TTSPCA officials in tears: Rescued dog Jeremiah dies after New Year fireworks

News

AS fireworks exploded over the country on Old Year’s Night and into the wee hours of New Year's Day, bringing joy to some, it also brought terror and death to others.

The TT Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (TTSPCA) posted on its Facebook page on January 1 that one of its dogs, Jeremiah, had died after getting so stressed when the fireworks began exploding. He and his sibling Jess were rescued from an abusive owner in Diego Martin, in a heart-warming story covered by Newsday in March 2021.

“Today, as the world welcomed the first day of 2025, our hearts broke. Our animal care team arrived at the shelter to find our sweet boy Jeremiah in a terrible state. He had collapsed and was passing away.

“It grieves us deeply to think Jeremiah might have suffered, even for a moment, after enduring so much at the hands of his cruel owner. While his passing could be linked to a severe health issue he had been battling, the terrifying noise of fireworks may have contributed to his demise. Despite being secured in a kennel during our final checks, the chaos of fireworks may have caused him unbearable stress,” the TTSPCA said.

The TTSPCA also posted a missing poster for Brandy, a black dog with grey paws, who went missing from Grace Gardens, Lower Santa Cruz on December 31.

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Posters for dogs found in St Joseph Village, San Fernando, Sinaswee Street, Bank Village and others of dogs who went missing during the week leading up to the New Year celebrations were seen on social media. Pet owners posted videos of them soothing their terrified pets.

The animals of the Emperor Valley Zoo are usually affected by fireworks, with some even passing away in previous years. A Zoological Society Welfare officer, in response to WhatsApped questions from Newsday on January 2, said some of the animals showed immediate stress when the fireworks started going off at 10 pm on Old Year's Day.

“The fireworks happened between 10 pm-2 am, with the peak noise level being around midnight lasting for 20 minutes. This was slightly shorter than last year.

“There were no major injuries but it’s too early to say just yet (if any of the animals were stressed). Ongoing assessment of all of our animals will take a few days to be completed and only then can we determine the long-term effects and if there were any major injuries.

"The animals will be observed over the next few days to ensure their regular behaviour and eating patterns are back to normal.”

Many dead dogs

on the highway

An official from NGO, Citizens against Noise Pollution TT, who asked not to be named as her neighbours threw fireworks into her yard after she spoke about the issue publicly, said her area was like a war zone as the country transitioned into 2025.

“We saw somewhere that people who let off fireworks without a permit from the police commissioner were committing an offence, so we’re wondering who applied for a licence and how many licences were granted. Why say a licence is needed after all fireworks businesses would have sold fireworks? Where are the charges, and we’re in a state of emergency.”

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She said she had seen dozens of posts about lost pets on social media since December 31.

“I haven’t taken a drive down the highway yet to see the carnage but all you have to do is drive down the highway and you’re going to see dead dogs on the side of the road.

"Many of them have on collars which show they were pets. People are saying you should secure or sedate pets and people do that and keep them from hurting themselves, but this country has a huge stray animal population, so where does that leave the strays? We have created that problem as a people.”

She said many pets are not accustomed to dealing with vehicular traffic, so when they escape their homes under the frenzy and trauma of fireworks, they usually run straight onto major roads and highways and are run over by cars and trucks. Many suffer a slow, agonising death on the roads.

She said fireworks also affected people, including those with post-traumatic stress disorder, children, babies, the elderly, people with medical issues including heart conditions, people dealing with anxiety and those on the autism spectrum.

“Why is there no focus on that? As a people we have shown we don’t care about each other.”

She said the group, as well as people who are against fireworks, felt dismissed when the question of fireworks was brought up at the media conference announcing the state of emergency (SoE) on December 30, as the response was dismissive.

“It is insulting, and we are tired. It would seem the public is being treated like we have no right to ask politicians these questions, but they were elected by the public to serve the public. It’s so insulting to just dismiss these questions.”

Fireworks Action Coalition of TT founder Roger Marshall said the organisation has received many reports of dogs escaping, going into seizures, or having to be sedated to make it through the fireworks.

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He said in some areas, the fireworks seemed to be louder and longer than in previous years, while in other areas it did not seem to last as long.

“That makes you feel like we are having an impact. In some residential areas, through community chat groups and other efforts, we have gotten people to stop using fireworks altogether. In my residential area here, no-one would set off fireworks here, just as a gentleman’s agreement, and we’re trying to spread that word. I think it’s taking hold to some extent. It’s a long, uphill battle and we need the government to act.”

In a statement on January 1, the organisation called on the Commissioner of Police to publish the number permits were issued and for what areas, for the discharge of fireworks in the towns of Port of Spain, San Fernando and Arima as required according to the Summary Offences Act.

It also called on the Commissioner of Police to report on how many arrests were made of people discharging fireworks within a town without a permit or within sixty feet of any roadway in rural TT between the hours of 11 pm on December 31 and 2 am on January 1, 2025.