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With the firework season upon us, people often despair about how their pets will react. While some dogs are not bothered much, just as many are petrified by the bangs and flashes which seem to get louder and brighter year after year. My Labrador was so afraid of fireworks that he refused to leave the house after dark fell for the entire winter. I will now describe how we treated him. It is possible to train your Labrador to enjoy the firework season, or at least ignore it. Noise association is key to this kind of training. This will require a CD that contains firework sounds and other frightening sounds. They are easily available online at many shops like e-bay. There are many CDs to choose from. You can search for titles like "Sounds Scary", Fear of Fireworks, or "CLIX Sounds and Sounds". I used the "Sounds Scary" CD and helped it along with a DAP diffuser plugged into a socket in my training room. vuurwerktraining hond
Now this method takes a bit of patience, but it works. First, you need to lower the volume level of your CD player until it is barely audible. Dogs are more sensitive to sound so you can still hear it. You can then close the curtains to make the room darker but not too dark. Your DAP is on and your CD playing. Play with your dog and any of its favorite dog toys. Always be positive and enthusiastic. When your pet plays back, give it a dog treat to reward it for playing and not worrying. This should be done for approximately half an hour each session.
On day 2 you would turn your CD player up a notch and repeat the play pattern. You can reduce the volume if you feel fearful. Maybe fill a Kong toy up with soft cheese or Kong Paste and play with that. This will provide a strong positive link between the firework sounds, and being rewarded. This will help you to see where we're going. Keep making louder and noisier noises for as long as you can. Keep the noise level steady, but switch the DAP to off. Hopefully, you won't notice any differences in the behavior. honden geluiden afspelen
Right, now is the time to get a bit noisier. The maximum noise level for the next session may be increased to around 70%. Play and reward your pet. Your training will be complete after about one week. It is possible that your dog has learned to associate loud noises and rewards with having fun.