Animal Rights's topics - tribe.net

Gophers

MdJGutie — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:25:25 GMT

I have a friend who's got gophers in her flower be and I'm trying to convince her to NOT put out traps while her neighbor is telling her that's the ONLY thing that works.

Does anyone have any experience getting rid of gophers without killing them?

posted in Animal Rights - 7 replies

One Rat Short - Vancouver Film School (VFS)

missbug — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:13:59 GMT

One Rat Short - Vancouver Film School (VFS)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od21Atb9UOM

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

to any/all meateaters, please avoid Hormel products

Elle — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 17:41:11 GMT

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/iowa_pigfarm_abuse2

The following are just some of the abuses that were documented:

A supervisor shoved a cane into a sow's vagina, struck her on the back about 17 times, and then struck another sow.
Multiple pigs were beaten with metal gate rods, and lacerations were found on more than 30 sows - which is probably evidence of more abuse.
A worker hit a young pig in the face four times with the edge of a herding board, and investigators witnessed dozens of similar incidents involving this worker and 11 other workers.
Two men - including a supervisor - were witnessed jabbing clothespins into pigs' eyes and faces. A supervisor also poked two animals in the eyes with his fingers.
A supervisor kicked a young pig in the face, abdomen, and genitals to make her move and told PETA's investigator, "You gotta beat on the bitch. Make her cry."
A worker who weighed an estimated 315 lbs. punched a sow on the back three times and said that he sat on a sow's head.

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

VegCamp at burning man

VegCamp — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 05:16:02 GMT

Hello!

We're a vegetarian and vegan theme camp at burning man.

Come check us out or camp with us this year?

Tell a friend and spread the word,

Peace

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Animal Suffering Webcomic

eeplox — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:50:47 GMT

I'm trying to bring attention to animal suffering under human rule in my own way - a funny-animals webcomic. It's called The Amazing Imaginings of Bubs and Baxter, and it's about two people-hating pound-pets who escape the grim reality of their caged lives using their imaginations.

You can read it here:
www.bubsandbaxter.com/

The latest strip ( www.bubsandbaxter.com/strips/010.html ) might seem to suggest that I think Earth can only be at peace without humans, but I actually believe the way forward is through a Western vegan nation that can set an example and show the world how much sense veganism makes as a cure to suffering, disease and hunger. Not to mention the war against nature that our species seems to have declared.

If we would just use all the land allocated to the cattle industry to grow fruit and veg, no one in the world would need go hungry. The meat lobby has changed the world so much in just a few decades and an entire generation has been raised in a way that only suits the bottom lines of multinational corporations. But of course, you knew that already. :(

I'm a raw vegan living in Cyprus, a country that sadly likely has the worst animal suffering record in the West. Dogs are locked in cages in fields for 11 months of the year, endangered migratory birds are trapped with lime sticks and nets (I have photos if you're feeling especially morbid) and then sold as a delicacy in restaurants, wildlife and pets are routinely poisoned with lanite-laced meat thrown into gardens and left in bins and fields, and every other man in the country has a hunting license, meaning nothing is left alive once hunting season closes at the end of the year.

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

1500 laying hens need forever homes

kathi — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:14:34 GMT

These ladies are only about 2 years old and they will be slaughtered next week if they can't find homes. Animal Place in Vacaville, CA is trying to find homes for them. Can you help? You can contact them at info@animalplace.org .

I just got 10 beautiful hens from them a couple of months ago and have run out of room otherwise I'd be getting some of these precious girls.

posted in Animal Rights - 3 replies

Proposition 2 passes in California!!!!

Elle — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:06:41 GMT

From -- http://www.farmsanctuary.org/get_involved/yesonprop2.html

Action Alerts & Updates

November 4, 2008: SUCCESS ON PROP 2!

Congratulations to animal protection advocates throughout the country for getting the word and the vote out for farm animals! In a historic victory, California voters have approved Proposition 2, a landmark measure that bans three of the cruelest factory farming confinement systems – battery cages, veal crates and gestation crates -- in the state by 2015. By a a vote of more than 60 percent Californians sent a clear message to big agribusiness that cruelty to animals is unacceptable.

With this historic vote, California becomes the fifth state to ban gestation crates, the third to ban veal crates and the first to ban battery cages!

While Prop 2 will curtail the suffering of millions of animals in California, the repercussions throughout the country promise to be even more profound: As California goes, so goes the rest of the nation. California’s new laws against farm animal cruelty hold the potential to spark an unstoppable precedent for change in the way farm animals are treated nationwide.

Battery cages - BANNED!
95% of the eggs in the US come from hens who are crammed five or more into a cage the size of a filing drawer, with each given less than the size of a piece of typing paper in which to live her life. Prevented from ever touching the ground or extended their wings, laying hens are among the most tortured of all farm animals.

However, with the passage of Prop 2, egg producers will be required to provide birds with enough space to comfortably turn around and spread their wings. – affecting the lives of almost 19 million animals.

Prop 2 will also end the confinement of pregnant sows inside gestation crates and calves inside veal crates. Although these operations are less prevalent in the state than factory egg farms, it will help the thousands of animals currently confined in them and prevent new factory farms from moving into the state.

Gestation crates - BANNED!
The majority of sows bred to provide piglets to the pork industry spend most of their lives inside gestation crates, 2-foot-wide metal enclosures that severely restrict the animals' movement and thwart their natural behaviors.

Veal crates - BANNED!
Crated veal calves are normally confined inside 2-foot-wide enclosures for their entire lives. Usually chained by their necks, these animals cannot even turn around, stretch their limbs, or lie down comfortably.

California’s passage of Prop 2 has monumental implications for farm animals and is likely to ignite a spark around the country. It has also helped raise the consciousness of millions of people nationwide to the plight of farm animals and helped tear down the veil of deception that the factory farming industry has used for so long to shield consumers from the truth of their cruelties.

Prop 2 was a modest proposal, simply asking that these animals receive the most basic considerations, yet its success prompts a dramatic shift in the public’s recognition that animals are sentient, deserving of protection and should not be treated as mere commodities.

California residents helped make it possible to get factory farming systems noticed by the entire country. From commercials across the state to appearances on national television programs, including Ellen and Oprah, animal advocates were able to spread the word to everyone with a television!

This exposure is a victory not only for the animals in California, but for farm animals across the country. As California sets this precedent to ban ALL three confinement systems, we can expect to see other states step up to the plate.

What Happens Now
Producers in California will have until 2015 to convert to more humane systems for hens, calves and gestating sows. But this is not the end: in fact, it is just the beginning. State legislatures around the country are about to begin their next legislative session – providing animal advocates with an opportunity to educate and advance policy similar to prop 2 in their state. Please take action by contacting your state legislators and urging them to introduce or support similar humane legislation in your state.

posted in Animal Rights - 4 replies

premarin foal named Glory needs a home :)

Elle — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 22:01:54 GMT

Know of anyone looking for a horse in Florida or anywhere where she could be humanely transported?
read about her here :) http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=10984292

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

I need some advice.

Maia — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:58:27 GMT

I have an aunt who lives in Logan, Utah, a town a couple of hours north of Salt Lake. Yesterday her neighbor was angry with her husband over something, tied their two dogs outside and left for her mother's house and both dogs died. My aunt called the Humane Society and their response was to tell my aunt that their spiritual advisor could talk to her about animal neglect/abuse. She then called Animal Control who "came to investigate", but according to my aunt, the man was more concerned with the neighbors accusing him of killing them above anything else. Animal abuse was recently voted a felony in Utah, so I am particularly bothered that no one seems to be taking this seriously. And this is not the first time my aunt has tried to involve Animal Control with this family's activities. Not only is Logan is a farming community, but also home to Utah State University (a huge ag. school), so I think this may be interfering somewhat with anyone's reaction. I know my aunt is frustrated by the fact that she has not been able to get anyone to deal with this family now or in the past. In addition, they have already "replaced" one dog today and "have made arrangements to replace" the other as soon as possible. I sent her the link to contact PETA, but I'm not sure how likely she is to actually contact them; I would have done it myself, but all of my information is hearsay and I don't know all the details or past issues. Basically, this is my long-winded attempt to ask people for any advice or thoughts on whether or not there is anything more I could do with this and if so, what.
Thanks. I appreciate anything anyone has to say, even if it's to keep out of the situation.

posted in Animal Rights - 4 replies

email from the HSUS about downers

Elle — Wed, 21 May 2008 14:14:14 GMT

This morning, the USDA announced that it will implement a complete ban on slaughter for human consumption of cattle unable to stand and walk unassisted. The decision comes after The Humane Society of the United States documented horrible abuses of downed cows in a series of undercover videos.

For far too long, sick and crippled animals have been allowed into the food supply, subjecting them to needless torment and putting consumers at risk. Thanks in part to many thousands of animal advocates who emailed and called public officials about the scandalous mistreatment of these animals, the USDA is moving to close the downer loophole. We are calling on the agency to expedite the process and ban the slaughtering of downers without delay.

Once the loophole is closed, we'll push for additional reforms. Stronger federal legislation is needed to ensure humane euthanasia of downers and protect all farm animals from this kind of abuse.

If you haven't already asked your legislators to co-sponsor the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act, please do so now.
(visit this link -- https://community.hsus.org/campaign/2007_downed_animals3 )

Thank you for all you do for animals.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Anyone in SF/Oakland Area?

HisssMeow — Tue, 20 May 2008 03:46:38 GMT

Coming down with my fire partner in July (8th through14th/15th) for the Fire Arts Festival at the Crucible in Oakland.
Coming down on Monday night (after midnight) arriving Tuesday afternoon (from Portland Oregon).
Wouldn't mind connecting if there is anything going on.
My myspace page (gasp, I know) has much more on me if you want to peek first.
meow,
HM.
www.myspace.com/nonakaye

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Chicago lifts ban on foie gras

david — Wed, 14 May 2008 22:52:34 GMT

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&q=chicago+foie+gras&btnG=Search

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Beijing prepares for Olympics... by killing cats?

btd — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 23:54:01 GMT

Olympics clean-up Chinese style: Inside Beijings shocking death camp for cats
By SIMON PERRY http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=528694

Thousands of pet cats in Beijing are being abandoned by their owners and sent to die in secretive government pounds as China mounts an aggressive drive to clean up the capital in preparation for the Olympic Games.

Hundreds of cats a day are being rounded and crammed into cages so small they cannot even turn around.

Then they are trucked to what animal welfare groups describe as death camps on the edges of the city.

The cull comes in the wake of a government campaign warning of the diseases cats carry and ordering residents to help clear the streets of them.

Cat owners, terrified by the disease warning, are dumping their pets in the streets to be picked up by special collection teams.

Paranoia is so intense that six stray cats -including two pregnant females - were beaten to death with sticks by teachers at a Beijing kindergarten, who feared they might pass illnesses to the children.

China's leaders are convinced that animals pose a serious urban health risk and may have contributed to the outbreak of SARS - a deadly respiratory virus - in 2003.

But the crackdown on cats is seen by animal campaigners as just one of a number of extreme measures being taken by communist leaders to ensure that its capital appears clean, green and welcoming during the Olympics.

Polluting factories in and around the city are being ordered to shut down or relocate during the Games to ease Beijing's choking smog and drivers are allowed out on to the roads only three times a week.

Fares on the city's underground network have been cut to just two yuan (14p) for any journey - a six-fold reduction on some routes - to keep people off buses, and beggars and street sleepers are being moved to out-of-town camps or given train fares back to their home provinces.

Meanwhile, taxi drivers have been made to attend lessons in how to greet passengers politely in English and a city-wide courtesy campaign has been launched to teach Beijing's notoriously dour and grumpy citizens how to smile and be pleasant to foreigners.

The cull of Beijing's estimated 500,000 cat population is certain to provoke international outrage as it comes just over a year after the Chinese were criticised for rounding up and killing stray dogs across the country.

Animal welfare groups in China are already protesting, but their members fear punishment from the authorities.

Officials say people can adopt animals from the 12 cat pounds set up around the city, but welfare groups say they are almost impossible to get inside and believe few cats survive.

One cat lovers' group negotiated the release of 30 pets from one of the compounds in Shahe, north-west Beijing, but said they were in such a pitiful condition that half of them died within days of their release.

"These cats are being left to die. It is very inhumane," said the group's founder Yan Qi, who runs a sanctuary for cats.

"People don't want to keep cats in Beijing any more so they abandon them or send them to the compounds.

"When we went inside, we saw about 70 cats being kept in cages stacked one on top of the other in two tiny rooms.

"Disease spreads quickly among them and they die slowly in agony and distress. The government won't even do the cats the kindness of giving them lethal injections when they become sick. They just wait for them to die.

"It is the abandoned pets that suffer the most and die the soonest. They relied so much on their owners that they can't cope with the new environment.

"Most refuse to eat or drink and get sick more quickly than the feral cats."

Ms Yan's group has now been denied access to the pounds. "We do not believe any of the cats that go in there survive," she said. "They are like death camps."

Ms Yan said there was another reason for people abandoning their cats - the 200 yuan (£14) fee they face if they want to have their pets neutered and tagged.

"We have tried to negotiate with the government to stop the round-ups and to introduce cut-price neutering services so that people can afford to keep their pets but they won't listen to us," she said.

"They are not thinking about the cats. They just want to get results in the quickest way possible, by clearing as many cats from the city as they can."

Retired doctor Hu Yuan, 80, runs one of the few remaining refuges for abandoned pets in her ramshackle home in the ancient Long Tou Jing area of Beijing.

She shares her tiny home with 250 abandoned cats and has taken in 70 over the past 12 months alone.

She pays for neutering and food from her pension and donations. She said: "If I don't take them in, the government will kill them.

"People believe what the government tells them and that is why they are abandoning more and more family pets."

She said the problem could be traced back to former president Jiang Zemin for the crackdown.

"He didn't like dogs so he decided to have dogs killed. But there was a bad reaction from the foreign media and they were pressured to stop.

"Now they have stopped killing dogs but the new victims are cats. It is all connected to the Olympics."

Cats are regularly dumped on her doorstep late at night by owners frightened by the government campaign.

"The situation is very bad now," said Ms Hu. "When women get pregnant, the doctor will ask them if they have a cat in the house.

"If they reply Yes, they tell them, 'You must get rid of it, it will be bad for the baby'.

"I keep all the cats in my house and 100 of them sleep in my bedroom at night. I am too frightened to let them out. If they go outside, they will be taken away and killed.

"The government is not telling people the truth. Look at me. I live with them 24 hours a day, seven days a week and I am very healthy."

The round-up has been particularly intense in areas around Olympic venues and in streets and alleys surrounding five-star hotels where guests will stay during the summer games.

Despite the health warnings, the round-up of cats has led to a surge in the number of restaurants in the capital serving cat meat, according to Ms Hu.

She said hundreds of cats were also being sent to Guangzhou in southern China, an area infamous for restaurants that serve meat from cats and dogs and exotic animals such as snakes and tigers.

It was in July last year that district officials were instructed to begin an intense round-up of cats as part of Beijing's pre-Olympics clean-up. Now notices have been put up urging residents to hand in cats.

Welfare groups estimate that tens of thousands have been collected in the past few months.

The Mail on Sunday went to the cat pound in Shahe on the north-western fringes of Beijing but we were repeatedly refused admission.

"No one can come in without official papers," staff shouted from behind padlocked steel gates.

At another, larger compound in Da Niu Fang village, the sound of cats wailing could be clearly heard coming from a cluster of tin-roofed sheds, but workers denied they were holding any cats.

"There are no cats here, go away. No one is allowed inside unless you have official permission," a security guard said.

The killing of the six stray cats at the kindergarten - where staff at a Beijing cigarette factory leave their children - is the most striking illustration of the city-wide fear of cats.

A teacher at the nursery said: "We did it out of love for the children. We were worried the cats might harm them. These six cats had been hanging around the kindergarten looking for food.

"So three male teachers put out plates of tuna in cages for bait, trapped the cats and then beat them to death with sticks.

"We were very worried the children might try to stroke them and that the cats might scratch them or pass on diseases. We had to get rid of the cats and this was the only way to do it."

Christie Yang of the charity Animals Asia, which liaises with the Beijing animal welfare groups, said: "We are seriously concerned.

"We understand that with the Olympic Games the Beijing government is eager to show the world the city in a good light.

"But capturing and dealing with cats in such an inhumane way will seriously tarnish the image of Beijing and the Games."

• Names of the animal campaigners have been changed as the people we interviewed are concerned about officials' reaction to our story.

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Tomorrow is day 1.... 275,000 will die!!!!

DevilWoman — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 01:52:58 GMT

Tomorrow is day 1 when thousands of baby seals will be clubbed to death. Please read the link.

https://community.hsus.org/humane/notice-description.tcl?newsletter_id=21667094

posted in Animal Rights - 6 replies

NOT art...please stop this abuse and sign!

hexkitten — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:36:30 GMT

*Supposedly there is a youtube video of this "art", but I couldn't stomach the idea of looking at it. Disgusting.

*****

This is a serious matter... In 2007, the 'artist' Guillermo Vargas Habacuc, took a dog from the street, tied him to a rope in an art gallery, and starved him to death. For several days, the 'artist' and the visitors of the exhibition have watched emotionless the shameful 'masterpiece' based on the dog's agony, until eventually he died.

But this is not all... the prestigious Visual Arts Biennial of the Central American decided that the 'installation' was actually art, so that Guillermo Vargas Habacuc has been invited to repeat his cruel action for the biennial of 2008.

Please help stop him and sign the petition below:

www.petitiononline.com/ea6gk/...gn.html

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Stop Cal Vivisection cafe night at the Long Haul!

Stephanie — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 01:51:41 GMT

April 20. 7pm. The Long Haul. 3124 Shattuck Ave. in Berkeley

We'll show the film 'Dealing Dogs' and talk about the campaign against vivisection (the use of live animals in research) at UC Berkeley. 40,000 animals are currently confined and tortured at UC Berkeley.

This will be a benefit for our legal fund. An activist has court later this month for two misdemeanor charges - disturbing the peace and trespassing for an incident that never happened. And also to help the individual whose car was recently searched and impounded.

Support the campaign to stop vivisection at UC Berkeley. Our brave comrades are being harrassed and intimidated into shutting up, but we refuse to let them take away our voice. For more information on the torture and death that goes on behind closed doors at Cal check out this website: http://www.freewebs.com/stopucberkeleyvivisection/

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

OREGON COUGARS NEED YOUR HELP

Diego Rodriguez — Tue, 22 May 2007 06:12:49 GMT

OREGON COUGARS NEED YOUR HELP
Big Wildlife Urges You to Take Action Now

Trophy hunters are pushing a bill, HB 2971, in the Oregon state legislature that would bring back the cruel practice of using a pack of radio-collared dogs to chase and corner cougars. Voters banned this extreme practice but allowed it for public protection. If HB 2971 becomes law, trophy hunters will once again be allowed to use hounds to run a cougar up a tree and shoot the animal at point blank range. Recently, the Oregon House already passed the bill. The Senate is expected to vote on the legislation this week.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

1.) Contact Governor Ted Kulongoski. Urge him to OPPOSE HB 2971 (See talking points below for more details about the bill)

Phone the Governor at: 503-986-6530

Or email his staff at:
Jo.L.Bell@state.or.us
And/or Ann.Butte@state.or.us

Or fax a letter to the Governor at: 503-378-3225

2.) Contact your State Senator. Urge your Senator to OPPOSE HB 2971

To identify your state senator, visit: http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/

OR call 800-332-2313 and ask to be connected to their office

If you can spare a few more minutes:

3. Contact Senate Natural Resources Committee Chair, Senator Avakian. Urge the Senator to OPPOSE HB 2971

Phone: 503-986-1717
Email: sen.bradavakian@state.or.us

4. Contact Senator Alan Bates, a swing vote on the Committee. Urge the Senator to OPPOSE HB 2971

Phone: 503-986-1703
Email: sen.alanbates@state.or.us

TALKING POINTS (PLEASE USE YOUR OWN WORDS):

* HB 2971 overturns voters' will by allowing the unacceptable practices of baiting and hounding bears and cougars to be used at the discretion of ODFW. Current law allows hounding for damage-causing cougars and to protect public safety - this bill will allow indiscriminate killing of cougars that caused no harm or threat. More cougars were killed this year than in the history of the state without dogs; HB 2971 will increase that number and it is not needed and it's not the answer.

* Oregon's Cougar Management Plan is designed to allow the indiscriminate killing of all cougars found within certain target areas. HB 2971 provides a means to implement a bad plan by overturning the law.

* Nobody knows how many cats there are in the state, yet we're killing them at record rates and numbers. The ODFW population model has been severely criticized by expert biologists. Use the precautionary principle when in doubt.

* The Cougar Management Plan has a budget; and the ODFW has made millions of dollars on cougar tags, so they can well afford to pay for their Plan without violating current law established by the voters.

--
Big Wildlife

Providing a voice for top-carnivore wildlife throughout western North America.

POB 489 Williams OR 97544
voice 541-941-9242
fax 510-380-3600

posted in Animal Rights - 35 replies

Portland Oregon, Wednesday 7PM Letter writing and discuss Sea Lions Plans

HisssMeow — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 05:56:14 GMT

Wednesday Mar 26th - 7PM

Sea Lion Demonstration Planning/Sign Making and Political Prisoner
Letter Writing

Bye & Bye (smokeless bar w/vegan food &drink)
1011 NE Alberta

We will be writing letters to support political animal rights
prisoners who desperately need to hear sympathetic voices.

We will also be planning what we will do to make our voices heard in
the struggle to save the Columbia River Sea Lions.

Time is up, and we have to take action this week!

Please take the time to come hang out at Bye & Bye and help these
brave prisoners and these amazing, charismatic creatures!

:-)

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

This is pretty sweet...

hexkitten — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:43:49 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuuesBhOR9g

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

If you are inclined to help

Sun, 09 Mar 2008 20:37:35 GMT

This sweet girl in Israel is doing these lovely cards and stuff and donating 10% of her sales to this wonderful cow sanctuary in March only. The cows are at: http://www.visakhaspca.org/programs/cowsanctuary.php

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=25517
Perhaps you will feel inclined to help this sweet girl! :-)))

Etsy for Animals Shop: 100% to the Animals http://etsyforanimals.etsy.com will give 100% of shop profits in March to VSPCA Cow Sanctuary. Items are donated by generous etsy sellers, and range from art to jewelry, home decor, supplies, vintage, and more.

Cards and Jewelry by Michele: 10% to animal charities http://mvegan5.etsy.com
She started and run Etsy for Animals. 10% of March sales will go to the VSPCA Cow Sanctuary

Other Etsy for Animals members will be giving some profits from their shop sales in march as well. See website http://etsyforanimals.com to browse members' shops and see VSPCA Cow Sanctuary promoted.

We hope to help you help the cows!!!! :-)

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

The Campaign That Changed The Eating Habits of A Nation

btd — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 19:47:05 GMT

Boycott of Battery Chickens Forces Supermarkets to Think Ethically -- by Martin Hickman -- published in "The Independent" British newspaper, Feb 28, 2008

See http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/02/28/7351/ (which has a good graph of showing the massive swing in Jan 2008)

Sales of factory-farmed chickens have slumped since a high-profile campaign raised awareness of the cruelty at the heart of the poultry industry and implored consumers to pay more to improve the animals’ welfare.

In a victory for campaigners who have fought to expose the short and brutal lives of broiler birds, shoppers have bought millions more free-range and organic birds while leaving mass-produced chickens on the shelves.

Sales of free-range poultry shot up by 35 per cent last month compared with January 2007, while sales of standard indoor birds fell by 7 per cent, according to a survey of 25,000 shoppers by the market research company TNS.

Supermarkets have been stripped of free-range birds, prompting complaints from frustrated shoppers keen to embrace the movement away from intensive farming.

The rise in sales would have been even higher if poultry producers had been able to keep up with demand. Many suppliers in the £2bn-a-year poultry industry are now expected to convert cramped chicken sheds into more spacious accommodation.

Tesco, the country’s biggest retailer, has doubled its order for higher-welfare chickens while Sainsbury’s has been flabbergasted by the “unprecedented” spurt in demand and forced to import free-range birds from France.

In the weeks after the chefs Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver launched a high-profile campaign on Channel 4, supermarkets had stated that sales of “standard” chickens had held up, and even increased.

But the new national sales data suggests that shoppers’ priorities have shifted dramatically. If the TNS data was extrapolated to the rest of the UK, it suggests sales of factory-farmed chickens dipped by 10 million, while shoppers bought 4.4 million more free-range chickens. Overall, chicken sales were down by 4.8 per cent, perhaps because many people, when faced with an absence of free-range chicken, simply bought no chicken.

The campaign against mass-produced poultry, of which a quarter have difficulty walking as a result of wading around in their own waste, is to be intensified. Fearnley-Whittingstall intends to produce a new television show on chickens later this year, updating viewers on the campaign and urging more people to join what he hopes will turn into a free-range revolution. “We are going to keep the pressure up and we are going to do everything we can to make sure that this is not a flash in the pan,” he said.

During his Hugh’s Chicken Run shows, residents of the Devon town of Axminster were invited to see free-range and intensive systems running alongside each other in a shed; many left in tears. According to separate polling by ACNielsen, half of the four million viewers who saw the shows said they would buy better chicken.

The cruelty inflicted on broiler birds was also exposed in secret footage from a farm, reported last month in The Independent. Earlier this month - to the disgust of the National Farmers’ Union and animal welfare groups - Tesco announced a week-long offer of a £1.99 chicken. The move is believed by welfare campaigners to have been an attempt to shift unsold standard birds.

“If the growing consumer demand for free-range, organic and higher-welfare chicken continues, availability in store could certainly become an important barrier to consumer choice, at least in the short term,” said Maria Carrol, ACNielsen’s consumer insight manager.

Compassion in World Farming, a campaign group which shot undercover footage inside a chicken shed in Herefordshire, was jubilant. “It seems to me that there is a swath of people who have been moved by the programmes and it seems to be a lasting move, a definite move away from standard to free-range,” said its food policy officer Rowen West-Henzell. “That’s great. But what we need to do is to work with the people who still buy standard and we are 100 per cent committed to giving consumers the facts about poultry production and letting them make their own minds up. With the programme they were exposed to that reality.”

About 800 million chickens are bred in the UK every year. About 92 per cent of them are still of the “standard” variety, despite the increase this year.

“I am thrilled but I am still a little bit cautious,” said Fearnley-Whittingstall. “I am delighted we have helped create this change and I am delighted that, two months after the show, there appears to be no letting up.

“I just hope the British retailers and the industry are talking to each other, making sure that new free-range farms are built and new RSPCA Freedom Food farms are built to cater for a growing demand for high welfare chicken.”

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

Sensitive Topic Is this considered animal cruelty?

GilbertLee — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 01:05:33 GMT

What I'm about to write is a very sensitive topic.

I went into shock when I found this out. My main question why is this still happening today? Are there any laws to protect these animals from this? Are there any groups who are in contrary to these practices? Personally, I would consider this to be animal cruelty.

Once again, this is a sensitive topic. I will try to be as discreet as I can.

On an internet IM program, I met this good-looking woman who had this idea of being primal. She mentioned how she enjoyed being home in a natural state (nude). To my surprise, she enjoyed her K9 lifestyle. I was not certain what type of lifestyle this was until she explained it. She told me how she enjoyed being dominated by her two dogs and having sexual relations with them. At this point, I just went into shock. Her claim was that dogs are better lovers than men, that his practice was safe and fulfilling for women. She even went into some of the specifics of how this was all done. Her main concern was that this was not just sex, but a lifestyle. Needless to say, I have not been the same since.

Again, how can this be still going on? I thought this all ended centuries ago. Is this not animal cruelty? Are there any laws contrary to this behavior? By the way, this person claimed to be residing in Australia. Anyone know what their laws are on this topic?

posted in Animal Rights - 72 replies

New animal discovered

unsubscribed_user — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 17:45:45 GMT

I shit you not:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/new_bizarre_mammal_animal.php

Gotta have some good news around here sometimes.

posted in Animal Rights - 6 replies

Terrible News Today

grayfires — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 18:23:05 GMT

Today, the Bush administration announced that all federal protection of the Gray Wolf is to be revoked. This will allow hunters in the states of Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana to all but completely obliterate the wolf population. With only 1500 wolves in these areas, there is not enough to sustain their population. The new federal laws will allow killings of all wolves but 300. Even in Yellowstone National Park (where for over a decade, people fought for the reintroduction of the wolf into the park), the wolf could be killed on sight. Pups are not safe either, hunters are now allowed to use aerial gunning, traps, poison, and any other method to kill entire wolf packs.

~~The Bush administration has used OUR tax dollars to already buy two planes for the purpose of aerial killing of wolves, making it possible to slaughter an entire wolf pack within minutes!~~

Even though the Gray Wolf is still on the Endangered Species list, the Bush administration has disregarded that fact and made it legal anyway to kill wolves. This is blatently illegal and disgusting.

The wolf is a beautiful creature with which I have shared a deep connection with my entire life. I would be greatly saddened if the only wolves my children ever get to see are on documentaries from decades ago, or caged up in zoos. The extinction of the gray wolf is emminent.

http://www.defenders.org/newsroom/press_releases_folder/2008/02_21_2008_wolves_lose_protection_under_endangered_species_act.php
http://action.defenders.org/site/PageServer?pagename=savewolves_homepage

From Defenders of Wildlife:
Please take a moment right now to call the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 1-800-344-WILD (9453) and deliver this simple message:

“My name is "-----" and I’m calling from "city, state". I understand that the federal government may remove wolves in the Greater Yellowstone and Central Idaho regions from the list of federally protected threatened and endangered species.
I want your department to know that I strongly oppose the weakening of protections for these wolves and expect you to fulfill your obligation to secure a lasting future in the Northern Rockies for these amazing animals.”

Thanks for taking the time to read this. It's a subject that is immensely important to me.
Love,
Stefanie.

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Cruel Camera- you've GOT to watch this!

Jackie — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 01:02:16 GMT

Last month, CBC aired a special called Cruel Camera, which was about animals used in the entertainment industry. I missed the airing, but it is available online- and it's incredible. Anyone who has any degree of compassion in their bones will be moved by this. It's a must see and a must pass along...

Here's the link:
http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/cruelcamera/video.html

Cruel Camera
Twenty-five years ago, Bob Mckeown and a fifth estate crew stunned the country with an investigative report that showed that many of the wildlife documentaries we'd grown up watching on television (remember the famous footage of the lemmings going off the cliff or some of the memorable moments from shows like Wild Kingdom?) were staged for the television cameras. As well, they revealed that animals often died during the making of movies; all for the sake of the entertainment value.

Now, Bob McKeown and an investigative team have returned to the subject to find out what has changed since the fifth estate's first Cruel Camera documentary. What they found may astonish you.

posted in Animal Rights - 16 replies

animal rights / liberation books on ebay

david — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 18:42:16 GMT

thought some here might be interested in this sale:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&&item=170190717833

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Granting legal rights to nature

missbug — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 04:37:57 GMT

an article from Canada that I thought might interest this tribe.

Granting legal rights to nature
PAUL HANNA/REUTERS
Jan 27, 2008 04:30 AM

Don't expect to see a bird or a bear testify in court anytime soon, but there is a growing body of opinion that animals, birds, rivers, forests – nature – should have greater standing before the law...

Check it out the entire article here:
http://www.thestar.com/sciencetech/Environment/article/297752

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

HALLELUJAH!!

in-PHI-net — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 17:04:14 GMT

Hallelujah Diet - Drawing in religious mainstream crowds!

http://www.hacres.com/diet/hallelujahday.asp <<<<< It's kinda mainstream, but it's better than seeing ads for Wendy's burgers.
http://www.hacres.com/products/hallelujahdietbook.asp <<<<<< testamonies

Teehee..... K, now I'm not religious, but when I went to log in to Yahoo this mourn, on the front page was this video talking about a 72 year old preacher who is drawing crowds in by the hundreds to his seminars. They don't really come to see him Preaching about God, per say, but to see him talk about Vegetarianism! Like wow eh!.... He says people should all go back to the way that God directed them to eat in Genesis. He runs around the room full of energy talking about Vegetariansim. He was diagnosed with having a tumor when he was 42 and changed his diet.

He preaches about "How to Eliminate Sickness". Reverend George Malkmus tells his followers how he healed his own colon cancer and other diseases more than 20 years ago. This is what is attracting people to his seminars. Yeay.... I say go for it! Wake up america!

Of course I am pagan / pantheist, and not into dogmatic religion AT ALL, but to have mainstream Americans start changing their diet as a whole is good ya?

:-)

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Did you know that chickens, pigs and calves can't move on many farms?

Elinor — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 00:30:41 GMT

I am collecting signatures for a very worthy grassroots cause. Californians for Humane Farms is trying to get a proposition on next year's ballot that would require farms in the state to have cages big enough for the animals to stand, sit and turn around. That is all this measure calls for. It has already passed in Arizona and Florida and is law in Oregon too. Let me know if you would like to sign my petition to give voters a chance to change this cruel farm practice. We need 650,000 signatures by Feb. 22, so please consider volunteering to gather signatures. The Web site is: humanecalifornia.org/. And if you know of events/venues that would be good for collecting signatures send them my way.
Thanks,
Elinor

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Boycott the movie "Walk Hard"

Jackie — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 18:42:49 GMT

The new John C. Riley film, Walk Hard, makes use of a baby chimpanzee “actor.” Chimpanzees used in entertainment are taken away from their mothers at birth, which causes irreparable psychological harm. Training methods are physically and psychologically brutal (for example, knocking their teeth out with a crow bar so they cannot bite). Living conditions are deplorable, and once they grow into big, strong chimpanzees (who can no longer be dominated) they are usually dumped at roadside zoos or other substandard facilities. Often this means they are condemned to solitary confinement for the rest of their lives.

For more information please visit www.primatepatrol.org or www.chimpcollaboratory.org.

And PLEASE – don’t see this film or any other films that exploit great apes.

posted in Animal Rights - 3 replies

Mutts comics

Elle — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 03:39:16 GMT

I love these little comic strips, particularly because they bring alot of animal issues to every single person who gets the sunday comics. I've saved the one about greyhound racing, old macdonald's factory farm, and the one that was in today's paper about fighting dogs.

they're grraaaaand :)

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

TRUTH IS FREE; so is my RETREAT --Vermont

Bald Mountain Retreat, — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:44:39 GMT

I'm looking to network with folks, to extend an invitation to visit Bald Mountain Retreat (www.baldmountainretreat.com) as my guest. Like-minded people who appreciate rustic accommodations are welcome to come up at no charge. (Those who require a private room can inquire about those accommodations as well.)
Basically, I'm offering people the opportunity to come stay with a retired naturopathic doctor in a truly amazing natural setting, secluded, idyllic, peaceful...
Also, if you might like to lead a retreat, please contact me.
Thank you and you are welcome,
Dr David

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Going Raw

Josh — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 18:28:33 GMT

Has anyone seen the trailer for "Raw For 30 Days"? It's a documentary about six people, who normally eat fast food, who decide to go 100% raw for a month. It features interviews with doctors, experts, and raw foodists including Gabriel Cousens, David Wolfe, and Woody Harrelson.

I am new to raw foods and very interested in hearing from others who are raw foodists and people who are trying to change their lives for the better. Many people in my family have diabetes and I have changed my diet and gone raw to prevent myself from also getting diabetes.

The trailer on Youtube at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSuqCMld00w

There is also a new two-disc DVD set that is available for order called RAW FOR LIFE, which is a encyclopedia of Raw Food, perfect for beginners like me and Raw Food enthusiasts. I have found it to be very helpful, as I have been transitioning to raw foods. It’s about how to live raw, the Raw Food philosophy, why to eat a raw food diet, important medical facts and nutritional information. It’s a very practical guide to becoming raw and staying raw.

Visit the Raw For 30 Days site at:

www.rawfor30days.com

Another great resource I have found is the Raw Summit site, which is at:

www.rawsummit2.com

I joined for the first Raw Summit and found it very helpful and interesting and it’s FREE!

Who here is raw?

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Moved to a new city...

Mary — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:20:15 GMT

I just moved to Portland, OR from CO. In CO I was involved in local animal rights issues. Now that I'm in a new city I want to get even more involved than I was in CO, but I don't know where to start! I had a few leads, but none of them panned out...are there any fellow Portlanders out there who can give me some tips, places to start, etc?

posted in Animal Rights - 4 replies

Slightly OT: New Freegan Tribe forming

tryagain — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 14:04:13 GMT

http://tribes.tribe.net/ef0f2448-2f81-4704-a66a-fda79c08384f?_click_path=Application%5Btribe%5D.Tribe%5Bef0f2448-2f81-4704-a66a-fda79c08384f%5D

Freeganism is good for animal rights. It's at least a step toward assuring that the animals murdered for food don't wind up in trash bins, replaced by new, fresher dead animals.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Petition the Atlanta Falcons to use Michael Vick's contract to support animal rights education

ericsf7 — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 03:45:34 GMT

Hey fellow dog lovers. As you may know, Michael Vick will enter a guilty
plea for his role in running dog fighting enterprises. In all likelihood, he
will lose all of his remaining salary for this year and the balance of his
contract. Please join me in urging the Atlanta Falcons to use those funds to
promote awareness for the humane treatment of dogs and other animals. A
sample letter is below. Here are the links on how to contact them:

THANK YOU!!

http://www.atlantafalcons.com/About/Contact_Us.aspx

or

fans@falcons.nfl.com

Arthur Blank
Owner and CEO
Atlanta Falcons
4400 Falcon Parkway
Flowery Branch, GA 30542

Dr. Mr. Blank:

I can only imagine that shock and profound disappointment that the Atlanta
Falcons organization must be experiencing in light of the Michael Vick
scandal. Never before has there been such a horrifying display of cruelty to
animals committed by a professional athlete. And, needless to say, it is
inevitable that this debacle will reflect negatively on the Falcons for some
time to come.

Yet your organization can begin winning back fans across the country
immediately. Since it has been reported that Vick will plead guilty, one can
assume that you will be able to abnegate the remainder of his contract. In
addition, you might be able to recover a portion of the sizeable bonus
already paid out to him.

You have the opportunity transform an abhorrent situation into one that over
the long run could save hundreds of thousands of dogs. I strongly encourage
you to take the money you would have paid Vick this season and distribute it
to the American Society for the Prevention of Animals, the National Humane
Society Education Society, as well as to neuter/spay clinics and animal
adoption centers throughout Georgia.

In addition, I encourage you to take a portion of future funds committed to
the Vick contract and enter into a partnership with the NFL to run an
aggressive public service announcement campaign on behalf of the humane care
and treatment of dogs and other animals.

Mr. Blank, you are in the unique position to turn a calamity into a very
powerful campaign to protect and care for dogs and other animals. Please do
the right thing.

Sincerely,

Eric A. Politzer
San Francisco, CA 94110

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

but ask now the Beasts and they shall teach thee

SevenCrowsDancing — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 08:11:32 GMT

Animals, refered to by John Muir as our horizontal brothers, have long been recognized as essential to our development and well being. Throughout history they have played a major role in human thought and culture. They inhabit our myths, fables, proverbs, and stories. There is a profound, inescapable need for animals among all peoples, for while animals have inhabited a world without people, we have never lived without the companionship, example, and practical help of animals.

Today, because of the widespread pollution of air and water, the rapid expansion of cities, and the destruction of wilderness habitat, we are seeing an imminent and irreversible loss of untamed animal life. We can only guess at the future effect on our children of living in a world where elephants exist only in zoos, the great whales no longer fill the sea with their song, and the remaining forests are silent.

The fact that so many of us are increasingly isolated from the presence of animals may contribute to the growing despair we feel. Direct encounter with animals, meeting them eye to eye on their own ground, evokes a sudden wonder and respect. Their vivid life brings us alive to the source that creates and sustains all beings. Without such encounters we risk losing that part of ourselves which most deeply resonates with nature - the heart of compassion.

If our greatest loss with the animals has been to lose touch with the reality of their existence, our second loss has been to banish them from our minds. We assume they have nothing to teach us about the predicaments of our existence. We no longer know how to listen to the wisdom of the various four legged, six legged, finned and winged creatures that share our life on this Earth. We forget they are ancestors as well as kindred. Long before we existed they worked out the round of life in thousands of variations, as though anticipating the experiments of human cultures.

Now, more than ever, our powers of empathy and compassion are called upon. We are asked to awaken to the plight of our animal relatives, to let their beauty and power come alive for us once more. We are members of a human family and society, but the presence of animal "others" enlarges our perception of the self beyond the city and opens us inward to that ground of being where live the lizard and monkey, the fish and the bear.

These are our relations.
These are, like us, offspring of the great mystery, and necessary parts of a balanced and living whole.

from Earth Prayers

Copy this. Print it. Post it on message boards at school, in the park, at work. Hand it to friends and lovers. Email it to all your contacts. Post it on your profile page so that others who don't normally come to this tribe may be exposed to it. Talk about it. Refuse to talk about anything else with anyone else until they talk with you about the plight of our horizontal brothers and sisters. Share with them any literature concerning the need for change in how mankind is treating all other living creatures and the environment. Make people think about the impact they are having on the rest of the planet. Insist upon that. Forget about politeness and tact. Forget about political correctness. Fuck political correctness. Political correctness is an oxymoron. There is nothing politacally correct about man-made extinction.

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Protest the circus this weekend!

kody — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 20:15:39 GMT

Ringling Bros. Circus will open its first show in the Bay Area this THURSDAY, August 16. We really need people to help distribute leaflets to patrons. Signs and leaflets are provided at each of the dates/times listed below. All we need is YOU!

PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDARS and join us as we educate the public about the inherent cruelty of using animals in the circus.

Call 650 654 9955 with any questions.

To see video of Ringling's abuse click on the links below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbP0SJ9_vfc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQfnuxbOHTY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1LgrM7Kw9M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziUwDaXZQqw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im7zT8JK0B4

LEAFLETING TIMES AT RINGLING BROS. CIRCUS

(NOT SHOW TIMES)

OAKLAND COLISEUM ARENA - Inside Entrance

Thursday.........8\16.........6 PM

Friday.............8\17.........6 PM

Saturday.........8\18......... *1:15 PM & 6 PM

Sunday...........8/19.........*1:15 PM & 6 PM

SAN JOSE ARENA - Autumn & Santa Clara St. in San Jose
Wednesday......8\22.........6 PM

Thursday.........8\23.........6 PM

Friday............. 8\24.........6 PM

Saturday.........8\25.........*1:15 PM & 6 PM

Sunday...........8\26.........*1:15 PM & 6 PM

*It's especially important to be prompt, as we leaflet two shows at that time - people coming out of an earlier show and people going into the next show. The people come out all at once, if we're late we'll miss them.

WE APPRECIATE YOUR HELP AT ALL PERFORMANCES YOU CAN ATTEND.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Help save wolves

anime — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 19:26:08 GMT

http://action.earthjustice.org/campaign/Wolf_10j_Reg_Alert_8_07?rk=KpLT1tF1otieE

^-^

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Virgin America's Leather Seats (Not So Swanky, IMHO)

tryagain — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 21:13:06 GMT

Hello, all. I received the below promotional email through Travel Zoo today. It's hyping a big Virgin America sale. (Actually, the sale's not that big -- there are lots of flight sales going on.) Anyway, one of their big selling point seems to be their leather seats. I'm going to write to them that their leather seats are reason enough for me to not fly their airline -- I'll take somebody else's deal. I mean, maybe maybe maybe for foot comfort some people got a reason to interact with leather. But just to have a swanky place to put my butt? No thanks, I'll pass on animal torture and murder. I encourage you to get in touch with Virgin America, too, if you feel so moved.

: )

The Travelzoo Newsdesk has found this outstanding offer from
Virgin America:

NEW YORK--JULY 19, 2007-- Virgin America, a brand new
airline with impressive amenities, is launching flights from
New York in August.

To celebrate, they are offering an introductory sale for all
tickets purchased through August 8:

- New York-Los Angeles ... $139 each way (starts August 29)
- New York-San Francisco ... $139 each way (starts August 9)

You can fly to either city in first class for $389 each way.

This sale is for travel 7 days a week through November 14.
To find the lowest fares, book 7 days in advance.

Main cabin passengers will experience mood lighting, leather
seats with 32-inch pitch and lumbar support, a nine-inch TV
screen with live TV and 25 movies, and have access to power
outlets.

First class passengers will receive upgraded amenities and
also sit in oversized seats with 55-inch pitch and built-in
massage function.

For more information on Virgin America and to book your
trip, click here:
http://www.travelzoo.com/Newsflash.asp?312965

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

To Spay or Not To Spay

screamapillar — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 03:55:24 GMT

This is kind of a general "out there" kind of question.

Some comment Antoine made about the difference between Animal Rights and Animal Welfare has really got me thinking. By his definition, I suppose I am an Animal Welfare activist because I neuter and spay animals to try to curb over-population. Since I make that important, life-altering choice for the animal, it is therefore against his/her right to reproduce. Am I correct in this assumption? Are neutering and spaying anti-Animal Rights?

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

ANIMAL RIGHTS 2007 NATIONAL CONFERENCE, July 19-23 in Los Angeles

synnovemathe — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 10:05:36 GMT

Hi,

That seems an interesting meeting.

Synnöve

http://www.arconference.org/

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

sharkwater

missbug — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 18:32:14 GMT

saw this movie on the weekend...I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in ocean conservation! I warn you tho that it is extremely graphic...there are images from this film that are very disturbing!
shame on all of those people who support the shark-finning industry!
thank you rob stewart for caring about these beautiful creatures and may we all help to save sharks from becoming extinct!

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

A Global Appeal against patents on conventional seeds and farm animals

synnovemathe — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 10:43:42 GMT

THE GLOBAL APPEAL

A Global Appeal against patents on conventional seeds and farm animals

A joint Open Letter addressed to

Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office,
Government Representatives,
The Executive Boards of Agrobusiness Companies

Keep out patents on conventional seeds and animals
For several years, patents on genetically modified seeds and animals have been granted worldwide. The damaging impacts on farmers, who are deprived of their rights to save their seeds, and on breeders who can no longer use the patented seeds freely for further breeding, are well known.

In Canada and the US, for example, the multinational seed company Monsanto has sued many farmers for alleged patent infringements.1 The same company has also filed court cases against importers of Argentinean soy to Europe.2 Furthermore, the possibility of patenting seeds has fostered a highly concentrated market structure with only 10 multinational companies controlling about half of the international seed market. Many farmers organisations and NGOs around the world are fighting against these patents. Because genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are still not grown in most countries, or only used in a small number of crops, the negative impacts of these patents are not being felt everywhere.

However, there is an alarming new trend for patents not only to be claimed on GMOs (such as Round-up ready soybeans), but also on conventional plants. For example, patent claims have been made for soy beans with a better oil quality3 covering parts of the plant genome when used in conventional breeding and technologies to improve conventional breeding (such as marker assisted breeding).

Some of the most threatening examples in this context are patent applications from Syngenta which claim huge parts of the rice genome4 and its use in breeding of any food crops that have similar genomic information to rice (such as maize and wheat).

The European Patent Office has also granted a patent on aphid resistant composite plants which are based on marker assisted breeding5. Other recent patent applications by Monsanto on pigs are also related to normal breeding methods6, indicating the increasing danger of agricultural genetic resources becoming monopolised by a few multinationals on a global scale.

Soon the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office will decide on another patent of this kind - for a method of increasing a specific compound in Brassica species7.

This decision will determine the patentability of conventional seeds in Europe.

Whereas patents on conventional plant varieties are normal practice in the US, many other countries, especially developing countries, do not grant patents on plants or animals. But as the recent history shows, the standards defined and used at the European, Japanese and US patent offices influence international regulations (the WTO agreement on trade related aspects of intellectual property rights, TRIPS , and the World Intellectual Property Organisation, WIPO). Patent offices all over the world are pushed to adapt their regulations and practices either through the international regulations or by bilateral agreements. India, for example, has just passed a third patent amendment in order to adapt its law to the TRIPS regulations.

This frightening new trend in patent policy will affect many more farmers and breeders, than has been the case with GMO patents. Any remaining farmers rights and breeders' access to plant varieties and animal breeds for breeding purposes, will disappear everywhere. These patents will destroy a system of farmers' rights and breeders' privileges that has been shown to be crucial for the survival of farmers and breeders, for food sovereignty, and for the preservation of biodiversity in agriculture. The vast majority of farmers in developing countries are small-scale farmers, completely reliant on saving and exchanging their seeds.

In order to secure the continued existence of independent farming, breeding and livestock keeping and hence the food security of future generations, we, the undersigned farmers, researchers, breeders and civil society organisations from all over the world, restate our rejection of any patents on life, and urge policy makers and patent offices to act swiftly to stop any patents being granted on conventionally bred plants and animals and on gene sequences for use with conventional breeding technique, as well as on methods for the conventional breeding of plants and animals. We also urge companies not to apply for any patents of this kind.

http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1&Itemid=27&lang=en

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Message from Paul Watson about Seal Hunt which started today

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 05:50:03 GMT

Canada’s Annual Ritual of Shame Began Today

Report from Captain Paul Watson

This morning, the hot blood of the baby seals began to cool and congeal on scattered patches of ice where surviving harp seals lay.

After weeks of mass horrific mass drownings, as baby seals slipped from melting, crumbling and broken ice in the cold blackness of the Atlantic, the merciless clubs of Canada ’s hordes of barbaric sealers began to once again smash mercilessly in the fragile skulls of defenceless seal pups.

The perverse slaughter of baby harp seals has begun and this after an estimated one quarter of all the seals born this year have already perished due to the consequences of global warming. Canada wants to kill 275,000 survivors and the sealing boats are scouring the shore fast ice and searching for scattered pans to unleash their club toting thugs upon the defenceless.

The slaughter is underway, the largest massacre of marine mammals on the planet and it has been sanctioned by a Newfoundlander who holds the position of Minister for Fisheries and Oceans. He has this week demonstrated a complete and utter contempt for the science and the reality of global warming and has set the kill quotas solely for the purpose of appeasing the seal hating fishermen of Newfoundland .

What has been an annual tragedy of immense proportions is now despicably more abhorrent considering that the killers are dispatching survivors of hellish conditions on broken and melting ice floes. These seals have struggled and suffered to survive the natural elements and now they lay upon small pans of broken ice with no means of defence or escape.

What a cowardly bunch these baby killers are. They are an embarrassment to Canada and as a twelfth generation Canadian whose family is rooted in the Maritimes, I am disgusted at the brutality and the obscenity of this mass slaughter on the ice in the ravaged nurseries off the Eastern Canadian shore.

I am unable to go to the area this year because of a court order that bans me from half my own country. I was convicted recently of the crime of witnessing a seal being killed and ordered to pay a $3,000 fine and prohibited from entry to the Atlantic coast for two years.

We associate being banned with apartheid in the former white ruled South Africa and now Canadians are being banned for simply witnessing an atrocity in Canadian territory.

Canada argues that the seal “hunt” is the most humane well regulated animal hunt in the world. If so then why is it a crime to witness or document it?

But more importantly why are sealers being allowed to savage the survivors of the greatest die-off of seals in history due to global warming? Adding a quota of 275,000 seals to an estimated 250,000 killed by lack of ice gives us a staggering 525,000 seal deaths for 2007.

This is not a hunt, it is a massacre. It is an attempt to exterminate a species.

The Canadian government will argue that this is not so. Why would they wipe out the seals that sealers depend upon for their livelihood? The same argument was made in defence of over-fishing of the cod. The cod were wiped out and will never recover because of the incredible arrogance and ignorance of the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

The harp seals are being systematically exterminated and the DFO is overseeing this so called final solution because the seals are the scapegoats for the mismanagement of the fisheries. If the government blames the seals and promises a solution to fish recovery with the removal of the seals, the voters will continue to back them and since Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn is dependent only on the voters of Newfoundland , he need not care for the concerns of Canadians outside of Newfoundland .

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society predicted the extermination of the Cod as far back as 1982, ten years before the fishery crashed. We said in 1992 that it would not recover and it has and will not recover.

We are predicting now that unless these madmen at the helm of DFO are relieved, the harp seals will be driven into the oblivion of extinction because of over-hunting and global warming.

Although we cannot get a ship into the ice this year, we are working to undermine markets for seal pelts in Europe . We are in the courts with a lawsuit challenging that the regulations preventing the witnessing of the slaughter are unconstitutional. We are continuing to promote the international boycott of Canadian seafood products and we are organizing protests internationally.

We are working to get our ship the Farley Mowat into a position to challenge the sealers in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in April of 2008.

Only through massive economic pressure will Canada surrender it’s policy of brutality on the ice floes off Newfoundland . We must work to intensify this pressure and we must work to ensure that Canadian businesses pay a huge price to endorse the slaughter. This level of cruelty and wanton slaughter has no place in the 21st Century

Captain Paul Watson
Founder and President of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (1977-
Co-Founder - The Greenpeace Foundation (1972)
Co-Founder - Greenpeace International (1979)
Director of the Sierra Club USA (2003-2006)
Director - The Farley Mowat Institute
Director - www.harpseals.org

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Please tell TVOntario to stop lying to our children

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:18:42 GMT

I just saw a kids show on TVO (Ontario' s public television channel) in which a woman is walking a kid through a petting-zoo type mockery of a farm. Showing him like four sheep, and two goats and three hens and a rooster and a mother pig and baby pigs...and representing herself to the child as "in our farm" but even organic farms couldn't possibly have animals in these conditions! I mean the hens and rooster were perfect with beaks and beautiful feathers, like nicer than farm sanctuary hens, there was a black lamb and sheep with horns!!! and everything was outdoors or in beautiful open stalls and small well-lit barns.

...plus she says the sheep give us wool (notice the "giving") hens, give us eggs, and goats can be milked just like cows...and the pigs...? the kid never asked what the pigs "give" us...I'm sure a real child would ask...and I have a feeling that maybe off camera he asked ;)

PLease everyone send an email to TVO asking them to syop lying to our children. sent to: tvokids@tvo.org; askTVO@tvontario.org

thanks,

Antoine.

this is the email that I sent, which you could use:

I am appalled and disgusted at the show that is currently on TVOKids.
A woman is walking a small child through a mockery of a farm showing animals in absolutely UNREALISTIC conditions and making him believe that is how farm animals are raised.
Even in organic operations, there is NO WAY that animals could live in these conditions.

YOU ARE LYING TO OUR CHILDREN. I would expect this kind of obvious corporate cow towing from the private channels, but TVO???

Why do you perpetrate this lie to our children?
This is the truth: wpw.meat.org/
This is how sheep live: wpw.vegansociety.com/html/animals/exploitation/sheep.php
wpw.factoryfarming.com/gallery/sheep1.htm
This is how goats are milked: wpw.hanokdim.pro.co.il/sheep_goat/Slides/Milking-Parlour-2.jpg (this is from a goat dairy website, notice that the goats are not there, do you wonder why?
This is how mother pigs live: wpw.factoryfarming.com/gallery/pens6.htm
This is how hens live: wpw.youtube.com/watch?v=wHV_rguq8Kw

*** (in order for tribe not to truncate the links I changed www to wpw (just change them back and they will work) ***

And you are not even showing an ideal "possible model" of utopic organic operations. You are not even showing a POSSIBILITY of what COULD BE REAL...because three sheep cannot produce the quantity of wool that the industry needs. Five hens cannot produce enough eggs to fill grocery store shelves...and seven pigs cannot produce enough bacon with their flesh to make even one day's worth of Tim Horton's BLT sandwich.

You may respond that these realities are too brutal to show to our children. So if they are too brutal then DON'T SHOW THEM, but making up obvious lies in order to transform the reality into something that our children can watch is unconscionable. Can you imagine if the same attitude was taken to teaching history or to war? Can you imagine if we showed children five terrorists in the bushes and six soldiers, and the soldiers walk up to the terrorist and say "tag" and then they all walk happily to the barracks together?

That would be seen as pro-war propaganda, and your TV show is speciesist propaganda.

As well, if the realities of the animal industries are to horrible to show to our children, maybe that tells you something about these industries.

Please stop showing lies to our children!

Thank you.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

PUT your name on this! This is a petition to stop the crule death of wild cats.

krystle — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 18:42:30 GMT

hello i am new to this group .... i guess i will just JUMP in and here is my first topic .....click the link and you will get the full story!http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/725659062.?z00m=9416884&ltl=1174328720

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Oppose Cougar Killing in the Oregon Legislature! Speak out for Oregon cougars now!

Diego Rodriguez — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 06:32:42 GMT

Please attend legislative hearing at the Oregon State Capitol, Thursday, March 22. Consider testifying against proposed slaughter of cougars.

Please Oppose Hocus Pocus in the Legislature! Protect Oregon cougars now!

In 1994, Oregon voters approved Measure 18 which prohibited the cruel and unsportsmanlike practice of hound hunting of cougars & bears and baiting of bears. In April 2006, the Oregon Fish & Wildlife Commission rolled back this voter approved-initiative by adopting a plan that allows government agents to kill cougars statewide over the next few years to reach an arbitrary cougar population level. Now, cougars are in more danger than ever before.

The Oregon Legislature is considering H.B. 2971, which would permit the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to deputize sport hunters as their "agents" to do the killing under the Cougar Management Plan, which would involve chasing cougars with hounds, essentially rolling back the voter approved ban.

The current law already allows ranchers the ability to use hounds to pursue damage-causing bears and cougars, and it allows government officials to use hounds for public safety. H.B. 2971 is unnecessary. The bill is broad and essentially allows ODFW to decide, at their own discretion, when, and how many, "sport hunters" will be allowed to chase cougars with packs of dogs up trees only to be shot at point blank range.

TAKE ACTION:

Please grab a friend and attend the HB 2971 Hearing!
You don't even have to speak. In all honesty, we just need bodies at the hearing, wearing a "Voters Have Spoken" button, which will be provided. Your presence is every bit as important as testifying, so please consider making the special trip to Salem to make a silent (but powerful) statement…for the cougars.

Date: Thursday, March 22nd

Time: 3pm to 5pm

Location: State Capitol, 900 Court Street, NE, Hearing Room: HR D

(Don't forget to bring 6 quarters for the parking meter)

Please call or email your Oregon state representative and urge him or her to oppose H.B. 2971 when it comes up for consideration. To identify your state representative, please visit: http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/

(Your state representative will be the very last legislator listed)

Not sure what to say? Here's a sample phone script or email message:

"Hello, my name is _____ and I'm a constituent from [your town] and I'm calling to urge you to oppose H.B. 2971, which would allow more hound hunting of cougars. The voters have spoken on this issue and have banned the cruel and unsportsmanlike practice of hound hunting of cougars. Please help prevent further rollbacks of this ban. Thank you."
Talking Points: HB 2971 overturns voters' will by allowing the unacceptable practices of baiting and hounding bears and cougars to come back at the discretion of ODFW. Current law allows hounding for damage-causing cougars and to protect public safety - this bill will allow indiscriminate killing of cougars within the cougar management plan.
More cougars were killed this year than in the history of the state; HB 2971 will increase that number and it is not needed and it's not the answer.

ODFW should not be given more authority when their own hired personel can't follow their own guidelines. Oregon's Cougar Management Plan is designed to indiscriminately kill cougars (up to 40% of the cougar population). HB 2971 provides a means to implement a bad plan by overturning the law.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

End Dolphin Slaughter in Japan Petition

missbug — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 04:45:26 GMT

Let's raise our consciousness and sign the petition to protect these beautiful and very intelligent creatures!
Go to the following link to let your voice be heard!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/427037941

posted in Animal Rights - 4 replies

$25,000 Reward for Japanese Whalers’ Coordinates

missbug — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 04:03:27 GMT

Maybe someone on tribe can help the whales and make a little money!
nora

SOURCE: http://www.indymedia.org/en/2007/01/879292.shtml

$25,000 Reward for Japanese Whalers’ Coordinates

Sea Shepherd 28 Jan 2007 22:37 GMT
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is offering a reward to any one person or group that can provide the coordinates of the Japanese Whaling Fleet presently operating in the Ross Sea.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is offering a reward to any one person or group that can provide the coordinates of the Japanese Whaling Fleet presently operating in the Ross Sea.

"This information will save us considerably in fuel costs," said Founder and President of Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson. "We know the Japanese whaling fleet is within 500 miles of us. We are willing to pay USD$25,000 for any information that successfully leads us to the fleet."

If you know someone who works in maritime tracking, satellite imagery, the Japanese fishing industry, cetacean research, who's doing an ocean crossing in the Pacific or working in some other field that might have first hand knowledge of where the fleet will be, pass this message along.

The ship we are seeking is named the Nisshin Maru, gross tonnage 8,030, length 130 metres, radio call sign JJCJ. She is the factory ship and will be accompanied by three catchers, Kyo Maru No. 1 with radio call sign JKNG, the Yushin Maru call sign JLZS and Yushin Maru No. 2, call sign JPPV.

Information can be relayed to our head office in Friday Harbor, Washington, at 360-370-5650 or faxed to 360-370-5651or e-mailed to rewards@seashepherd.org

If desired, informant’s identity may remain confidential.

seashepherd.org/news/media_070127_1.html

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

HELP STOP SLAUGHTER OF OREGON’S COUGARS

Diego Rodriguez — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 20:35:49 GMT

HELP STOP SLAUGHTER OF OREGON’S COUGARS
New Bill Would Roll Back Voter Approved Ban on Hounding of Cougars

Last year, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (ODFW) unveiled a plan to kill many of the state’s cougars. Despite strong opposition to the Department’s plan, the ODFW has moved forward with implementing the lethal control program. According to the Associated Press last week, “A state wildlife agent trapped and shot two young cougars in Jackson County, the first of two dozen to be killed in that part of the state in a study of whether reducing populations of the animals improves public safety and reduces the loss of livestock. Nine cougars have already been killed in north-central Oregon as part of the study, state figures show.” Tragically, the ODFW intends to significantly reduce Oregon’s cougar population because it claims the animals present a growing menace. To make matters worse, opponents of the 1994 ban on hound hunting of cougars have introduced legislation (HB 2971) that would permit the ODFW to deputize sport hunters to kill cougars. The bill would allow these “agents” to use hounds for hunting cougars – essentially rolling back the voter approved ban.

Contrary to the ODFW’s claims, cougars are not a threat to public safety. There has never been a verified cougar attack on humans in Oregon. Because attacks are so rare (the odds of being attacked by a cougar are less than winning the lottery), it is misguided to use lethal control that science shows is ineffective. And nothing in the plan would prevent an attack. According to cougar expert, Dr. Rich Hopkins, the agency’s plan “would not reduce the risk of being attacked in Oregon, as the current risk is so small as not to be reasonably measured. Those who live or recreate in cougar country expose themselves daily to many more risky activities and yet they never consider nor concern themselves with the true risk these activities pose.” The ODFW’s continued emphasis on killing cougars as a “management” tool will divert resources away from techniques that are far more effective in reducing conflicts between cougars and humans, such as appropriate land-use planning, improved animal husbandry, and comprehensive public education. Oregonians can take steps, like avoiding feeding wildlife, bringing pets in at night, sheltering domestic farm and ranch animals, installing motion lighting around homes and animal enclosures, recreating with others while in cougar country, and educating their families about cougars – without instilling undue fear – to avoid conflicts with the wild cats.

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP STOP THE SLAUGHTER

1.) WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR OF YOUR LOCAL PAPER CONDEMNING THE ODFW’S PLAN. See sample letter to editor and talking points below. Be sure to add your own personal touches to the letter so that it does not appear to be a form letter. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 250-300 words. If your letter is published in your local newspaper, please forward a copy of it to Brian Vincent, Big Wildlife, at: big_wildlife@shaw.ca

2.) URGE YOUR STATE LEGISLATOR TO OPPOSE HB2971. Tell them HB2971 would permit the ODFW to hire contract cougar killers, essentially giving sport hunters even more opportunities to gun down big cats. The ODFW plan is fatally flawed. Deputizing hunters to do the dirty business of killing cougars won’t make the plan any better. To find out how to reach your legislator, go to: http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/

3.) FORWARD THIS ALERT TO OTHER OREGONIANS WHO CARE ABOUT COUGARS

TALKING POINTS FOR LETTER TO EDITOR AND LETTER TO YOUR LEGISLATOR
*Cougars present no threat. There has never been a verified cougar attack in Oregon and the plan would do nothing to prevent an attack. The odds of being attacked by a cougar are less than winning the lottery.

*The ODFW plan is ineffective. According to cougar expert, Dr. Rich Hopkins, the ODFW’s plan “would not reduce the risk of being attacked in Oregon, as the current risk is so small as not to be reasonably measured.”

*The ODFW’s continued emphasis on killing cougars as a “management” tool will divert resources away from techniques that are far more effective in reducing conflicts between cougars and humans, such as appropriate land-use planning, improved animal husbandry, and comprehensive public education. People can take simple steps, like avoiding feeding wildlife, bringing pets in at night, sheltering domestic farm and ranch animals, installing motion or timer-activated lighting around homes and animal enclosures, recreating with others while in cougar country, and educating their families about cougars – without instilling undue fear – to avoid conflicts with cougars.

*HB291 would permit the ODFW to hire sport hunters as contract cougar killers. These “agents” would be allowed to use hounds to chase down and kill cougars, essentially rolling back the ban on hound hunting of the big cats. The ODFW plan is fatally flawed and deputizing sport hunters to do the dirty business of killing cougars won’t make the plan any better.

*As Oregonians we are blessed to live in a state where cougars still roam.

CO-EXISTING WITH MOUNTAIN LIONS SAMPLE LETTER-TO-EDITOR

Dear Editor:

Oregon’s premier wildlife species, the cougar, is once again in the crosshairs. In 1994, Oregonians overwhelmingly approved Measure 18, which outlawed hound hunting of cougars. Since then, hunting interests and their allies in the legislature have repeatedly tried to roll back the hounding ban. In addition, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has released a plan that calls for killing thousands of cougars under the guise of “management.” The ODFW claims that killing many more cougars will keep communities safe. These policy maneuvers amount to a double-barreled attack on cougars.

Cougars are not a threat to public safety. There has never been a verified cougar attack in Oregon. Because attacks are so rare (the odds of being attacked by a cougar are less than winning the lottery), it is wasteful to use lethal control that science shows is ineffective. Besides, there are simple steps people can take to avoid conflicts with cougars.

For example, don’t feed wildlife. Predators tend to follow prey. Don’t leave pet food outside as food may attract cougars. Keep your pets indoors or secure them in a covered run. Shelter domestic farm and ranch animals. Because cougars depend on surprise to catch their prey, installing motion lighting around your home and animal enclosures may keep cougars away. Hike, bike, and run with others when you’re in cougar country. Educate your family – without instilling unnecessary fear – about cougars. Teaching children to respect and revere wildlife will help them avoid conflicts while appreciating nature. Never approach a cougar and never run from a cougar since running may trigger their instinct to chase.

We are blessed to live in a state where cougars roam. As good stewards of Oregon’s natural wonders, we can peacefully co-exist with our wild neighbors.

Sincerely,
YOUR NAME
ADDRESS
PHONE
EMAIL

For more information, contact:

Big Wildlife U.S. office: Big Wildlife Canadian office:
PO BOX 489 5489 Larch
Williams, Oregon 97544 Vancouver, BC V6M 4C7
541-941-9242 604/618-1030; 604/876-0435
bigwildlife@gmail.com Big_Wildlife@shaw.ca

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

The Bear Trade—Questions and Answers

Diego Rodriguez — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 05:06:07 GMT

http://www.hsus.org/wildlife/issues_facing_wildlife/wildlife_trade/the_unbearable_trade_in_bear_parts_and_bile/the_bear_trade_questions_and_answers.html
What Is the Problem?

Demand for bear gallbladders, bile, and paws has made bears more valuable dead than alive. The sum of saleable parts can make a dead bear worth in excess of $10,000. An average sized bear gallbladder commands as much as $3,400 in Asia. A single serving of bear paw soup in an exclusive restaurant in Asia can fetch as much as $1,400. Asian countries such as China and South Korea are the leading consumers of bear products.

Why Are Bear Parts Valued?

Bear gallbladders and bile are used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of illnesses including fever, liver disease, convulsions, diabetes, and heart disease. A person who eats bear paws is believed to acquire the strength and vigor of a bear, and the consumption of bear flesh in believed to enhance one's virility. Clinical research analyzing the medicinal properties of bear gallbladders indicates that they may be effective for treating a number of ills. However, other natural substances already accepted in traditional medicine, as well as synthetic substances, can be substituted.

Are Bears Threatened by the Trade?

Yes. There are 8 species of bears (brown bear, American black bear, Asiatic black bear, polar bear, giant panda, sloth bear, spectacled bear, and sun bear). Each of Asia's 5 bear species—the brown bear, the Asiatic black bear, the giant panda, the sun bear, and the sloth bear—has suffered from the effects of hunting for the Chinese medicinal trade, as well as from habitat destruction that threatens all the Earth's wildlife. With the exception of pandas, of which fewer than 600 exist in the wild, little is known about the population levels of any Asian bear species other than they are in decline.

While having relatively large populations, America's black and brown bears are increasingly being poached for the bear trade, as are Russia's brown bears on the Kamchatka peninsula. There is little evidence of the poaching of polar bears or South America's spectacled bear.

Aren't All Bears Protected from Trade by International Law?

No. Most species and populations of bears are listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which means that their international commercial trade is forbidden. However, some populations of the brown bear, as well as the American black bear and polar bear, are only on CITES Appendix II, which means international trade is legal and regulated by permit. Inconsistent CITES protections allow traders in Asia to illegally trade in the parts of endangered bears simply by falsely stating that the viscera comes from Appendix II bears. Customs officers cannot tell the difference between the gallbladders of Appendix I and II bears.

What about Laws in Countries That Are Major Consumers of Bear Parts?

Taiwanese law bans the sale of bear parts, but the law is not enforced and bear gallbladders, bile, and paws are widely available. Chinese law allows the sale of bear bile extracted from live bears on government-sanctioned bear "farms" and bans the sale of other bear parts, but the laws are not enforced. South Korean and Japanese laws do not address the trade in bear parts.

Aren't U.S. Bears Protected from Trade by Domestic Laws?

No. The U.S. Endangered Species Act affords protection to only a few species and populations of bears: giant pandas, Mexican grizzlies, Asiatic brown bears, Italian brown bears, and Baluchistan bears (which are considered endangered), and Louisiana black bears and grizzly bears (which are considered threatened). States manage bear populations and regulate trade in bear parts; 11 states allow the sale of bear parts, 34 states ban the sale of them, and five states have no laws on the trade. The growing illegal trade in parts from poached bears is facilitated by this patchwork of state laws. Whole bear carcasses are being found with only their gallbladders and paws missing. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents have arrested a number of people in recent years for trading in bear parts. Parts of American bears are destined for Asia, as well as to Asian markets in the United States and Canada.

What about China's Government-Sanctioned Bear Farms?

In the 1980s, China recognized that their supply of wild bears for use in traditional medicine was running out. Instead of trying to discourage the use of bears, China began experimenting with the extraction of bile from living, captive bears. According to Chinese officials, the bile produced by a single captive bear in one year is equal to that obtained by killing 44 wild bears; over a bear's five-year production span, 220 wild bears' lives are saved. Today, there are an estimated 7,000 bears on China's farms and the use of bear bile is increasing, as are the number of bears on farms.

But the extraction of bear bile, and incarceration of bears on farms, is horribly painful. The bears are kept in tiny wire cages, so small that the animals often can not sit up or turn around. A catheter-like tube, or a surgical steel tap, is painfully inserted into their gallbladder from which the bile is extracted. Infections often develop where the bile leaks around the insertion. Many of these bears go crazy from the pain, boredom, and frustration. Moreover, bears continue to be removed from the wild to stock the farms, placing Asia's bear populations in further jeopardy.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

New species in Borneo may face extinction

missbug — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 03:20:15 GMT

52 species discovered in Borneo rainforest
mongabay.com
December 18, 2006

In 2006 scientists discovered 52 species in the highly threatened rainforests of Borneo according to a new report from WWF, an environmental group working to preserve the biodiverse "Heart of Borneo" from further destruction.

The discoveries -- which include 30 fish species, two tree frog species, 16 ginger species, three tree species and one large-leafed plant species -- add to the ever growing roster of previously unknown species from the island. Since June scientists have also announced the discovery of a skink species and a color-changing chameleon snake. Last year researchers spotted a mystery carnivore, while in the 1994-2004 period, scientists found some 361 previously unknown species, including 260 insects, 50 plants, 30 freshwater fish, 7 frogs, 6 lizards, 5 crabs, 2 snakes and a toad. Still little is known about most of these species, adding to the urgency of studying these rapidly disappearing forests...

http://news.mongabay.com/2006/1218-borneo.html

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Stop Proposed Mountain Lion Hunt on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

Diego Rodriguez — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 23:29:02 GMT

If wildlife is not safe on a refuge, where on earth are they protected?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed a sport hunting season on mountain lions in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. Kofa Refuge is located in Arizona on federal land and belongs to every one of us.

The USFWS claims that 5 mountain lions (two males and one female with two kittens) call the Kofa Refuge home. The reported population estimate is a speculative guesstimate and is certainly not adequate to support opening a hunt. As a matter of fact, several efforts by experienced trackers to locate, capture and radio-collar a mountain lion on the Kofa Refuge ended in failure. This decision does not hold the best interests of the local mountain lion population or the American public at heart.
Regardless, there is a great deal of political pressure being used to push this hunt through. Much of the pressure is coming from the Yuma Valley Rod and Gun Club, whose legislative chair is also the chairman of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission, which sets hunting regulations and policy for the state.

The estimated cost to the Kofa Refuge to administer the proposed hunt will be $24,000 annually! Since the funds for the Kofa NWR ultimately come from federal taxes, you would be subsidizing the hunting of America’s Lion on our public lands.

Learn more about the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge and the proposed mountain lion hunting season.

http://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/arizona/kofa.html

Help Stop Proposed Mountain Lion Hunt on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

Write the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and tell them to stop this misguided and scientifically indefensible plan. Your letters must be received by Friday, December 29th, 2006.

Send your letters to:
J. Paul Cornes, Manager
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
356 W. 1st Street
Yuma, Arizona 85364
Paul_Cornes@fws.gov
Phone: 928-783-7861
Fax: 928-783- 8611

Take it a step further! Ask your Congress person to tell the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect America’s lion on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge.
Find your Senator’s contact information

Find your Representative’s contact information

Your personal letters have far more impact than a form letter provided by the Mountain Lion Foundation. While e-mails and phone calls help, your letters faxed or sent by US Postal Service have the maximum impact.
Here are a few points to consider for your letter:

There is not enough sound-scientific information on the status of mountain lions on the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge to provide a biological justification for a hunt.
The American public should not be expected to pay $24,000 a year to subsidize the hunting of America’s lion so one or two private hunters can take home a trophy.
If wildlife is not safe on a refuge, where on earth are they protected?
It is important that they receive as many letters opposing this proposal as possible. Please forward this email to your friends, family, and co-workers. Let's all speak up to save America's lion in Kofa National Wildlife Refuge.

For the lions,

Karen Cotton, Director of Outreach
Mountain Lion Foundation
email: outreach@mountainlion.org
fax: 916-442-2871
web: http://www.mountainlion.org

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Ban Mouse Glue traps

Logan — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 23:56:33 GMT

Hello everyone,

I just started a new tribe. It's my very first! I titled it, "Ban Mouse Glue Traps". I want to stir up interest in this topic, and have the phones at some retailers ringing with people asking that they be discontinued.

Come check it out.

Thanks.

Logan

posted in Animal Rights - 42 replies

Humans killing America’s lion in record numbers

Diego Rodriguez — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 02:43:20 GMT

Humans killing America’s lion in record numbers

How many mountain lions are there in the United States? No one can answer this question. On the other hand, the question of how many mountain lions are killed by humans in the United States can and is answered in a report released today by the Mountain Lion Foundation.

“Humans are killing more mountain lions today in the western United States than we did when the official government policy was to eradicate them,” stated Chris Papouchis, conservation biologist for the Mountain Lion Foundation.

This report documents the extent, causes and distribution of human-caused mountain lion deaths in the American West from 1997 to 2004. During this period, in eleven western states, nearly 30,000 mountain lions were killed or an average of 10 mountain lions killed each day by humans. Sport hunting is the cause of 85% or nearly 25,000 of these deaths.

Further, analysis of where mountain lion deaths occur reveals a number of “mortality hotspots” in the northern Rocky Mountains and in Utah, where mountain lion population declines are being reported by state wildlife agencies and independent researchers. This report raises many questions for state wildlife agencies, especially in light of reports released earlier this year which highlight 1) the ineffectiveness of random killing of mountain lions for public safety and 2) the importance of mountain lions to the health of the natural landscape.

“Right now no state wildlife agency can demonstrate that it is managing the mountain lion for sustainability,” said Lynn Sadler, Mountain Lion Foundation President and CEO. “The stakes are far too high to let this continue unchecked.”

read the full report here: http://www.pumaconservation.org/

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Ethiopian zoo poisons rare lions to cut costs, official says

feiruz_al-bnefsagia — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 17:32:05 GMT

From CNN http://tinyurl.com/y3z3fw

A major zoo in Ethiopia is poisoning rare lion cubs and selling the corpses to be stuffed because it can't afford to care for the animals, which are the national symbol, the zoo's administrator said Wednesday.

"These animals are the pride of our country," Muhedin Abdulaziz of the Lion Zoo told The Associated Press. "But our only alternative right now is to send them to the taxidermist."

Ethiopia's lions, famous for their black manes, adorn statues and the local currency. The country's emperors were long fascinated by lions, part of their connection with Solomon, the lion of Judah.

Wildlife experts estimate that only 1,000 Ethiopian lions, which are smaller than other lions, remain in the wild.

The Lion Zoo has poisoned six cubs so far this year, Abdulaziz said. He added that the poisoning has been going on at least since he arrived two years ago; the total number of cubs killed was not clear.

Federal wildlife officials monitor the poisoning, which is painless, according to Abdulaziz. The federal officials did not immediately return calls for comment.

The Lion Zoo is a popular attraction in Ethiopia, although international wildlife organizations have expressed concern about its ramshackle facilities. Built in 1948 by Emperor Haile Selassie, it houses 16 adult lions and five cubs in cages surrounded by barbed wire.

The dead cubs are sold to taxidermists for $170 in U.S. money (130 euro), each to be stuffed and resold, Abdulaziz said. Hunters also kill the wild animals for their skins, which can fetch $1,000 (780 euro).

"I feel so sorry about this," said Girma Chifra, 25, who was visiting the zoo Wednesday. "They're a symbol of our country. I didn't know they were killing the cubs, this is not good."

The zoo costs around $6,000 (4,700 euro) to run each month, but it only receives $5,000 (3,900 euro) in revenues from entrance fees, Abdulaziz said.

Mesganu Arga, head of the Information and Culture Bureau in Addis Ababa, said the city was looking into the matter.

"These are rare animals and a treasure to the country," Mesganu said. "We are promoting these lions."

Animal conservation groups expressed outrage at the killings.

James Isiche, regional director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare in Nairobi, Kenya, said the zoo should prevent the animals from breeding if it can't care for them.

"Enforcement to protect these animals is critical," he said.

The Born Free Foundation called for an investigation into the animals' treatment.

"We would encourage the authorities to take action to establish, at the very least, a sanctuary for lions and to enforce whatever laws are necessary to prevent those lions from being unnecessarily killed, sold or given into trade, alive or dead," said Will Travers, chief executive officer of the British-based foundation.

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

another good reason not to smoke cigarettes

missbug — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 22:46:03 GMT

Joe Camel Isn’t the Only Animal Who Smokes
Heather Moore 27 Nov 2006 22:25 GMT
www.indymedia.org

Unless they’ve been living under a rock, smokers know that cigarettes are bad for them and for the people in their homes. But not everyone realizes that cigarettes are harming animals too. Dogs, rats, primates and other animals are forced to inhale smoke and injected with nicotine in experiments funded by the tobacco industry. These experiments should be stopped now.

Please go to page 408 of the newswire at www.indymedia.org for the full article!

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Looking for Oregonians

LadyVader — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 18:00:20 GMT

Hi everybody!

I'm new to Oregon, and I'd like to extend 2 invites out to all Southern Oregonians here. I just started 2 tribes...one for magick friendly folk, and one for animal friendly folk. I'm hoping to see some new faces there and at the Festival that will in time become familiar ones.

Animal Friends of Southern Oregon: http://tribes.tribe.net/animalfriends

Magick in Southern Oregon: http://tribes.tribe.net/magickoregon

Please stop by, and invite your friends

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Death of a Whale & Death of a Tuna

Salvatore — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:31:09 GMT

Two Greenpeace Video on YouTube:
Death of a Whale: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2BKDhuZL30
Death of a Tuna: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t12Tby8oTE0

If you want to see more Greenpeace Video, subscribe the Greenpeace YouTube Channel here:
http://www.youtube.com/GreenpeaceVideo

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

Welch's stops animal testing!

screamapillar — Tue, 30 May 2006 10:37:29 GMT

I just got this e-mail:

In a move that will spare countless monkeys, dogs, rodents, and rabbits from painful, deadly, and useless animal experiments, Welch's has just confirmed to PETA that it will no longer fund any animal experiments.

The move came after PETA learned that the juice company was funding ridiculous "nutritional" experiments on animals—at the University of Wisconsin, the University of Illinois, and Tufts University—and vowed to launch a global boycott of the company unless it ended the cruel experiments. No such experiments are required by law.

After we warned Welch's that we were prepared to launch an international boycott campaign to educate the public about the tests, Welch's reconsidered the experiments, and the company has now advised us of its new non-animal-testing policy: "As scientific research capability is advancing rapidly, we believe it is appropriate to adopt the following formal policy on Welch's scientific research ... Welch's will not fund animal research."

Many of Welch's major competitors—including Sunny Delight, Old Orchard, SunSweet, Tampico, Cascadian Farms, Newman's Own, Bolthouse Farms, Jamba Juice, and Campbell's V8 juices, among many others—have signed PETA's statement of assurance affirming that they do not test their juices on animals.

We're now turning our attention to Ocean Spray, POM, and Tahitian Noni, which still conduct cruel tests that aren't required by law on animals. For more information about this important victory and what's next in our campaign, please visit PETA's Web site CaringConsumer.com.

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

help please

PinkPsyBerry — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 03:28:30 GMT

Hi i'm new to this tribe and i'm happy to have foud it =)

There is a homeless cat that looks like his owners left him behind or kicked him out.
I live in an apartment development in NJ. One day i was doing laundry and this little cat looked lost, at first my mom told me no to pet him because he could be a wild cat, but the way this cat was behaving, it looked like a house cat.
During the time that i was doing my laundry this little cat kept on following me from my balcony to the laundry room. He looked friendly and like a house cat. I asked a few of the neighbors if they knew where this kitty came from and they told me, they have seen him around, but no owner. Some people say that the owners probably left and left their cat behind.
I went to see if this cat had like a collar or something and unfortunetly it had nothing at all. So i started to worry about him.
I wanted to take him as my own cat, but since i live in an apartment development, they are going to give me shit for taking him in, i tought of calling the office, but my mom told me not to because they usually call this guy who puts traps to get the cats and then taken to a shelter where he is going to be put to sleep a few days later.
But i want to help this little cat, so i'm asking for your HELP!
If you know of a cat sanctuary in NJ or some one who takes cats and puts them fr adoption and not kill them in the state of NJ, PLEASE Writte me!
It has been raining and cold the past few days, so please help me, help this poor little cat.

posted in Animal Rights - 3 replies

H. R. 4239/S. 3880

Sun, 12 Nov 2006 22:09:43 GMT

The war on terror is making it's march on animal liberationist as I type this; with the "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act". The goverment is hard at work turning everyone into "terrorist". I hope the detention camps will be pleasant. Here is a URL about the act(s):

www.stopaeta.org/index.html

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

hey there - introduction

Tue, 24 Oct 2006 16:53:39 GMT

just joined and figured i would introduce myself.

i've been vegan and AL since 1991. i live in Tallahassle, FL with my wife, and our seventeen cats, and two dogs.
the cats are all rescued ferals and the dogs are abuse survivors - the bully dog from general neglect and abuse and the little chi from a sick puppy mill.

my wife runs a local animal rights group, and i help her out when i can.
we've been doing daily feral cat work for many years now - feeding, medicating, trapping, taming, and placing in homes (when we can).

to be honest, i'm getting really burned out on the feral cat work. it never ends. no choice but to continue, though.

thanks.
-aApe

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Tame bear shot killed in a pen by Country and Western recording artist

Wed, 16 Aug 2006 21:06:31 GMT

This is outrageous. i found it on CNN.com and I want evryone to know about it so please post it on every appropriate place you can think of.

Country star accused of illegally killing tame bear

DULUTH, Minnesota (AP) -- Troy Lee Gentry, of the country singing duo Montgomery Gentry, has been accused of killing a tame black bear that federal officials say he tagged as killed in the wild.

Gentry, 39, of Franklin, Tennessee, and Lee Marvin Greenly, 46, of Sandstone, appeared Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Raymond Erickson in connection with a sealed indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Minneapolis.

Authorities allege that Gentry purchased the bear from Greenly, a wildlife photographer and hunting guide, then killed it with a bow and arrow in an enclosed pen on Greenly's property in October 2004.

The government alleges that Gentry and Greenly tagged the bear with a Minnesota hunting license and registered the animal with the state Department of Natural Resources as a wild kill.

Gentry allegedly paid about $4,650 for the bear, named Cubby. The bear's death was videotaped, and the tape later edited so Gentry appeared to shoot the animal in a "fair chase" hunting situation, the government alleges.

If convicted, both Gentry and Greenly face a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $20,000 fine.

Gentry's manager, Johnny Dorris, said Wednesday that Gentry, an outdoorsman and hunter, expects to be exonerated.

Gentry "relied on the knowledge and expertise of a local guide to obtain the proper permit," Dorris said in a written statement. "Troy felt what he did was legal and in full compliance of the law and was surprised to hear of the indictment."

Greenly did not return a phone message seeking comment.

Montgomery Gentry, along with co-singer Eddie Montgomery, are known for hits such as "My Town" and "If You Ever Stop Loving Me."

posted in Animal Rights - 3 replies

Anthony Marr Tour

Wed, 16 Aug 2006 15:59:51 GMT

For anyone who is interested Anthony Marr has been touring North America in regards to bringing attention to the Canadian SEal Hunt. I took some footage of his start on Vancouver Island.

http://www.theverysecretplan.com/TheVerySecretPlanShow/1stSeason/1stSeason/Episode1/7AnthonyMarr.html

I believe web-tv is a very important tool to bringing awareness to animal rights issues.

There is a link to his web site which will give you all the background info.

Feedback as to the concept of the educational tool is much appreciated.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Greenpeace Action center

anime — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 21:18:59 GMT

Send letters concerning

1. KFC and it's effect on rainforests

2. Japanese whaling practices

http://usactions.greenpeace.org/

^-^

posted in Animal Rights - 6 replies

AR name

Gina — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 22:29:14 GMT

I'm trying to come up with a nick name to use during roller derby.
It should most likey be tough sounding, but I want a name that will advertise veganism or animal rights.
All I can come up with so far is Pleather Face. Any suggestions?

posted in Animal Rights - 7 replies

Animal Rights Conference 2006 in D.C. who's going?

Robert — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 00:13:02 GMT

Who is going to the AR Conference in D.C. next month?

I'll be there, hope to see some of you there too!

www.arconference.org

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

no pets left behind

anime — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 20:03:18 GMT

Help Humane Society pass a bill to ensure pets won't be left during national disasters:

https://community.hsus.org/campaign/FED_2006_PETS_eCard?source=gabatj

^-^

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

The Animals' Voice Magazine - back in print!

unsubscribed_user — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 11:07:42 GMT

I urge everyone who cares to subscribe. This is a fantastic magazine that will herald a new era in the way the world treats and interacts with animals.

* * *

The Animals Voice Magazine was an internationally acclaimed, mainstream-awarded, hard-hitting animal rights newsmagazine that debuted in 1986. After more than a decade of publishing, it temporarily merged with the Animals Agenda Magazine in 1997, and has been an unprecedented online resource ever since.

But now it's back in print!

In partnership with our extensive website AnimalsVoice.com, The Animals Voice Magazine will return this August, innovatively interfacing with this site — and vice versa. Published quarterly, our new incarnation promises to be just as hard-hitting and effective in bringing about changes for animals as its original entity had been.

We're back in print because we believe there is a place for a publication that speaks for all animals. We're back because we believe there is a need for a publication that speaks for all people acting on behalf of all animals. The Animals Voice is not merely the name for a publication. It is a declaration of our intent. Because we are independent of any specific organization, we have the privilege of being able to present images, essays, tactics, methodologies, investigative reports, etc., that reflect all actions taken on behalf of animals.

Subscribe here:

http://www.animalsvoice.com/PAGES/magazine/magazine_subscribe.html

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

America's #1 Terrorrists

Mon, 19 Jun 2006 23:21:50 GMT

http://endcruelty.com/modules/smartmedia/clip.php?categoryid=4&folderid=12&clipid=39

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Animal rights?

unsubscribed_user — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 12:45:03 GMT

Times Online June 16, 2006

Animal rights?
By Sadakat Kadri

Until the 17th century, many European countries routinely held animals legally responsible for serious acts of mischief. Pigs that chewed on babies’ ears and sheep that yielded to human sexual temptations, for example, were arrested, taken to court, put on trial and then hanged or burned. Such proceedings may have fallen out of fashion, but the legal status of animals remains a matter of lively debate – as shown by a flurry of recent news reports that Spain will shortly be extending legal rights to life, liberty and bodily integrity to chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orang-utans.

Reactions have been mixed. Peter Singer, a professor of bioethics at Princeton whose work with the Great Apes Project inspired the Spanish measure, saw it as the start of a trend. "I do think it is possible that we might want to extend this to . . . elephants and dolphins," he told the BBC. "Maybe even . . . .dogs or pigs." Others were less enthusiastic. Delia Padron, a representative for Amnesty International, expressed "surprise" that animals should be accorded "human rights" while they were still being denied to plenty of men and women. Fernando Sebastian, the archbishop of Pamplona, was more concerned by another of his constituencies: given that the rights of embryos remained unrecognised, he thought giving them to apes was "ridiculous."

To a certain extent, such hostility is based on a simple misreading of the Spanish proposal. Although the Bill has been characterised by supporters and opponents alike as one that grants "human rights" to the great apes, chimpanzees remain as unlikely to sue for breach as they do to type the complete works of Shakespeare. The Bill simply requires the Spanish government "to take any necessary measures in international forums and organisations for the protection of great apes from maltreatment, slavery, torture, death, and extinction" – an obligation similar to hundreds of others imposed on governments everywhere, every day.

But opponents of the law are not simply misunderstanding what it says. Their scepticism rests on a deeper philosophical attitude towards rights – the belief that they should be recognised only where they are balanced by duties. Professor Steve Jones expressed the view pithily: "Rights come with responsibility," he observed. "I've never seen a chimp being fined for stealing a plate of bananas."

Such notions are particularly commonplace among politicians, who have taken the idea one step further. Every Home Secretary in living memory has made a point of observing, repeatedly, that rights come with duties – and that as a result, people who have been irresponsible enjoy weaker and fewer rights. The present incumbent, John Reid, warned within days of taking over his job that the balance had gone badly awry. "There can be no rights without commensurate responsibilities," he explained, "and we ought to be talking more about responsibility rather than concentrating on rights."

The correlation sounds elegant and, like all elegant-sounding ideas, it is more plausible as a result. But it is also false. We recognise the rights of countless people who give nothing in return, from the underage and mentally retarded to the comatose. And to say that criminals enjoy fewer rights because they have failed in their responsibilities is as mystical as it is neat. It assumes a magically coherent universe where wrongs automatically balance rights – whereas cold logic dictates that there is only one legal duty imposed by a right: an obligation on someone else, usually the state, to respect it.

The beneficiaries of rights, whether they happen to be alleged paedophiles, illegal immigrants, or war criminals, are not privileged because they have shown themselves to be worthy. They possess rights because whatever we may think of the specific individual concerned, we collectively and traditionally believe that treating citizens with dignity is the civilised thing to do.

None of that helps in deciding whether or how laws can best protect the great apes; and it does not resolve the inevitable conflicts that arise between different people's rights - between those of a soldier charged with war crimes, say, and his alleged victim. But next time you hear someone insisting that rights come with responsibilities, don't be fooled. It might sound morally rigorous, but it makes as much sense as trying a pig.

Sadakat Kadri is a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers and author of The Trial: A History, from Socrates to OJ Simpson which contains a chapter on animal trials.

* * *

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,28009-2229192,00.html

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Spain Going Ape for Animal Rights

unsubscribed_user — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 10:12:21 GMT

Spain Going Ape for Animal Rights
by Fred E. Foldvary, Senior Editor
The Progress Report

The Great Ape Project, based in a Seattle, Washington, has campaigned for a "community of equals" in which all the great apes would have the legal rights to life, freedom, and protection from torture. Now the ruling coalition in Spain is proposing to apply this idea in a law that would recognize the moral rights of great apes as legal persons.

The argument that all the great apes have the same moral rights as human beings rests on the biological connection that human beings have to the other apes, and to the relatively high intelligence shown by non-human apes. Human beings, apes, monkeys, and lemurs belong to the primate order of mammals. Human beings are of the Hominoidea superfamily of primates, which is composed of two families, Hylobatidae (gibbons, the lesser apes), and Hominidae, the great apes.

The great apes include gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans, and homo sapiens, human beings. According to current biological taxonomy, Hominidae are currently classed into two subfamilies, Homininae (human beings and gorillas) and Ponginae (orangutans). Homininae are divided into two tribes, Hominini and Gorillini (gorillas). Hominini are classed in two genera, the genus Pan with chimpanzees, and the genus Homo with human beings.

So we can see that human beings are very closely related especially to chimpanzees, and also kin to gorillas. Homininae are highly intelligent, some gorillas having learned to speak in sign language, and chimpanzees being observed to use tools and to have a learned culture. The evidence indicates that the non-human great apes use reason and choose their action to a great extent. Moral logic therefore concludes that killing to inflicting pain on great apes imposes a great amount of harm on them, which implies that all great apes have moral rights. Spain would be well justified to become the first country to legally recognize the moral rights of great apes.

The proposal, led by Francisco Garrido, a member of the Green party, would legally replace the "ownership" of great apes with "moral guardianship," similar to the treatment of children and people in comas. Under that law, the initiation of force against a great ape, such killing, inflicting unnecessary pain, taking a baby away from its family, or enslavement (such as confining them in a cage), would be a crime, although zoos could continue to keep them if moving them elsewhere would be more harmful.

Other countries have already enacted some legal recognition of moral rights for apes. New Zealand's animal welfare act prescribes that research and testing using a great ape requires that the expected benefits be greater than the harm to the apes, and Great Britain has banned medical experimentation on great apes.

Opposition to the Spanish proposal has been voice by prominent Catholics, who say that human embryos would have less legal protection than the designated animals. Spanish members of Amnesty International have pointed out that the moral rights of many human beings are not yet protected, and should have priority.

But these are not valid arguments against the legal recognition of the moral rights of the great apes. One wrong does not justify another wrong. Those opposed to the legal protection of apes against harm need to confront the argument in favor of moral rights for apes. There is nothing in natural moral law that specifically privileges human beings as morally superior. The moral rights of human beings derives from their high degree, as a species, of intelligence and sentience, and if other species, such as chimpanzees and dolphins, exhibit such characteristics, then by natural moral law, they have the same level of moral rights.

The degree of reasoning capacity held by non-human apes, along with other animals such as dolphins, is a matter of biological evidence. It seems to me that we should give these animals the benefit of the doubt, and if we err, it should be on the side of their having moral rights.

So, bravo to Spain for leading the way. If the great apes are accorded more respect, then this would help the world to give human beings also greater protection for their human rights. If all the great apes are accorded legal protection against harm, we will then have to speak not of just human rights, but Hominidae rights. We could call all the great apes "sapiens" and refer to sapient rights. The motto could then be: equal rights for all sapiens; privileges for none!

* * *

http://www.progress.org/2006/fold459.htm

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Where are the organic standards? (plus animal "care" in experimentation)

Thu, 25 May 2006 03:52:19 GMT

I used to have the Canadian Organic Standards but the link doesn't work anymore...all of a sudden one now has to pay to order the standards as they are no longer published online (peculiar) www.cog.ca/olh.htm although some excerpts are still there: http://www.cog.ca/documents/Marketing%20organic%20products.pdf

Here's an interesting quote from it: "Constraints to be overcome: (...) Lack of slaughter and processing facilities registered or suitable for organic livestock."

does anyone know how I can get a hold of the organic standards? I use it as a weapon for "ethical meat-eaters" who claim that orgnaic raised meat is "happy" meat

I remember when I read it a few years ago, it said that the organic STANDARD was to separate the calf from his dairy producing cow mother after 3 days!!! separating a baby from his mother after 3 days, how humane! ]-(

Plus this document is good to have to use against those who try to justify vivisection: these animal care "standards" read like a nazi manifest (note that they use terms like "culling" instead of killing): (I had it posted a few years back on yahoo groups, but they up and changed the web address on me...(those sneaky bastards)
http://www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_Programs/Guidelines_Policies/GUIDES/ENGLISH/toc_v1.htm

oh and the last time I posted this link I recomend visiting this page afterwards:
http://www.farmsanctuary.org/gallery/index_people.htm (I personally love the dog and calf picture :-)

because if you can make it through the reading of that sick document you'll need something to cheer you up after that. :-)

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

Learnig from Mr.Rogers

Fri, 26 May 2006 17:26:24 GMT

This is an amazing video...Erik Marcus recomends that every AR activist watch it to see how to win over the bad guys with kindness...and peace...I think he's right.

It's Mr.Rogers (won't you be my neighbor?") speaking to a cynical senate committee about a justification for using funds for Educational Television rather than war. Its from a different time but it still rings true. I love the song at the end "What do you do with the mad that you feel" its a great pacifist mesage.

http://www.transbuddha.com/mediaHolder.php?id=1889

posted in Animal Rights - 2 replies

New interview with Peter Singer

PollyMoller — Mon, 08 May 2006 01:48:45 GMT

http://www.salon.com/books/int/2006/05/08/singer/

posted in Animal Rights - 21 replies

Animal Healing, Communication and Magick Tribe

Devi — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 15:07:03 GMT

Animal Healing, Communication & Magick explores the alternative, new age and holistic methods of well-being and spirituality that can be successfully used to honor and develop a deeper bond with your beloved animals.

Reiki, crystal healing, aromatherapy, flower essences, Tellington Touch, acupuncture, chiropractic, massage, Traditional Chinese Medicine, telepathic communication, and other similar topics in animal healing are welcome.

Also welcome are rituals and rites that can be used to connect with the spirit of your animals to welcome into a new enviornment, allievate emotional/mental trauma in rescue animals or victims of illness or accidents, ease seperation anxiety, honor passages into motherhood, boost confidence in performance animals, etc.

Discussions of physical animals as familars are also welcome.

This list is Pagan & New Age-oriented, but all those with an open mind are more than welcome to participate.

**The opinions and advice offered through this Tribe are in no way meant to replace diagnosis or treatment of your animal by a traditional veterinarian. Please use common sense when considering alternative treatments for the 4-legged people that the God/dess has blessed you with.**

http://tribes.tribe.net/animalhealingmagic

posted in Animal Rights - 4 replies

Please Watch This Clip.

Sat, 22 Apr 2006 03:41:14 GMT

It really got to me. Listen to the words of the music, gets to ya more

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&n=2&videoid=675153746&&Mytoken=5B29F630-B344-B9B9-73F01229510B06FB4309363

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Caring About Animals Is Not A Crime

unsubscribed_user — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 17:59:05 GMT

Caring About Animals Is Not A Crime
Date: Wednesday, February 01 @ 01:01:08
Topic: Human Rights

It was about this time last year when I learned that the FBI was stealing my garbage. It’s not every day you walk out your front door to find a man wearing a suit and sunglasses in an unmarked grey sedan offering your trash a private escort to an undisclosed location.

I was in my third year of law school and actively involved in animal rights. I opposed the experiments on animals carried out in my university's laboratories and was actively working with student groups on campus to draw attention to the suffering endured by the thousands of animals who are dying behind locked laboratory doors all over this country every single day. Apparently I was loud enough to become a blip on the FBI’s radar screen.

By challenging cruel and wasteful research, bought and paid for by American taxpayers, I became a strange sort of celebrity. I attracted a curious breed of paparazzi at on-campus lectures and educational events. Men with video equipment recorded every dull move I made and photographed me while I was engaged in such mundane behaviors as attending a lecture or introducing a guest speaker.

Since I was a law student, I was confident that even in post-9/11 America, where we have begun to trade freedom for security—effectively leaving us with neither—it was not against the law to voice one’s opinion. Not yet anyway.

Recent revelations about the FBI's spying on vegans and peace activists, among others, should disturb anyone who values the civil liberties on which this country was founded. Documents released in December show that the FBI is aware that my employer, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, is not a terrorist organization, but agents continued to harass and question employees anyway. The fact that these activities are being conducted in the name of national security should offend every American who watched in horror as terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

My mother’s former office in the Pentagon was destroyed on 9/11 while she was at a doctor’s appointment. I think I have a pretty good idea of what terrorism looks like.

Frankly, the notion that animal rights activists are “terrorists” would be laughable if the magnitude and ubiquity of animal suffering today were not so heartbreaking. More than a million farmed animals are killed in the United States every hour. Their lives are marked by misery and unrelenting confinement and they are slaughtered in unspeakably profane ways. Millions more are killed in hideous experiments, hunted, trapped and slaughtered for their fur.

It is perverse that by openly sharing my ethic of compassion, I could be considered a suspect of terrorism. My work with animal rights and other social justice movements aims to save life, not to destroy it indiscriminately—which is what real terrorists do.

I only can assume that the FBI now knows my dirty, and for that matter, smelly secret. My garbage undoubtedly provided law enforcement with prima facie evidence that I consume my fair share of vegan food and that I have several cats. As a practicing attorney, I can say with absolute confidence that those activities are not prohibited by law.

Do you feel safer knowing that federal law enforcement resources were spent sorting through my discarded soy-milk containers and cat litter? I know I don't.

Leana Stormont, Esq., serves as legal counsel in Research & Investigations for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA.org. She graduated from the University of Iowa College of Law with Distinction and received the Willard L. Boyd Public Service Award with Highest Honors.

* * *

http://www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle14987.html

OR

http://tinyurl.com/8ncoo

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

The Meatrix 2!

DarklingThrush — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 17:31:37 GMT

http://www.themeatrix2.com/

and if you haven't seen it,

The Meatrix
http://www.themeatrix.com/

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Boycott Veal

nefabit — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 22:37:52 GMT

http://www.hfa.org/campaigns/boycott.html

posted in Animal Rights - 25 replies

Earthings Video - Watch it Now! (Online, free!!)

dave_noisy — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 06:25:24 GMT

This is one of the BEST things to ever appear on the internet!!

Earthlings is, imo, one of the *best* vegan/AR videos out there:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3251419433163515470

Go! Watch! Get your mind blown!!!! (You can just download it as well!)

Spread the word!

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

How to win hearts and minds?

bmrosen — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 07:11:06 GMT

I'm sticking my neck out a bit here...but here it goes.

Take a look at the thread marked "The end of the greatest show on earth" (or something to that extent).

You'll see an exchange between me and Antoine that devolves very quickly into... well... name calling.

This is a real breakdown of communication between two people who actually come from fairly similar positions.

So, I'd ask the larger community here...what sort of rhetorical devices do you find effective when promoting the cause of animal rights? How do you deal with friends who don't share your level of commitment without alienating them or compromising your values? How do you avoid the complete meltdown that occurred in that thread, where two well meaning people with similar goals were completely unable to find a common ground to work from?

Note: I do NOT want this to be a continuation of that argument. I do NOT mean this to be an "I'm right and he's wrong" discussion. As far as I'm concerned, Antoine is a future friend and we just managed to start off on the wrong foot. But I do wonder how we avoid these situations as a community.

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

The end of "the greatest show on Earth"

unsubscribed_user — Sat, 11 Mar 2006 09:34:20 GMT

The end of the greatest show on Earth
By Amy Iggulden
News.Telegraph (UK)
(Filed: 11/03/2006)

Roll up, roll up, to witness the final, grim days of the tame tigers, lions and zebras that have filled circus tops in Britain for more than a century.

These trained beasts may already be small in number but, after the announcement that they are to be outlawed in travelling circuses, it emerged yesterday that they could disappear altogether.

Circus owners said that many of the 50 or so wild animals currently performing in this country would have to be killed.

Martin Lacey, director of the Great British Circus, which has lions, tigers, camels and zebras, said he was "appalled" at the ban. "I am on my eighth generation of tigers, bred over 45 years, and I love them," he said.

"But I will have to destroy them if this ban goes through. Where will they go? Where are the tiger retirement sanctuaries? I have not heard of one."

Moira Roberts, of Bobby Roberts' circus, which has an elephant called Anne that is more than 50 years old, said: "We don't want to see our elephant, or a great British tradition, die. I am convinced that she will die if she goes anywhere else, she is so old, and we know her needs and love her.

"My husband has been living and working with elephants for more than 50 years and it will do more than break his heart if the elephant has to go. Parting with Anne will be like losing one of my children.

"We have worked so hard to ask for proper regulation of wild animals, and were led to believe by the Government that we could continue. All of a sudden this is betrayal."

A spokesman for Peter Jolly's circus, which has two camels, a zebra and an elephant, said it would not let them be re-homed as a "publicity stunt" for animal rights groups. "We will fight to keep them all the way to Europe, we are very angry," he said.

The ban, which was announced on Wednesday, is expected to be made law alongside the Animal Welfare Bill, which has its final reading in the Commons on Tuesday. The ban will bring to an end a much-debated practice that began with the travelling menageries of the 19th century and led to the elephant street processions of the last century.

Don Stacey, an expert on the history of the circus who edited the industry magazine for 40 years, said: "The first show was created in Britain with horses in 1768. Circuses were created around animals. If you get rid of animals you are left only with a variety show. A huge piece of Britain's entertainment history will have been ended overnight. There is no reason why animals cannot be kept safely and happily."

Jan Creamer, chief executive of the group Animal Defenders International (ADI), said: "It is nonsense to suggest that the animals will all be shot. All the wild animals can be re-homed in sanctuaries or other more appropriate facilities, which Britain doesn't have."

The group estimates that there were 47 "exotic" animals used in circuses last year, down from 124 in 1997.

The secretary of the Association of Circus Proprietors, Malcolm Clay, said he was "very disappointed" at the Government's apparent change of mind but it was "alarmist" to suggest the animals would be destroyed.

"If the Bill had been left as it was, Britain would have been at the forefront of circus animal welfare regulation with proper provision for inspection," he said.

A spokesman for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the move should not have come as a surprise to the circus community but could not say if the Bill would protect animals from being destroyed.

More than 50 MPs have signed an early day motion put forward on behalf of ADI calling for all animals to be banned from travelling circuses.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/03/11/ncircus11.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/03/11/ixhome.html

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posted in Animal Rights - 19 replies

slaughter of cats and dogs for fur in china

gypsydaze — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 02:18:07 GMT

larry king live...i am watching the story unfold.

it's pretty sick, graphic and disturbing. crushed cages full of dogs and cats getting ready to be skinned alive. millions a yr.
warehouses filled to the ceiling w/ hides.

and we import it. 35 % of fur found on shelves in the US. are dogs and cats.
the chinese defend their stance as poor farmers needing the economy and they too are concerned about animal welfare. it is part of their religious belief.
the argument is why not cut their throat, but skinning alive????
but that would damage the fur. this is the first time the chinese are acknowleding it. they just thru up a website.
www.hsus.org
well the debate is on and i am at a loss for words.

posted in Animal Rights - 14 replies

Cheney shoots hunter by accident

unsubscribed_user — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 18:24:23 GMT

Cheney hunting partner stable
Austin lawyer hospitalized after being sprayed with birdshot

07:54 AM CST on Monday, February 13, 2006

By DAVID McLEMORE and CHRISTY HOPPE / The Dallas Morning News

A prominent Austin lawyer remained hospitalized in stable condition Monday after he was accidentally shot by Vice President Dick Cheney during a South Texas quail hunt.

Harry Whittington, 78, a millionaire civil attorney known as a tenacious battler not afraid to fight City Hall, was being treated in the intensive care unit at a Corpus Christi hospital after he was sprayed with birdshot during an incident at the Armstrong Ranch in Kenedy County on Saturday.

"He is stable and doing well. It was almost like he was spending time with me in my living room," said hospital administrator Peter Banko.

Mr. Banko said Mr. Whittington was in the intensive care unit because his condition warranted it, but he didn't elaborate. Mr. Whittington sent word through a hospital official that he would have no comment on the incident out of respect for Mr. Cheney, 65.

Sally Whittington, Mr. Whittington's daughter, said she got a call from her mother, Mercedes, Saturday night indicating that her father had been shot.

"They were very quiet and didn't want to say anything about [Mr.] Cheney," she said, adding that the vice president visited her father Sunday morning.

"He feels so bad," said Ms. Whittington. "He's a very accomplished hunter. He was obviously relieved to see how well my father was doing."

The vice president and his wife returned to Washington on Sunday afternoon.

The vice president's press secretary, Lea Anne McBride, said Mr. Cheney "was pleased to see that he's doing fine and in good spirits."

Saturday afternoon

The shooting incident occurred about 5:30 p.m. Saturday on the sprawling 50,000-acre ranch just south of Sarita in deep South Texas.

There was no immediate reason given as to why the incident wasn't reported until Sunday.

"Harry was about 100 yards away, looking for a lost bird," said Ms. Armstrong, who attended the hunt. "The vice president and another hunter had moved on toward another covey of quail.

"But Harry came up behind the vice president's party and didn't announce himself," she said. "The vice president was following the birds as he swung around and hit Harry. It's just good hunting protocol to let the other hunters know where you are."

Mr. Whittington was sprayed in the face, neck and upper chest with 28-gauge birdshot, Ms. Armstrong said. "He wasn't hit in the eyes or anything. It just knocked him down, but he never lost consciousness."

And medical attention was prompt.

"The vice president travels with a medical team, and they went to work immediately," Ms. Armstrong said. "The vice president was very concerned and very helpful. But Harry was in good spirits when the helicopters came to take him to the hospital."

Mr. Whittington was flown by medical helicopter first to Kingsville, then to the hospital in Corpus Christi.

A friend who has talked to family members said that Mr. Whittington was hit by about 50 birdshot pellets. Mr. Whittington underwent surgery Sunday morning to remove some of the pellets, and doctors have told his family that the shot apparently did not damage any major organs.

The hunters were wearing bright orange vests, Ms. Armstrong said. And Mr. Cheney had a valid hunting license, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Ms. Whittington got to see her father Sunday afternoon after the surgery. She said her father's face, "looks like chicken pox, kind of." She said that he was sitting up telling jokes. "He is so lucky, it's a miracle," she said.

She said her father doesn't recall much of the incident other than it was sunset and he thinks that maybe the setting sun may have made him difficult to spot by the other hunters.

"He is very, very lucky that nothing seriously was injured," she said, adding that Mr. Whittington will be out of ICU by today and that he is being observed because of swelling from some of the welts on his neck.

"It was accidental, a hunting accident," said Ramon Salinas III, Kenedy County sheriff, adding that the Secret Service notified him Saturday of the incident. "They did what they had to according to law."

President Bush, who was at the White House over the weekend, was informed about the incident after it happened Saturday by Chief of Staff Andrew Card and Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and was updated on Sunday, press secretary Scott McClellan said.

Previous hunts

It's not the first time the vice president's hunts have resulted in controversy.

In 2003, animal rights advocates denounced as slaughter a pheasant hunt by Mr. Cheney, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and a handful of other Texas Republicans who killed hundreds of the birds at a private game reserve in Pennsylvania. The birds had been released from nets.

And in 2004, a brouhaha ensued over a Cheney duck hunting trip in Louisiana with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

The two men are friends and hunting buddies, but some legal scholars questioned the propriety of the trip because the high court had just agreed to hear the vice president's appeal of a spat over his involvement in administration energy policy.

Justice Scalia denied any conflict of interest or other wrongdoing.

The president himself had his own hunting incident, although not as serious a mishap. In 1994, when he was running for governor against then-incumbent Ann Richards, Mr. Bush went dove hunting for the cameras in Hockley, northwest of Houston, and shot what he thought was a dove.

The one bird he did hit turned out to be the protected killdeer. He reported the incident to the local game warden and paid a $130 fine.

The vice president is an avid fisherman and hunter, pursuing quail, pheasant, ducks, doves and other wildlife. His personal travel schedules are not disclosed in advance by the White House, and many times residents learn of his arrival when Air Force Two touches down at a local airport.

He travels to the Armstrong Ranch about once a year to hunt and is a "very safe sportsman," Ms. Armstrong said.

Mr. Whittington is also an avid hunter, but this appears to be the first time he and the vice president have hunted together, Ms. Armstrong said.

"This is not something you ever want to see happen, but the press has made a lot more of it than it actually is," Ms. Armstrong said. "I've been shot with birdshot myself."

Mr. Whittington, a Republican, has been a prominent lawyer in Austin and has been a trusted confidant of Govs. Bill Clements and George W. Bush, who called upon him to tackle troubled agencies.

He has gained a reputation as a person of integrity who can patch problems.

In the 1980s, he was a reformer appointed to the Texas Board of Corrections during a time federal courts had taken over the prison system after declaring it unconstitutional. The board was overseeing a state prison system that lacked basic medical care, subjected offenders to brutal punishments and used inmates to beat other prisoners and enforce rules.

Mr. Whittington became a voice on the board for restoring order and discipline.

He also served on the Texas Bond Review Board and Texas Public Finance Authority, overseeing the fees, structure and legal process associated with state bond issues. He was known to challenge law fees and demand accountability.

And, in 1999, Mr. Bush appointed Mr. Whittington to head the funeral services board.

A 1950 graduate of the University of Texas law school, Mr. Whittington has been a practicing lawyer in Austin who has accumulated substantial investments and real estate holdings. For the past several years, he has been fighting – and beating – city hall. The city of Austin has attempted to build a parking lot by condemning a city block owned by Mr. Whittington's family for 25 years. Recent court judgments have held that Mr. Whittington is due millions more than the city has been willing to pay.

Staff writer G. Robert Hillman in Washington contributed to this report with David McLemore reporting in San Antonio and Christy Hoppe reporting in Austin. The Associated Press also contributed this story.

E-mail dmclemore@dallasnews.com and choppe@dallasnews.com

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http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/washington/stories/021206dnnatcheney.1e9c2920.html

OR

http://tinyurl.com/ahz64

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If the website asks for ID/Password, ones that work (for many different websites that require registration) can be found here:

http://www.bugmenot.com

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Cow Escapes Meat Plant, Dodges Cars, Train

PollyMoller — Sat, 07 Jan 2006 00:52:19 GMT

January 06,2006 | GREAT FALLS, Mont. -- A cow that escaped a slaughterhouse dodged vehicles, ran in front of a train, braved the icy Missouri River and took three tranquilizer darts before being recaptured six hours later. News of the heifer's adventures prompted a number of people to offer to buy the animal.

The black, 1,200 pound heifer jumped a gate at the packing plant at around 5 a.m. Thursday and apparently wandered through residential areas. Police received reports at about 9:30 a.m. that it was in the middle of a busy intersection.

Police tried to catch the cow, and had her wedged between a stock trailer and a fence, but the heifer barreled through the fence toward the river, nearly being hit by a Chevrolet Suburban.

It was the first of many near-death experiences.

With the police in pursuit, the cow ran toward the railroad tracks and darted in front of an oncoming locomotive, briefly giving the police the slip again.

Crossing another road, the cow was nearly struck by a semi tractor-trailer.

"By then it was a madhouse," said police officer Corey Reeves. "People were coming out of the woodwork to see."

When police, animal control officers and slaughterhouse workers surrounded the cow in a park near the Missouri River, the cow jumped into the icy water.

As she swam to the west bank of the river, Reeves said she sank lower in the water and was being swept downstream. But the cow found a sandbar near the river's west bank and walked to shore.

"I was totally amazed she was able to swim the river," said Del Morris, the slaughterhouse manager.

As police scrambled to head off the cow on the other side of the river, a veterinarian with a tranquilizer gun was called.

Pursuers again believed they had the cow cornered at a chain link fence, but the heifer ran through a perimeter set up by officials.

The chase began to slow as the cow ran up against several strong fences. Dr. Jennifer Evans of Big Sky Medical Center shot the cow with a tranquilizer dart.

It had little effect.

Two darts later, the heifer showed no signs of going down. Slaughterhouse workers created a makeshift pen with metal panels that led to a stock trailer.

The heifer walked into the trailer at 11:45 a.m.

The cow was taken back to the slaughterhouse, where it was put in a pen -- with a stronger fence -- and given food and water.

posted in Animal Rights - 11 replies

House rethinks, decides crime should be a felony

unsubscribed_user — Sat, 11 Feb 2006 17:10:28 GMT

House rethinks, decides crime should be a felony

Two days after gutting legislation to increase the penalty for animal torture, House members changed their minds and signed off on the bill. Logan Republican Rep. Scott Wyatt's HB61 would increase the crime of torturing an animal from a class A misdemeanor to a third-degree felony. Earlier this week, lawmakers cut out the higher punishment. Thursday, they reconsidered and sent the bill to the Senate with a vote of 48-24. West Jordan Republican Rep. John Mathis, a veterinarian, wondered whether he could be dragged into a lawsuit by an animal rights activist. And Rep. Greg Hughes, a Draper Republican, wondered why the bill included no definition of torture. Wyatt told him that determination would be up to a local jury. West Jordan Republican Rep. Wayne Harper did not attempt to cut down the penalty in the bill on Thursday. But he read a list of third-degree felonies including possession of meth, engaging in sex with a 16-year-old, bigamy and bribery of a labor official. "What we're talking about here are some pretty serious things," he said. "It's an inappropriate level of penalty." But Wyatt fired back, saying stealing a chicken also is a felony under Utah law. So are forging a name and stealing $1,000. "It communicates the message that this is serious," he said. - Rebecca Walsh

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http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_3494548

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posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Kansas Senate considers animal rights bill

unsubscribed_user — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 17:25:19 GMT

Senate considers animal rights bill
Published on Thursday, February 9, 2006

A Senate Bill still in committee could secure protection of animal rights by classifying the most serious acts of animal cruelty as felonies.
Steven Doll/Collegian

Holly Smith
Kansas State Collegian

Senate Bill 408, an animal’s rights bill, was scheduled for a vote in the Kansas Senate on Monday, but the bill is still in committee.

It becomes law, the bill would classify the most serious acts of animal cruelty as felonies.

It also would require offenders to undergo psychological counseling or anger management programs and would prohibit offenders from owning an animal for five years.

Kansas is one of nine states in which animal cruelty is not a felony.

Rep. Sydney Carlin (D-Manhattan) said she supports the bill.

“I am very supportive of doing something to stop the poor treatment of these animals who have no voice,” Carlin said.

“These people are showing very aggressive behavior because it’s against something that can’t protect itself, and that’s pretty aggressive.”

Donna Davis, registered veterinarian technician in the radiation department at the K-State Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital, said she has seen the result of animal cruelty while working at the hospital.

“A puppy was brought in that was found dead,” Davis said. “It had been kicked and beaten to death by the owner.”

Davis said three kittens were also brought in with gunshot wounds.

“These situations are just really hard to see and deal with,” she said. “People who do such horrible things to animals really have a lack of respect for an animal’s life.”

Davis said she supports the bill and thinks the tougher punishments might deter people from abusing animals.

“If these people saw a situation where someone was prosecuted with severe enough consequences they may think twice before hurting an animal,” she said.

Connie Ellis, vice president of the Animal Welfare Club, said she started a petition in September urging Kansas lawmakers to bring the bill up for vote.

“This needs to be brought to people’s attention,” Ellis, second-year veterinary medicine student, said. “This is a sick behavior that needs to be addressed more seriously.”

Ellis said she stresses the importance of rehabilitating those who are convicted of abusing animals.

“It’s not just about jail time. These people need help,” she said. “There is no point in putting them in jail without giving them the help to change their deep-seated neurosis.”

Ellis said she has seen situations in which animal cruelty was suspected and said these situations put veterinarians in tough positions.

“Without knowing what really happens we can only speculate,” Ellis said. “And it’s our job to report it, but when the law makes it really hard to prosecute, a lot of DAs don’t even want to pursue it.”

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http://kstatecollegian.com/article.php?a=8797

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posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Please keep on topic

unsubscribed_user — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 15:27:42 GMT

With all due respect, folks, this tribe is not the correct place for posting about the atrocities that are done to animals.

What it's here for is to discuss the news and ethics regarding progress towards legal rights for animals. (I suggest looking back at some of the early posts that differentiate between 'animal welfare' and 'animal rights'.)

I do admire the passion and good hearts you all have. It's the reason you're here. But to be most effective we need to keep focused on the main issue. Otherwise, we can so easily get lost and disheartened by the overwhelming tragedies that are out there. I've seen it before and I want this to be different.

Thank you.

posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Article about SHAC

PollyMoller — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 01:00:49 GMT

http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2006/02/07/thugs_puppies/

It's on Salon.com, so they'll make you watch an ad first.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Animal law will give pets their own 'bill of rights'

unsubscribed_user — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 07:16:18 GMT

Animal law will give pets their own 'bill of rights'
By Sally Pook
The Daily Telegraph
(Filed: 31/01/2006)

Pets are to be given five "freedoms" under new legislation before Parliament that aims to raise the standards of welfare by fining or jailing owners who neglect their animals.

The freedoms include appropriate diet, suitable living conditions, companionship or solitude as appropriate, monitoring for abnormal behaviour and protection from pain, suffering, injury and disease.

Pets will be entitled to a proper diet and living conditions and protection from pain and disease
They are contained in the Animal Welfare Bill, which is expected to clear Parliament in the next few months and creates a new offence of deliberately neglecting the welfare of a pet.

Owners could be fined up to £5,000 or given a prison sentence if a pet is kept in such a way that will inevitably lead to suffering in the future. This is a significant shift from existing law, where action can only be taken against an owner if an animal is suffering.

Once the Bill becomes law, secondary legislation could be introduced creating codes of conduct for different types of pet. An 18-page cat code has been drawn up as an example.

SIDEBAR:

Code for Cats
* Keep the animal indoors at night to protect it from other wildlife.
* Ensure the animal's preference for privacy is met by giving it a hidden-away place with cat litter to relieve itself.
* Give the animal a toy so that its catching behaviour can be stimulated.
* Ensure that the animal receives "mental stimulation" so that it does not become bored or frustrated.

A spokesman for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs denied that the Bill was another example of the nanny state and said the codes would be advisory.

"It won't be a case of people breaking the door down because the dog missed its meal," he said. "The vast majority of owners and animal-keepers in this country are totally responsible and will not notice this law."

Defra already has farm animal codes that do not lay down laws but advise owners on good practice and conditions for their animals. Owners cannot be prosecuted for not complying with a code, but the codes may be used to assist in determining whether or not an offence has been committed.

"The Bill is about ensuring pet owners understand that they have a duty of care towards their charges," said the spokesman. "It is aimed at the few who do not understand or care about the welfare of their animals."

The new offence will be enforced by local authority inspectors or police and does not give extra powers to the Royal Society for the Protection of Animals. The Bill also bans the docking of dogs' tails and pets being won as prizes for anyone aged under 16. It increases from 12 to 16 the minimum age at which a child may buy a pet.

Defra says the Bill is the most significant animal welfare legislation for nearly a century.

spook@telegraph.co.uk

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/01/31/npets31.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/01/31/ixhome.html

OR

http://tinyurl.com/9945w

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posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

The Witness

libbylule — Sun, 29 Jan 2006 20:01:54 GMT

I haven't been online for a while, so I apologize if this has already been mentioned...

The Witness is coming to television!

Saturday,February 25th
7 PM PST, 10 PM EST
DIRECTV Channel 375
DISH Network Channel 9410

For information about the film and an online preview, go to http://www.tribeofheart.org/wit1.htm

How does a construction contractor from a tough Brooklyn neighborhood become an impassioned animal advocate?

In the award-winning documentary THE WITNESS, Eddie Lama explains how he feared and avoided animals for most of his life, until the love of a kitten opened his heart, inspiring him to rescue abandoned animals and bring his message of compassion to the streets of New York.

With humor and sincerity, Eddie tells the story of his remarkable change in consciousness.

"THE WITNESS is one man’s truth that cries out for mass exposure… may be the most important and persuasive film about animals ever made.”

--Howard Rosenberg,
Los Angeles Times
Full review (pdf)

THE WITNESS has been an official selection in 28 film festivals and received nine awards, including six Best Documentary awards, one Best of Festival award, and most recently, a Best Short Film award from the 2005 Artivist Film Festival in Hollywood, CA.

The documentary has also been broadcast as part of the independent film showcases of several regional PBS stations, and via satellite on Free Speech TV.

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

An animal is not an iPod

unsubscribed_user — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 20:06:05 GMT

An animal is not an iPod
By DIANE SULLIVAN

Those of us who teach animal law know one pervasive theme that resonates throughout our courses: American society's convenient classification of animals as property, oftentimes, as expressed in existing law, worth nothing more than a piece of merchandise -- and a low-priced one at that.

That treatment inevitably leads to the most basic question of how a society as great as ours can equate life -- any life, much less woman's best friend -- with a piece of furniture or even the latest iPod. We all must find a way to answer the question debated in our classrooms and scholarly research. How can the law better protect our animals, our pets, and yes, our companions, when they most need sanctuary from harm's way?

Legal textbooks on animal rights are replete with judicial decisions that, in case after case, make all too clear that the law does nothing to genuinely protect animals. It certainly does not recognize their true value and special place in our homes. Our legal system fails to recognize the bond between us and our pets when that bond has been severed, and therefore completely fails to compensate for that loss.

Until recently, I have been telling my students that societal attitudes toward animals are changing. A brighter day is coming, I tell them. I assure them that, over time, the status of our companion animals will evolve into one that is marked by compassion and humaneness, and that our laws will reflect that new status.

But Hurricane Katrina has shaken up my professorial prophesying. The stories and images have been unbearable. Months after hurricane Katrina I still see people clinging to their companion animals on the top of their roofs and then being forcibly separated. I still see refugees escaping with their pets to designated bus pickup areas, only to be commanded to abandon their pets or remain behind with them and in danger. To forbid people access to safety and shelter when they and their pets are giving deep emotional support to each other is unconscionable. This is all the more so in our most prosperous of countries. We learned of animals abandoned, drowned, starved and left for dead ... perhaps 50,000 in all.

The loss of these lives and the separation of thousands of others from their human companions have given urgency to the need to reclassify, legally, the status of domestic animals from property to beings. Defining companion animals as property is morally wrong and prevents their full protection.

Legislation is now being proposed that mandates pets be included in evacuations. For instance, U.S. Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts is one of the sponsors of a federal bill that requires provisions for pets and service animals in disaster plans in order for those plans to qualify the state or municipality for federal emergency funding. This is, of course, to be praised, but it's too late to save the animals who perished during the hurricane and its aftermath. But we need more progressive legislation to reflect the role of a companion animal's place in the family and within society.

First, we need to vigorously prosecute those who abuse, neglect or harm animals. The good news is that penalties for these actions are now more severe. The not-so-good news is that many police chiefs and district attorneys do not pursue these stronger penalties because they still have a mindset that an animal is property with no rights and little protection under the law.

Second, those of us who care about the welfare of animals must bring about a change regarding the classification of "standing" in animal cases. Standing is a legal term that is defined as a right to initiate a lawsuit. Historically, someone seeking relief on behalf of a harmed animal has very little power to so do. Lawsuits could be more easily advanced on behalf of animals if the law in all states was changed to provide standing to assert claims on their behalf to their companions.

There is resistance to this from commercial interests, which brand animals as chattel. Animals are defined as property because it is convenient ... and profitable. This allows them to be exploited, harmed and used for experimentation and entertainment, all with impunity.

Our unfortunate history shows that slaves, women and children were previously treated as property. The law was changed to stop this deplorable treatment. It is time to reclassify the legal status of companion animals.

Diane Sullivan is professor of law at the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover.

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http://lowellsun.com/editorials/ci_3436416

OR

http://tinyurl.com/8yzq6

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posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Mouse 1: Man 0

Curran — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 10:09:02 GMT

http://tinyurl.com/8nhjg

Mouse Thrown Into Fire Sets Home Ablaze

(01-08) 20:51 PST Fort Sumner, N.M. (AP) --

A mouse got its revenge against a homeowner who tried to dispose of it in a pile of burning leaves. The blazing creature ran back to the man's house and set it on fire. Luciano Mares, 81, of Fort Sumner said he caught the mouse inside his house and wanted to get rid of it.

"I had some leaves burning outside, so I threw it in the fire, and the mouse was on fire and ran back at the house," Mares said from a motel room Saturday.

Village Fire Chief Juan Chavez said the burning mouse ran to just beneath a window, and the flames spread up from there and throughout the house. No was hurt inside, but the home and everything in it was destroyed.

posted in Animal Rights - 5 replies

EU wants China to end bear farming

unsubscribed_user — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 23:18:40 GMT

Key quote: "He said the resolution wanted China to know the way a country treats its animals determined how it is perceived in the rest of the world."

- - -

BRUSSELS, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The European Parliament has demanded that China end its farming of bears to extract bile from the animals for use in medicines and cosmetics.

The bile is extracted from the caged bears' gallbladder by means of a metal catheter, reports the BBC.

The European Parliament's resolution was approved by more than half of its 732 members.

"We want China to shut all the bear farms before the 2008 Olympics," said British Member of the European Parliament Peter Skinner.

He said the resolution wanted China to know the way a country treats its animals determined how it is perceived in the rest of the world.

"While there is obviously a lot of attention on China's human rights record, we do not want animal welfare to be forgotten," he said. "It is an added disgrace that an oversupply of bile is being used in products with no medicinal value such as shampoos, skin cream and wine."

China already has closed some farms, but the resolution said there are still about 200 in the country, keeping more than 7,000 Asiatic Black Bears in captivity, the BBC report said.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International. All Rights Reserved.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/?feed=TopNews&article=UPI-1-20060110-14191800-bc-eu-bearfarms.xml

OR

http://tinyurl.com/7eg2c

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posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

Rome's Animal Monitors On The Prowl

unsubscribed_user — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 10:16:55 GMT

Rome’s pet monitors on the prowl to uphold new animal rights bill
(Associated Press)
4 January 2006

ROME - Every dog has its day, and this could be it for every mistreated kitty, pup and parrot in Rome.

Animal monitors are on the prowl, working hard to get officials to apply strict new guidelines that, if enforced, could be the toast of the animal kingdom.

A city ordinance that went into effect late in November gives dogs the right to daily walks and protects stray cats. It slaps fines on Romans who leave their pets in a vehicle in the hot months between April and October or confine their fish to the classic, round bowls instead of a good-sized aquarium.

Breaking the new rules can mean fines of up to Ð500 (US$600). More serious offenses, such as using animals to beg, can lead to the pet being confiscated.

“Many beggars always have puppies, they buy them on the illegal market for a few euros (dollars),” said Francesca Cantalini, a monitor for Rome’s animal rights office. “The puppies are often sedated, so that they don’t move around, and when they grow up who knows what happens to them.”

She spoke while combing the streets around Rome’s central train station for beggars using animals. She soon spotted a woman in a dark headscarf kneeling on the pavement, a white puppy dog in her lap attracting sympathy and shiny coins from passers-by.

Cantalini called police, trying to catch the attention of a passing patrol and pleading on her cell phone for half an hour. The police never showed up, and soon the beggar moved on, lifting the tiny mongrel from the pavement and taking it with her.

The case demonstrated a major shortfall in the new rules: Monitors need police intervention to hand out fines or confiscate animals, said Giampaolo Vassallo, Cantalini’s teammate.

“The hardest part is getting the police involved, it can be very frustrating sometimes,” he said after failing to rescue the puppy.

Ilaria Ferri, head the Italian chapter of PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said that as a result of this shortcoming, the city ordinance would amount to “good intentions that will stay on paper,” just like Italy’s many national laws on animal rights.

She pointed out that each year Italians abandon some 350,000 pets, mostly cats and dogs, despite a law that makes it a criminal offense.

Rome officials insist the new rules can be a useful tool to educate owners on how to respect animals.

“It’s like an instructions booklet for all pet owners,” said Roberta Pinto, director of the city’s animal rights office.

“It sends the message that animals are living beings and have rights,” she told The Associated Press. “Of course, it will take a lot of work to modify certain bad habits.”

Pinto said her office is working to coordinate the monitors’ efforts with municipal police and to train officers in the new rules.

Other no-no’s in the ordinance include displaying animals in pet shop windows or offering them as prizes at fairs. Electric and choke collars are banned, as are trimming cats’ claws or dogs’ tails and ears for aesthetic purposes.

The ordinance also gives legal recognition to Rome’s “gattare,” the “cat ladies” who feed thousands of strays, and grants them the authority to care for the city’s colonies of cats.

Municipality officials said the law was too recent to provide any figures on how many violations had been committed.

Although police intervention is sometimes crucial, Cantalini and Vassallo said the measure was reserved for the more serious cases of mistreatment.

The two usually spend their days going door-to-door, talking to the owners of pets seen languishing on tiny apartment balconies or tied to short chains.

“We’d rather educate than punish people,” Cantalini said. “We talk to owners about their pet and try to check back with them often.”

The monitors demonstrated this approach when they spotted a man begging on Via Frattina _ one of Rome’s glitziest shopping streets _ while surrounded by a small menagerie of four dogs.

The man gave his name as Laszlo and proudly displayed the membership card of an animal protection group he belonged to in his native Hungary. Now he is homeless, living with Panna, a large white shepherd dog, Ginzburg, a portly boxer, as well as Zaza and Bahur, two brown mutts.

“Obviously he lives with his dogs and takes good care of them, they are much better off with him than in a crowded dog pound.” Cantalini said. The pets are all in good health and even have a vet, she explained while chatting with Laszlo.

“Don’t worry,” she said while petting Zaza. “We’d never take them away from you.”

* * *

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/theworld/2006/January/theworld_January67.xml&section=theworld

OR

http://tinyurl.com/9qkyb

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posted in Animal Rights - 1 reply

Human/animal rights

Farrah Moan — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 17:56:20 GMT

Dreamer, your last post, in the "Rome bans goldfish bowls" thread was not really off topic.

What is about to happen with tribe, probably already happening, is deeply depressing. It feels to me like a real infringement of human rights, and lets face it, us humans are animals too.

It is very sad that a country like America, which once stood for freedom in all it's forms, has now become a byword for repression, hyprocisy and right-wing ignorance. I mean no disrespect to the many wonderful people who are American, just referring to the way the laws have been changing of late, and the ignorant politicians who have been shaping them, and their supporters.

Under the new proposals, it is highly likely that an image of a the conditions under which battery hens are kept, would be considered offensive, as someone is bound to be upset, and tribe would be "forced" to remove it. How hypocritical is that!

As of now, I have no great ideas to put out there as to how to deal with this situation. Best I can suggest is that those of us who have bonded make sure that we have contact details of our friends, separate to tribe. If tribe.net are giving in to pressure; are going to attempt to put on a show in which no one is ever offended by anything, well, lets face it, it isn't going to be the great forum we have enjoyed so much in the past, and probably wont be a tribe that is worth belonging to:-(

posted in Animal Rights - 3 replies

Lobsters' rights campaign picking up steam

unsubscribed_user — Sun, 01 Jan 2006 18:06:45 GMT

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/060101lobsters.shtml

Sunday, January 1, 2006
Lobsters' rights campaign picking up steam

Portland Press Herald Writer

Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

The international animal rights lobby's campaign to mandate humane treatment of lobsters is gaining momentum in the United States and Europe. The drive is raising concerns in Maine that changing cultural attitudes could eventually threaten the valuable fishery.

In the United States, Whole Foods Market, the nation's leading natural food supermarket chain, recently announced that it intends to discontinue the sale of live lobsters next summer unless it finds a humane way to transport and store them.

"We are viewing the lobster as a live creature rather than a commodity that deserves no concern," said John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market.

A company task force is looking at whether tank conditions in stores can mimic conditions of a lobster's natural habitat. The company, which plans to open a store in Portland, has 170 supermarkets in the United States, three in Canada and seven in the United Kingdom.

Animal rights activists hope that Whole Foods' position will influence other supermarket chains.

While their efforts in the United States are focused on changing corporate behavior, abroad they are lobbying governments to pass laws to protect lobsters.

New Zealand and two Australian states have included lobsters in animal protection laws. City officials in the Italian town of Reggio Emilia last year passed a law that bans the boiling of live lobsters as "useless torture."

In Norway, where lawmakers a year ago debated whether to add lobsters to its animal welfare law, the government funded a scientific study on whether lobsters feel pain. (The study concluded that they probably don't.)

The parliaments in England and Scotland are taking up legislation that would give lobsters, crayfish and crabs the same kind of animal welfare protection reserved for vertebrates. That would mean banning the practice of putting live lobsters in boiling pots.

England's House of Commons is scheduled to debate the bill on Jan. 10.

Advocates for lobster rights in Britain were pessimistic when they began their campaign, but the response from lawmakers has been surprisingly supportive, said Julie Roxburgh, a coordinator of the Shellfish Network, an animal rights group based in England.

"These creatures are suffering terribly the way they are being treated," she said. "We know they have the capacity to suffer. They have all the things we have that make you feel pain."

Scientists at the University of Bristol in England have developed a new device for restaurants and shops called the Crustastun, which uses electric current to kill lobsters quickly. The idea is that consumers should buy the lobsters dead rather than take them home and boil them.

Europe is ahead of the United States in providing humane treatment for animals, said Bruce Friedrich, director of vegan campaigns for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

"There is growing clamor to protect lobsters in Europe," he said. "We expect it will reach our shores very, very soon."

Friedrich said more people call PETA to complain about mistreatment of lobsters than any other animal people eat. He said the Internet has significantly increased PETA's ability to organize and spread its message.

NO BRAIN, NO PAIN?

In Maine, where 85 percent of the nation's lobsters are caught, fishermen view the crustacean as both an economic godsend and a lower order life form on par with the grasshopper.

Lobsters or "bugs," as fishermen call them, don't feel pain because they don't have brains, they say.

Although much-ridiculed in Maine, the animal rights activists are a real threat, said David Cousens, president of the Maine Lobstermen's Association.

"It's scary when people start giving these guys any credence," he said.

Lobster protection laws in Europe would have an economic consequence in Maine, he said.

Canadian and New England dealers sell several million pounds of lobsters to Europe during the holiday season every year. While most of the European-bound lobsters are harvested in Canada, the trade also is important to American dealers and helps maintain the industry's economic infrastructure in Maine, Cousens said.

Bob Bayer, executive director of the University of Maine's Lobster Institute, said lobsters have the same kind of nervous system as insects.

"They don't have the hardware to process pain," he said.

Animals rights activists say lobsters thrash around in the pot to avoid pain, but Bayer says they are just trying to avoid a "noxious environment."

Bayer boils his lobsters live. If that makes people nervous, he said, they should first put lobsters in a sinkful of fresh water, which puts them into a deep sleep.

Buying a dead, unprocessed lobster is risky because lobster meats spoils quickly, Cousens said. He said the demand is increasing for vacuumed-packed, freeze-dried lobster, which he sees as a better alternative as well as the industry's future.

CLASHING VIEWS

Many animal rights activists, though, say lobsters should be left alone on the ocean floor.

"It's not a health food. It's not something anybody needs to eat," Friedrich said. "These animals are pulled out of the environment, transported, denied sustenance, kept frustrated with their claws locked, and boiled alive. These animals are put through felony-level cruelty, just to give some diner a moment of gastronomic pleasure."

Cousens, who once got into a heated argument with PETA activists at the Lobster Festival in Rockland, said the activists have unrealistic perceptions of the true natures of lobsters.

"The PETA people think there are lobster families walking on the bottom holding hands," he said. "They eat each other. They are cannibalistic. They are not lovely little creatures."

Staff Writer Tom Bell can be contacted at 791-6369 or at:

tbell@pressherald.com

* * *

posted in Animal Rights - 0 replies

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