Spooked by Fireworks

Question
QUESTION: My 5 yr old Ridgeback,was outside with me, a block away some people set off fireworks. Since that time (July 1/07) at night only, Buster shakes, doesn't listen to me, won't sleep in my bed, sleeps places in has never slept before (bathroom), while shaking, his tail is down and tucked between his legs, ears back. During the day he is fine except if he hears a loud bang, then he starts shaking, but way worse at night when the sun goes down. This has been going on everynight since the fireworks. He has been around fireworks a couple of years ago, shaking only till we left and fireworks stopped.

ANSWER: Vera, you may consider desensitization CD's, that play loud noises like fireworks, gunshots, etc.

What do you do when he starts shaking, pacing, etc.?

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: We try to calm him by petting, talking to him. Then he will go places he usually does not sleep, ie: in the basement, in the bathroom. Now he starts shaking if he hears noises ie: somebody hammer in their garage, tail tucked in between legs, ears back, front right paw up. These cds would make him shake, I am scared he could have a heartache because of his shaking, panting. His shaking is not as severe as in the evening, he is scared to go out at night, goes out only in the day but cautious.

Answer
I'm afraid that you may have inadvertently made his behavior worse by petting him and talking to him. You see, whenever a dog shows fear, and we try to soothe them, they perceive it as praise for the behavior, and of course, the worse the behavior gets, the more we try to soothe them, so they think that behaving fearfully earns them praise. You need to ignore him whenever he starts acting fearfully. Try putting him in a crate whenever he starts acting afraid. The crate may help calm him down some. You can also try putting a sheet over it, so he cannot see out and it's more like a den.

Desensitization CDs are designed specifically for the purpose of helping fearful dogs get over their fears. You begin by playing them at an extremely low volume while you do fun things with the dog. You gradually (like, over the course of weeks or even months) increase the volume until you can play it as loud as possible and your dog does not show fear.

You may want to talk to your vet about medications to relieve some of his anxiety. You can also use a DAP plug-in and Bach's Rescue Remedy, both of which are natural.