Ever wondered what your horses think of fireworks? While the 4th of July is a fun, celebratory event for you and your friends and family, it can be a nightmare for horses. As prey animals, horses have highly tuned senses. Their acute sense of hearing comes from large ears that can even swivel to find the direction a sound is coming from. Their eyesight, while not bifocal like humans, is very sensitive to changes in light and darkness.
Some horses develop phobias of thunder and fireworks, as dogs sometimes do. One gelding I know circles and paces in his stall whenever a thunderstorm strikes, sweating and clearly quite distressed. Horses who are particularly skittish or sensitive to loud noises might especially susceptible.
So what can you do to keep your horses safe?
Even otherwise calm horses may panic and bolt if fireworks are set off nearby. Ask your neighbors to refrain from huge and loud firework displays if you're concerned about how your horses may react.
If possible, bring your horses into stalls or a smaller paddock, ideally a safe and familiar place where they are less likely to run through a fence. If your horses are not used to being stalled, it may be better to keep them outside rather than stressing them with a major change in their routine. Also, it's best not to separate them from their familiar herd. Make sure the area does not have any safety hazards such a protruding nails or anything a nervous horse could hurt themselves on and that your fencing is secure and solid.
You can also play music to help drown out the explosions. According to this study, horses are more relaxed when listening to classical or country music than jazz or rock.
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Calming oral supplements with magnesium or other ingredients may help a nervous horse to calm down in general but it may take a few days or longer to see results.
If your horse is really at risk of over-reacting and getting hurt, using acepromazine ("ace") as a mild sedative is another option but consult with your veterinarian about this. Note: it has to be given 20-30 minutes in advance or more. Once a horse is panicked, it's unlikely to have any effect.
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my former trainer's mare was absolutely catatonic during fireworks. where i used to board, they would use the front pasture by the road to shoot off fireworks... trainer would spend the entire night camped out in front of her 17.3hh ottb mare's stall until the fireworks were over. it was the only way she stayed in the stall for the duration.
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