Top 10 Tips for Keeping Pets Safe on Guy Fawkes

MEDIA RELEASE

4 Nov 2013

Top 10 Tips for Keeping Pets Safe on Guy Fawkes

Guy Fawkes is the night pets are most likely to go missing. While it’s usually a night of celebration for humans, the kaleidoscope of colour and sound is terrifying for our furry and feathered friends.

An animals’ hearing is far more acute than ours and a simple bang sounds like an explosion which can lead to them running away or injuring themselves in an attempt to escape. Each year rescue organisations receive reports of pets jumping through glass windows, jumping fences, or being hit by cars as they try to escape.

Here is the Inspector Spot’s guide to keeping your pets safe and comfortable during Guy Fawkes:

1. Ensure all pets are indoors by 6pm – even confident pets

2. If your pets are particularly nervous, consider starting them on Rescue Remedy or plug in a pheromone-based device such as Feliway 24 hours in advance. If your pet has previously had a bad experience during Guy Fawkes, consider asking your vet to prescribe a sedative.

3. If you have dogs, take them for a good run earlier in the day. This will help to tire them out

and hopefully put them to sleep.

4. Close all windows, curtains, cat flaps, interior, exterior doors and pop a cover over your

bird’s cage to block out as much light and sound as possible.

5. Try to stay at home with your pets, or if this is not possible leave a TV or radio on to help

muffle the sound of the fireworks. Keep your pets occupied with lots of toys and treats.

6. If your pet is frightened, their natural inclination will be to run and hide – potentially under a bed or in a small, enclosed area such as a cupboard. If this happens, do not attempt to lure them out. Just sit with them, pat them, and speak to them calmly until they feel confident enough to come out. A frightened pet may lash out at you in fear, so it’s best to let them sit in the space they’ve chosen for themselves.

7. DO NOT take your pets to a fireworks display under any circumstances. Displays are a great

event for humans, but NOT for pets.

8. Remember that fireworks may land on your property. Prevent your pets from eating something dangerous by checking for the remains of fireworks the following morning.

9. Make sure pets are wearing a collar and a tag and ideally have them micro chipped and registered with Inspector Spot on www.inspectorspot.co.nz.

10. A pet that is scared during Guy Fawkes may show signs of anxiety for days, weeks or

even several months afterwards. If your pet does not return to normal within a few days,

make an appointment with your vet to help them to calm down again.

Inspector Spot

Inspector Spot is the world’s first fully integrated lost pet service which harnesses social media platforms and uses the wonders of the web as well as a highly personalized, locally focused search effort to find missing pets.

Owners register their pets for a small annual fee and are asked to upload lots of relevant information about their pet including photos, microchip and council registration numbers, family and vet contact details.

In return those registered receive a welcome pack, birthday cards, and email reminders when flea treatments, worming tablets and annual checkups are due.

If a pet goes missing, Inspector Spot and his massive search team swing into action within minutes. Owners receive a personalised ‘lost’ poster and letterbox flyers, complete with the pet’s photo and contact details for distribution in their neighborhood.

They also receive an e-guide with experts tips on where and how to look for their particular type of runaway pet. Inspector Spot sends out a geo-coded alert to local Facebook and Twitter friends, vets, rescue organisations, pet stores, breeders and other animal lovers in the area.

The Inspector Spot database is automatically searched every day to see if an animal matching the lost pet’s description has been listed in the “found” section.

www.inspectorspot.co.nz or www.facebook.com/inspectorspot

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