Hi Friends,
I'm writing this in the Health forum because fireworks do affect the goats' (and my) mental health. Does anyone have tips on helping the goats through the night(s) of fireworks? Last year my goats were a few months old and I don't know how they did, as I didn't stay with them in the barn. I'm a little ashamed to say that but I didn't know what to do . I just have the 3 wethers,
So, this year, I'm asking. The fireworks are very close and loud here and will likely run more nights than just the 4th. Do you think leaving the lights off in the barn, as is usual, is what I should do or leave a night light or even the regular lights on? But then they'd be on all night, which also seems disruptive. Should I go sit with them or leave them be? Would you close up the barn instead of leaving it open to their outside area as usual? Am I worrying too much?
Thanks very much.
Ann
Replies
Thanks so much Deborah and Naomi! It is nice to at least know others who mind this time of year.
Thanks, again!
I feel this, Ann. I hate this season for my goats, too. People near me start intermittently shooting off noisemakers as early as the first of June!
If it were just to be one night, I would probably sit with them because they do seem to take great comfort in my presence; but as it is, since it's frequent and unpredictable, I don't. I don't close their barn (wouldn't make an appreciable difference in the noise level), and they just hunker down inside.
It's impossible to know for sure how your goats are going to respond because they're all a little different, and it depends on how close and how loud the fireworks are, which is difficult to explain. I've never gone out to my barn during fireworks, but they are not super close to us because none of our neighbors are super close. We have 32 acres so even though our next-door neighbors do fireworks, they're not as close as if we lived in a subdivision. I have heard of goats getting spooked and running into a fence and getting hurt (like a head or leg going through woven wire and getting broken because they were panicking), so the most important thing would be to keep them in the barn and just be sure that there is nothing in there that they could get hurt on.
I would leave the lights off because leaving the lights on messes with their circadian rhythms. We all need darkness for the best sleeping.
It is totally up to you as to whether you want to be with them. You don't need to feel guilty about not going out there. I've never gone out to my barn during fireworks. If I heard my goats screaming like crazy, I would, but I've never heard anything.