To be sick of people moaning about their pets and fireworks?

[Sophiehoney]

There's currently a debate on my local Facebook page as the people in the street behind me let off a long, spectacular firework display in their back garden which was very loud.
It was absolutely brilliant and my kids loved it.

Someone has moaned that her four cats are terrified and others are joining in and saying their cats/dogs are also distressed.

They are all saying they should have had a warning?? Even though it's the weekend before bonfire night??

But what really annoys me is that if you click on this woman's name and see all her past posts, she's moaned about the same bloody thing at the same time of year for the past SIX years!!!

Why has she done nothing to prepare for this even though she knows full well it happens around the same time??!!!

Sorry you hate yourself so much. Must be tough for self-esteem.

I didn’t compare them.

And often, the dog attacks are as a result of stupid human behaviour too.

That’s all very well, but it’s got nothing to do with the misery and injury inflicted by dogs.

Of course owners are responsible for their dogs. Dogs aren’t people. They’re just dogs. They can’t be charged with an offence and give evidence in court.

The point being made is that dogs (and cats in their own way) create public nuisance, and worse. So pet owners shouldn’t whinge about nuisance from fireworks. Otherwise we’d be banning dogs and other nuisance pets first.

Humans in general are selfish and don't give a fuck about anything except their own amusement.

Fireworks need to be banned. They're bad the environment. Wildlife. Knives are taboo yet we are allowed explosives? Where's the logic in that?

Interestingly, this works just as well if you replace fireworks with pets, and explosives with dogs that are capable of killing or seriously harming humans and other animals.

... And whose fault is that ? Oh yes. Humans. Humans are awful.

I'm more interested in the policy proposals than people's subjective moral takes about whether humans are nicer than animals. Since you seem to agree the argument you cite works both ways, presumably you agree that if fireworks need to be banned on this basis then so do pets, or at least some of them?

The decision to get a pet is a lifestyle choice made by the owner. Other people shouldn’t be made to alter the way they live their lives due to the pet owner’s lifestyle choice. If you don’t want to spend your evenings comforting a terrified pet, don’t get a pet. They’re not people. They’re just pets.

Right so knives are taboo yet fireworks are not?
Explosives which cause litter, the NHS services are stretched to their limits even more by idiots blowing up their hands (serves them right) fireworks being thrown at people's houses... Fireworks being thrown at people...
How is this relvant to pets? (To which humans sadly cause some dogs to behave the way they do)

I've googled just now and automatically 2 articles have popped up with people throwing fireworks in the last week...

The decision to set fireworks in your garden is a lifestyle choice. Other people shouldn't have to alter the way they live due to your fireworks-lover lifestyle choice.

The sooner these bloody fireworks are banned the better. Its putting weapons into scumbags who think its funny to throw them in buses at dogs cats any animal or person. Unbelivable that its still allowed.

Other people can go about their lives listening to bangs occasionally. It won’t kill them.

The fireworks available for private sale nowadays are much more powerful than those available when I was a child.

I now get large errant rockets landing in my garden. That never used to be a problem.

Interesting that you swerved the question.

This is relevant to pets for two reasons. One, you're on a thread about pets. Two, if you want to argue that we should ban things because of the impact on wildlife and the NHS, both of those criteria unquestionably apply to dogs. You keep saying humans are to blame for the behaviour of pets, but banning or limiting humans from owning pets would be addressing the behaviour you speak of.

I actually have no problem with people being selfish about this, btw. It's fine if you want to ban fireworks but not pets because you subjectively prefer pets. Just don't then pretend it's about the NHS, wildlife or anything else that you clearly give no fucks about if it involves something you think is important being sacrificed.

How about a compromise?

Let’s ban fireworks but only if we ban pet ownership. There is quite an environmental impact with pets, not just poop and bad behaviour but resources used to provide food, pet carriers, litter tray stuff, disposal of waste, plastic toys etc etc

Sure, I don't think anyone doubts such things happen. I assume you understand that dog bites of humans, cats killing birds and the like will also have happened during that period, and indeed throughout the year, to the extent that they don't usually even qualify as news. It's just what happens when people decide to keep pets.

Shouldve known a thread about fireworks which can distress and kill pets and wildlife would bring out the i dont like dogs womp womp brigade.

So long as the ickle pickle chilllllldren like the bangs then fuck any other living creature, itll have to get over it or die.

You've accidentally forgotten to mention the terrible impact pet ownership has on wildlife. A genuine mistake, I'm sure. Naturally you wouldn't be the sort of hypocrite who womps away when it's cats and dogs causing the damage.

And then let's ban cars, more than two children, woodfire, and eating more than 1500kcal a day. And let's call that country North Korea.

Can't we just agree and cope with the fact that other people lifestyle's choices can be a nuisance sometimes? Same as ours can be for some? And that's what living as a society is about?
People can enjoy fireworks, other people can complain, no one is right or wrong.

It's not much different to the attitude of some pet owners, to be fair.

As long as I can have my pet (some of which also kill other wildlife and also aren't great for the environment) fuck anyone else, including the distress they can cause others. God forbid anything distresses MY pet though.

Perhaps youd like to accidentally familiarise yourself with the facts.

Fireworks are significantly worse for wildlife due to their unpredictable, loud, and startling nature, which causes mass panic, injury, and death in a wide range of species. While dogs also suffer greatly from fireworks, the impact on the broader ecosystem of wildlife—including birds, deer, horses, and small animals—is often more devastating and widespread.
Impact of fireworks on wildlife

• Mass panic and injury: The loud noises and bright flashes can cause wild animals like birds, deer, and foxes to panic, leading them to run into roads, fences, or other hazards, resulting in injury or death.
• Disorientation and flight: Birds, in particular, can be driven from their nests and natural habitats, with some flying so far out to sea they cannot return. They are also at high risk of colliding with buildings in the night sky.
• Environmental contamination: The chemicals used in fireworks pollute the air, soil, and water, harming wildlife and affecting ecosystems long after the display ends.
• Stress and death: The unpredictable and intermittent loud noises can be more stressful for animals than continuous background noise. For some smaller animals, the explosions can be so overwhelming that they suffer fatal fits.

Impact of dogs on wildlife

• Predation: Dogs are natural predators, and if they are off-leash in areas where wildlife is present, they can injure or kill animals like rabbits, birds, and other small mammals.
• Habitat disruption: Even without direct predation, dogs can disrupt wildlife by scaring them from their homes and feeding grounds, leading to stress and displacement.
• Physical harm: Loose dogs can also harm wildlife through physical attacks or by chasing them into dangerous situations.

Conclusion While both dogs and fireworks can be harmful to wildlife, the unpredictable and wide-ranging effects of fireworks make them the worse threat to the overall ecosystem. They cause stress, injury, and death in a vast number of species, and the environmental contamination they create has long-term consequences. Dogs pose a more localized threat, but the potential for harm is lower compared to the widespread impact of fireworks.

Womp womp.

Excuse me I care more about wildlife and animals than people. Hence banning fireworks. The environment, wildlife and animals are important to me

Like a lot of folk I’d be less pissed off about it if it was on specific nights so that you could plan to overnight somewhere quiet or something to avoid them if you want to. But that’s just not an option round our way; it starts at the end of September and lasts into January these days. They’ve even started letting them off in broad daylight (?!). It’s all just become a bit tedious, and it definitely isn’t either impressive or special anymore. We’ve all got to live on this big rock together, and I’m not one for bans unless there’s a damn good reason. But it’s just not feasible to mitigate the impact when it’s all the damn time. Our dog isn’t all that arsed, but I sympathise with those who do struggle with it. Lots of ‘I’m alright, Jack’ about these things where a bit of sensible compromise (licensed displays only?) would go a long way.

Go on... How would you 'ban' pets? How would it work? What would you do?