26 Oct 2022

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Christchurch City Council’s animal management team is encouraging people to take extra care of their pets over the coming days as they could get spooked by fireworks.

Guy Fawkes on 5 November is traditionally the busiest time of the year for the animal management team although the team’s workload has eased in recent years as the sale of fireworks has become more restricted.

“Fireworks aren’t as readily available as they were a few years ago, but this time of year can be quite stressful for pets. They often get quite panicked and confused by the loud boom of fireworks going off and it can prompt them to run away,’’ says Animal Services Manager Lionel Bridger.

“If you have pets, we recommend that you keep them inside or confined in a safe space at night during the period in which fireworks are available, which is from 2 to 5 November.

“We also suggest you keep windows and doors closed to reduce the noise and shut the curtains to minimise any light flashes from fireworks being set off.  Keep a radio or TV on too so there are familiar sounds to distract your pets from what’s happening outside,’’ Mr Bridger says.

“If you are in the habit of taking off your dog’s collar and ID tag when you’re at home, it might pay to leave it on until Guy Fawkes is over so that if your dog does panic and run away, we have a way of identifying who the dog belongs to. If an animal is micro-chipped or has an ID/registration tag, we can normally reunite them very quickly with their owners.

“If your dog does run away, call our Contact Centre on 941-8999 or 0800 800 169 as soon as possible and let us know,’’ Mr Bridger says.