The 4th of July is the quintessential summer holiday. People love to light up the grill during the day and watch the fireworks display at night. However, the louse bangs and flashing lights are no picnic for your cat! Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to keep your cat happy and calm during fireworks.
Create safe spaces in your home
In a quieter area of your house or apartment, make sure that your cat has access to places to hide. This can be under furniture like a bed, or in a cabinet or cubby hole, such as an empty cube in an Ikea bookcase. You can partially cover the area with towels and blankets to help drown out the noise.
Close windows and turn on music
Likewise, turning up music before the fireworks begin can help defuse some of the noise. Some relaxing instrumental music can help sooth your cat. You’ll also want to draw the blinds, close curtains, close any windows and doors. Not only does this keep noise down, but it’ll also help to block flashing lights and prevent your cat from escaping.
Make sure your cat is identifiable
In case your cat does get spooked and escape, make sure your cat is microchipped or wearing ID tags. Take a photo of your cat so that you’ll have the most up to date image to help others recognize them if they get lost.
Don’t try to comfort your cat
If you don’t have anywhere you need to be, plan to be home during the fireworks display. However, if your cat gets nervous, starts pacing around, or howling, do not try to comfort your cat by petting or playing with them. This will make your cat more upset, because you are acknowledging that something is wrong. Instead, praise your cat for calm behavior.
Do not change their diet, and do not give any calming remedies, especially if you’re unsure of how your cat will react to the changes.
Are you going out of town for the last minute? We still have pet sitters available for the 4th of July holiday! Give us a call for fastest service.
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Candace Elise Hoes is a pet sitter and blogger at Katie’s Kitty. She is a graduate of the MFA Writing Program at California College of the Arts.
photo by d_horkey on flickr