This traditional explosion of sparks in a sleepy sky is certainly a dream for humans, but a nightmare for animals.
If this magical practice has become a must to celebrate the end of a calendar year, it is essential to remember that our four-legged friends do not marvel at it. Dogs, cats and other animals do not understand this concept which upsets their nocturnal habits lulled by darkness and silence. Their keen and sensitive hearing only detects a deafening and terrifying noise, which generally causes them to flee in panic to seek shelter from danger. The increased number of animals found in the pound the day after New Years Eve speaks for itself.
Fireworks were allowed on the Dutch side privately between December 29 and 31, detonations have already been felt on various occasions, scaring wildlife behind the border. Associations defending animal rights are protesting against this approval undermining animal welfare, and rightly so.
For pets, so plan to put them sheltered on the evening of the festivities, preferably indoors with curtains or shutters closed. If you are out, leave the television or radio on, which will mask - a little - exterior blasts. If your dog or cat shows signs of fear during a fireworks display, don't punish them, be natural and nothing beats a toy to distract them and a small reward to keep them happy. Finally, make sure that your pet wears a name collar or a chip registered by a veterinarian, in the event of a runaway, it will be easier to find it.
For any organizer or aficionado of aerial and brilliant firecrackers, the representatives of the animal population of Saint-Martin bark us in one ear and meow us in the other, an alternative in 5 words: fireworks with contained noise. To the best of my mind ...
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