Effing Fireworks

[MrsCatE]

LittleBeast is attached to me constantly for comfort but even I can't save him from his terror of fireworks so we stick him in a room that has least noise / blast incursion. They've been going off here from around 8pm and some sound like bombs landing and lit up the garden. He only came out a few minutes ago. What's is the effing point of fireworks? How may times can you go 'ooh / aaahh' and other fake acknowledgment noises.

My cat loves watching them.

My cats were fine ... sleeping in their basket throughout.
It's New Year! Fireworks anticipated and inevitable

our cat has peed on my DH's shoes to register his protest at not being allowed out because of the constant fireworks.

Yup. Fireworks were anticipated hence shutting myself and LittleBeast into the most soundproof/lightproof room. I literally don't get the need!

DCat is not happy at being kept in but there's no way I was letting him out until it's all over.

The short and very clearly pre-planned midnight display that one of my neighbours put on in their front garden that many of us watched was very good and no one else in the street let any off, so we got off lightly this year.

I wouldn't mind so much if the fireworks were kept to midnight, but we had people a few streets away letting them off at 9pm.

Well since the entire world’s new year firework displays are being shown on all the news programmes and attended by massive crowds, I think you may be in the minority here.

Well you don't NEED to keep a cat. You want to.

My cats have always been fine with fireworks we don't jump up and down and make a big fuss about it. It's New Year of course there are fireworks. The whole world isn't going to stop for you! Get a grip

🙄 The problem is not the big organised displays like you get in London and Edinburgh, and which are shown on TV. If you have a cat, you can choose to live away from the display sites.

The problem is when multiple neighbours are setting fireworks off from early evening onwards because it doesn't matter where you live, there's someone doing that, so there's nowhere to live where you can protect your cat and it goes on for hours.

I love firework displays and I'd love it if I could leave DCat at home and go out to see a professional display. But I can't because I come home to a cowering cat under the sofa if I go out on Bonfire Night or New Year.

Right, I'll just drop DCat off at the vet to be euthanised then and deprive myself of the clear mental health benefits that provably come from having a pet.

FFS.

Fireworks have been going off from 8pm and I still have cowering LittleBeast glued to my side now - please note the time! it's ridiculous. Go to public display instead of setting off biggest fireworks you can find into other people's gardens / space. F£cl knows what the mess will be tomorrow. I don't have a bad relationship with any neighbours noise and light were insane!

Fireworks have finally stopped here, and I thought I might get some sleep but now next door's tom cat is yowling in the garden

Oh well, I guess it's that time of year. 😁

I do think there's a difference between fireworks on New Years' Eve and people who let them off on random Thursdays in February.

Everyone knows there'll be fireworks for New Year so if you have a pet you need to plan accordingly in advance - and I say that as the owner of a dog who really isn't a fan of fireworks.

My cat would be jealous, he only got to see one lot at 12.

Have you tried Feliway and other calming products throughout the day? First time my cat heard him he was a bit shocked but loved watching ever since and for some reason he loves smells the air.

The question is how much disruption it is reasonable to expect pets and their humans to plan for. If it started at 23:45 and ended at 00:15 (as an extreme example) it would be a lot less unpleasant for DCat than having fireworks from 18:00 until 01:00.

@Latewinter piss off.

It is unpleasant - believe me, I get it. We have three cats and a dog and two of them are scared of fireworks, so we plan in advance to help keep them as comfortable as possible.

I know there'll be fireworks on NYE/NYD, and for the couple of weeks surrounding Bonfire Night, so that's what I plan for, and I generally expect them to start from when it gets dark. If they don't, then it's a bonus.

We use a mixture of methods - calming medication (started about a week in advance), windows and curtains all closed, white noise in the bedrooms, the TV on loud so we can drown out as much as possible, and we make sure everyone is fed before dark. We all sit in the same room with lots of reassurance and comfort items available if they need it.

It is hard but I do think when you choose to become a pet owner, it's just something you have to cope with. The world will never work around your lifestyle after all.

TBH the multiple weeks in October is far more of a problem than NYE. I can stay in on NYE but I can't stay in for night after night for a fortnight or more, and that's when I come home to a frightened cat under the sofa.

You don't need to stay in every single night for two weeks, there are plenty of things you can set up at home to try and help them. We use a combination of different things and while they don't always solve the problem, they do make a huge difference.

I'm not sure why this thread has gone to the left.
To clarify, I'm luckily enough to have a sort of buffer zone room which isn't exposed to major blasts and had set up LittleBeast in this safe place with me ensconced too. First cat - BastardCat never flicked an ear at fireworks however, my grumble was why from 8pm to 03:00?