RSPCA fears a rise in DIY firework displays could put West Sussex pets at risk
A poll found 19 per cent of people in the South East are planning private displays.
There are fears for pets in West Sussex as the coronavirus pandemic sparks a rise in 'do it yourself' firework displays.
According to a poll by the animal welfare charity RSPCA, 19 per cent of people in the South East said they were planning their own.
Nationally, the poll found 21 per cent of UK adults plan to hold a private display at home this year, with 20 per cent planning to attend one at a friend’s or family’s home.
That is nearly twice as many as in 2019 (11 per cent and 12 per cent respectively).
It comes as many organised events have been cancelled this year because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Every year, the RSPCA has said it gets hundreds of calls about fireworks affecting animals.
Over the last four years, the charity has received 1,543 calls about fireworks.
The poll also found 21 per cent of UK adults reported owning, knowing or having heard about an animal that had died as a result of fireworks.
In 2019, the RSPCA launched its #BangOutOfOrder campaign calling for tighter controls and regulations around the sale and use of fireworks in a bid to help people and animals who suffer with fireworks phobias and noise aversion.
The campaign is calling for:
● The restriction of the private use of fireworks to agreed traditional dates (5 November, New Year's Eve, Chinese New Year and Diwali)
● The maximum permitted noise level of fireworks for public sale to be reduced to 90 decibels. The current allowed level, 120 decibels (equivalent to a jet aircraft taking off) should only be used at licensed public displays
● All public fireworks displays should be licensed by the relevant licensing authority and information about the proposed display must be provided in the local area several weeks in advance with a process for local residents to appeal against the granting of the licence. This process should also apply to people seeking to hold private displays at special events such as weddings
● Fireworks to be labelled as 'loud' or 'low noise' to allow consumers to make an informed decision if they do buy fireworks.
The RSPCA found 85 per cent of UK adults think public firework displays should be licensed, and has said there has been "wide public support" for calls for private displays to be limited to specific dates to reduce the impact on people and animals who find fireworks frightening and stressful.
However, animal welfare experts fear this could go out of the window this year as lockdown prompts the cancellation of public displays and people choose to set off fireworks at home instead.
RSPCA animal welfare expert Dr Mark Kennedy said:
"We understand that people enjoy celebrating Bonfire Night, New Year’s Eve and other key dates with fireworks and we don’t want to spoil the fun.
"Unfortunately, lockdown measures this year mean that very few organised, public displays are likely to go ahead and we suspect this means lots of families will be choosing to have their own displays at home.
"We’d urge people to be considerate and keep neighbours with animals, including those with nearby horses and other livestock, informed of plans well in advance so they can make preparations to reduce the stress to their animals."
The RSPCA poll found only 49 per cent of UK adults say they think about the impact fireworks can have on local animals, but 71 per cent agree that the noise from fireworks can negatively impact their welfare.
People can support the #BangOutOfOrder campaign on the RSPCA website.