foolsgold
Bluelighter
TOP End dogs are being fed valium and anti-anxiety drugs so they are not shell-shocked by the fireworks frenzy on Territory Day.
Parap Veterinary Hospital medicated 100 pets last year, mostly with diazepam and Xanax, and they expect to do the same this year.
All Pet Vets Hospital at Rapid Creek prescribed medication to 81 pets in the two weeks leading up to last year's Territory Day.
That was 10 times the normal demand for anti-anxiety drugs during an ordinary two-week period.
Parap Vets principal veterinary surgeon Susan Gurry said a lot of owners put their pets on "behaviour-modifying drugs" up to a month beforehand to prepare them for the explosive night.
She said some animals were so distressed by fireworks they tore down doors.
"It is not common but it certainly does happen," she said.
Dr Gurry said pets demonstrated varying degrees of distress around fireworks, from mild anxiety to phobias.
"It is similar to dogs with thunderstorm phobias. Once dogs become sensitive to noises it gets worse each year."
Dr Gurry said the medications reduced the perception of stress, but were only prescribed when necessary.
She said the medications were not designed to just "zonk" the dogs out.
"You don't just want to give them a chemical straightjacket - they don't have a really strong sedative effect."
All Pet Vets Hospital veterinarian director Celia Daley said Territory Day could be extremely stressful for pets that have to suffer through hours of fireworks.
"They do not understand that the noise is not a threat. Some dogs try to escape from the noise and that is when they can injure themselves," she said.
Top End Lost and Found (TELAF) volunteer Naomi Oliver said 111 pets went missing on Territory Day last year.
Sixty-seven were reunited with their owners. Ms Oliver said each year some runaway dogs were hit by cars and killed.
There have even been cases where dogs have been strangled by their collars while trying to jump fences.
Dr Daley said it was important to make sure that dogs had somewhere to hide on Territory night.
TELAF recommends dog owners:
PUT them in a room with doors shut, curtains closed and relaxing music playing;
STAY with them; DON'T tether animals because it can become a choking hazard;
KEEP all doors and gates securely closed.
not sure if this right for in here but if not delete
Parap Veterinary Hospital medicated 100 pets last year, mostly with diazepam and Xanax, and they expect to do the same this year.
All Pet Vets Hospital at Rapid Creek prescribed medication to 81 pets in the two weeks leading up to last year's Territory Day.
That was 10 times the normal demand for anti-anxiety drugs during an ordinary two-week period.
Parap Vets principal veterinary surgeon Susan Gurry said a lot of owners put their pets on "behaviour-modifying drugs" up to a month beforehand to prepare them for the explosive night.
She said some animals were so distressed by fireworks they tore down doors.
"It is not common but it certainly does happen," she said.
Dr Gurry said pets demonstrated varying degrees of distress around fireworks, from mild anxiety to phobias.
"It is similar to dogs with thunderstorm phobias. Once dogs become sensitive to noises it gets worse each year."
Dr Gurry said the medications reduced the perception of stress, but were only prescribed when necessary.
She said the medications were not designed to just "zonk" the dogs out.
"You don't just want to give them a chemical straightjacket - they don't have a really strong sedative effect."
All Pet Vets Hospital veterinarian director Celia Daley said Territory Day could be extremely stressful for pets that have to suffer through hours of fireworks.
"They do not understand that the noise is not a threat. Some dogs try to escape from the noise and that is when they can injure themselves," she said.
Top End Lost and Found (TELAF) volunteer Naomi Oliver said 111 pets went missing on Territory Day last year.
Sixty-seven were reunited with their owners. Ms Oliver said each year some runaway dogs were hit by cars and killed.
There have even been cases where dogs have been strangled by their collars while trying to jump fences.
Dr Daley said it was important to make sure that dogs had somewhere to hide on Territory night.
TELAF recommends dog owners:
PUT them in a room with doors shut, curtains closed and relaxing music playing;
STAY with them; DON'T tether animals because it can become a choking hazard;
KEEP all doors and gates securely closed.
not sure if this right for in here but if not delete
