Keeping pets safe
If you are concerned about your pet being disturbed due to fireworks, you should consider the following:
Cats
- Keep your cat indoors;
- Close all windows and curtains;
- Leave your cat to take refuge in the corner if it wishes, and do not try to tempt it out as this could cause more stress;
- Make sure your cat is microchipped to ensure that it can be returned to you if it escapes and becomes lost.
Dogs
- Prepare a safe space for your dog in a room they’re familiar with.
- Use a travel crate, table, or large box with a blanket over it to create a den for them to hide in can help them feel more secure.
- Don’t try to force them to use the den, but do encourage them to settle down into this area an hour or so before the fireworks start with some treats, or play and this should them cope better when they do begin.
- Closing curtains, turning lights on, turning up the volume on your TV more than usual, or leaving a classical or talk radio station on to try and mask the firework noises can help.
- Make sure your dog cannot escape the property if it is panicked by a loud bang. If you have enough doors, always have one secured before the next door is opened, use them to prevent escapes especially during the coming weeks. A stairgate is a useful alternative to a second door.
- Check your rear fences are secure regularly before letting pets out for a toilet, and use a lead or long line if necessary for very scared dogs. Even a spaniel sized dog can easily clear a 5ft fence in a panic so don’t underestimate what they are capable of.
- If walking in the evenings, take a lead with you even for dogs that are usually off lead and have very good recall.
- Home displays are likely to be far more common this year, and may affect even normally quiet dog walking routes in places and at times where you would not usually expect them.
- All dogs should be microchipped and registered correctly on a UK database by eight weeks old. This has been the law since 2016. The single quickest way to ensure you get a missing dog back is by doing this. What a lot of owners are sometimes unaware of however, is that a collar and tag with your surname (not the dog’s name), a working contact number, and address has also been required by law since 1992. This could help a resident to get in touch with you and get your dog back to you if they find it.
Our Animal Warden service often encounter more stray dogs during periods of fireworks, and in the borough of Hounslow, if your dog is collected by us and returned directly home because of a correctly registered chip or collar tag, you will not be charged any stray or kennelling fees. For any advice or queries, including help with checking microchip details are correct, or advice on how to update details, please contact animalwarden@hounslow.gov.uk and we will be happy to assist you.
