Opinion: stop the trade in fireworks

10:29am Tuesday 4th November 2008

Over the last few days we have been subjected to a bombardment of fireworks and bangers here in Portslade. If only people could give a little thought to the pain and suffering that is caused to thousands of animals every year from now up until New Year.

I run the local cat shelter for Cat Welfare Sussex and see, first hand, the damage caused by fireworks. There have been many cases of injury, be it accidental or deliberate, to both animals and humans.

Dogs and cats, indeed most animals, have very accute hearing. The sound of the banging actually causes their ears to hurt dreadfully. My own dog is on medication at the moment as he is terrified of the noise. I know of a lot of small children that are frightened too and young babies that cannot sleep at night.

Please, please don't think that I'm being a killjoy. I'm all for organised displays. Pet owners can at least plan around the stated times of the displays and take steps to ensure that animals are kept safe.The organisers must also implement the correct safety measures. Fireworks are expensive and a D.I.Y display in the back garden will never beat the magic of a proper orchestrated event.

The super bangers which are available now are of such a high velocity. They are extreamly dangerous, frightening and in the wrong hands could be life-threatening. I know that they state age restrictions but there are plenty of reckless people over the age of 18 in today’s world.

What I find really unbelievable is that, in these days of our Health and Safety obsessed society (think the banning of conkers in schools, food labelling etc), these lethal products can be purchased at the local supermarket. I think it's appalling that the likes of Sainsbury's and Tesco's are making profit in such an irresponsible way.

Let’s not forget that all these stores receive huge revenue from sales of pet products and pet insurance. I have one leaflet from Sainsbury's telling me to protect my pet with their insurance policy and another offering buy-one-get-one-free fireworks. It also gives a detailed description of the "bangometer" factor, ranging from quiet to very loud and even maximum.

I would urge all animal lovers to lobby the supermarkets to cease trading in fireworks. Once one agrees, the others will follow.