The first conclusive evidence of pain perception in fish is said to have
been found by UK scientists.
Fish have pain receptors like us. This complements earlier findings that both birds and mammals can feel
pain, and challenges assertions that fish are impervious to it. The scientists found sites in the heads of rainbow
trout that responded to damaging stimuli. They also found the fish showed marked reactions when exposed
to harmful substances...
[Link]
(02/05/2003) US zoos give up permits to take African elephants
LOS ANGELES - A coalition of animal rights and wildlife preservation groups
claimed this week that had blocked - at least temporarily - two U.S. zoos from importing African elephants from a Swaziland preserve.
The San Diego and Tampa, Florida zoos surrendered
permits granted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to import the 11 African elephants after the
agency discovered discrepancies on their permit applications, agency spokeswoman Pat Fisher said...
[Link]
(Notice) Le dauphin iris vient de mourir
Elle et son rejeton Ivo avaient suscité pas mal de réactions sur leur
triste sort.
DUISBURG : Iris n'est plus. Elle est allée rejoindre le paradis
des dauphins. La nouvelle est tombée ce dimanche, mais il semble qu'Iris
ait expulsé son dernier soupir le 23 mars dernier déjà. Souvenez-vous
d'Iris et Ivo...
Ces deux dauphins Tursiops avaient été capturés il y a 22 ans dans
le golfe du Mexique avec d'autres membres de leur tribu. Pendant dix-huit
longues années, Iris (qui avait douze ans à l'époque) et son fils vont
arpenter de long en large la piscine du delphinarium du zoo d'Anvers.
Lorsque celui-ci a été fermé, ils ont été transférés au début
de l'année 1999 au zoo de Duisburg,en Allemagne.
C’est là qu'Iris
s'est éteinte.
Cette femelle dauphin était véritablement devenue le symbole de la
lutte pour la libération des dauphins en captivité. En effet, tout au
long de ces années, Iris s'est distinguée par sa rage de survivre et par
la volonté farouche de protéger son fils envers et contre tout. Elle a
toujours refusé d'exécuter le moindre show et la moindre acrobatie.
Rendue dépressive par sa captivité, Iris est sans doute plus heureuse
maintenant.
Le cas d'Iris et d'Ivo avait suscité l'attention de l'opinion publique
dans le courant des années 90. Les défenseurs de la cause animale ont
tout fait pour faire prendre conscience du malheur vécu par ces mammifères
marins à l'intelligence exceptionnelle.
En 1998, le prince Laurent lui-même s'était. associé à la lutte
pour le bien-être des deux derniers dauphins du zoo d'Anvers. A deux
reprises, il avait rencontré le directeur du zoo pour plaider la cause de
ces pauvres animaux. Mais malheureusement sans succès. Alors qu'il est en
voyage de noces avec la princesse Claire, cette triste nouvelle viendra
sans aucun doute un peu ternir la lune de miel du Prince pour lequel, on
le sait, la cause animale compte énormément.
Le cas malheureux d'Iris permet de remettre en lumière la problématique
de la captivité des dauphins.
En effet, le dauphin est un être intelligent, doté d'un cerveau de
grande taille, d'un cortex cérébral riche en circonvolutions nombreuses.
Sa vie sociale en milieu naturel est complexe, ses méthodes de chasse
sont raffinées, ses modes de communication uniques dans le monde animal.
Le manque de stimulations qu'il subit en captivité peut affecter
gravement sa santé et l'amener à mourir bien avant l'âge. C'est ce qui
est arrivé à Iris. Mais elle n'était qu'un dauphin captif parmi des
milliers. Le problème est donc loin d'être résolu.
Baboons "protesting" at the killing of one of their group have disrupted
traffic on the busy Tororo-Jinja highway in eastern Uganda.
This is the second time the animals have behaved in such a manner on the
same road.
The trouble began after a speeding lorry ran over a huge female
baboon, who died instantly in the Busitema Forest Reserve, 15 kilometres from the Uganda-Kenya border.
According to eyewitnesses, the driver
deliberately swerved across the road to hit the female who was eating white
ants...
[Link]
(05/05/2003) SARS virus hits China trade in endangered animals
HONG KONG - The global SARS virus may yet be good news for the world's endangered animals, victims of an illegal Chinese habit of eating rare
species, but also prime suspects as incubators of deadly, new human pandemics.
China is regularly criticised by world animal protection groups, which they
say turn a blind eye to trade in endangered species, because it is a lucrative business. But now, faced with a SARS epidemic at home that has
dented its global image, created panic in its capital, and threatened its economy and security, China has been pushed into action.
[Link]
(06/05/2003) Press Release/Greyhound walkathon
On July 15th, Kev a five year old greyhound, Storm a seven year old greyhound, and their owner Russell Clarke, will set out from Newcastle
(Australia) with Sydney as the destination in New South Wales, Australia for
what will be a four day walkathon.
FAMILY PETS, NOT FAST FOOD! is the purpose of the walkathon. It is intended
to promote awareness for the abolition of export greyhounds to Asia and Spain. The walkathon will also promote and support greyhound
adoption in Australia through awareness and donations received from sponsoring the
walkathon.The time has come for Australians to accept that greyhounds they
are responsible for shipping to Asia and Spain are being subjected to notorious and barbaric torture and slaughter. In most of these countries
greyhounds are subjected to inhuman acts of cruelty and suffering before ending up on the plates of murderous barbarians. In Spain, greyhounds are
hung openly for public display immediately on being retired from racing. Depending on achievements throughout their racing career greyhounds are
systematically hung at various heights. A poorly accomplished greyhound will
be hung at ground level and thus vulnerable to the elements and further acts
of savagery. A more accomplished greyhound is hung higher from the ground and will suffer lesser indignities. The hanging of greyhounds in Spain is
immensely popular, because it’s free. That alone should incense any educated
country to act, purely for the bastardization to intelligence that logic portrays. All of this is graphically on show for the entire world to see;
yet no nation is prepared to stand up to these dictatorial savages and see
the cruel practices ceased.
An eyewitness from Seoul now fears for his life after seeing first hand an
unconscionably cruel act by a Korean dog meat buyer. This man will be haunted for the rest of his life by what he saw. The owner of a dog had it
on a lengthof rope and it was standing there wagging its tail watching the
exchange between his master and a dog meat buyer. The owner handed over the
rope and the dog meat buyer pulled the rope taut and dragged the dog away screaming and tied it to a post. He then proceeded to grab the tail and yank
it, stretching the dog’s neck and crushing the backbone. While the dog was
still alive the dog meat buyer started tearing the dog apart. The eyewitness
fled only to return hours laterand find the dog on a spit and being served
up on plates. This isn’t isolated, and goes on every single day.
We as Australians need to act more responsibly as a nation and abolish the
exporting of greyhounds overseas. Greyhounds make excellent pets, and there
are tens of thousands of plaudits attributed to these majestic canines.Televisions Dr. Harry Cooper, Australia’s most well-known and loved
Veterinarian is a greyhound adoption ambassador, and is often quoted recommending the qualities of greyhounds as great family pets. On average
10,000 greyhounds are put down in Australia every year at the end of their
racing careers unnecessarily, with another 6,00 to 7,000 ‘disappearing before even being named. The reason
for this is the misconception and perceived ignorance that greyhounds are savage. This couldn’t be further
from the truth! Dog attack statistics from a few years ago have over fifty
breeds of dogs on it, yet greyhound isn’t listed. Admittedly greyhound-racing bodies in Australia, and ultimately the ministerial
government controlling those authorities is responsibl for the antiquated
myopia surrounding greyhounds and their compatibility as companion animals.
Public education of greyhound adoption has been negligently inadequate, but
that still doesn’t justify sending our greyhounds overseas, no matter the
reason.Be a voice for the greyhounds, contact the Australian federal minister who has the power to stop the exporting, and plead with him to stop
the export of greyhounds to Asia and Spain. The Honorable Warren Truss, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Parliament House, Canberra.
ACT 2600 Australia E-mail:
W.truss.MP@aph.gov.au
Or contact Russell Clarke on
banexports@optusnet.com.au for a petition to
sign, and remember greyhounds are FAMILY PETS, NOT FAST FOOD. So save a life
and adopt a greyhound today. Russell Clarke
(08/05/2003) Draft EU Chemicals Policy published today will kill millions of lab animals
in outdated poisoning tests
Today (May 7th) the European Commission has published its draft legislation
for an EU Chemicals Policy, aimed at testing 30,000 existing chemicals (those on the market before 1981). Millions of laboratory animals will be
poisoned in the programme in outdated and unreliable tests.
Leading anti-vivisection campaigners the British Union for the Abolition of
Vivisection (BUAV) welcomed longer deadlines for implementation of the policy, which gave more time to validate non-animal replacement tests. But
warned that the plans would still involve killing millions of animals and that the safeguards that did exist to even reduce animal testing could
simply be ignored because they are not mandatory.
The BUAV supports the principle of the chemicals policy, but does not believe that animal testing is the ethical or credible scientific solution.
Non-animal tests are quicker to produce results, cheaper to perform, more reliable and repeatable and do not involve massive animal suffering. However
the BUAV believes that not enough effort or funding is put into prioritising
non-animal tests.
Promotion of non-animal testing was one of the political objectives of the
chemicals White Paper, but the proposals give no timeframe for the introduction on non-animal tests, even though new legislation on cosmetics
testing predicts that most animal toxicity tests can be replaced by 2009.
Wendy Higgins, BUAV Campaigns Director, says:
"The new EU chemicals policy will be the largest mass animal poisoning programme Europe has ever seen, but it will not deliver what
environmentalists hope it will - a future of safe chemicals - because it relies heavily on outdated, unreliable, cruel animal toxicity tests that
should have been abolished decades ago. The animal test for cancer for example, where animals are force fed with poisons over five years, is a poor
indicator of harm in people and even gives different results for the same chemicals at different times: a recent study shows that when chemicals were
tested twice, the test only gave the same result in 57 out of 121 cases(1)."
"The authorities tell us that non-animal tests can only be used once they have been 'validated' (tested for reliability), but animal tests have never
been validated to modern standards. People are being told animal testing will make chemicals safer, but it's not true, only strict regulation can do
that. Chemicals already known to be dangerous - such as mercury for instance - have been tested repeatedly on animals but no action has been
taken. It's disappointing that, with an opportunity to modernise Europe's approach to chemical testing with cutting edge and credible non-animal
methods, the Commission has chosen instead to repeat the mistakes of the past and stick to the basic method of poisoning animals and hoping for the
best!"
ENDS
Notes
1. a very recent analysis of duplicate rodent carcinogenicity data showed that there was only a 57 per cent agreement between results for 121
chemicals, each of which had been tested on two occasions. (Gottman, E et al
(2001). Environmental Health Perspectives 109, no.5.)
GET ACTIVE
Click on
www.buav.org and go to "Sign Our Petitions" on the Home Page to add
your voice to the BUAV's call for a massive increase in funds for the total
replacement of animals in toxicity testing.
(Notice) The Moral and Legal Status of Non-Human Animals
Symposium in Lisbon, Portugal
Lisbon University Law School
May, 13th and 14th
Programme
May 13th
15:00 - Opening Session of the Symposium
Miguel Moutinho (Center for Animal Law and Ethics | Center for Applied Ethics of the Portuguese Philosophy Society |
ANIMAL)
Luís Frazão Gomes (Secretary of State of Fishery and Agriculture)
Sebastião da Costa Pereira (Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court of Justice)
Paulo Mota Pinto (Chief-Justice of the Constitutional Court)
Assunção Esteves (President of the Constitutional Affairs Commission of the Portuguese Parliament)
António Maria Pereira (representing the Chairman of the Portuguese Bar Association)
Fernando Borges Araújo (Board of the Lisbon University Law School)
Jorge Bacelar Gouveia (Board of the New University of Lisbon Law School)
Paula Martinho da Silva (President of the National Council of Ethics for Life Sciences)
15:30 - Jorge Bacelar Gouveia (New University of Lisbon Law School)
«The fundamental rights of animals»
16:00 - Ilda Gomes Rosa (Lisbon Technical University School of Veterinary Science)
«Animal behaviour and animal welfare»
16:00 - Fernando Borges Araújo (Lisbon University Law School)
«Anthropocentrism, anthropomorphism and speciesism»
16:15 - Humberto Rosa (Lisbon University Faculty of Sciences)
«Groundworks for an ethical and legal hierarchy of animals»
16:30 - António Maria Pereira (Lawyer)
«The legal status of animals - the present situation»
16:45 - Assunção Esteves (President of the Constitutional Affairs Commission of the Portuguese Parliament)
«Constitutionalism and animal rights» >
17:00 - Discussion
18:00 - Questions
18:30 - End of Session
May 14th
15:00 - Carlota Pizarro de Almeida (Lisbon University Law School)
«Non-human animals and criminal law - the legal good issue»
15:15 - Pedro Galvão (Center for Applied Ethics of the Portuguese Philosophy Society)
«On the very idea of moral status»
15:30 - Maria Luísa Duarte (Lisbon University Law School)
«European Union and protection of animal welfare»
15:45 - Armando Louzã (Lisbon Technical University School of Veterinary Science)
«The possession and use of animals in Portugal: which principles to
respect and to which limits obey?»
16:00 - Pedro Paulo de Azeredo Perdigão (Lawyer)
«From fable to reality»
16:15 - Manuel Eduardo dos Santos (Eco-Ethology Unit of the Superior Institute of Applied Psychology)
«Non-human animals: things, natural resources or legal persons?»
16:30 - Coffee Break
16:45 - Discussion
18:00 - Questions
18:30 - End of Session and of the Symposium
Moderator
Miguel Moutinho
(Center for Animal Law and Ethics | Center for Applied Ethics of the Portuguese Philosophy Society | ANIMAL)
Organization
Center for Animal Law and Ethics | Center for Applied Ethics of the Portuguese Philosophy Society | ANIMAL
The access to the Symposium "The Moral and Legal Status of Non-Human Animals" is completely free
(09/05/2003) Cats 'farmed for skins in EU'
BBC News has seen evidence which suggests that cats are being farmed for
their skins in the European Union.
Let me say that cats and dogs are not farmed for their fur in the 15 EU
member states - EU commissioner David Byrne
It is thought that tens of thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of cat
and dog skins are traded in Europe each year.
Campaigners say that now is the time for national governments or the
European Commission to act. Europe, it seems, is a magnet for cat and dog
fur. Cat blankets, so the aficionados say, are good for rheumatism.
Dog pelts are often labelled misleadingly and sold as the fur of some exotic, even mythical beast.
Campaigners claim 2 million cats and dogs
slaughtered every year
-
Main exporter: China
- 12 to 15 adult dogs needed to make a dog fur coat
- Up to 24 cats needed for cat fur coat
- Cat and dog fur also used in hats, gloves, shoes, blankets, stuffed animals
and toys
- Dog fur sometimes labelled as: Gae-wolf, sobaki, Asian jackal, goupee, loup
d'Asie, Corsac fox, dogues du Chine, or simply fake or exotic fur
- Cat fur sometimes labelled as: house cat, wild cat, katzenfelle, rabbit,
goyangi, mountain cat
Since the US has banned the trade of cat and dog skins, the European market
has expanded. A video seen by BBC correspondent Tim Franks shows one Belgian
furrier displaying a blanket he says was made from cats farmed in Belgium.
What is more, he says that stray cats and dogs are rounded up and skinned....
[Link]
(10/05/2003) Venezuela fights to save endangered Arrau turtle
ON THE ORINOCO RIVER, Venezuela - It may be South America's largest fresh water turtle, but when the green-lacquered amphibian is young, it fits in
the palm of a hand and looks like the ideal aquarium pet.
The Arrau turtle is threatened with extinction, so every year
conservationists in Venezuela collect thousands of the hatchlings, raise
them in captivity and then release them into the wild to try to guarantee
the survival of the species.
Hunted for their meat and eggs by native Indians and other residents living
along the banks of Venezuela's mighty Orinoco river, the population numbers
of the species known in Latin as Podocnemis Expansa have declined dramatically over the last century...
[Link]
(11/05/2003) Sweden Bans Experimentation on Most Apes
by Chanda Wekwert
The Swedish National Board of Agriculture and National Board for
Laboratory Animals have announced that they will ban the use of great apes
and members of nine species of Gibbon apes in laboratory experiments as of
June 6th.
Only non-invasive behavioral studies of the animals will be permitted.
"No great apes or Gibbon apes are currently used in experiments in
Sweden, but the ban is still a matter of great ideological importance,"
said Animal Rights Sweden Campaign Manager Per-Anders Svard. "The decision
marks an important shift in official policy, since it implicitly
recognizes the individual moral worth of primates. Hopefully, the ban can
be seen as a first step towards extending moral and legal rights to
millions of other animals suffering in experiments."
The government of the United Kingdom banned the use of great apes in
laboratory experiments with the enactment of the Animal Procedures Act in
1986.
The government of the Netherlands has banned all use of chimpanzees in laboratory experiments except the employment of the animals in Hepatitis C
research being conducted by the Biomedical Primate Research Center in Rijswijk.
[Link]
A horrific venereal disease is preying on baboons in eastern Africa. An estimated 200 animals have been infected and scientists are scrambling to
identify the mystery microbe that is attacking them.
The disease targets the reproductive organs of the primate. The consequences
for male baboons are particularly gruesome, says Elibariki Mtui, of the African Wildlife Foundation in Arusha, Tanzania. "The genitals kind of rot
away, then they just drop off," he told New Scientist...
[Link]
(13/05/2003) World's smallest seahorse discovered
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Scientists said they have discovered the world's smallest seahorse, after realizing it was not simply the offspring
of a species they already knew about.
The pygmy seahorse averages 16 mm (.64 inch) in size, smaller than a
fingernail, and lives in coral in the tropical waters of the western
Pacific, according Sara Lourie, a McGill University biologist who led the
identification project.
The orange marine animals had been seen before, but scientists had thought
they were looking at the offspring of a larger type of seahorse, Lourie said...
[Link]
(14/05/2003) England's otters stage a comeback
A British mammal redolent of a bygone countryside idyll, the otter, is steadily returning to parts of England it had
abandoned.
A study of English otters has found the area they inhabit grew fivefold in
25 years. Half a century ago, otters were found only in parts of eastern and
south-west England. Better water quality has helped their recovery, though
road traffic is now a growing menace.
The study, the National Otter Survey
of England, is the work of the Environment Agency (EA) and the Wildlife Trusts, with help from English Nature and the privatised water companies...
[Link]
(15/05/2003) California group sues Adidas over kangaroo leather
SAN FRANCISCO - An animal rights group sued Germany's Adidas-Salomon AG (ADSG.DE) in a San Francisco Superior Court, alleging the company is selling
cleats that include kangaroo products barred in California.
The suit also named several California stores that sell the Adidas cleats and running shoes that they say use kangaroo leather. The case seeks to halt
imports of those products...
[Link]
(16/05/2003) CIWF Wins Right to Challenge Government on Legality of UK Chicken Meat Production
Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) has won the right to challenge the lawfulness of government policies in respect of the use of fast-growing
broiler chickens. A High Court judge has decreed that CIWF has an acceptable
case to take to judicial review.
CIWF's case is against the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
(DEFRA) and argues that under EU law DEFRA should not permit the use of fast-growing broiler genotypes as these lead to:
. Chronic hunger arising from the use of restricted feeding regimes in the
broiler breeding flock, and
. Painful leg disorders and heart failure in the broilers reared for their
meat.
The legal essence for the case is to be found in the EU's 1998 General Farm
Animals Directive. Paragraph 21 of the Directive's Annex provides that "No
animal shall be kept for farming purposes unless it can reasonably be expected, on the basis of its genotype ... that it can be kept without
detrimental effect on its health or welfare". Paragraph 14 of the Annex stipulates that animals must be given a sufficient quantity of food to
maintain them in good health and satisfy their nutritional needs.
Peter Stevenson, CIWF Political and Legal Director, said "There is ample evidence to show that fast growing broilers experience significant
suffering. This is exacerbated in the breeding flock by the restriction of
food which leads to some birds being very hungry. We believe the Government
is breaching the EU Directive by permitting the use of fast-growing broiler
genotypes which suffer from serious health and welfare problems"
Modern broilers have been selectively bred to reach their slaughter weight
in just 41 days, which is twice as fast as 30 years ago. The legs, heart and lungs often fail to keep pace with the rapid body growth. The legs
often buckle under the strain of supporting the over-developed body. This
leads each year to millions of UK broilers suffering from painful leg disorders. Moreover, each year millions die of heart failure.
The breeding flock cannot be allowed to grow so rapidly since many would die
before adulthood or be too unhealthy to breed. The industry slows down their growth rate by the use of restricted feeding regimes which, in some
cases, lead to chronic hunger.
The detailed substantive case is likely to be heard in the High Court in September.
CIWF has been granted the right to a Judicial Review, the process whereby one can challenge the lawfulness of the government's policies or actions.
A media briefing document containing more details of the case is available
from CIWF Press Office. Betacam footage and stills showing the typical condition of the birds is also available. A web site showing the welfare
issues associated with intensive chicken farming is at
www.livefastdieyoung.org
For further information or photographs contact CIWF's press office on 00 44
1730 233 904 or 00 44 7771 926 005 (mobile). Out of office hours call 00 44 7771
926 005.
(18/05/2003) UK animal export study reveals "sickening cruelty"
LONDON - A leading animal rights group called on the European Union to tighten laws governing the transportation of live animals after unveiling
evidence of "sickening cruelty".
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) also urged the British government to change domestic laws, insisting that animals
be slaughtered at home before being transported to the continent.
"With ten million livestock moved by road every week in the EU, the
potential for suffering is immense," said Dr Julia Wrathall, the RSPCA's
deputy head of farm animals. "A huge body of evidence shows that even
healthy animals can suffer serious stress, dehydration and fatigue in
transit."
An RSPCA report published this week details a catalogue of cruelty, including sheep found dead and dying after a nine-day journey across
Europe...
[Link]
(19/05/2003) More Than 70 Arrested During Cockfight Raid
by Sherry Morse
More than 70 individuals were recently arrested during a cockfight
raid conducted by New York City police and American Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) humane law enforcement officers
in a building in the Bronx that once was a church.
Eight people alleged to have been conducting cockfights were charged
with animal fighting, which is a felony in New York State. Sixty-nine
individuals believed to have been spectators were charged with
misdemeanors.
Nineteen roosters and more than $17,000 in cash were seized during the
raid. ASPCA humane law enforcement officer Joseph Pentangelo told an
Associated Press reporter that the birds would be euthanized because
"they've been conditioned (and) they're really beyond rehabilitation."
Four of the alleged cockfighters had been taken into custody along
with 133 other individuals during a similar raid conducted in January.
Less than 24 hours after the more recent raid took place, two people were arrested and 125 birds were seized at a breeding and training facility run
by cockfighters in the Bronx.
[Link]
(20/05/2003) Endangered Turtles Vanish into Asian Cooking Pots
WASHINGTON, DC, May 15, 2003 (ENS) - The belief that soup and jelly
made from the Chinese three-striped box turtle can cure cancer has reduced
populations of this species to a few remnants in Northern Vietnam and
China.
Tons of live turtles of various species are imported each day to
southern China from the Southeast Asia region, with more than 10 million
individual turtles traded each year.
In Indonesia, the Sulawesi forest turtle is already critically endangered after being known to science for less than 10 years.
This pattern of threats to the world's turtles is documented by the Turtle
Conservation Fund (TCF), which today released its first list of the World's
Top 25 Most Endangered Turtles to highlight the survival crisis facing these
animals. At least 200 of the 300 living species of tortoises and freshwater
turtles are threatened and require conservation action, the organization warns...
[Link]
(21/05/2003) Canada Announces Mad Cow Case in Alberta
TORONTO - A cow in Alberta has been diagnosed with mad cow disease, Canadian
officials announced Tuesday - the first known case in North America in a decade.
U.S. health officials immediately banned imports of cattle, beef,
beef-based products and animal feed from Canada.
Canadian Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief told a news conference Tuesday
at the Alberta provincial legislature in Edmonton that the 8-year-old cow from a farm in northern Alberta was slaughtered on Jan. 31 because of
suspected pneumonia...
[Link]
(22/05/2003) Wake-up call on extinction wave
UK scientists have issued a clarion call to the world to recognise the galloping rate of species extinction.
They have devised a framework for measuring biodiversity, to show just how
fast species are disappearing. They say we can make better use of available
knowledge, for example through web-based technology. But another problem, they believe, is the existence of huge gaps in what we know.
The call comes from the Royal Society, the UK's national academy of science,
in a report, Measuring Biodiversity for Conservation...
[Link]
(23/05/2003) Seaquarium Protesters Say: Let Lolita Go!
VIRGINIA KEY, Fla. -- Animal rights activists made a Mother's Day plea
Sunday at the Miami Seaquarium -- let Lolita the killer whale go free.
Protesters held signs and shouted for her freedom from outside the Seaquarium. They say she is being used for profit and her tank is too small.
The protesters would like to see her returned off Puget Sound with her
family... (includes Survey: Should Lolita be freed?)
www.click10.com
A Video giving details:
TITLE: Lolita: Slave To Entertainment - She's Dying To Amuse You
PRODUCER: Rattle The Cage Productions, 1126 S Federal Highway, Suite 288,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316,
Tel: 954-463-8892,
Email:
timgorski@hotmail.com
Website:
www.RattleTheCage.org
RETAIL PRICE: $20.00 USA
ABOUT THE VIDEO: When Two Species Collide in the Icy Waters of Puget Sound a
Story of Epic Proportions is Unleashed.
Man versus nature: a barbaric hunt leads to the death of five orca whales and destroys the lives of countless others. Six young orcas are ripped away
from their family, sold to marine parks, and shipped across the world to enter into a life of slavery. Three decades later only one survives. And
she's Miami's biggest performer. This controversial independent documentary takes a disturbing look into the
dark secrets of the multibillion dollar aquarium industry and questions human ethics in relationship to animals in entertainment. It is the tragic
and compelling life story of Lolita, a 37-year-old performing Killer Whale
on display in Miami Florida. Since that fateful day in 1970, waves of controversy have pounded both
shores of the US as freedom fighters from across the globe battle for her liberation. It is a story of beauty, grace, passion, respect, exploitation,
greed, prejudice, and domination. Witness disturbing footage of actual marine mammal captures and alarming interviews with former "flipper,"
trainer Ric O'Barry, marine mammal specialist Ken Balcomb, animal right activist Russ Rector, and John
Crowe, a former whale hunter. This is a film the captivity industry would rather you not see.
"Lolita has opened our eyes and I thank you for it."
~ Giulio Scalinger, Arizona Film Festival Director
(Source: Animal Rights Online -
www.geocities.com)
(24/05/2003) American Beef Supply at Risk
The Canadian Agriculture Minister announced yesterday that a cow in Canada
has tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, better known as mad cow disease. The United States immediately imposed a ban on Canadian
beef and cattle imports, but the American beef supply may have already been
placed at risk...
[Link]
(Notice) Arrêtez les transports d'animaux vivants sur longues distances
Nous organisons de nouvelles actions en octobre 2003 pour dénoncer les
effroyables longs transports d'animaux vivants et nous avons besoin d'un
grand nombre d'animaux en peluche.
Un camion transportera les milliers d'animaux en peluche (rassemblés par
GAIA et nos organisations sur d'autres pays européens) qui seront
offertes aux ministres de l'Agriculture. Toutes les organisations présentes
mèneront une action sur place pour dénoncer les longs transports
d'animaux vivants. Les ministres de l'Agriculture recevront un petit
camion rempli de peluches.
(25/05/2003) World 'losing battle against extinctions'
Humans have done too little to
find sustainable ways of sharing the Earth's resources, a US scientist says.
Dr Peter Raven, says the rich world in particular is not confronting the extinction crisis. He believes we know scarcely 15% of animal and plant
species alive today.
And most of those we are driving to extinction will
vanish without us ever having known they were here...
[Link]
(26/05/2003) Free Kshamenk!
Kshamenk is a male killer whale that remains in captivity in Mundo Marino (Argentina) since 1992. He has been alone since 2000, when the other killer
whale, Belén, died. Killer whales are highly sociable animals and isolation
magnifies the negative effects of captivity, like unnatural environment, unnatural feeding, training, lack of space, nostalgia, stress and a life
without stimulation.
To free a killer whale is no easy job, captivity is very harmful for their
physical and emotional system, but with the help of specialists, it is possible to make Kshamenk forget all those unnecessary circus acts, and
focus on learning behaviours that are vital for his survival such as fishing, avoiding predators, socializing and understanding the natural
rhythms of the sea. But most important of all is to offer Kshamenk hope for
a better life.
[Link]
(27/05/2003) Canada: 'Mad cow' likely fed to pigs, chickens
Edmonton - Despite assurances that a cow infected with mad cow disease was never eaten by humans, officials said Wednesday it was likely fed to
pigs and chickens - which in turn could have been on a dinner table....
[Link]
(28/05/2003) China to crack down on eating civet cats
BEIJING - Beijing is to crack down on the eating of civet cats after research by a Hong Kong scientist showed it was likely the SARS virus that
has killed almost 700 people worldwide jumped to humans from the animal.
Beijing's wildlife protection authorities pledged to deal a swift blow to the selling, serving and eating of civet cats, the Beijing Youth Daily said
on Sunday. It gave no details.
The University of Hong Kong's top microbiologist, Yuen Kwok-yung, said on
Friday research showed it was likely the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
virus jumped to humans from civet cats, considered a delicacy by many Chinese especially in southern China...
[Link]
(29/05/2003) My Foster Dog is Beautiful
My foster dog stinks to high heaven. I don't know for sure what breed he is. His eyes are blank and hard. He won't let me pet him and growl when I
reach for him. He has ragged scars and crusty sores on his skin. His nails
are long and his teeth which he showed me are stained. I sigh. I drove two
hours for this? I carefully maneuver him so that I can put him in the crate. Then I lift the crate and put it in the car.
I am going home with my new foster dog. At home I leave him in the crate till all the other dogs are in the yard. I get him out of the crate and ask
him if he wants 'outside.' As I lead him to the door he hikes his leg on the wall and shows me his stained teeth again. When we come in he goes to
the crate because that's the only safe place he sees. I offer him food but
he won't eat it if I look at him. I turn my back. When I come back the food
is gone. I ask again about 'outside.'
When we come back I pat him before I let him in the crate, He backs away and runs into the crate and shows me his teeth. The next day I decide I
can't stand the stink any longer I lead him into the bath with cheese in my
hand. His fear of me is overcome by his wish for the cheese And well he should fear me, for I will give him a bath. After an attempt or two to
bail out he is defeated and stands there. His only defense was a show of
his stained teeth that did not hold to a face full of water. As I wash
him it is almost as if I wash not only the stink and dirt away but also some of his hardness. His eyes look full of sadness now. And he looks
completely pitiful as only a soap covered dog can. I tell him that he will
feel better when he is cleaned. After thebath, he lets me rub him dry. I take him outside. He runs for joy. The joy of not being in the tub and the
joy of being clean. I, the bath giver, am allowed to share the joy. He comes to me lets me pet him.
One week later I have a vet bill. His skin is healing. He likes for me to
pet him. I think I know what color he will be when his hair grows in.
I have found out he is terrified of other dogs. So I carefully introduce him
to my mildest four legged brat. Two weeks later a new vet bill for an infection that was missed on his first visit. He plays with the other
dogs.
Three weeks later he asks to be petted. He chewed up part of the rug. Eight
weeks later his coat shines, he has gained weight. He shows his clean teeth
when his tongue lolls out after he plays chase in the yard with the gang.
His eyes are soft and filled with life. He loves hugs and likes to show off
his tricks, if you have the cheese.
Someone called today and asked about him, they saw the picture I took.
They asked about his personality, his history, his breed. They asked if he
was pretty. I asked them lots of questions. I checked up on them. I
prayed. I said yes.
When they saw him the first time they said he was the most beautiful dog they had ever seen. Six months later I got a call from his new family. He
is wonderful, smart, well behaved and very loving. How could someone not
wanthim? I told them I didn't know.
He is beautiful.
They all are.
Written by: Martha O'Connor
(30/05/2003) Pause For Prayer/A Moment In Time
From: Kinship Circle
A whisper began around the world. It has risen to a rumble. Please join
compassionate people everywhere for A Moment In Time for all of the voiceless creatures of the world. This World Prayer event is scheduled for
August 4, 2003. With the combined spirit of those who care, this can become
an annual day of prayer, meditation and reflection on behalf of the animals.
Hopefully, it will also ease the anger, grief, and frustration many of us feel daily in the trenches of animal rights/welfare work.
[Link]
(31/05/2003) Iraqi lions to go to S Africa
SIX lion cubs born in the cramped, prison-like zoo owned by Saddam
Hussein's son Uday will find freedom in the African bush.
The SanWild Wildlife Sanctuary, a non-profit organisation based in the
northern Limpopo Province, has secured the release of the six cubs, their
mother and two other lions from the Baghdad Zoo, the South African Press
Association reported...
[Link]
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