Banff Nabs PETA Award for Fireworks-Free Canada Day Celebration

Town Council Votes Unanimously to Protect Animals by Switching to Quieter Pyrotechnics Displays

For Immediate Release:
July 5, 2018

Contact:
Audrey Shircliff 202-483-7382

A Compassionate Town Award is on its way from PETA to Banff, whose town council recently voted unanimously to switch from conventional fireworks to less noisy pyrotechnics during holiday celebrations, starting with Canada Day. Town officials noted that the loud explosions of traditional fireworks can be extremely terrifying for dogs, cats, horses, and wildlife.

“Deafening fireworks explosions send animals fleeing in terror—some never to be found again,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is calling on cities around the world to follow Banff’s lead and switch to breathtaking quieter pyrotechnics displays that offer all the flash without the bang of traditional fireworks.”

During fireworks displays, dogs have jumped fences, broken chains, torn through screens, and even leaped through glass doors in panicked attempts to escape the blasts. Animal shelters become flooded with lost animals, some of whom never make it back to their guardians. Fireworks can also be deeply disturbing to the elderly and people living with post-traumatic stress disorder and can aggravate the symptoms of those suffering from respiratory problems.

Fireworks can’t be purchased or discharged anywhere in Alberta without a permit. In towns where fireworks may still be set off, PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—encourages families to protect their animal companions by keeping them indoors (and, if possible, staying with them), never leaving them tethered outside, closing the blinds, and turning on a loud fan or the television to help drown out the frightening noises. Guardians should also ensure that animal companions are wearing collars with current identification tags and that they’re microchipped.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.