Bengaluru: As fireworks illuminate the night sky, ensuring the safety of pets and sparing them trauma from the bursting of crackers are major concerns for many pet parents in Bengaluru. Most of them turn to services such as pet boarding/sitting, which help keep animals calm during celebrations.Cookie, the golden retriever of Pallavi Kumar, 28, a postgraduate student in Jayanagar, is always terrified of noises. “Cookie is so traumatized around this time of the year. Whenever he realises it is festive time, he hides under our bed. He doesn’t eat and is constantly whimpering when he hears the sound of crackers,” said Pallavi, who has decided to lodge Cookie at a pet-boarding facility this Deepavali. With the need to take care of pets during the festive season growing, there is an increase in demand for pet-boarding and pet-sitting services. Swetha Sharma, founder of Pawspace India, told STOI that during Deepavali, there is a 70-80% increase in requests for such services. “During Deepavali, it isn’t easy to calm down a pet. They are terrified and suffer from anxiety attacks. Pet owners seek our help, and we take care of pets and try to ease their stress from loud noises. Whether the pet parents want to travel during holidays or want to attend Deepavali parties and other festivities in the city, they make use of pet-boarding services. And the best part is the pets don’t have to move from their comfort spots or spaces, which helps them feel safe and secure,” Swetha explained.Kishore T, an IT professional from Bellandur, is planning to visit his parents this festival. However, he can’t take his cat with him. “Travelling with my pet is very tough. My cat doesn’t like moving to different places, nor does she appreciate new spaces. She loves her comfort spot in the home and won’t budge. So whenever I have to travel outside the city, I look out for pet services like boarding,” he said.Tarun Khatri, director of Becky’ Bow Wow House, shares similar insights of their service requests during Deepavali. “Pet parents want to keep their pets safe and are always looking for pet centres and homes which are crack-proof or soundproof during Deepavali. In this season alone, we see a jump in pet-boarding service requests by 50%. We run on full capacity.”
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