pune vaaghya is a friendly curious labrador typical of his breed equally typical of him is his dislike for crackers in fact if only vaaghya could speak on behalf of his other fourfooted friends cats included chances are he would tell us just how badly the diwali firecrackers upset their equilibrium year after yeartheres no doubt about it diwali is not a happy time for vaaghya says owner pradnya shirole he tends to get up with a start and as for our pet cat she stays at home all the timebesides the noise shirole is also concerned about vaaghya sniffing at the usedup crackers lying on the road he loves to smell it possibly even tastes it this worries me as the crackers are made of poisonous substances so instead of taking him for his daily walks we take him around the garden for his toilet says shirole apart from this i also make it a point to categorically tell his little school friends that their friend vaaghya does not enjoy crackers so would they please keep it awaysimilarly the ayare family whose pet pomeranian pinky passed away recently recollects just how much of a hard time she would have year after year during diwali she would hide beneath the bed and stay there all day recollects gajanan ayare her meals would be disturbed she would quiver with fear he saysveterinarian hemant kadam says this time of the year is very hard upon pets psychologically some owners give their pets tablets but i would not advocate it instead i would recommend that owners let their pet remain in their favourite safe corner of the house and check up on them regularly patting them again and again and reassuring them of your presence would help cotton earplugs are another good option since they dont hurt them in anyway your pets would not protest he saysneha panchammiya founder of animal welfare trust resq said the animal needs to be conditioned right from puppyhood to varying decibels of sounds with the help of an animal behaviourist who would recommend the right way to go about things please do not try things out on your own randomly she warns to ensure safety of older pets shut the doors and windows and try to ensure a family member is aroundanimal behaviourist tanya kane said both cats and dogs have a far more pronounced sense of hearing than we do but there is a way to ensure they dont suffer while conditioning little pups is the best way to go for older pets we need to look at curea few days before a festival that entails noisy firecrackers try shutting your doors and windows and play music this way when the crackers start eventually the animal can listen to music instead being descendants of wolves dogs like the concept of a den that is dark corners try dimming the lights as much as possible it makes them feel safe with regard to meals stick to their