Clay County, Fla. – While many plan to celebrate the holiday weekend, the owners of Big Oak Wolf Sanctuary in Clay County are urging people to keep animals in mind before setting off fireworks.
John and Debra Knight said two of their wolves were traumatized due to the sound and shock of fireworks.
During the ringing in of 2021, fireworks were set off and those were the last moments of Solomon’s life, one of their wolves at the sanctuary.
Solomon suffered a stroke after panicking from the sound of fireworks during the new year celebration.
Debra Knight reflected on his final moments of life, “I sat on the ground with him and just laid his head in my lap. He was just very labored breathing. He couldn’t move from his waist back. He was completely paralyzed.”
A year earlier, another wolf named Bariah died from a heart attack due to the same circumstances.
John said, “they’re trapped, so they’re terrified but they can’t escape so they have to endure it.”
This year, the Knight’s are going to take a different route to prevent any of their animals from suffering. They have decided to mildly sedate the wolves in their sanctuary in hopes to save their lives.
But the sedation does come with a risk. The couple said the wolves could run all over the place and hurt themselves.
Their advice to others this year, “have fun but think about your neighbors.”