JSPCA
PRESS RELEASE
October
2003
FIREWORKS - HELP TO PROTECT YOUR PET
Please remember that as
Halloween and Bonfire Night approach, to protect your pet when fireworks
are around.
Cats:
Keep your cat indoors
Close your curtains and windows and switching on the radio or television may help to mask the noise
Make sure your cat is identified, either by a microchip, or a collar and disc, so that it can be returned to you if it escapes and becomes lost
Dogs:
Exercise your dog during the day, when there is less likely to be any fireworks
Never walk your dog whilst there are fireworks being let off
Close your curtains and windows and switching on the radio or television may help to mask the noise
Make sure your dog is identified, either by a microchip, or by a collar and disc, in case the dog bolts away from you and becomes lost
Small animals:
Small animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs can also become very distressed from loud noises
Bring small animals indoors or into an outhouse or garden shed to offer them extra protection
Horses:
Horses often bolt from firework noise and can injure themselves
Always make sure horse, ponies and donkeys are stabled while fireworks are being let off
Close the
stable door to ensure that the fireworks can not be seen
Bonfires can also cause problems for wild animals, such as hedgehogs, which can crawl into them in search of a place to sleep. To minimise this risk, build bonfires as late as possible and make sure that you disturb the foundations of the bonfire before it is lit, so that any sleeping wildlife is given the chance to escape.
ENDS
Notes
for Editors:
Fireworks can seriously, even fatally, injure both animals and people. Only responsible adults should handle fireworks.
Never let fireworks off near animals.
Wild birds can panic and fly into objects, often fatally injuring themselves.
Dogs and cats find the loud bangs and strange flashes of light terrifying.
Horses and farm animals can bolt from firework noise and become injured.
Out of season fireworks can leave nests empty when the adult birds panic. The fledglings then may die of cold before the adult returns to sit again, after the danger has passed.