Question

Many dogs have a hypersensitive fight or flight response triggered by fireworks. From a neurological perspective, describe how this response may develop in dogs. Include in your discussion the role of conditioned vs. unconditioned responses, GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), the amygdala, and the limbic system.

Answer 1

Fireworks, being noisy and sudden, easily alarm dogs and trigger their fight or flight response. Dogs are known to have noise phobia from sudden loud noses like that of thunderstorms and fireworks. The sudden firework activates the limbic system (hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala) which sends neural signals to the pituitary gland and these then trigger the sympathetic nervous system of the dog which leads to an increase in the levels of catecholamines like norepinephrine and adrenaline in the dog's body, which leads to stress and panic.

GABA, gamma-aminobutyric acid, is naturally produced by the parasympathetic nervous system as an inhibitory neurotransmitter to the sympathetic nervous system and hence, helps the organism to calm down. GABA supplements may help if the dog is panic stricken. Furthermore, conditioning/training the dog to the presence, sound and brightness of fireworks may help in familiarizing the dogs to the fireworks and help in coping with them.