Bonfire Night Nightmare!

✦ “Remember, remember the fifth of November”… how can pet owners forget?

✦ It’s a date along with Halloween, Diwali, New Year’s Eve, and the Chinese New Year that annually makes the festive season distressing for Britain’s pets and their owners.

✦ A survey by the RSPCA revealed that 62% dog owners confirmed their pet showed signs of distress during the fireworks season.

✦ Over 85% concur that fireworks should be restricted to specific dates and displays should be licensed, amid concerns that social distancing could drive people to stage their own.

✦ Every year the RSPCA receives over 500 calls about fireworks, affecting

Broadcaster and author Anna Webb has studied at the College of Integrated Veterinary Therapies (CIVT). She lives in London with Prudence and Mr Binks.

pets, livestock and wildlife.

✦ Despite the Government acknowledging lobbying and over 400,000 petition signatures, its new repor t on fireworks and their impact on animals could go a lot fur ther.

✦ It agrees that the existing law is inadequate and recommends that local authorities should be empowered to limit the number of displays through a permit system.

✦ Plus it advises that the Government reviews the noise levels of fireworks, and increases awareness campaigns.

✦ Inaudible to the human ear it’s the high and low frequencies that are synonymous with erratic firework explosions which induce fear.

✦ Over 45% of dogs (or

five million) suf fer from “noise sensitivity”, making them even more susceptible to these frequencies.

✦ If public displays simply reduced their sound levels by just 30 decibels, it would make the world of difference.

✦ Currently the average level is 120 decibels. That’s the equivalent to a plane taking of f, whereas at 90 decibels, it’s equivalent to a car door slamming.

✦ Last year Sainsbury’s was the first supermarket to ban the sale of fireworks. The decision came in response to a customer’s tweet urging the supermarket to ban fireworks sales for the sake of her dog. They were congratulated by animal welfare groups with others urged to follow suit.