Why do dogs hate America?
Experts haven't figured out why some pets are extremely sensitive to fireworks, but some believe the smell of gunpowder may add to jitters caused by loud explosions.
"Fireworks have many stimulus qualities that are inherently aversive to pets," said Mary Lee Nitschke, an animal behaviourist and psychology professor at Linfield College. "The volume and suddenness of a firecracker elicits a startle reaction in most species."I've no doubt we'll be writing more on this in the weeks to come, but remember to keep your dogs in a quiet place where they can freak out in peace.
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
well....since San Pedro is specially bad on the 4th of July (and Fireworks dont really do much for us humans either) we have taken our dogs out of town to avoid the aggrivation, and will do so again this year.