Could tuning in to playlists of their favourite genre of music be the key to keeping your dog calm and relaxed on bonfire night?
As we all know, Bonfire Night and the month of November in general means fireworks going off. This can be an extremely stressful time for pets, particularly dogs. The RSPCA estimates that around 45 percent of dogs experience anxiety and distress on the 5th November.
The continuous bang of fireworks and bright lights in the sky cause our furry friends to feel stressed and confused. This often leads to reactions like cowering, shaking, pacing, panting and whining. Sainsbury’s even recently scrapped sales of fireworks due to animal safety concerns.
To help take the stress out of Bonfire Night for pups who are frightened of fireworks, we have created three soothing playlists.
How to keep your dog calm on Bonfire Night?
1 in 4 households impulse bought new puppies during the pandemic according to the Kennal Club. This means that many young pooches will be experiencing their very first Bonfire Night in just a few days time.
To ease your pooches discomfort and anxiety when the fireworks start, preparation is key. Dog Furiendly recommends that you draw the curtains to muffle the sound. Creating a ‘den’ like space or safe space for your dog, and playing our soothing playlists in the background.
Playing music is one great way to mask the noise of the fireworks which is often what triggers dogs anxiety. In fact, scientists have proven that there are particular music genres which dogs prefer.
What music do dogs enjoy?
A study by the University of Glasgow revealed that music has a soothing effect on dogs. The study found that “stress levels decreased significantly after listening to music.”
Songs from these genres help to soothe and combat the distress caused to our pets.
During the study, researchers played five different genres to dogs including Classical, Motown, Pop, Reggae, and Soft Rock. While the study suggested that all dogs have individual music tastes, the genres widely preferred amongst dogs were Reggae and Soft Rock.
Using the research from the Scottish SPA and University of Glasgow, we have developed three playlists available to download and play on Spotify.
Each playlist aims to provide dogs with comfort during the firework season, and entertainment to the dog owners. Each song has been picked carefully to ensure there’s no surprising noises, and no downtime in the soundtrack.
The series of playlists includes soft rock- ‘Rock and Roll Over’, classical movie scores- ‘Pass the Pupcorn’ and a range of reggae tunes- ‘Bob Marley and Me’.
Adele Pember, Founder of Dog Furiendly, came up with the playlists after seeing the effects Bonfire Night had on her Chihuahua cross Charlie.
She said, “I’ve seen first-hand the impacts Bonfire night has on our canine companions.”
“We’ve created a dog friendly playlist filled with all the music genres proven to soothe dogs and make them feel comfortable.”
“This playlist will equip dog owners with music throughout the evening. It will also entertain them with film score flashbacks, and classic tracks from reggae and soft rock.”
The playlists to keep your dog calm on Bonfire Night can be found here.
Click here for more advice on keeping your dog calm on Bonfire Night.
What kind of music helps your dog to calm down?
Does your dog shake their tail feather to rock? Perhaps they roll over for a spot of reggae? Let us know in the comments below!
