ADAPTIL® for Dogs Scared of Fireworks

I hope your dog isn’t afraid of fireworks or thunderstorms, but unfortunately this is a common problem this time of year.

If your dog has a fear of fireworks or thunder, one product that can help is called ADAPTIL® for Dogs.

ADAPTIL® is designed to reduce a dog’s anxiety using dog appeasing pheromones. The product can help your dog feel safe in stressful or scary situations.

This post is sponsored by Ceva Animal Health. Ceva is the maker of ADAPTIL®.

I’m thankful my weimaraner Remy does not seem to be scared of fireworks or other loud noises, but I also know the Fourth of July and other holidays cause a lot of stress and anxiety for some dogs and therefore their owners!

ADAPTIL® dog appeasing pheromones – how it works

ADAPTIL® mimics the natural dog appeasing pheromone dogs know from birth. It can help them feel safe and secure in their environment during stressful situations.

These odorless messages are only perceived by dogs. They work outside the body and can affect the behavior of others of its species.

*Get my tips on how to help a dog who’s scared of fireworks. Click Here.

It is available in several easy-to-use formats including:

• ADAPTIL® Travel Spray – can be applied to your dog’s bedding or a bandana (like Remy is wearing in the pics)
• ADAPTIL® Calm On-the-Go Collar – good for travel
• ADAPTIL® Calm Home Diffuser – for at home during storms, fireworks, etc. (shown above)

It is available through various veterinarians’ offices, PetSmart and Amazon (aff links above). A prescription is not required.

Signs your dog is scared of fireworks

ADAPTIL® is designed to help dogs feel more secure and should reduce or stop stress-related behaviors.

If your dog is afraid of thunder or fireworks, some of the behaviors you might see include:

• Panting
• Whining, barking or howling
• Pacing
• Yawning or “flicking” their tongue
• Pawing at you
• Digging” or clawing at the floor
• Trying to hide
• More drooling than normal
• Shaking/trembling
• Having accidents
• Refusing to eat
• Destroying property

Every dog is different and some dogs show more extreme signs of fear or stress than others.

Besides helping a dog feel safe during fireworks, ADAPTIL® can also help a dog with other issues such as:

• Separation anxiety
• Visiting the vet
• Adjusting to a new home
• Stress around visitors in the home
• Travel anxiety

What to do if your dog is scared of fireworks

If your dog is scared of fireworks, I suggest the following:

ADAPTIL®: Try the ADAPTIL® Travel Spray (pictured below) or the ADAPTIL® Calm Home Diffuser for your dog. The spray can be applied directly to their bedding or to a bandana. The diffuser can be set up in a room where your dog normally spends his time such as next to his dog bed or a kennel/crate.

Plenty of exercise. This is not going to remove your dog’s fear but the less pent-up energy he has, the easier it will be for him to relax. See my post: dog exercise tips.

Food-dispensing toys. Give your dog a high-value chew toy or bone such as a Kong stuffed with peanut butter and frozen or a large bully stick. Some dogs will not accept these kinds of treats if they are scared but for others it can be a good distraction.

Safe/secure place to hide. I recommend you stay home with your dog if you know there will be fireworks. Provide him with a safe, secure place to hide out such as a dog bed in the corner of a central room or a kennel/crate if he normally feels safe there.

Background noise: Sometimes it can help to provide some background noise or “white noise” such as an air conditioner or a loud fan, music or a TV.

*Get my tips on how to help a dog who’s scared of fireworks. Click Here.

We often hear about dogs showing a fear of fireworks, but cats can also be scared of the noise.

See our post: What to do if your dog is scared of fireworks

FELIWAY® for Cats – fear of fireworks or thunder

You do not hear of cats being afraid of fireworks nearly as often as dogs, and that’s probably because cats don’t show such obvious signs. They might hide out in a quiet corner of the house vs. running around barking and panting.

FELIWAY® helps sensitive cats who are scared of loud noises. The product mimics the natural cat facial pheromone used by cats to mark their territory as safe, according to Ceva. For this reason, it can help cats feel more secure when dealing with stress.

Some cat owners use FELIWAY® CLASSIC when traveling or moving with their cats or if they add a second cat to the family (See FELIWAY® MultiCat).

FELIWAY® is available in the following formats:

• FELIWAY® CLASSIC Spray – Can be applied to your cat’s bedding
• FELIWAY® CLASSIC Diffuser – for in the home
• FELIWAY® MultiCat Diffuser – Helps to reduce tension and conflict between household cats or foster cats
• FELISCRATCH by FELIWAY® – for re-directing scratching to the scratching post

Do you have any questions about ADAPTIL® or FELIWAY®?

Let me know in the comments!

Please share this post with anyone who could benefit from ADAPTIL®. Thank you!

Here is a short video we made about ADAPTIL®:

*Get my tips on how to help a dog who’s scared of fireworks. Click Here.

Related posts:

Our first post about ADAPTIL®

Helping a dog with separation anxiety

Medications for dogs during fireworks

Does Benadryl help a dog’s anxiety?

UPDATE: We were recently sent a new product that we’re hoping will help Raven this year with her firework anxiety. Native Pet sent us Native Pet Calm – Dog Calming Chews. We’re going to test them out this year and report back to you.