• Caged birds should be brought inside with their cages covered.
• In outdoor aviaries confine birds to smaller areas and cover with thick rugs/blankets, leaving space for air circulation.

The Queen's Birthday long weekend can be a very stressful time for your pet.  Every year, many pets end up at the pound or at the RSPCA shelter after having escaped from their yards in a panic at the noise of firecrackers.

The peak of the firework activity should occur between 5pm and 9pm on Saturday and Sunday, June 7 and 8.  These are the times when you should be most vigilant about assuring your pet's safety.  However, as we all know there is always the odd firework that goes off outside those legal times, so it is advisable to be ready and proactive throughout the weekend and the following days/weeks.

Here are a number of measures that you can easily take to assure your pet's safety and reduce its stress:

• Keep your pet inside your house, even if your pet is normally an outside pet.  Even if your pet (dogs especially) doesn't normally jump over your fence or dig underneath it, once exposed to the loud noise of fireworks it might panic and be successful in escaping.  It will then be vulnerable to being hit by a car or getting lost. 
  
  
• In your house, provide your pet with a place where it can hide if it wants to.  This can be a mat, a perch or box on an elevated surface (for cats), or a kennel (for dogs).  If your pet decides to retire to this hiding hole, just let it be.  Cajoling your pet and trying to appease its fear might warrant your pet into thinking that there really is something to worry about. 
  
  
• It is recommended to block your pet's view of the outdoors by bringing down the blinds or by shutting the curtains.  Even more importantly, put on some music, turn on the radio, or use your washing machine to create noise that might cover the noise of the fireworks.  If your pet is allowed to roam in your entire house, then put on several sources of noise so that there is background noise in every room.
  
  
• Keep your family busy during the peak time of the firework activity, and act as you would normally: prepare dinner, eat, play with the kids, watch television.  The less fuss you make around the fireworks, the better. This will convey to your pet that there is nothing much to worry about.
  
  
• Playing with your pet is likely to help make it feel more relaxed.  If your pet is not overly stressed by the noises of fireworks, you might be able to engage it in fetching or chasing toys, or (for dogs) tugging on toys.  Some pets are too stressed to play so this may or may not work, depending on the animal.
  
  
• If you are unable to play with your pet because you are away or busy, then provide it with things to do on its own.  For a dog, this might involve giving it a bone or rawhide chew, a Kong™ stuffed with frozen food, or a treat-dispensing ball.  For a cat, this might be some furry or feathery toy to chase, balls (paper balls make great toys!) or woolen items to toss around.