Amelia Eagle is urging people to let their neighbours know if they are planning to let off fireworks.
Amelia Eagle is urging people to let their neighbours know if they are planning to let off fireworks.
A Levin woman is calling for people to think before they light when it comes to setting off fireworks.
Amelia Eagle is heartbroken following the death of her lease horse, Greta, a death she believes could have been avoided.
Eagle said Greta was stabled in a paddock in the nearby town of Ōhau, but on the morning of October 5 this year, she found Greta had broken through a fence overnight into a different paddock.
“The fence was broken and pulled right out and I thought ‘oh gosh’.”
She was noticeably lame, and couldn’t use one of her legs, said Eagle.
Greta had clearly been spooked to make her break through the fence, said Eagle, and at first she couldn’t think what would have made the horse so scared.
Then she recalled her husband mentioning seeing fireworks in the distance from the direction of Ōhau the night before.
“Because they were far enough away from where we were, my assumption is that they were close to the paddock.”
Greta died after sustaining injuries she got when spooked by fireworks.
Eagle said the vet came out and confirmed Greta had a green stick fracture which had been displaced.
The injury got worse and eight days after she was found in the paddock, a specialist horse vet from Vets on Riverbank, in Ōtaki, recommended putting Greta to sleep, Eagle said.
“Welfare-wise, you can’t keep a horse with a leg broken like that. But it’s really hard to put an animal down that isn’t sick.”
Eagle believes Greta’s death could have been avoided, saying had she known fireworks were due to be set off near the paddock that night, she would have kept Greta safe.
All it takes, she said, is for people to let their neighbours know of any planned fireworks.
Residents of a nearby house have done exactly that this week, she said, enabling her to make a plan to go out to the paddock where three other horse still are to keep them calm, and avoid them getting spooked.
She wishes she had been able to do that with Greta.
“Greta was definitely one in a million.”
The SPCA’s scientific officer Dr Alison Vaughan said fireworks, especially the loud noises and bright flashes of light they produce, can be very frightening and highly distressing to animals.
She said this can lead to animals running away, going missing, injuring themselves, abandoning their young, becoming involved in traffic accidents, and death.
“Horses are particularly vulnerable to injury as they may panic and run into fences.”
Amelia Eagle and Greta, who she described as "one in a million".
Vaughan said people can minimise stress in their horses by keeping them in their familiar paddocks and with their usual companions unless a firework display is planned close by, and other pets by keeping them indoors.
“Make sure all fences are secure and check paddocks and stables thoroughly for anything that could cause injury, such as protruding nails. If you need to stable or move animals, do this well in advance so that the animals have a chance to get used to their new surroundings.”
They said while the SPCA does not support the private sale and use of fireworks and has long called for a ban on the sale of fireworks to the public, those planning to set off fireworks at their homes should speak to their neighbours, or leave a note in their letterbox so that those with pets and farmed animals can prepare accordingly.
“People without pets must be aware of the stress their use of fireworks can cause others in their neighbourhood and act considerately. We also encourage people to attend controlled, notified public fireworks displays rather than using fireworks at home. Public drone and laser displays are becoming increasingly popular and SPCA considers that these alternative displays are likely to represent a more animal-friendly and environmentally conscious option when used thoughtfully.”
RNZ is also holding a concert for animals to help calm them on Guy Fawkes night - November 5.
“Science shows that music can have a calming effect on animals as well as humans, and this Guy Fawkes night RNZ Concert will provide a musical sanctuary for our furry friends and their people,” said RNZ’s concert content director Liisa McMillan.
“The evening’s music will feature compositions especially selected for pets and their owners, in collaboration with SPCA. The concert will also be played to animals in care at SPCA shelters around the country.”
On Tuesday, November 5, from 6pm to midnight, people can tune into the concert on their radios or by visiting either rnz.co.nz/concert or RNZ’s app.
“We know Guy Fawkes can be a stressful time for animals and their humans and we’re excited to offer some special radio programming that we hope will provide distraction and enjoyment for both.”
For Eagle, anything that can help prevent what happened to Greta from happening to another animal is a good thing, she said.
She set up a fundraising page - www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/help-greta-rehabilitate-her-fractured-leg - in the hope of recouping some of the costs of Greta’s treatment and said she is hoping that by sharing her story, she might get people to think before they light when it comes to fireworks, and let their neighbours and nearby animal owners of their plans in advance.
