Animal control working to reunite pets with owners after Fourth of July fireworks

After the Fourth of July fireworks displays disappear and the sounds of firecrackers fade, pets that get loose often end up in kennels or shelters waiting for their families to find them.

Animal care and control officials in the Twin Cities say it’s common for capacity at kennels to increase in the days before and after the holiday due to firework activity.

“Pets can hear unbelievably better than we can, so the sound of fireworks is actually very painful for them,” said Minneapolis Animal Care and Control Director Caroline Hairfield. “That’s part of what they’re running from.”

While Hairfield said the Minneapolis shelter didn’t see a significant uptick in stray pets, one St. Paul official described a “wild” holiday weekend. Over three days, animal control manager Molly Lunaris said they impounded 29 animals.

In Minneapolis, residents often come in contact with stray or loose pets before Hairfield says her staff does. She believes that’s thanks in part to the “Found to Foster” program, launched this time last year.

“That animal stays in the community where it’s lost,” Hairfield said.

The city pet license tags also make it easy for strangers to identify who a stray belongs to, but including a QR code on the tag that when scanned by a phone reveals the owner’s contact information.

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul have dedicated websites where they post photos of the animals in their care.

Hairfield said if you’re a pet owner it’s a good idea to have some kind of ID on your pet, whether it be a collar or ID tag or a microchip. She also suggests families take good, identifiable photos of their pets so they can post them on social media if they run away.