Dogs and Fireworks Don’t Mix: Check NJ Shelters

Nicole Rosenthal
Updated ·6 min read

NEW JERSEY — Charlie, Lucy and all the other family dogs making your lives richer are more likely to run away on July 4-5 than at any other time of the year as they flee in terror from the booming fireworks displays commemorating Independence Day.

This year, many New Jersey townships, boroughs and cities have canceled a slew of Fourth of July fireworks displays to discourage large crowds where the coronavirus can easily spread. Charlie and Lucy probably haven’t noticed.

In the past, dog owners have had more control over when or if their pets are exposed to loud fireworks. Now, several cities have reported spikes in the number of people shooting off illegal fireworks since the pandemic began.

In Hartford, Connecticut, illegal fireworks have been popping off for months. The police chief there said dispatchers field about 200 noise complaints a day about bottle rockets, Roman candles, M-80s, cherry bombs and even artillery shells. The racket is more than a nuisance for soldiers and others with PTSD, the elderly and children, and dogs.

“My poor dog,” one person commented on a police department social media post publicizing a hotline number for fireworks complaints. “I just don't understand the point of them. They want to do it on the 4th of July fine but every night is ridiculous!”

Wrote another: “I honestly could not care less but my dog freaks out and shakes all night.”

One problem for dog owners is that they can plan around the organized fireworks shows but not the spontaneous displays lighting up the streets of big cities and small towns from one coast to another.

Dogs have a heightened sense of hearing that makes the booming, buzzing, hissing, crackling, humming and whistling of fireworks a traumatic experience. They’re likely to bolt, and that makes July 5 typically the busiest time of year at animal shelters here in New Jersey and elsewhere across the country.

“They don’t know where the noise is coming from, and they try to escape because they don’t understand,” according to Dallas Harsa, an executive at the American Kennel Club’s Reunite, an agency which has helped return more than 500,000 lost pets to their owners.

If Charlie and Lucy run and cower at the sound of the first clap of thunder, the cacophony of fireworks will be “utterly terrifying,” according to the American Humane Society. Even dogs that are secured with a leash or chain can break loose and jump a high fence when frightened.

Dogs that ran away in terror may never come home. The National Council on Pet Population and Policy estimates that fewer than 2 percent of cats and 20 percent of dogs entering animal shelters are reunited with their owners.

If fireworks send your dog fleeing, the Humane Society of the United States advises first checking with local animal shelters and animal control agencies. Places to check across the state include:

Atlantic County

  • Humane Society of Atlantic City

  • Atlantic County Animal Shelter

Bergen County

  • Bergen County Protect & Rescue Foundation

  • Bergen County Animal Shelter

Burlington County

  • Burlington County Animal Shelter

Camden County

  • Camden County Animal Shelter

  • Animal Welfare Association

Cape May County

  • Animal Welfare Society

  • Cape May County Animal Shelter

Cumberland County

  • Greyhound Angels

  • Cumberland County S.P.C.A.

Essex County

  • Bloomfield Animal Shelter

  • Homeless Animal Adoption League

Gloucester County

  • Gloucester County Animal Shelter

Hudson County

  • Liberty Humane Society

  • Secaucus Animal Shelter

Hunterdon County

  • Hunterdon Humane Animal Shelter

  • Animal Alliance

Mercer County

  • Ewing Township Animal Shelter

  • Hamilton Township Animal Shelter

  • Trenton Animal Shelter

Middlesex County

  • Animal Rescue Force

  • Edison Municipal Animal Shelter

  • Perth Amboy Animal Shelter

  • Woodbridge Township Animal Shelter

Monmouth County

  • Monmouth County S.P.C.A.

  • Associated Humane Societies

Morris County

  • Tri Boro Animal Welfare-Butler

  • Denville Township Animal Shelter

  • Jefferson Township Municipal Pound

  • Parsippany Animal Shelter

Ocean County

  • Jersey Shore Animal Center

  • Toms River Animal Facility

  • S.A.V.E. Rescue

Passaic County

  • North Jersey Community Animal Shelter

  • Passaic Animal Shelter

Salem County

  • Salem County Humane Society

  • Pennsville Township Animal Pound

Somerset County

  • St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center

  • Somerset Regional Animal Shelter

  • Franklin Township Animal Shelter

Sussex County

  • Byram Township Pound

  • Vernon Township Animal Pound

  • Wantage Municipal Pound

Union County

  • City of Elizabeth Animal Shelter

  • Township of Union Animal Shelter

Warren County

  • Blairstown Animal Hospital

  • Warren Animal Hospital

Search your neighborhood several times a day, and ask neighbors, mail carriers and delivery people if they’ve seen your dog. It’s also a good idea to hand out recent photographs of your dog along with your contact information.

Also consider checking shelters within a 60-mile radius of your home.

A number of online sites help reunite pets with their owners, including Pet FBI, or Pets Found By Internet. Some others include:

The Humane Society cautions pet owners to be wary of pet-recovery scams.

“When talking to a stranger who claims to have found your pet, ask him to describe the pet thoroughly before you offer any information,” the organization advises. “If he does not include the identifying characteristic you left out of the advertisements, he may not really have your pet. Be particularly wary of people who insist that you give or wire them money for the return of your pet.”

The best thing, of course, is to keep Charlie and Lucy safely at home. Here are some tips:

  • Take the pooches on extra-long walks and schedule vigorous play time to tire them out before the festivities begin.

  • Leave the dogs at home if you and the family go out to watch fireworks displays. It’s best to sequester them inside and make a place where they’re shielded from loud noises. Turn on a radio or television to soften loud noises.

  • If you already know the dogs are frightened by loud noises, don’t leave them alone while you’re out celebrating. Make sure someone can stay behind with them.

  • If you can’t leave your dog unattended, make sure the pooch is leashed and under your direct control at all times.

  • If dogs become highly agitated in noisy situations, consult your veterinarian in advance to determine if tranquilizers are an option. There are some non-prescription alternatives, such as ThunderShirt or other anti-anxiety jackets (they’re made for cats, too) that apply gentle, constant pressure similar to swaddling an infant, the makers say.

  • Make sure the dogs are microchipped and that the license is current, and that ID tags with contact information are properly affixed to the pooch’s collar, which should fit securely enough the dog can’t slip out of it. This information is vital if your pet does run away.

Summer in general is a dangerous time for dogs. Never leave pets unattended in a car, even if it doesn’t seem very hot outside. For example, the temperature outside can be a comfortable 72 degrees but can increase by about 45 degrees inside the car within an hour.

Also, hot pavement can injure your dog’s unprotected paws. The Humane Society of the United States says that if it’s too hot for you to put your hand on the pavement for five seconds, it’s too hot for your dog to safely walk on that surface.

This article originally appeared on the Across New Jersey Patch