{"id":1348,"date":"2017-06-29T23:35:34","date_gmt":"2017-06-29T23:35:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lbpost.com\/articles\/life\/pets\/gimme-shelter-providing-security-for-your-pet-in-the-line-of-fireworks\/"},"modified":"2017-06-29T23:35:34","modified_gmt":"2017-06-29T23:35:34","slug":"gimme-shelter-providing-security-for-your-pet-in-the-line-of-fireworks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/pets\/gimme-shelter-providing-security-for-your-pet-in-the-line-of-fireworks","title":{"rendered":"Gimme Shelter! Providing Security for Your Pet in the Line of Fireworks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"cat-fireworks<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Photo by Kate Karp. Embellishment by Dennis Dean.<\/em><\/p>\n

Happy to see that people are becoming increasingly aware of the effects of explosive noises accompanied by flaring lights on pets and vets, even if other people don\u2019t care how many notifications are put out about safety or legality of fireworks and set them off anyway.<\/p>\n

\"Robert<\/p>\n

Today, June 30, between 6:00PM and 7:00PM, Councilmember Roberto Uranga and his staff will distribute yard signs like this one. It might do some good. Photo courtesy of Councilmember Uranga\u2019s office.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i><\/strong>A search on Google with \u201cpets fireworks\u201d as the key words yielded over 31 pages (I stopped clicking at 31<\/i>) of tips on how to keep your pets safe and sane during the Fourth of July even if the fireworks aren\u2019t. I get countless emails from animal organizations, shelters and rescues, and fireworks-menace-themed social-media posts pop up with, well, the frequency of fireworks a month before and after the Fourth of July.<\/p>\n

And although The Scratching Post is a pet-focused column, digression is called for, considering the knowledge that pyrotechnics can trigger PTSD effects on combat veterans. This falls way beneath ironic <\/i>when you consider that these people get the crap scared out of them on a day meant to honor them.<\/p>\n

\"Combat<\/p>\n

Signs like these are available on the Military with PTSD Facebook page<\/a>. Photo courtesy of Military with PTSD.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cHolidays can be a frightening time for animals, with the loud sounds of firecrackers and fireworks often sending pets scurrying out of the house or yard in search of security or shelter,\u201d read a comment from Long Beach Animal Care Services (ACS). \u201cTaking special care of pets during the Fourth of July is responsible pet ownership, just like licensing and keeping identification tags on pets and ensuring that they are spayed or neutered.<\/p>\n

A previous Scratching Post about fostering shelter pets during the pyro season (\u201cFoster the Fourth: Team Effort for a Safe Holiday for Pets<\/a>\u201d), which described an ingenious shelter\/rescue program for the extended Fourth of July maniac period, gave a brief list of suggestions for keeping your pets safe. My inbox has been brimming with them, so I\u2019m winnowing the lists received from Long Beach Animal Care Services<\/a>, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Los Angeles<\/a>, and L.A. County Animal Control<\/a> and presenting it to you. With all this, your pets should have some shelter from the firestorm.<\/p>\n