Smart Home for You, Fun House for Your Pets?

"Many dogs are afraid of smoke alarms," Katherine Houpt, an environmental factors expert at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, recently told CNET. "So the dog is going crazy and the owner doesn't know why."

Recent advances in home technology likely have made things far worse for pets around the house. And it’s not just sound. Many LED lights, which have increased hugely in popularity this decade, produce a flicker so fast that it’s invisible to the human eye. To your pet, LED lights, especially those made with cheap parts, may have a strobe-like effect.

Dogs, for example, are more than three times as sensitive to the type of flicker produced by LED lights than humans. As a test, try putting your pooch in front of one of the new generations of LCD TVs, which flicker similarly to an LED light. “Most dogs cannot be planted in front of the television to engage them," says Alexandra Horowitz, author of Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know. "It doesn't look real." 

A 2006 zoological study showed that flickering lights may cause fear in animals, but it’s impossible to gauge exactly how much your pets may be affected by the sounds and sights silently emitted by technology around your home. To be safe, though, CNET experts advise taking a few steps that could help with your pets' comfort level:

• Completely unplug your devices when possible and practical. Though some devices (security alarms, thermostats, DVRs set to record the next episode of NCIS) need to stay plugged in, disconnecting others will have the added bonus of reducing phantom power draw and cutting down your electricity bill.
• Dedicate a single room in your home as a tech-free zone, with no electronics or LED lighting.
• Store your home media equipment together in a dedicated closet or section of a garage.
• Invest in quality LED lighting. The less you pay, the more likely it is that your lights may be creating a kind of torture chamber for your pets.