With Fourth of July weekend coming up, it’s important to keep safety in mind. If you’re a pet owner who will be shooting fireworks yourself for the holiday, there are a few tips to keep in mind in order to assure your pet is safe. Longtime Starke County Humane Society employee, Jessica Cupit, warns of how skittish pets can be around this time of year.
“Pets will get scared, they will run. This is our biggest season for having animals run away simply because of fireworks. If you’re really worried about your pet, if you’re very concerned for their hearing, if you know that your pet will run, it’s generally a really good idea to keep them on a leash or keep them in doors.” You should also make sure that your fence installation is secure and that there are no gaps that’ll let your pets escape. Alternatively, you may bring them to a pet boarding facility until the festivities and firework shows are done.
Aside from the risk of a pet taking off, there is also the danger of unintentionally injuring a pet. If a pet is hit with a firework call 9-1-1. Cupit has some advice about treating a pet with a burn injury:
“If your pet should catch on fire, extinguish it. Don’t try to use a fire extinguisher on your pet because that will just freak them out even more. Put water on it, cool it down, if you have some Aloe Vera put that on it, just like a person when we get our burns. If it is very severe I would say go ahead, take them to an emergency clinic. Our nearest one would be up there at Purdue North Central in Westville.”
Protect your pets to keep this Independence Day weekend safe and fun for everyone.
