... to be irritated by pet owners going on about fireworks given the impact that people having pets has on society and the environment?

[Kallyderon]

It's just about time for the annual whingefest about people setting off fireworks to start and it's boring. If you own a domestic animal then your animal impacts on people around you all year round in terms of waste, meat production, safety, sanitation and noise. It also impacts on wildlife.

Given that, and given that no one is obliged to own another living creature, it's a bit much to expect all the other humans around you to refrain from doing something they enjoy because it might make your dog unhappy.

Tbh there are sound environmental reasons for opposition to fireworks but they don't do even half as much damage to wild creatures and their habitats as the average cat or dog, so that's a moot point anyway and obviously not of great concern to you otherwise you wouldn't own a dog.

So AIBU to say give it a rest?

Surely using OP's logic, every living person is a drain on the planet, so none of us have any right to have a problem with fireworks.

Bizarre

Also, any pets I've ever had have been rescues, are you suggesting it would have been better to leave them freeze and/or starve to death rather than take them in and care for them? If so, you're a fucking callous human being.

Nobody would tolerate me standing outside their window banging saucepans together and shining a flashlight into their living room disturbing their peace and scaring their pets and young children... and that would actually be less dangerous than letting fireworks off in an uncontrolled environment.

I actually love fireworks, bonfire night is one of my favourite nights of the year and thankfully my cat doesn't seem phased by them so far (only got him in summer this year).

The problem is that it goes on for weeks before and after the actual date and that you have idiots who get their hands on them and do things like set them off through letterboxes, attach them to small animals and throw them at cars.

People are fucking idiots when it comes to things like this, and for that reason, they should be banned from public sale.

In 2016, 24k people were seriously injured in road traffic accidents so 0.03% of the population & rta fatalities were 0.002%, bike deaths accounted for a teeny %. Thankfully these incidences are not deemed so rare that we don't aim for improved safety.

And "only" 103 under 24 year olds were killed by knife crime between 2017-2018 so I'm not sure why knife crime has been such a focus & hotly debated issue, don't people realise its rare 🙄

These 2 things are not related. If you don’t like animals fine but just hold that opinion you don’t need to try to link it to fireworks.

Overall dogs do much more good for society than harm, so pulling out stats on the proportionally tiny number of attacks is a bit disingenuous. Also the attacks are largely the fault of owners too, not just the dogs themselves.

People benefit from guide dogs, therapy dogs, police sniffer dogs, and dog owners get mental health benefits from their pets. Not to mention exercise which helps keep the body healthy too. But yes, let's vilify all dogs

Hahahahaha! Dogs are brilliant (mine doesn't give a shit about fireworks). Fireworks are boring and dangerous in the wrong hands. Hope nobody gets hurt at your at home fire work displays 😂

Ps Animals (especially dogs) are still brilliant. People who don't like dogs have issues. That's a scientifically proven fact.

Pps Dogs are the best

YANBU op but a bit like the remain supremacy on here there’s a huge majority of killjoys who want to ban fun because some people can’t be trusted - so we all suffer rather than dealing properly with the actual offenders.

Thankfully these incidences are not deemed so rare that we don't aim for improved safety.
We haven’t banned vehicles from private use.

?

YABU. I have nothing against organised events but believe fireworks should NOT be sold to the general public. They are dangerous as well as being a nuisance.

Don't like fireworks that are loud, which most of them are these days.
I remember nice little fountains that were relatively safe and quiet, now they are a blooming nuisance. A few stats I fell on say fountains are safest, causing only 1% of accidents, compared to 4% of accidents being at public displays (USA 2016 - haven't time to trawl through to find loads of stats, but clearly the, 'go to a public display it's safe mantra, isn't always true.).
But I also don't like it when people keep pets that they allow to roam where they can foul other people's gardens and attack wild-life at will.
Pets that are loved, kept under control, and cleaned-up after I think are lovely.
Bottom line is, yes I'm a kill-joy if your fun means causing problems for someone else, and both fireworks and pets can do so, but don't need to.

YABU, fireworks should be silent. They're antisocial, and negatively affect wildlife just as much as pets.

Are we just talking dogs and cats here? Because i fail to see how my 2 rabbits contribute to meat production, and they certainly don't make any noise.

I do think people complaining about fireworks just because it might frighten their pet is a bit much though

If you own a domestic animal then your animal impacts on people around you all year round in terms of waste, meat production, safety, sanitation and noise. It also impacts on wildlife.

What a load of bollocks ^^^

I completely agree with you OP. My village has a Facebook group, I'd say 70% of people are dog owners (I'm not a dog fan at all myself) and the amount of whingeing about fireworks because Rover gets scared drives me mad considering that so many of them let their dogs knock children off their feet, they don't pick the dog's shit up, and at least half a dozen dogs are left outside to bark all hours of the day. TBH it's just another thing that makes dog loons (disclaimer: Not All Dpg Owners) even more tedious

@Gandalf11 put the wine down you're embarrassing yourself

I'm for getting them off sale we have had a incident locally where fireworks were thrown from a car at a lolly pop man and small children.

I love fireworks but organised events are safer