Frightened to death
Molly the puppy was so scared by fireworks her little heart stopped beating
IT was a night of deafening firework explosions which proved too much for Molly the puppy.
The petrified 18-week-old black terrier died from a heart attack blamed on the constant stream of loud bangs.
And a rabbit called Archie also succumbed to firework terror in the run-up to Bonfire Night tonight.
Molly’s owner Susan Paterson said her beloved pet was so terrified of the din that she ‘died of fright’ on Saturday.
She wrote online: ‘Due to the enormous amount of fireworks with loud bangs going off... last night, we lost a young terrier with a heart attack. Please think of the animals. Molly was only 18 weeks old and died of fright caused by fireworks.’
She asked Facebook users to sign an online petition calling for a ban on ‘ranIn dom’ fireworks – those let off outside organised displays – which has so far gained over 163,000 signatures. Her post was shared more than 60,000 times. a later update, Mrs Paterson, of Wombwell, South Yorkshire, said her family were ‘dreading the fireworks again tonight’. Dozens of people expressed their sympathy, with a number calling for fireworks to be outlawed.
One wrote: ‘So sorry. My dogs have always been OK but last night... it was just like bombs going off. My little dog of ten was so terrified I had to put her inside the top of my dressing gown where it was dark and safe. It still took her hours to calm down.’ Meanwhile Donna Pilgrim, 60, shared footage of her pet rabbit Archie shaking violently before collapsing in distress at firework display noise near her home in Millbrook, Cornwall.
She wrote: ‘Sadly, my sweet little Archie is no longer with us. He was happily eating his supper at 5.30pm, then the fireworks started. It was the 3rd of November not the 5th.
‘He let out a squeal and laid on his side and wouldn’t stop shaking. It was a shock reaction.’ The grieving pet owners spoke out as the RSPCA demanded tougher restrictions on fireworks. A poll carried out by the charity found 62 per cent of dog owners reported signs of distress during the fireworks season – and 54 per cent of cat owners.
The charity’s Caroline Allen said: ‘The RSPCA is calling for the public sale and use of fireworks to be limited to four specific celebration and festival dates – November 5, December 31, Chinese New Year and Diwali.
‘We’re also campaigning for a noise restriction on the maximum level of decibels.’
Dogs’ hearing is said to be four times more sensitive than a human’s. But experts say owners can ease the effects of fireworks on nervous pets by turning up the TV or radio and setting up a ‘den’ for them to retreat into.
‘It was like bombs going off’