HYDERABAD: What’s Diwali today without the continuous bursts of loud, cackling firecrackers from dusk to the wee hours of next morning? But this Diwali, try to bring in the change, atleast for the sake of harmless birds and animals around you. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has come out with a new message exhorting a more responsible and subdued celebration of the festival of lights this year. The ‘Make Diwali Merry, Not Scary for Animals-Don’t Light Fireworks,’ campaign initiated by the group aims to raise awareness on the issue by providing visitors to their site( www.PETAIndia.com ), the opportunity to forward an e-mail titled the same, to friends around the country.And for those who help forward the e-mail, there lies open a chance to win vegan chocolates from premier chocolatier Maya chocolates. “Diwali is the festival of joy, and by avoiding noisy firecrackers, we can bring joy into the lives of animals too”, says PETA online marketing coordinator Kriti Sachdev.“Blame it on the different audible frequency range of animals and humans, but many domestic animals like dogs, cats and cows among others, get frightened by the sound of noisy firecrackers. Some animals may even lose bladder or bowel control.Dogs, in particular can display signs of excessive shaking, trembling, drooling, barking, howling and refusal to eat food,” explains Benazir Suraiya of PETA. Even captive animals in zoos face this problem.Dr C Sreenivas, a veterinarian in the city, says extra energy and food supplements are given to the wild animals in the zoo to calm them down during the Diwali night. “The loud noise and darkness of the night lead to drastic changes in the physiological patterns of animals. While domestic animals can be protected by their owners, wild animals depend on such supplements to not get too agitated,” he says.Some useful tips* Keep cats and dogs indoors and if possible, stay with them.Close your windows and curtains and turn on the radio or TV to help drown out the noise.* Make sure your pet animal is wearing a collar and an updated identification tag* Stop people from throwing firecrackers at animals.* Whenever possible, discourage people from setting off very loud firecrackers.Instead let the festival of light shine through the radiance of diyas, lamps and other friendly decorative items.* Keep an eye out for lost animals who are wearing collars and tags.Take them to your local animal shelter, or look after them until their homes are found.
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