Best Friends Declares 'Inde-Pet-Dance' This 4th

The 4th of July is coming up this week, and it means a good time ... for humans. For many of our pets, it poses threats to their safety.

Some pets get frightened during all the festivities, and the dog or cat will dart from the home during fireworks and celebrations.

“Nationwide, July 4th weekend is the busiest shelter intake time of the year. So, while many of us are celebrating a holiday, the shelters will be flooded with pets, many of which will never find their way home,” said Gregory Castle, chief executive officer of Best Friends Animal Society, in an announcement. “In order to avoid this heartbreaking scenario, we encourage owners to make the holiday as safe as possible for their pets.”

Best Friends Animal Society offers the following tips to help keep your pets safe over the holiday weekend:

· Bring all pets indoors whenever neighborhood fireworks displays are likely. Secure dogs in a room and play music or turn on the television to drown out the frightening sounds.

· Keep pets away from lit fireworks at all times, including your own backyard, as some will chase after the bright moving objects and are at risk to be burned or blinded in the process.

· Ensure that pets are wearing current identification tags.

· For the ultimate identification protection, all pets should be microchipped so that they can scanned at an animal shelter or veterinary office.

· If your pet does go missing over the holiday, check with local animal shelters immediately. Go to the shelter in person to identify your pet, rather than calling or emailing the shelter, as staff may not be able to respond in a timely enough fashion to ensure your pet’s safety.