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The important points, first
- Fear of fireworks is very common: in a Swiss survey of more than 1,200 dogs, over half were affected at least partly.
- A frightened pet may bolt. Check ID tags and microchip details and secure your home and yard.
- Set up a retreat in a room your pet knows, away from noise and with few windows, with music or background sound.
- Never punish a frightened pet: fear increases.
- If fear is severe, book a visit at least a week ahead. Any medication should be tried on a quiet day.
How common it is and how it shows
In an online survey by the University of Bern covering 1,225 dogs, 52% were at least partly afraid of fireworks. In most cases the fear had appeared in the first year of life. Almost three in four fearful dogs recovered by the next morning, but 12% took up to a week and more than 3% weeks or months. In New Zealand, among more than 3,500 dogs and cats, 46% showed fear their owners could recognise, and 6% had been injured because of fireworks.
In dogs, Cornell veterinarians describe trembling, vocalising, panting, pacing, drooling, hiding, digging at doors and escape attempts. Cats more often hide and cower. In a Dutch study of dogs and cats, owners also reported freezing, inappropriate elimination, loss of appetite and withdrawal. A panicking animal may bite, without meaning to, someone who is trying to calm it.46152
Preparing your home and the evening
Frightened by the noise, a dog may run away from home and get lost or hurt. Cornell recommends checking that ID tags and microchip details are current and securing your home and yard. Take your dog out and play before the fireworks start; if it has to go out later, keep it on a leash even in a fenced yard. Cats should be kept indoors during the noisiest hours.
The retreat should be in a room your pet knows, with its bed or a blanket, away from the noise and with few or no windows. A crate is fine only if your pet is already used to it and sees it as a safe place. Calm music plus background noise, such as the television or a white noise machine, partly masks the bangs. If you can, stay home, or leave your pet with someone it knows. Never punish it, because its fear would increase. Fireworks contain chemicals and metals: if you set them off at home, clean up the area thoroughly before letting your dog back there.132
Talk to your veterinarian in good time
If your pet is very fearful, book a visit at least a week ahead. The veterinarian may consider an anti-anxiety medication to give before the fireworks. Cornell advises trying it first on a quiet day to see how it is tolerated, and giving it early enough, because it is much easier to prevent a fearful reaction than to stop one. The medication must never be given to another animal or in a larger amount than prescribed.
In some cases pheromones or supplements may help, choosing with your veterinarian those with scientific support. When fear is hard to manage, a veterinary behaviourist may be needed, with a plan combining medication and behaviour modification. In the Dutch study, fewer than 30% of the most common interventions had a lasting effect according to owners.1235
Preventing fear in puppies
Fear of fireworks often starts early. In the University of Bern study most dogs had developed it within their first year, and new cases were few after seven years of age. According to the data collected, teaching puppies, or adult dogs that are not yet afraid, to associate firework noise with something pleasant is highly effective in preventing it.
In the Dutch study too, dogs that had not been used to noises when young were more often afraid of fireworks. In kittens this kind of habituation was rare and the association was not found. If you have a puppy, ask your veterinarian how to get it used to noises a little at a time, away from firework periods.45
Sources and checks
Numbers in the text lead to the exact source. Commercial blogs and social posts are not used as evidence.
- 1University veterinary centre
Fear of fireworks and thunderstorms
Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine · Riney Canine Health Center · Signs of fear in dogs, escape risk, microchip and ID tag, safe space, background noise, no punishment, medications trialled in advance, veterinary behaviourist.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026 - 2University veterinary centre
Fireworks fears? Tips to protect your pets
Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine · Signs of distress, unintentional bites during panic, room with closed windows and TV or radio, visit at least a week ahead.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026 - 3Institutional poison control centre
Here’s What to Do If Your Pet Is Scared of Fireworks
ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center · Interior room with music, cats indoors, medications trialled and never shared, chemicals and metals in fireworks.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026 - 4Peer-reviewed research article
Not a one-way road: Severity, progression and prevention of firework fears in dogs
PLoS One (2019) · PubMed PMID 31490926 · Survey of 1,225 dogs: 52% fearful of fireworks, onset in the first year, recovery times, prevention through positive association.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026 - 5Peer-reviewed research article
Firework aversion in cats and dogs as reported by Dutch animal owners
Veterinary and Animal Science (2024) · PubMed PMID 39497813 · 3,009 dogs and 622 cats: behaviours, fireworks for months, early noise habituation, under 30% of interventions with lasting effect.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026 - 6Peer-reviewed research article
A survey of owners’ perceptions of fear of fireworks in a sample of dogs and cats in New Zealand
New Zealand Veterinary Journal (2010) · PubMed PMID 21151214 · 3,527 animals: 46% fearful, dogs more active and cats more likely to hide and cower, 6% injured.
Link checked on 16 Sept 2026
This guide does not recommend medicines or doses. Intense or worsening fear should be assessed by a veterinarian, possibly with a behaviour specialist.