THE FOURTH OF JULY is a nice break from summer for most of us. We get a few days off of daily work (unless you work for an animal shelter), we find ways to keep cool in the blazing heat, and we celebrate our nation's birthday while being surrounded by too much food and too much spare time.

But the Fourth of July is not so much fun for our pets. It's noisy and it's hot, and there are a lot of distractions that can cause our pets to be anxious. We make plans to leave town and if we don't take our pets with us, we end up leaving them behind with a pet sitter or, worse, with just a bowl of food and water. Or we might decide to hang around for the holidays, but include a houseful of unknown guests and new opportunities for pets to get in trouble.

Here are some things to watch out for with our furry friends on holidays.

• Firecrackers and noisemakers are scary. Few pets can hear fireworks and not be frightened. Inside or out, those unpredictable, startling cracks and booms can scare the calmest pet. If you have cats that go outdoors, keep them inside from now until after the Fourth to protect them from the elements but also malicious revelers. Keep your dogs indoors, especially after dark and don't bring them along to any Fourth of July celebrations.
• If you have to leave for the evening, keep the television or radio on to help mask a noisy neighborhood. Don't leave your dog in the backyard and don't tie or chain him up outside.
• Occasionally, your dog will hide or cower in the house during fireworks or thunderstorms. That's OK; allow it, but reassure him. Some pets might actually injure themselves during times of panic, or jump out of windows or through screens.
• Do you have a "counter-surfer?" Food served outdoors, barbeques and large crowds mean that your pets will have access to more forbidden foods than at any other time. The vacation highlights you want to avoid are the emergency visits to the veterinarian to investigate contraband in the stomach of your sneaky canine. Make sure your guests know that your pets should not be treated with people food — it can upset their tummies — and that empty plates should be stashed in a secure trash.
• Going away? Don't wait until the last minute to find a pet sitter or boarding facility. The good facilities are full during the holidays and the best pet sitters are ones who already have a relationship with your pets.
• Staying home? If your house may be more hectic than usual with visitors, you might want to consider confining your cats to a guest room, with their litter box and food and water. Less room to roam means less chance of an unexpected escape.
• You can also take advantage of your free time to acquaint yourself with a new pet. Visit your local shelter this weekend and adopt your new best friend. You'll have several days to get to know each other and bond.
• Prepare for the worst. Pets can go missing at any time of year but holidays and long weekends are notoriously common times for pets to get lost. Unwitting guests leave doors open, caretakers unfamiliar with your dogs mishandle a leash, or fireworks send your pets into a mad dash anywhere but where they should be. We recommend pets be microchipped. All pets at the East Bay SPCA have a microchip that is registered to you at the time of adoption. You can also drop in at certain times for us to microchip your pets at our adoption facilities.
• Take some time this week to update your pets' identification tags and your contact numbers. If your pets are lost when you aren't at home, this can save their lives. Have recent pictures and detailed descriptions of your pet available in case you need to make "Lost" posters. The first few days after a pet goes missing is the most crucial time for finding him or her, so don't waste any time hunting up a good snapshot. Many lost pets wind up in public shelters in the days after the Fourth of July. You can find a list of animal control facilities closest to you at http://www.eastbayspca.org/resources.
• Take your pets with you. It's easier than ever before for your furry friends to accompany you on your vacation. There are many resources on the Internet, such as http://www.petswelcome.com or http://www.dogfriendly.com featuring all kinds of pet-friendly vacation activities and lodging.