Mocha scurried under the dining table. Martini would not be left alone for a minute. Pogo was extremely restless until all the windows were shut.

What was Diwali revelry for humans was a traumatic experience for dogs, cats and other pets.

Many pet owners in the city said the first half of Diwali 2024 was much less noisy than usual. But as the evening progressed, the deafening sound of banned firecrackers became more and more frequent.

Mocha, a four-year-old French Bulldog, spent most of Thursday evening in fear and anxiety, said owner Kavita Banerjee, a Phoolbagan resident.

“Every time a cracker was burst and the noise pierced through, he would look for a place to hide. Ears folded, he kept whimpering,” said Banerjee, who works with a home appliances company.

“The first half of the day was better than the past few Diwalis. Just when I was hoping that this Diwali would be less noisy, the noise level started peaking,” said Banerjee.

She tried playing loud music on TV and her phone to keep Mocha distracted.

A veterinarian said dogs have a significantly more acute sense of hearing than humans.

“The sound emitted by a firecracker or the roar of a thunder can be painful and overwhelming for dogs because of their heightened sensitivity to sound. Trained dogs, like those in the police force or bomb squads, might be habituated to these sudden bursts of sound. But the majority of the canines panic in such a situation,” said Dayanarayan Banerjee, a veterinary doctor.

Cats are more sound-sensitive than dogs, he said.

Paromita Chatterjee, who lives in Behala, has four pets — a five-year-old Siberian Husky named Pogo, a six-year-old Pomeranian called Dustu and two Persian cats, Bunty and Babli, both around nine months old.

“The dogs were scared. The cats were even more scared. I had to keep all the doors and windows shut,” said Chatterjee.

The noise level peaked as the evening progressed, she said.

Chandrani Guha, who lives off EM Bypass near Patuli, is mother to three Indian dogs — Martini and Portia, both 12, and Coffee, 4 — adopted from the road.

“This is a terrible time for pets. They would not let go of me even for a minute. The frequency of the noise violations went up as the evening progressed. Left alone, they would be extremely nervous and restless,” said Guha.

In many Calcutta neighbourhoods, the menace started from Wednesday evening.

The Telegraph saw a man stepping out of a home on Ballygunge Circular Road to walk a dog. But moments later, two back-to-back sounds of crackers forced a change of plans. The man and the dog went back inside.

At a New Alipore home, a six-year-old German Shepherd, Tito, would let out loud barks and run helter-skelter every time a cracker exploded

“From the balcony, he loves to see the sight of fireworks in the sky. But every time a cracker explodes, he would run from one corner to another and bark loudly,” said Animesh Mukherjee, the owner.