FOURTH OF JULY SAFETY TIPS FOR YOUR PET
WENATCHEE- The Fourth of July can be a fun day, sunshine, barbeques, swimming, music and, of course, fireworks. It isn’t necessarily fun for all members of your family though. Many pets are frightened by fireworks and escape from homes, yards or kennels due to panic.
Each year, Wenatchee Valley Animal Care and Control (ACC) sees a significant rise in lost animals around the days leading up to the Fourth of July and days immediately following the celebration.
Dawn Davies, Executive Director for Wenatchee Valley Humane Society (WVHS) reminds pet owners that a current pet license and identification tags is an important part of reunited lost pets and their owners. “Our licenses are now on PetHub digital pet ID tags and, as long as the owner has registered the tag with PetHub, can help anyone contact a lost pet’s owner.”
Since the Fourth is ACC’s busiest day of the year, Davies says this is extremely helpful for all involved. “These tags give community members the chance to help which means pets get home faster and never have to come to the shelter.”
Davies notes that the Fourth is a holiday best celebrated with pets left at home. “It’s a stressful day. Crowds, heat, and sudden loud noises are all things that can cause even the friendliest, relaxed dog distress. And distress can cause animals to react negatively or panic and run.”
To help combat the amount of pets that go missing in our community, pets will not be allowed after 3 p.m. at the ‘Let’s Have a Blast’ celebration in Walla Walla Point Park.
WVHS offers the following tips for keeping your pet safe and stress-free for on the Fourth:
Make sure pets are in a secure space with something soft to curl up to and music softly playing.
Secure doors and windows.
Do not bring pets to any outdoor festivities where they cannot be secured and safe.
Ensure all tags or identification is up to date (if you have a 2019 PetHub license, make sure you’ve registered it for free with them).
Take your pet for a nice walk or have play time. A tired pet, is a relaxed pet.
If your pet becomes lost or you find a lost pet, contact ACC to file a report at 509-662-9577 or file one online, where you can also view photos of found animals. A visit to the shelter on July 5th, to see if your pet was brought in by ACC or a concerned citizen is also recommended.