I was thinking today about the 4th coming up, and it’s a particularly rough holiday for my dog- no pun intended. I have a little mutt named Scout and he is the first dog I’ve had that is afraid of fireworks. He hates them. He’s a sensitive little guy, to be honest, if he was human he would probably be on a slew of anxiety medications. But he’s a great dog- just hates fireworks and thunder, so July is tough on him. In fairness, it’s tough on me too because he seems to think keeping me awake will help stop the fireworks. No matter how many times I explain to him that I can’t make them stop, every time they start he starts pawing at me. He’s insistent- paw..paw..”Wake up, Wake up.” And once I am awake he still keeps pawing at me..seems like he’s saying, “They’re doing it again, make them stop.” He also gets super anxious, to the point his whole body trembles, and he’s just miserable. I’ve tried everything over the years- Benadryl, Trazodone, going outside, hiding in the closet, CBD treats, comfort vests, turning the TV up…everything…and nothing seemed to help. Until one day a couple of years ago when the fireworks were going off, he was his normal nervous self, and I was at a loss on what to do for him. It was late, I was tired, he was miserable..Belza, the little pomeranian, could care less..but we were all up watching NCIS- my default when I can’t sleep- and I decided to get myself some ice cream. I went and grabbed my bowl and got the ice cream out and noticed- miracle of miracles- Scout was sitting at my feet, no longer trembling, wagging his tail as he waited for his bowl. I’ll admit, when I get ice cream, the dogs get ice cream. Well, maybe not always because I’ve got to watch their weight…sometimes they get a frozen Gogurt, or some frozen fat free Cool Whip…but they get a frozen treat. Point is, Scout’s love of ice cream superseded his fear of fireworks! Starting that very night we began having ice cream parties anytime there is a storm or fireworks. I usually start with Outshine bars since they’re just fruit, then move on to frozen Gogurts, and when it’s time for the grand finale I bust out the Fudgesicles. There is nothing in Scout’s world that can’t be fixed by a Fudgecicle. I know chocolate isn’t good for dogs, but a little bit won’t hurt him, and it stops his anxiety dead in its tracks. So if you have a pup that hates fireworks maybe give it a try.
Interestingly enough, humans are very similar. I believe our brains would rather be happy than upset or in distress. Years ago after my traumatic brain injury I started having panic attacks. At first I didn’t know what to do, and so I just freaked out and prayed. Praying would eventually help, but not very quickly. Then one day as I started to have an attack I thought about Scout, and how distraction helped him with his anxiety. I hopped on YouTube and pulled up one of my favorite Key and Peele videos and what do you know?! It worked! I was laughing and the panic attack lost the battle- humor won. I realized that just like Scout, my brain would rather be happy than upset, so if I could give it something it preferred to focus on it would focus on that instead of the panic attack. I’ve told so many people about this over the years who struggle with panic attacks, or addiction, or whatever they may be struggling with mentally. I call it distraction technique- I don’t know if it has an actual name or not, but that’s what I call it. So whatever your struggle is with, maybe give it a try next time. It’s amazing how quickly your mind can refocus when you give it something more pleasurable to focus on. That’s all I’ve got for today- until next time, Peace Out.
