More Fireworks?

[Phoebe]

Apparently a thing people have been puzzling over lately is the perception that illegal pre-4th fireworks have increased dramatically over previous years. But why? IMO the article linked above is kind of stupid, because he does a lot of speculating when he could have included facts, and he hasn't informed himself much about fireworks norms across the country, but it gives an overview of the discussion that is going on right now.

I am here to tell you that there are way more fireworks this year than usual where I live, nothing has changed relative to the volume of sounds in my neighborhood or the likelihood that I would be home sitting quietly to listen to them, or the Trump-rally typical demographics. There are an awful lot of kids and adults running around bored, however. Who knows. But my experience matches all the others who are not accustomed to hours of nightly explosions all summer. Note: I also have a canine barometer that gives a fairly objective indication.

[DMDarcs]

I have a few friends that live in NYC and don't know each other (different social groups). They've both been complaining for a few weeks about the nonstop fireworks. Same with another friend living in LA.

I don't think I've heard a single firework go off in my rural-lite area, which is certainly odd.

[Phoebe]

Actually worried at this point that my dog may have a heart attack on the 4th, so I'm going to call and see if I can give him Benadryl or some other drug. Has anyone ever drugged your dog before, for this type of reason, and if so what did you use and how did it go? The people here have taken the fireworks to a new level. It is not even July yet, so I can't imagine where we're going to be in a few days. In a normal year there is a thick haze of smoke like a war zone, and constant explosions for hours. This has been far from a normal year so far. QED... ?!

[Mike]

Took my dog out last night at about 10, and fireworks could be heard pretty regularly. She likes them. Every time one went off, she'd jump a little but then start wagging her tail and looking around for the source of the noise (which she never found). The louder the better for her.

[Phoebe]

I'm glad that she is cool with them. Our previous dog didn't seem excited in a positive way like that but at least tolerated them well. The only time she got scared was when she had to be alone for a few hours on that night; as long as we kept her with us everything was fine. Current doggo gets the full-body shakes, it's really sad. He won't even come outside with both of us adults there to protect him. Part of the problem is he is trying to protect me and this inchoate loud threat is clearly threatening me as well.