While we toast at midnight, the dog is trembling under the table and the cat has been gone since the first bang. Dogs hear up to about 45 kHz, cats up to about 65 kHz, we humans up to 20 kHz. On top of that, animals cannot make sense of a bang. For them New Year's Eve is a night of unexplained explosions.
Why we do not sell hearing protection for animals
Every year we are asked whether MINI+ or Kiddies are available for dogs. The answer is no, and we mean it. A dog or cat cannot understand why its ears are suddenly covered. Animals orient themselves by hearing; earmuffs take that orientation away and often add to the insecurity rather than calming. An animal also cannot tell you whether the fit pinches or whether it wants the thing off. What works with a child, because we can explain and practise, is a foreign object on an animal. So we deliberately offer no hearing protection for animals.
What helps instead
Prepare a retreat: A quiet room facing the courtyard, windows and shutters closed, curtains drawn. The familiar blanket, water, and for cats a raised hiding place such as a wardrobe or a carrier with the door open. Make the room accessible days in advance so it is not new on the night.
Background noise: Radio, TV or a washing machine in the next room partly mask the bangs and make them less abrupt. Steady noise at normal room volume, not turned up loud.
Daily routine: Exercise dogs thoroughly in daylight on 31 December, last walk before dusk, always on the lead even if the dog usually runs free. Bring cats indoors in the afternoon and lock the cat flap. Feed before the fireworks; a full stomach calms.
Stay calm yourself: No exaggerated comforting, no scolding. Carry on as normal, stay close, be available. Pitying the dog at every bang confirms that the fear is justified.
Identification: Check the microchip and registration, collar with phone number. More animals run away on New Year's Eve than on any other night of the year.
See the vet for severe anxiety
If the animal trembles for hours, pants heavily, loses control of bladder or bowel or injures itself trying to escape, that is a case for the vet, and weeks in advance, not on 31 December. There are options from desensitisation training with sound recordings to medication that only a vet can assess. We advise against sedatives from the internet without consultation.
And the humans in the house?
For the two-legged family members on New Year's Eve: firecrackers reach 120 to 150 dB. Which hearing protection suits children and adults is covered in New Year’s Eve with kids and New Year’s Eve and hearing protection.
Leave a comment