A Dog with a Fear of Fireworks Case Study – Jessie – Part 1

Jessie was a dog with an extreme fear of fireworks. When she heard any loud bangs and whistles, even in the distance, she paced anxiously for hours on end and there was nothing her guardian could do to pacify her.

Jessie would roam restlessly, looking for a hiding place, but nowhere suited her. She panted and became overheated and was clearly very stressed. Sometimes, she barked hysterically, only to rush away in fear. It was very distressing for both Jessie and her guardian, especially as they lived in a busy residential area as well as extremely close to a field where regular back to back firework displays were held.

Jessie reacted with extreme fear at other times too, running away from any loud noises or noisy children and barking at passing scooters or skateboards. With Halloween and Bonfire night fast approaching, Jessie’s guardian was keen to see if Applied Zoopharmacognosy could help Jessie to cope better with fireworks, with the additional hope that her other fear issues may be helped as well.

Jessie’s session took place at the start of October which gave her guardian plenty of time to establish a routine of offering Jessie’s chosen remedies every day and especially in the evenings as part of a relaxation time together.

What I’ve noticed after many years of supporting animals who are frightened by fireworks, is that if you can offer chosen remedies daily for several weeks before Halloween, Bonfire night, or New Year it has even more impact in reducing the symptoms of fear than it does if you only offer them when the fireworks are actually happening. There is a “conversation” that happens between an animal and a remedy where they become more and more relaxed, releasing old fears and traumas and this means that after several weeks they seem to react less to the original fear.

During our two hour session together, I approached the problems Jessie faced by offering her a selection of essential oils and plant extracts that are frequently self-selected by other animals who are noise sensitive and afraid of fireworks. These fears may have evolved from a past bad experience or been sparked by an event that an animal found traumatic.

In Jessie’s case, it was a spiral effect where one fear seemed to then lead to her being fearful of something new. Her fear of fireworks translated into any sudden and unexpected noise in her daily life and then these became scary for her too. She could quickly become frightened on her walks.

Jessie’s reaction to fireworks and other loud noises indicated a need to both defend herself by barking, but at the same time protect herself by running away. Many of us may have witnessed this ‘fight or flight’ response in our own animals.

Jessie’s guardian was with her throughout the session, offering Jessie emotional and physical support, whilst also learning how to offer the oils herself, so that she could continue to help her dog in overcoming her fears in the following weeks.

Jessie reacted in a positive way to Rose Absolute and Rose Otto. She inhaled from the bottles, yawning and becoming very sleepy. She then inhaled Jasmine absolute and she gave a little squeak and lay down. These 3 oils are often popular initial remedies for dogs in an Applied Zoopharmacognosy session, as they help to bring relaxation and acceptance, meaning a dog is then more receptive to self selecting more oils.

Jessie’s reactions to the oils that followed on from Rose and Jasmine, were more unusual and extremely interesting, displaying the sort of submissive behaviour a puppy might show when around it’s mother. Jessie interacted closely with the oils and with her guardian and me, allowing us to witness her emotional releases and support her while she expressed them.

To be continued! You can read more in Part 2 of Jessie’s story.

If your animal is affected by fireworks I offer support and advice in a number of ways:

You are very welcome to book in with me for a free discovery call.

I offer free annual healing for animals with a fear of fireworks. You can nominate your animal here.

You’ll find lots of helpful tips and methods to help your animal in my Firework booklet.

Learning animal communication techniques can help to increase how calm your animal is. I recommend Easy Animal Communication for Anxious Animals as a great way to introduce additional calm for your animal.

An Applied Zoopharmacognosy or Animal Communication session can be very helpful to support both of you through firework season.