Fireworks

[Sillysallysausage]

We moved house this January and love it here but don't yet know the neighbours very well. We've always held a family fireworks party for my 12 year old - her birthday is Nov 5th. It's only once a year, the fireworks are for maybe 20 mins between 8 and 8.30 and we have maybe 15 family members in the house.
Where we used to live all the neighbours were on a WhatsApp group so we used to message them a week or so beforehand and let people know so they could get pets indoors / go out / watch them too.
But I'm aware that a lot of people hate fireworks and we don't have a WhatsApp group here. How would you warn neighbours so that they don't end up annoyed at us?
We are not noisy neighbours generally. And the neighbours are all friendly if you see them in the street. Would a note through the door be overkill? Should I just try and engineer meeting them.in the street to mention it?
WWYD?

Well I've never called any one that in my life so I don't know why you are quoting my post.
Why don't you take it up with the Pp who did?

Well said!!

Our cats go where they like, by law.
Similarly, our neighbours cats go where they like.

Not around here, no. We’re a long way away from any organised displays.

Our cats don’t go in their garden. They stay in our side of the road.

Why don’t you wish to clarify type of property ie whether this is a row of terraced houses or a detached property?

Out of interest… what do you spend on a 20 minute fireworks display?! That’s longer than the big events!

We live in the back of beyond. Lots of horses in fields around too, so no fireworks around here (apart from these new, rude neighbours who let theirs off, bizarrely, on the 7th November).

How many neighbours out of interest do you have?

There are about 10 homes, but one of them is only used on occasional weekends. So 9 lots of permanent residents.

Doing it actually on November 5th at a perfectly reasonable time is fine. You'll be far from the only ones.

....you'd make sure of it.

What you are suggesting sounds fine and you sound like a very considerate neighbour.
We have a neighbour who has a huge firework party every year that always goes onto midnight and the fireworks are so huge it's impossible to go into our garden when it's on. And they never tell us which day it is on so it's difficult to arrange to go out.
I would love a neighbour like you.
You could either knock on close neighbours doors or put a note through the door either is fine.

Oh, maybe it was just karma then for the neighbours on your side of the road 👍🏻🤷🏻‍♀️

So like a little hamlet?

I guess so, yes. There are more houses further away, but near neighbours are few.
It’s quiet and we all look out for each other (and our pets/animals).

We have a massive bonfire night party with fireworks - we don’t let anyone know because it’s expected at that time of year. I voted YABU because you’re totally overthinking it. Just get on with it and stop fretting your head off about it.

Yes sorry I think personal fireworks should be banned! You are right to want to celebrate on the 5th November and I am sure there are many organised displays at cricket clubs and fields etc around you you can go to without letting loud fireworks off directly over peoples houses. Houses with babies in and dogs like mine that will shake for hours so you can have your 20 minute look at the sky! Yep sorry I do think its selfish.

I think I'd appreciate a note through the door letting me know so it gives me the opportunity to go out and get the pets away if I need to. I wouldn't think it was too formal. I have one dog who is terrified (and no amount of training helps).

I understand you want fireworks (and I think they're nice too) but can't you just buy the silent/quieter ones? 20 minutes is actually quite a long time for a scared animal, it's not like the sound doesn't travel and it terrifies birds, foxes, deer, horses etc too. Plus you have yours at 8, next door has theirs at 7, across the road at 9 and on the corner at 10, then down the culdesac does theirs on the Friday night, and up the street on Saturday - suddenly we've gone from 20 minutes to three nights of non stop terror for everything except the humans in the area. The 'I can have noisy fireworks if I want' isn't necessarily the problem - it's that everyone has the same idea and we live in a society where we all need to consider our impact on those around us for it to be most pleasant.

Do you really need the loud noises to enjoy the evening? You can still have the fireworks without the noise! Isn't it just nicer to be nice and avoid terrifying animals for no real reason?

I'd just get the quiet ones, and enjoy my fireworks knowing nothing is terrified for the sake of them personally.

You're doing them on the 5th which is the right night,so I wouldn't worry. I say this as someone with a dog who hates fireworks, but I give him calming tablets so he's usually ok. It's when people have them on the weekends either side of the 5th as well that I get really annoyed, but now I expect that to happen and give him calming tablets then as well as at Christmas and New Year.

What an absolutely ridiculous thing to say. Some animals CAN NOT be desensitised to certain loud noises. They are not people and you can’t explain to them what that terrifying noise is.

Within the law people can set off fireworks.

All anti-social
or
All fun and we are a nation of animal lovers and autumn-festival enthusiasts.

What a charming way of putting it

I loath fireworks as they scare my pets. However I accept it’s something that happens on certain dates, eg 5th November, 31st December. If I was your neighbour I would be grateful you told me in advance so I knew it was going to happen so close to my house, but wouldn’t expect it. If it was another day of the year I think it’s always good to warn people.

You need to accept then that you are going to have some very annoyed neighbours

Wow that’s quite a response. On my street we would be fine and think for a one old child’s birthday it’s perfectly acceptable, you wouldn’t be hated and people are pretty easy going.