud noises, read Diwali crackers. In Mumbai we now have these war zone sound effects sporadically throughout the year, thanks to different religious festivals, cricket matches won or lost(!), weddings, you name it. For the really scared cases, we start giving one dose daily three or four weeks before the Biggest Noise day. Closer to Biggest Noise day, we increase to two doses daily. On Biggest Noise Day, it’s three or four doses. This won’t make a pet fearless, but it usually at least makes them functional – I mean, they will eat at least once a day and generally be a bit calmer. I’d like feedback from anyone who tries this remedy. While most animals respond, I do know a few on whom it had no effect. But it’s worth trying as at worst it won’t harm.
• At WSD we use China 30 to cure anaemia as well as dehydration. We give about 4 doses a day.
• We use Ledum in 1M for bites from an animal. We give just three doses on the day of the bite or the next day. We also take it ourselves if we get bitten. Ledum Pal Q (mother tincture) is also poured on the wound.
• We also use Ignatia 1M for grief and shock. An animal who has lost a beloved human or animal companion should be given three doses as a precaution. I’ve seen dogs develop skin disease, anaemia, hyperthyroidism and even bone marrow failure shortly after suffering such losses. In fact it’s also a great remedy for people in similar circumstances.
• Cantharis 1M for burns. We pour Cantharis Q externally on the burn.
• We use Cina in the 1M potency for deworming. One dose a day for 3 consecutive days.
• Ferrum Phos 6X is biochemic and very good for anaemia. We give 6 pills twice a day and also use the allopathic iron tonic RBTone.
  

Rescue Remedy - not homeopathic, but a Bach Flower Remedy. It’s best to get it in its pure form, which means you should order on the net or ask friends in the UK to send it to you. We give 2 drops with every dose of the prescribed homeopathic remedy, for cases who are in shock or collapse.

By the way, we use most medicines in liquid form. One dose = one or two drops in one teaspoon of water. We don’t give it in any food except milk, and we leave an hour’s gap between the dose and any meal.

A word of caution: a common mistake is getting fanatical about any school of medication, whether allopathy or homeopathy. It’s crazy to stick to either just on principle but believe it or not, many people do. It’s best to figure which is best for each individual case. My dog Lalee had canine distemper in 2001, and I first had her treated with high antibiotics and then got her congested lungs treated homeopathically. My second dog Bandra was diagnosed with cancer, which had spread to the liver. He was also dangerously hypothyroid. I’ve been giving him allopathic Thyroxine daily, which put him completely back on his feet. He was given only homeopathy for the cancer, which seems to be in remission judging by his lack of symptoms, good blood count and healthy appearance.

Signing off with a picture of Bandra, giving a kind of soulful look he’s very good at. Sorry, he is NOT up for adoption.

Homeopathic Medicines for Animals - redux

I am pasting below an old post that Yasmine made in our cat blog. If you are an animal lover and it is possible, please carry with you a homeopathy kit all the time. the tubes are small and can easily fit in your purse or in your backpack.

Always be careful while approaching stray animals. If you are not sure about the animal being friendly, just mix it in water and make sure they lap it up. or hide it in a treat so they can gobble it up. Homeopathy medications come in small sugar pellet that has been coated with a very diluted version of the medicine.

always check re dosage/potency if you do administer these first aid medications.

I will keep updating on this subject as and when I learn more about it.

Yasmine on catsofbangalore

Sujatha Karanth of DIYA (Do it yourself Activists) has come up with excellent homeopathic medicines for animals that everyone can use. I try to carry a bag of them with me wherever I go.
1.Injury 30 -for cuts, wounds etc. Give twice a day or more depending on the extent.
2.Gunpowder30-for deep wounds.
3.Shock -To help an animal in shock, treat fear etc.
4.Hypericum 30 or above -For spinal injuries, paralysis of the hind legs etc..start as soon as possible for best results. It works...lame animals begin to walk again!
5.Sulphur 30-For all skin related problems
6.Camphor 30 -to treat maggot infested wounds.
7.Hekla Lava- for gum infections.
8. Arnica-For pain.
9. Cinna 6x-for deworming.

The medicines can be mixed in the water bowl of the cats and/or mixed in the food. If your cat allows, with shredding your hands, you can hold them and toss a few of the pills into their mouth and hold shut for a few seconds....if you succeed, tell me how you did it!!

Potency can be increased depending on the extent of the trauma/disease etc...

Harish Homeo House on Bowring Hospital road is the place I go to.It is really good.