A horse has been frightened to death by fireworks being let off in a neighbouring field. Now its owners have issued a plea to people holding fireworks parties.
They are warning local animal owners in a bid to prevent similar tragedies.
John Humphreys and Lorraine Vaughan, who live near Llanidloes, were horrified when they were told the elderly mare the family had owned for more than 10 years had collapsed in her field during a firework display last weekend.
Mr Humphreys said today: “We were told she was running round and round and was obviously very frightened by the explosions that were going off over her head.
“We called out the vet but she had died and a post mortem showed she had suffered internal injuries. But really she was scared to death.”Mr Humphreys said if he and Miss Vaughan had known about the fireworks display in advance they would have moved Lady out of the field.
“We know Llanidloes has a big public firework display on November 5, so we make sure all our animals are inside for that, but this was a private party,” he said.
“We just want to appeal to anyone who is planning a firework party to make people in the area aware it is going to take place so animal owners can look after their cats and dogs and horses and make sure they’re inside.”
Today Dyfed Powys Police in partnership with the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service were promoting the “Fireworks for Fun not Fear” message.
They said: “There are significant risks associated with the use of fireworks.”
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24 Comments
I feel so sorry for the owners of the horse which was frightened to death and even more sorry for the poor mare who died in terror this way. In my opinion fireworks are a menace to all animals and should be banned. Obviously this is not going to happen, but at the very least they should be confined to public displays and bangers should definitely be banned, as should the general public from buying them.
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I don’t think its a matter of banning any particular type of firework. What i believe should happen is that a licence needs to be obtained to purchase fireworks. The licence would involve police checks and also a course on safety, handling and storage etc. Fireworks can only then be let off by authorised persons, and at a time and place that the police have approved.
A scheme like this would improve safety and the endless anti-social issues associated with them. I’m sure most decent, honest hardworking people would agree with this, with the only significant opposition coming from the ASBO brigade.
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Fireworks go on sale far too early and are a menace being let off all hours of the day and night (and wee small hours)no wonder animals get scared. It is not in their nature to deal with loud banging and sudden brightness.
Check the statistics of how many children get injured over the next week or so. No one learns from the mistakes of others unfortunately.
What you pay for fireworks you could go and what an organised display with other things thrown in like the one at Bliss Hill Museum.
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I think fireworks should only be held in organised displays. Having worked for many years in a vets, Im deeply saddened by the number of animals, mainly dogs and cats that run in sheer terror and as a result are killed on the roads. Each year around firework night hundreds of animals die through thoughtless human behaviour.
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This is so sad but not surprising when you see how easy it is to buy fireworks. I agree with Big Matty – there should be tighter regulations when it comes to buying fireworks – in fact I would go so far as to say that we should adopt the same principles as Australia and ban them. Yes, there may be a few small children upset by this, but we, as a nation have gone to prove that we cannot be trusted to use them sensibly (im sorry, Im not generalising as there will be some really sensible people out there!) but when you read stories like this, its heartbreaking.
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echo Blue Eyes.
It’s time this practice was banned altogether. No British jobs will be lost as they aren’t made in Britain any more. I get terrified with the bombs that are going off for a month or more. Imagine if you were an elderly person who was cutting something with a sharp knife, they could jump and it could slip doing serious damage. I have horses and dogs and i dread bonfire season. You never know where they are going to land, could be somewhere where a fire could start. These things are weapons in the wrong hands. Ban them I say.
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I relly do hate fireworks, even as a child i couldnt stad the things.
they cause so much distress to animals. I would like to see them banned altogether, but if thas notpossible they should be confined to organised displays held well away from farms riding schools and other livestock places.
RIP Poor Mare.
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I feel so sorry for the owners of that poor horse. I have horses, dogs and cats myself and would love to see at least the really loud fireworks banned and the rest only for displays. I had a dog that wrecked the house because the idiots next door let off fireworks right next to the fence one night before we got home from work, she would have been OK with us here.
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I totally agree with Brenda.After all bonfire night is november 5th so why do we have to endure days,possibly weeks of listening to fireworks.My poor dog cant understand what the noise is and constantly barks,even tho she lives indoors.My heart goes out to the poor horse and its owners.There are plenty of organised displays around the country.
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@Dianne Setterington:
“No British jobs will be lost as they aren’t made in Britain any more”
Red Dragon Fireworks – UK fireworks manufacturer based in Ditton Priors, Shropshire.
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i think all fireworks should be banned, being replaced by lazor shows,
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Totally agree that fireworks should be banned from all but public organised displays. My normaly quiet neighbours with children turn into hooligans when they have fireworks in their possession. They are transformed for a few hours several times a year from normal polite law abiding citizens to noisy, inconsiderate individuals. Fireworks and rockets are launched from the adjoining fence with total disregard for anyones safety or thought for my two dogs inside my conservatory in full view. They have never issued a warning and seem totally oblivious to the dogs obvious distress. Had they been just a little thoughtful the first time they chose to take this liberty I would not be having to give my dog dangerous drugs several times a year to prevent her harming herself!
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It is about time that someone takes legal action against the person resposible for a firework party which causes an animal to be injured or killed and takes them to the cleaners. That will send a clear message that those people having an event of this nature are aware that they themselves can be personally held reposible for incidents of this nature.
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I like fireworks personally but am definitely of the opinion (very strongly!) that they should be banned from public sales at any time; only be used by qualified people at public displays which would be limited to the two weeks surrounding November 5th; bomb sounding bangers should not be allowed in any circumstance, what is wrong with a ‘pretty’ show rather than a full fledged war scene?
I too, own horses, dogs and cattle; each year is a nightmare for them – and us; it is time the practise was stopped; people aren’t the considerate neighbours they used to be and just do not see the dangers or appreciate what can happen with terrified animals.
As Peter said, it’s about time sufferers were able to bring offenders to a very expensive (for the offenders)justice, although that won’t by any means assuage the loss of their pet; it just might make people more aware. How many tragedies like this will it take for the government to take action?
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I feel very sorry for the owners and the poor horse. I have my own horses and no how bad it can get. I don’t mind people having their fun, each to their own but if they put as much effort into letting people know their party plans as they do in organising the party this poor mare could still be alive. It just annoys me they have no thought for anyone around them, only for themselves, what a selfish society we live in!
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I have horses and cats. Cats won’t be allowed out all weekend as I can’t guarantee that they will be in before the fireworks start going off, even though generally they are in by about 6ish.
Last year, I had to make a late night visit to the yard as we had a call to say the neighbours were letting off massive fireworks close by and the horses were going mad. Luckily, none were too stressed.
Organised displays are surely the way forward. When you weigh up the cost of admissions against the cost of actually buying fireworks, you are probably better off anyway.
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it is a distressful time for all animals i think and personally i hate fireworks but i do think they are on sale far too early, they get let off now for any kind of event. I think fireworks should be sold for displays only and ONLY for bonfire night…not before and not after.
My thoughts go to the owners of the horse that died…RIP
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PERSPECTIVE here please, the horse died sad i accept as is losing any family pet very sad, but the postmortem stated internal injurys it did not say frightened to death by fireworks , living in a farming community fireworks at private homes go off every year with no harm to any animals around me the sheep do not seem troubled niether do the cattle nor my dogs etc , granted horses may be spooked its there nature but scared to death ? i think not the mare was elderly there is many factors to think of , i think the fire work issue is not as big an issue as people believe.
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Andrew Finch – you’ve obviously never seen a horse scared half out of its mind by fireworks. I’ve had some severe injuries caused to one of mine on November 5th with fireworks let off in the field beside hers. Maybe you have to have an animal killed or injured because of fireworks to appreciate how big an issue it is for many of us – but I sincerely hope you never have to go through the same thing many of us do.
It may be in horses nature to be spooked by fireworks, but that’s even more reason why people living in rural areas should have consideration for ALL the animals kept near them. It wouldn’t have taken long for the people who were responsible for these fireworks to let the mare’s owner know their plans and it could have saved the mare’s life.
I agree 100% with Peter Natt, some people will only become aware of the need to be considerate through hitting them very hard where it hurts – in their pockets.
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I live in Edinburgh where loud fireworks are part of the annual festival culture. From the end of August to New year, but particularly from October till New year we are constantly, under ‘assault’ from fireworks. My last dog was so terrified it was painful to watch, she flattened herself to the floor and just trembled, the moment one went off. I couldn’t keep her sedated for 3 months and vets were not keen to supply sedatives anyway. Many people also, who have gone through warfare, are terrified by them. I’ve lived and worked in societies where gunshot was the norm and it does bring back memories. Please, Please let’s at least limit them to predictable occasions. Like anything else they would probably be more of a spectacle that way. As a minimum let’s tax them heavily, restrict the really noisy ones to public displays if at all they are necessary, and restrict sales. Trouble is idiots will be idiots, in my youth our dog was traumatised severely by youths throwing petrol cans on the embers of a local public bonfire and a few years ago a neighbour, parent of young children was setting off rockets in the midst of adjoining wood fenced back yards and fences. Only legislation could work. How much can councils do, how much needs to be done by central government??
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Shooting in my area at the moment is full on 10 to twelve guns going all day, noise not to similar to fireworks and as i stated the animals around me do not seem bothered including two horses and a poney, i will accept the fireworks are done at night ie flashes so will have a larger effect but a small firework event in some ones garden i do not believe affects animals in general .As i said the postmortem never said the horse was scared to death by the fireworks, i would also point out the horse was found at a later time, it was i assume from the above was found collapsed , time of collapse?? who says it was during the fireworks being let off ? was it before? was it a pure coincidence? has the vet stood by the owners reason the horse died ?. There are many factors that need to be looked at , i would like to add i would agree a large public firework display may have an effect on animals but not a small family event in the back garden with small fireworks producing no more noise than an afternoons shooting .
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Our horse died last year- November 6th. I found him collapsed in his field in a pool of blood , his leg nearly severed as he had tried to continue running after the leg had broken.There was firework debris all around him. faithful friend of 22 years murdered for someones else fun. Its illegal to have a gun or explosives without a license- why are fireworks ok?
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I feel so sad for the owners of the poor mare. Having kept horses for many years it appears obvious to me that the fireworks played a significant part in the death of Lady. She must have been utterly terrified.
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I feel for the owners of this horse, I have just had the most horrendous weekend with my animals. Friday night a fire display was held on the opposite side of the valley the fireworks were so loud they rattled our windows & set the car alarms off. My one mare (17 h.h.) was rearing up at the stable walls, my 24 yrs retired showjumper was terrified we were worried she might have a heart attack & my two labradors were so frightened they were sick. This set the tone for the rest of the weekend where I have been trying to pacify large animals at a risk to my own life. I have taken all precautions advised including having a radio in the stables but fireworks are far from the roman candles & catherine wheels that we had years ago. Each morning I am finding the spent cartridges scattered around my field & stable yard. (I pray that none of these find their way into my hay stores). It’s about time they were banned from public purchase and restricted to licenced public displays.
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