Fireworks have once again been the main reason for pets’ deaths and animals going stray this past festive season.
According to the Roodepoort Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’s (SPCA) inspector, Mike Allen, there has been an increase in the amount of dogs recovered over the past two weeks and as many as 90 per cent of calls were pet owners looking for their lost animals.
Allen was also twice called out to the grisly scenes where dogs have impaled themselves on palisade fences. In another instant a pet owner who confronted his neighbours who were shooting of fireworks was threatened with one of the rockets.
Allen has called people shooting fireworks “stupid”.
Ruben Hensberg of Friends of Rescued Animals (Fora) had a similar story to tell. Although he could not give the statistics he says there was a distinct increase in Fora’s intake of stray animals over December. He also said they received as many as 50 calls per day of pet owners looking for their animals.
According to the Explosive Act no 26 of 1956 “it is unlawful to discharge any firework in any building, on any public thoroughfare or in any public place or resort without prior written permission of the local authority”. The act continues to stipulate that fireworks may not be displayed in shops and in order to explode fireworks one has to have permission from the Chief Inspector of Explosives and have a fire marshall present.
Anti-fireworks activist Taryn Coghlan says the act is unfortunately poorly policed and she finds it “highly disturbing that a person can be arrested for driving after having two alcoholic beverages but that same person can get drunk on New Year’s eve and handle explosives.”
