PETA TV Blitz Blasts Fireworks Warning for Animals in Houston

For Immediate Release:
June 29, 2022

Contact:
Lauren Kent 202-483-7382

Houston –

After a number of terrified animals were harmed and some were even killed as a result of last year’s Fourth of July fireworks displays, PETA is sending out a plea from Battlestar Galactica actor Edward James Olmos: Ditch the noisy, animal-endangering pyrotechnics.

Last year, a dog was killed in Highlands after improperly discarded Fourth of July fireworks caused a house to catch fire. And in Bryan, another dog got so spooked by fireworks the night before the holiday that he dug out of his yard and ran away.

“To animals, fireworks really do sound like ‘bombs bursting in air,’” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA encourages everyone to dance, cheer, and celebrate however they see fit as long as the festivities leave animals in peace.”

PETA urges animal guardians to take the following precautions to protect their dogs and cats whenever fireworks go off:

Keep cats and dogs indoors. Never leave animals tethered or chained outside—they can hang themselves if they leap over a fence while trying to run from the noise. Animals can also injure themselves while trying to climb out of pens.
Never take animals with you to watch fireworks displays! If you know in advance that there will be fireworks in your area, stay home with your animals and try to keep them calm.
Close your windows and curtains. To help drown out the sounds, turn on fans and air-conditioning units as well as the TV or a radio that’s tuned to a classical music station.
Purchase a ThunderShirt, which can help your dog or cat cope with the stress of the fireworks. Other ways to keep animals calm include playing specially designed music from iCalmPet and giving them a natural supplement called melatonin, which is widely available at low cost. (Consult your veterinarian first.)
Make sure that your animal companion is microchipped and wearing a collar or a harness with an up-to-date identification tag, just in case.
If it’s cool enough outside, take dogs for a long walk or a romp in the dog park before fireworks start in order to help tire them out.
If you witness someone setting off illegal fireworks, call the authorities right away.

Wildlife and companion animals aren’t the only ones affected: Veterans and others suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder can be deeply disturbed by fireworks, too. PETA’s tips (and helpful yard signs, available here) can help make this a safer holiday for everyone.

The group’s TV spot is running on FOX 26’s 5 p.m. news. It’s also running in Long Island, New York, and Hampton and Warminster, Ontario. PETA’s TV spot featuring Scandal star Bellamy Young is running in Boston; Bowling Green, Kentucky; Des Moines, Iowa; Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; and Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.