Posted on June 22, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Trump Gears Up to Gut Crucial Environmental Law
The Trump administration this week launched the largest rollback in history to the vital protections for air, water and wildlife provided by the National Environmental Policy Act.
The president’s Council on Environmental Quality began its assault on the 48-year-old law Wednesday, targeting its longstanding requirements for robust environmental review before federal projects are approved.
“The Trump administration is taking a sledgehammer to the process that gives scientists and the public a say on federal projects harming clean air, water and wildlife,” said the Center for Biological Diversity’s Paulo Lopes. “If this landmark law is gutted, the power plants and factories that corporations target for poor and underrepresented communities will routinely be rubberstamped.”
After a Center lawsuit, a judge has stopped — for now — the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife from issuing any more permits for killing black bears on private timberlands using bait, traps and other inhumane methods.
Despite the fact that voters in the state had already outlawed these cruel practices, the department created a program authorizing these types of bear killings by a small group of hunters in industry-owned forests. The judge’s ruling, made last Friday, suspends that illegal program.
“This decision will save many bears from a cruel death, and that’s a big relief,” said the Center’s Collette Adkins. “Now we’ll focus on shutting down the program for good.”
Responding to a lawsuit by the Center and allies, a judge has ruled against a massive, environmentally destructive warehouse project planned for Southern California, called the World Logistics Center.
This 40-million-square-foot project — about three times the size of New York’s Central Park — would’ve added 14,000 daily truck trips to roads leading to the city of Moreno Valley; worsened already poor air quality; and harmed imperiled wildlife in the San Jacinto Wildlife Area, from burrowing owls to Los Angeles pocket mice. Read more.
Crisis Deepens for West Coast’s Southern Resident Orcas
The news for endangered orcas on the West Coast just went from bad to worse. Researchers announced over the weekend that another Southern Resident orca has died — driving this population to its lowest levels in more than 30 years.
The death of the whale named “Crewser” now means there are just 75 left in the wild.
This news comes in the wake of a Center legal petition pressing Trump to protect Southern Resident orcas’ habitat off California, Oregon and Washington.
The national controversy over trophy hunting of imperiled wildlife came to Atlanta this week with the latest meeting of a new federal wildlife advisory committee that Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke stacked with trophy hunters and gun-industry reps.
The so-called International Wildlife Conservation Council is composed almost entirely of hunters and people affiliated with the National Rifle Association. Fifteen of the council’s 16 members have ties to trophy hunting or guns.
Posted on June 22, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Brilliant News !
This was the export company who were filmed during voyages to the Middle East; which showed the immense suffering and horrific conditions on the ship during the animals journey.
Watch the conditions and suffering in the videos on our old post – link here:
Mark, in almost 11 weeks since 60 Minutes showed horrific routine conditions on board live export ships, hundreds of thousands of Australians have emailed, written, phoned and rallied to stop live sheep exports.
Together, these two businesses account for almost all live sheep exports from Australia.
We have long said that if the laws were enforced, live export would become impossible. This is proof of that.
Make no mistake, Emanuel’s is not the exception. What we saw in the 60 Minutes footage included routine conditions across multiple voyages. This is what long-haul live sheep export looks like, and it must not be allowed to continue.
This is a crucial step toward the inevitable end of live sheep exports.
Email your MP and Senators to tell them, now is the time for government to put Australia’s best interests first: protect our animals, provide certainty for the future, and legislate for a phase-out of live sheep exports.
Posted on June 21, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
When I read Mark`s report about the third meeting of “EU- Platform on Animal Welfare” I also wanted to comment on it.
But then … I read the MEP Stefan Eck’s report on the” Intergroup for Animals” on 14th of June 20018 in Strasburg and I thought this report could say anything.
The video even more, is unfortunately in German, because Stefan Eck, as a German, speaks in German.
I would like to cut out only one sentence and trumpet it all over the world: “We should bring the commission to court!”
(Translation of the text from the Facebook)
At the “Intergroup for Animals” meeting on 14.06.2018 in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the topic “Protection of animals during transport inside and outside Europe” was on the agenda.
MEP Stefan Bernhard Eck asked the AGRI rapporteur, Jørn Dohrmann, whether there would also be a paragraph in the report for setting up a committee of inquiry.
Then MEP Stefan Eck turned to the Christian Conservative Chairman of the Agricultural Committee, Czesław Siekierski and energetically asked him not to tell those present “stories” that all the farmers would love their animals, because then there would be no animal scandals.
Furthermore, MEP Eck criticized the European Commission, which is unlikely to act again. He called for a strategy B. As a strategy to fight to the bitterend and bring the Commission if necessary, in court, because it does not perform their duties once again.
Posted on June 21, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
The Selous Wildlife Reserve in Tanzania is fantastically beautiful: giraffes and elephant herds roam the savannah, hippopotamuses float in the shallow water, lions sneak through the grass on the hunt.
In the Selous Game Reserve, life pulsates – and is threatened at the same time: the elephant population has collapsed, in the sanctuary a uranium mine was approved, a reservoir threatens to destroy 1200 square kilometers of wilderness.
A planned dam in Stiegler’s Gorge would be an ecological disaster. In the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage, he is said to dam the river Rufiji.
President John Magufuli now wants to create facts and cut down 2.6 million trees.
1,500 square kilometers of forest and savannah, which would one day be largely flooded by the reservoir, are to be cut down. In mid-May companies were able to apply for the contract, 53 million euros to bring them the sale of the wood.
Environmentalists put all their efforts against the project
They fear the final destruction of the protected area, which has already been damaged. A uranium mine threatens to destroy part of the reserve. The elephant population has collapsed.
UNESCO is alerted. She has declared Selous to be “World Heritage in Danger”.
A public warning has gone unheard in Tanzania!! In February, UNESCO sent a letter to the government – without effect.
The dam itself would cause damage downstream to the delta and mangrove forests.
200,000 people, especially farmers and fishermen, would suffer as a result.
The start of construction has announced Tanzania’s government for July, although the financing is unclear.
President Magufuli wants to be a doer who does not care about criticism.
One member of the government even threatened opponents of the project with jail.
The future of World Heritage Selous will be decided on June 24, when the World Heritage Committee will meet.
The more pressure UNESCO can put on Tanzania to protect Selous seriously, the better.
That is why we want to back up the director of the World Heritage Center, Mechtild Rössler, with as many signatures as possible.
Tanzania’s population and economy undeniably need better power. The dam project is not a solution and should be deleted.
Please sign our petition for the protection of the Selous Game Reserve.
2.6 million trees cannot be felled for a pointless project!
Posted on June 20, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Animal welfare: third meeting of the EU platform to take place tomorrow
Tomorrow, the EU Platform on Animal Welfare will hold its third meeting. Launched in June 2017, the Platform has already become a pivotal forum for sharing information and good practices for all Member States and various stakeholders across Europe. In the past year, the involvement of the Platform’s Members has been helping the Commission in its objective of improving the welfare of animals through a better implementation of EU rules, the development of voluntary commitments and the promotion of EU animal welfare standards at a global level. The agenda of this third Platform includes a presentation of work by the subgroup on animal transport and a presentation of the scope and terms of reference of a second subgroup on the welfare of pigs. The Platform’s Members will have an in-depth discussion on the welfare of farmed fish, followed by a presentation of the Commission’s report on the impact of international activities relating to animal welfare. The Commission will also present a project for an EU Coordinated Control Plan on the online sale of cats and dogs.
The meeting will be web-streamed here and on EbS (at 9.30 CET). The agenda is available online.
And the issue of stray dogs in the EU and in the Balkans; so-called Candidate EU nations; will be discussed when:
Stray animals don’t make the EU money – animal transport does; end of ………….
Posted on June 20, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
In an article dated June 13, 2018, in the “Zeit” newspaper came an interview with the President of the Max Planck Society Martin Hartmann.
After the undercover shootings of the SOKO organization in August 2014 in the laboratory of Max Planck Institute in Tübingen shook the public, it is the first time that the director of the company gives an interview.
Martin Stratmann has been President of the Max Society Institute since 2014, which conducts basic research at 84 institutes. In this interview he talks about why primate attempts are important today, there will probably be more in the future, why the primate experiments explode in China, and how German researchers can compete internationally.
Logothetis
After public pressure against the illegal experiments on primates in the cybernetic laboratory of Max Planck Institute, in Tübingen, this research is set. The Greek Nikos Logothetis, the director of the cybernetic laboratory, ended his work with primates, the Max Planck Society then deprived him of part of his leadership function.
The Story
Max Planck Institute in Tübingen since August 2014 caused horror in public: The Max Planck Institute in Tübingen holds monkeys for basic research in the field of brain processes. Animal rights activist Friedrich Mülln (SOKO) had given stern TV editors photos, documents and more than 100 hours of video material that the animal rights activist “Pawel” had collected as an undercover employee in the Tübingen Max Planck Institute. The stern TV report on animal testing had effects on other circles: It was determined against employees and stakeholders. The animal rights activists also had to face attacks and criticism. But finally, the monkey experiments in Tübingen were completely discontinued last year.
The Greek Nikos Logothetis is (or more precisely, he was) the director of the cybernetic department of the institute. There monkeys are kept for basic research in the field of brain processes.
The hell of the lab
In August 2014, images with tortured primates were shot and secretly recorded at Logothetis’ Institute.
The life of the animals is a series of suffering: They are fixed on the neck and their head is immobilized. For this, a “head holder” is implanted in the skull. Holes are drilled in their skulls. The head wounds often become infected and cause unbearable pain. The wound often does not heal in three weeks. For several hours a day these monkeys have to fulfill monotonous tasks. The animal experimentation industry tries to give the public a picture in which everything the monkeys do is “voluntary”.
A shameless lie. The experimenters use terms like “training” and “sitting in the chair”. The monkeys are forced to do so in agonizing positions for several hours a day. The monkeys do not get water for hours. They try to lick the cages after the stables have been cleaned. Some of the animals even drink their own urine.
After the undercover investigation, the prosecutor’s office has investigated, the district court Tübingen issued a penalty order, the Greek Nikos Logothetis, the director of the cybernetic laboratory, ended his work with primates. The Max Planck Society then deprived him of part of his leadership function.
Why then an interview?
Stratmann: “the pressure that the protests exerted on the respective scientists is extremely great. The attacks are often very personal and thus go to the limit of what a person can endure. I find that unbearable”.
And we, on our part, ask ourselves, how would Mr. Stratmann label the torture the primates are exposed to? Where exactly are the limits?
Living beings, who are extremely similar to humans, not only have to suffer pressure or “personal attacks”, but the satisfaction of sadistic and sick fantasies of unscrupulous experimenters.
Stratmann: “primate experiments are extremely expensive. Take the Max PIancks in Tübingen and Frankfurt, where experiments with monkeys have been or will be. If you go in there you will find first-class primate houses, the whole thing looks more like a zoo, not like a research institute!!!. In addition, there are investments in operating rooms, that are almost on the standard of human medicine”.
In this point we no longer ask ourselves, how is it possible for one to think we are so stupid and dumb to sell such a crap.
Because he himself gives us the explanation for his outrageous lie: “The budget of the Max Planck Society is almost two billion euros, most of which come from the taxpayer. This money allows us researchers an extremely high degree of freedom (!!!), as it seldom exists in the world”!
The taxpayer must get at least a nice picture of animal experiments, as a compensation for not being asked if he wants to pay or not.
Mr. Stratmann ends his third-class teaching about animal experiments, conscientious colleagues, and fat budgets as follows:
“We find attempts on non-human primates important. We will not withdraw from this research. The prerequisite, as in other areas, is that we can only attract top-class scientists for this”!
The moral of the story:
Mr. Stratmann: it’s all about your own right to exist! You must first explain to us, how is it to create and endure, to hold on to animals, to buckle, to sting, to poison, to bore their heads while watching their agony, their cries!
And for that we need …… attract top-class scientists!
Posted on June 20, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
One of Australia’s major live export companies has announced it will not send sheep into the deadly Middle Eastern summer this year.
This will spare 150,000 Aussie sheep from the horror of live export.
The West Australian newspaper broke the news that Livestock Shipping Services, Australia’s second largest sheep exporter, has paused its northern summer operations because new government regulations have impacted profitability.
Mark, this is an historic milestone in our efforts to save sheep from this cruellest of trades.
The decision by this exporter confirms that the live sheep trade has a business model based on suffering. The government’s new requirements are minimal in terms of animal welfare improvements, but clearly they inhibit the ability of exporters to make their desired profits.
With temperatures rising in the Middle East, this last minute reprieve for Aussie sheep could not have come at a more critical time. More than 22,000 sheep have perished on this exporter’s vessels over the past five years — over 4,000 of them dying from heat stroke on a single shipment.
But these animals have been spared from more than a gruelling sea journey. These sheep would have been destined for the annual ‘Festival of Sacrifice’ in Jordan — a time when cruelty and suffering inevitably increase.
But not this year. And, if we can keep the pressure on, not ever again.
Incredibly, there is still one major live sheep exporter, Emanuel Exports, on the water, despite being exposed for regulatory breaches and terrible animal cruelty. But they will be watching developments closely, knowing that their days of inflicting suffering on sheep are numbered.
Emanuel Exports’ offices were ‘raided’ by WA authorities yesterday as part of their investigation into breaches of WA Animal Welfare Laws. This company is central to our Federal Court action which will play out next month as we present our case that export permits are being granted unlawfully.
There is barely a day currently when we don’t hear of a development that brings us closer to ending this cruel trade. To have stopped one of Australia’s largest sheep exporters sailing from our shores is a memorable day. Those who support this industry would have hoped the wave of compassion for these animals that arose after 60 Minutes would be short-lived. How wrong they were…
So very proud and grateful to have you with us in this historic battle.
Posted on June 18, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Regarding our recent post about stray dogs being killed in Russia for the lead up to the World Cup; there are reports that some of the photos used have actually been dogs killed in places such as Pakistan.
‘deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko ordered all 11 cities hosting World Cup matches to set up temporary shelters for stray animals. Municipal shelters were built in St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, and Saransk, with foster centres being built in the rest of the cities. Some of these shelters can expect an influx of stray animals ahead of the tournament, many of whom will spend the remainder of their lives in overcrowded cages’.
So; temporary ‘shelters’ for stray dogs, or a policy of simply killing all that they round up and catch. Who is to be believed with what they say ?
How do you feel about these stories ? – please give feedback via the ‘leave a reply’ box at the end of the original article; or on this one. SAV.
Thu 14 Jun 2018 08.30 BST Last modified on Thu 14 Jun 2018 08.32 BST
Animals Australia says a current shipment cannot meet mandatory safety standards.
The assistant secretary of the agriculture department, Narelle Clegg, must have approved the export of 58,000 sheep from Western Australia based on “irrational, illogical or unreasonable” information, the federal court has heard.
Animals Australia has taken the federal government to court to argue the export permit granted by Clegg to Emanuel Exports for the voyage was unlawful. The ship is bound for the Middle East and began its voyage on 6 June.
Representing Animals Australia, Dan Star QC, told Justice Debbie Mortimer at hearing in Melbourne that Clegg had been presented with scientific and expert evidence that showed the ship did not meet mandatory requirements for an export permit to be approved.
This included a report from a vet and a meteorologist showing a 50% probability that ambient wet-bulb temperatures during the Indian Ocean part of the journey could reach temperatures of 28C or more for more than one day in a row. This probability rose to 70% for the Persian Gulf part of the journey, Star said.
Live exports regulator cries while describing conditions that led to 2,400 sheep deaths
These conditions could lead to severe heat stress and death to the animals, he said. But permit requirements mean the secretary needs to be satisfied that the health and welfare of animals will be maintained throughout the course of an export journey.
“It is impossible to be satisfied of these conditions and mandatory requirements,” Star said. “The secretary must have misunderstood the scope of her power … there is nothing to justify her being satisfied of these requirements … [her decision] must have involved irrational, illogical, or unreasonable findings.”
Emanuel Exports came under scrutiny in April after footage was aired on 60 Minutes from one of its export ships, the Awassi Express, which showed sheep dying from severe heat stress. The footage, filmed in August 2017, triggered an inquiry into conditionsduring the Middle Eastern summer. Livestock vet Dr Michael McCarthy led the review and made a number of recommendations. In its submission to the review, the Australian Veterinary Association called for a ban on live sheep exports to the Middle East between May and October. The government rejected this recommendation.
Live export opponents should check their moral compass, minister says
“It gets worse for sheep in July and August,” Star said. “We say that it is urgent for there to be a trial because there is a heat-stress season that runs from May to October.”
Star requested that Clegg provide the court with documents detailing the decision-making process behind granting the permit to Emanuel Exports by 19 June. He said he wanted to see the risk assessment model for heat stress used by the department in making its decision to grant the export permit.
“It should be publicly available or at least provided to us,” he said.
Mortimer responded: “We’re not here on some jurisdictional fact inquiry about the validity of the model.”
A lawyer representing the government told Mortimer “the model contains a software program”. Data was entered into the program, such as the number of livestock and the species. “It produces outcomes which assists in some evaluation of likely occurrence of heat-stress events and mortalities,” he said. “I don’t think the department itself possesses the software program.”
The regulatory regime for exporting livestock was likely to change as early as next week as a result of findings from the McCarthy review, he said, but he did not elaborate on that those changes would be.
The hearing continues.
Live export company directors to face up to 10 years in jail under Coalition’s changes
Space allocated to sheep on live export ships to the Middle East will be increased by up to 39%
Space allocated to sheep on live export ships to the Middle East will be increased by up to 39% and directors of live export companies who flout the new rules will face up to 10 years in prison under sweeping changes announced by the Turnbull government on Thursday.
But the reforms to address mass sheep mortalities caused by heat stress do not extend to banning trade to the Middle East from May to October, which was recommended by Australia’s peak veterinary body, and “encourage” but do not enforce improved ventilation on live sheep export ships.
Animal welfare groups, including the RSPCA, say the review has misunderstood the science and its 23 recommendations, all of which have been adopted by government, are not sufficient to avoid another catastrophic heat stress event.
The recommendations, which include placing independent observers on all live sheep and cattle ships, only apply to the live trade during the Middle Eastern summer, from May to October. The majority of reportable mortality events in the past decade, where more than 2% of sheep on board have died, have occurred on ships that left Australia in August.
The Awassi is part of a fleet stocked by the West Australian company Emanuel Express, which is the largest sheep exporter by volume. About nine days after the Awassi set sail on that voyage in 2017, the company was under fire for another mass mortality event caused by heat stress on the ship Al Messilah in July 2016, on which about 3,000 sheep died.
At a press conference in Sydney on Thursday, Littleproud said he was disgusted by the whistleblower footage but that implementing a ban on the summer trade would harm Australian sheep producers.
“The footage was disgraceful but what you don’t need to do is predicate your decisions on emotions and not facts,” he said. “This was one exporter, one incident … If you have other footage, bring them forward.
Vets join calls to end live sheep exports in northern summer
“If I have penalties and get the industry themselves to come on this journey, I will eradicate that, but what I’m doing is getting ahead of the curve. By putting independent observers on all boats, it will eradicate this type of behaviour going forward.”
The whistleblower footage from the Awassi Express is the first such footage ever smuggled off a live export ship.
Littleproud said the changes recommended in the McCarthy review included adopting an allometric heat stress model, which would base the space requirements for sheep on the point at which an animal begins to feel heat stress, rather than the point at which heat stress becomes fatal.
That will mean the individual heat allocation for sheep, currently about one-third of a square metre, will be increased by up to 39% depending on predicted weather conditions, the ventilation conditions on board the ship and the size of the sheep.
That is an overall reduction in stocking density of about 28%.
The new formula for calculating stocking density takes into account ventilation and airflow onboard the ship, meaning that boats with improved ventilation can carry more sheep. Littleproud said it would “encourage exporters to upgrade their boats”, but there are no firm requirements forcing an upgrade.
Based on the current live export fleet, McCarthy’s review suggested stocking density could be reduced on individual ships by up to 79%.
The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources will also be required to conduct a mandatory review of all sheep voyages with a mortality rate of 1% or greater. One per cent is the average mortality rate for live sheep ships.
Littleproud said he would introduce changes to the Australian Meat and Industry Act to impose penalties of up to $4.2m on companies and $2.1m on directors who “seek to profit from breaking export rules around stocking densities and poor animal welfare practices.”
Directors could also face up to 10 years in prison.
Most of the changes will be in place from 1 July.
The RSPCA said the recommendations were “weak” and “not based on science or evidence”.
“These recommendations completely ignore the science and are not enough to reduce the risk of either consistent harm to animals or the catastrophic conditions we’ve seen previously,” the RSPCA’s chief science officer, Dr Bidda Jones, said.
“It’s frankly extraordinary that this review will allow May to October voyages to continue, taking winter-acclimatised animals into temperatures of more than 40 degrees, and humidity of up to 80%. There’s no stocking density limit that can protect sheep in those kinds of conditions. A single sheep standing on a deck will suffer and can die under those heat and humidity levels.”
Jones said it was unacceptable that the increased space allocation only applied during the Middle Eastern summer, and that a 28% decrease in stocking density year-round was the “minimum required” to avoid dire animal welfare outcomes.
Coalition won’t ban live exports and has delayed report’s release
The Australian Veterinary Association, on whose calculations the heat stress formula is based, recommended a year-round increase in the space allocation of 39% for a 50kg sheep, and a greater increase in the summer months – assuming its first recommendation of banning the summer trade was not accepted.
Jones said Littleproud’s announcement was a betrayal of the trust placed in him by animal welfare organisations.
The Animals Australia founder, Lyn White, said the recommendations were “an appalling breach of faith with the Australian community.”
“This is a lily-livered government response designed to protect exporters, not animals,” White said.
The opposition agriculture spokesman, Joel Fitzgibbon, also criticised the review and said Labor would act to ban the summer trade “at the first opportunity,” and look to phasing out the live sheep trade long term.
There are two private member’s bills before parliament to ban live exports.
Posted on June 17, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
I stand with a laptop in my hand and a Gay Fawkes mask on my face on the pedestrian zone. Demonstration against slaughterhouses.
The pictures run nonstop and without sound in the laptops during the whole demonstration.
Pictures of the slaughterhouse: pigs, cows, chickens that die cruelly, animals that stand in the slaughterhouses, crowded together, and everywhere sting, sting, sting … even by gazing alone, one has the smell of blood in the nostrils, the cries of the dying drill in the ears … .An animal crime from human hand, which takes place every day in every slaughterhouse in the world.
These pictures are intended to inform and shock at the same time.
They aim at least to keep the channels of communication between meat consumers and activists open.
The first belong to a society, that avoids all guilt in this crime, displaces crime, and is controlled by a collective “butter-egg-meat obesity”.
The latter invest more in hope than in the conviction, that such actions can have an effective impact on the carnivores’ consciousness.
Strangely, the direct confrontation of people with such images creates, first and foremost, a need for confession.
Anyone who eats meat first realizes that everything, that happens in a slaughterhouse is made for murder, agony and animal suffering.
The first stage is shock, then comes the reflection and then the search for a lot of bullshit, misbelief and lies, that serve the purpose of protecting private behavior and eating habits.
And so the visitor of such actions does not seek the dialogue with the activists or the enlightenment through the pictures, but rather an open ear for his own theory, with a bit of “organic”, “meat from the farmer”, “a flesh-free day in the Week “,” stop factory farming “etc … freed him from the guilt of the accomplice:
1.The best is to buy meat from small farms, “organic meat”; My neighbor next door does that, and I buy only from there.
2. Actually, today’s factory farming is the problem with meat consumption.
I only buy animals from “organic farm”.
3. I rarely eat meat. Slaughtering animals is bad, I’m against factory farming.
And intentionally everyone displaces the tragic truth of the images, that in animal production no animal can live good, because these “products” are always won by living beings who cannot decide on their use, and ultimately all cruelly killed, which is the most serious crime against every form of law.
So, if somebody would ask me, do you think these actions can abolish the slaughterhouses?
I would answer, No!
And to the question: what then do these pictures, these actions? I would say: no one can say with certainty, what effect they have on people’s thinking and actions.
To act differently, you have to think differently.
And to think differently, you have to know more.
We have created the knowledge; all who were there know now.
We do not really believe that we were able to persuade every one of them to stop the collaboration with this system of exploitation, destruction, crime against animals.
Because, everyone would have to decide against meat consumption; but most people are afraid of responsibility and action.
For us, there is only hope left. Hope is the fuel of animal welfare.
Thursday (14th June), the world united to call for an end to the long distance transport of animals. Passionate campaigners from 35 countries took over 150 actions to raise awareness of this cruel trade.
In the UK, over 500 people gathered in Parliament Square, London to take their message directly to politicians. A 20ft banner in the shape of a livestock ship provided the backdrop for the day and supporters staged a dramatic ‘die-in’. Wearing sheep masks, the crowd – joined by our Patron and Harry Potter star Evanna Lynch – dropped down to the ground as if dead, in recognition of the countless animals that have suffered and died during long distance journeys.
Around the world millions of animals are transported long distances in cramped conditions every year, causing horrific suffering. Many animals receive insufficient food, water, rest and space to move, and face inhumane treatment at slaughter.
Speakers at the rally included Downton Abbey actor and animal welfare activist Peter Egan and Members of Parliament, Zac Goldsmith, Theresa Villiers, Sir David Amess, Kerry McCarthy and Sir Roger Gale.
Speaking at the protest, Zac Goldsmith MP said: “I’ve never felt more optimistic than I do today…we will stop this trade.”
Sir Roger Gale MP added: “This is a war we can win, we are going to win this one!”
Evanna Lynch said: “It’s very possible the end is in sight and that’s when events like this are amazing for people to show that normal people care about this and that we won’t tolerate this kind of abuse.”
Many famous faces supported the Day of Awareness, including business tycoon and Dragon’s Den favourite, Deborah Meaden, Hollyoaks and Les Misérables actor, Carley Stenson and conservationist and author, Stanley Johnson.
Absolutely Fabulous actress and campaigner, Joanna Lumley, also joined our call to Stop Live Transport: “The true horror of live transport never fails to shock me. It is totally nonsensical that this unimaginable cruelty continues in 2018. I urge you to take a stand against this awful trade. It’s time to Stop Live Transport.”
Other highlights included a truck tour through Italy, a protest in Dam Square, Amsterdam, a huge banner hung on the side of a prominent building in Prague, photos taken in front of famous landmarks in France, 13 protests across Poland and many more.
A huge thank you to everyone who organised an event or took part – in person or online. You made this year’s Stop Live Transport: International Awareness Day, the biggest yet!
Posted on June 17, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Yulin starts 21st June 2018 – Finishes 30th.
Dog meat, Yulin and veganism: is there a double standard?
14 June 2018, 12:18PM
As the summer solstice brings world media attention back to China’s Yulin city for another cycle of dog meat industry coverage, some familiar debates will resume.
Many voices will argue that those who oppose the dog meat trade must also oppose all meat eating, or risk being labelled speciesist or hypocritical.
While some dismiss this argument as being like criticising the police for not putting out fires, it does also raise legitimate and interesting points which are very much worth considering.
While I’m happy to say I live a cruelty-free vegan lifestyle today, I haven’t always, and wasn’t born or raised vegan, but made a lifestyle choice over quite a number of years.
During these years I was deeply engaged in animal welfare: opposing the fur industry, bear bile farming and the dog meat trade among many other causes.
My engagement with these causes led me to found Animals Asia and our campaigning improved the lives of thousands of animals – from hundreds of bears rescued from the bile industry, to reduced demand for dog meat and the improved living conditions of animals in captivity.
A video * goes these days around the world: It shows an orangutan in Indonesia, on an almost cleared tree trunk in front of woodcutters and desperately trying to get past the shovel of an excavator, which stands in his way.
Animal rights activists have put the film sequence on the Internet to draw attention to the destruction of the habitats of the orangutans. Palm oil plantations are increasingly eating their way into the rainforest areas in Southeast Asia.
The local orangutans are killed or displaced during deforestation work. Surviving animals often wander helplessly around the clearings and starve to death.
If the destruction of the rainforest is not stopped immediately, many other animals, such as forest elephants, Sumatrans and Javan Rhino, are threatened with extinction in the wild next to orangutans.
A total of 7.7 million tons of palm oil was imported by EU countries in 2017, the highest amount ever. The cultivated areas for EU biofuel correspondwith 8.8 million hectares ofthe size of Austria!!!.
Two thirds of them are outside the EU.
In Southeast Asia, palm oil plantations for EU biodiesel are expanding to 2.1 million hectares!
There, orangutans, tigers and rhinos lose their habitat. Elephants looking for food on the plantations even die of poisoning. In Borneo, the orangutan population has fallen by 100,000 animals within 16 years.
Since yesterday, hundreds of farmers in France are blocking installations belonging to the oil company Total. They are protesting against planned imports of palm oil, which they see as competing with domestic vegetable oils. At Marseille, Total is building a huge biofuel refinery, where the raw material is mainly tropical vegetable oil.
It is not too late yet: the EU is currently negotiating the future bioenergy policy.
In 2017, the European Parliament decided with an overwhelming majority to end the import of palm oil and the production of biofuel from rainbow clearing vegetable oils.
The European Commission was asked to ban the use of palm oil for biofuel by 2020 at the latest.
Already in January 2018, the European Parliament decided by a large majority that palm oil should be phased out as raw material for the production of biofuel and fuel in power plants in 2020.
But!…. Some EU countries – especially France, Italy and Spain – want to prevent this. Together with Indonesia, Malaysia and the palm oil Mafia-industry, they engage in intensive lobbying in Brussels.
This week the EU negotiations are entering the presumed final and decisive round.
We now have the opportunity to end the fatal biofuel admixture. The Commission, the Parliament and the Council of Ministers are actually negotiating bioenergy policy until 2030.
Please sign the petition: To: EU Commission, EU Parliament, EU Council of Ministers and the governments of the 28 member countries.
Posted on June 15, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
From the 10th of June, Icelandic fishermen will again hunt for fin whales.
Two years they had paused.
Fin whales are a endangered species, 161 whales may kill the fishermen, this quota has allowed the Icelandic government.
Only: Worldwide, fewer and fewer people want to eat the meat. Icelanders hardly. The Finn whale hunting is a minus business for the fishermen.
How many whales are hunted on average?
– In the 20th century, a total of 2.6 million whales were killed worldwide (Marine Fisheries Review)
– Norway killed 1480 whales in 2016 (Whale and Dolphin Conservation)
– Japan killed 300 animals (IFAW) in 2017
– The animals are hunted with harpoons. Modern models explode on impact or in the animal.Often, however, the whales do not die immediately, but drown in a span of up to 30 minutes before being pulled on board and gutted.
Why are they doing that ?!
The fish export is beside the tourism the largest economy branch of the Icelanders.
The largest whale company in Iceland and the only one that hunts the endangered fin whale is Hvalur. Its biggest sales market is Japan.
Because Japan demanded high quality standards and Icelandic whale meat was contaminated with environmental toxins, Hvalur had to cease whaling for two years.
Meanwhile, Japan has loosened its import regulations again. Hvalur, it seems, is taking the opportunity to boost whaling after two years of slacking back into export, and thus Iceland’s economy.
In collaboration with the University of Iceland, Hvalur also wants to develop medicines for iron deficiency – from fin whale bladders and bones.
A bloody job
Why this nonsense is:
Iceland’s largest market, Japan, hunts whales themselves.
The whale meat is offered annually at auctions. A 2012 ICSN Dolphin and Whale Action Network survey shows that three-quarters of the meat has not been sold. Even the Japanese fishermen are thus sitting on their flesh. A study by the Nippon Research Center in 2008 shows the reason: The Japanese do not want whale meat: 95 percent of Japanese rarely or never eat this meat.
The situation is similar in Iceland. The minke whale is processed here at most, but almost only in Reykjavik and for tourists, who think they have a supposedly “traditional” specialty in front of them. Only 3 percent of the locals eat whale meat themselves, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
Who is behind the company Hvalur?
Mastermind Kristjan Loftsson
Kristjan Loftsson is managing director of the whaling company Hvalur and probably one of the richest and most influential Icelanders. He is involved in other fishing companies, also earned with redfish, cod and Co.
He does not need the whaling financially. And yet he leads in.
Marine biologist Thilo Maack from Greenpeace says: “Hvalur’s whaling is a total minus business and the question of ‘why’, can only be answered politically.”
The company Hvalur founded Loftsson’s father in 1947 – when the greasy whale meat was a grateful food shortly after the Second World War. Even before that, the Icelanders had eaten whale, but only stranded.
With the Loftsons, Icelandic whaling became industrial.
Iceland is thus in violation of the International Whaling Commission’s Biodiversity Convention, although it is a member. With the export of the meat it violates the Washington Convention (CITES). But…There are no legal consequences for Hvalur or Iceland.
Thilo Maack of Greenpeace says: “Loftsson does not want to be told by the world community, what he has to do and what he must not do”!!
Who is the fin whale?
– He is the second largest mammal in the world. Adult finbacks grow up to 27 meters long.
– He is up to almost 50 km / h fast, dives up to 230 meters deep and can communicate with his conspecifics over a distance of up to 850 kilometers.
– However, the hunting has thinned out the populations so much that the fin whale appears on the IUCN Red List as “endangered”.
– Around 40,000 fin whales live in North Atlantic waters.
That’s the opposite movement
Katrín Jakobsdóttir, the new left-green Prime Minister of Iceland, had already called for a review of the need for whaling in 2014. It could now argue that the government will not issue any more quotas after this year’s hunting season.
And: For decades, Greenpeace has been trying to prevent the hunt itself by taking action on the high seas, as well as stopping reefers loaded with whale meat on their way to Japan. In the past, some airlines refused to transport the meat.
It could soon be a criminal offence to attack a police dog or horse after Michael Gove gave the government’s support to a bill implementing “Finn’s Law”.
Named after brave police German shepherd Finn, who was stabbed in the head and chest while chasing a robbery suspect, a Service Animals Offences Bill will be read in parliament on Friday and is likely to have more of a chance of becoming law now that there is backing from government.
Criminal damage is currently the only available charge for someone who attacks a police or service animal – even though dogs are often bitten, kicked and strangled while in the line of duty.
Finn’s Law would make it a specific criminal offence to attack a police animal.
Announcing his backing, the environment secretary said: “This Bill will offer stronger protection for the many brave service animals that help to protect us.
“This Government is continuing to raise the bar on animal welfare, whether it be for our beloved pets, brave service animals or on farms.”
Finn saved his handler PC Dave Wardle’s life while they chased a robbery suspect in 2016.
The suspect injured PC Wardell’s hand and stabbed Finn in the head and chest as he tried to stop him from getting away.
While the suspect was charged with actual bodily harm for his injuries to PC Dave Wardell, he was only charged with criminal damage for almost killing Finn, as dogs are considered property in the eyes of the law.
The Bill would amend a 2006 Animal Welfare Act to address concerns about defendants’ ability to claim they were justified in using physical force to protect themselves from a service animal.
Sir Oliver Heald, who tabled the bill, said he was “delighted” at receiving government support and was now looking forward to the legislation passing through parliament.
“This is a good day for all of our brave service animals,” said the North-East Hertfordshire MP.
But we welcome yet another decision that an operation which has many outlets in the UK has decided to ditch plastic straws and instead convert to paper straws.
Posted on June 14, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Animal rights activists illegally take pictures of grievances in stables.
A survey shows that most people in Germany find this legitimate.
Get into a stable and film secretly: So activists reveal animal cruelty again and again. Foto: ARIWA
BERLIN taz-newspaper |
Most people in Germany consider it justified that animal welfare organizations reveal animal suffering by secretly filming in stables. This emerges from a representative survey of the opinion research institute Emnid. On Thursday evening, the Federal Parliament wants to debate a proposal by the FDP (the Liberal Party), which should make such searches more difficult with the help of tax law.
Clients of the survey are the Animal Organisations Ariwa, Animal Equality, German Animal Protection Bureau, Peta, Soko Animal Protection and Animal Retriever, which themselves repeatedly published undercover images of abuses on farms.
This undercover method supports 82.5 percent of respondents. 85 percent were in favor of stronger controls on animal welfare on farms. According to the study, 1,012 people over the age of 14 were interviewed last week for the study.
The CDU and the FDP, on the other hand, demand that activists who secretly enter agricultural farms for undercover shootings be punished. In addition, they want to withdraw the charitable status of organizations that publish appropriate footage !!
In this notch also suggests the FDP application in the federal day. Accordingly, the plenary is to call on the government to defend against the charitable status of associations that “violate the applicable penal laws or call for such a breach of law.” Probably the topic is first referred to a committee.
FDP (the Liberal Party)says: “Animal rights activists ax to the rule of law!”
Gero Hocker, agricultural policy spokesman of the FDP parliamentary group, justified the application in conversation with the taznewspaper so: “I believe that puts the ax to the rule of law, if private-sector organizations take over functions, that actually have to be taken over by the veterinary authorities.” The animal rights activists respond that the state does not fulfill this task sufficiently and therefore must be generated by their shots political pressure.
Foto: Animal Equality
Peta-law expert Edmund Haferbeckdoes not believe that the proposal, if made, would change the legal situation. Already now, the tax authorities would take the status of “Public usefulness“ from this organisations, which calls for criminal offenses. “In addition, the Higher Regional Court in Naumburg (Germany) has judged that penetration in stables is not punishable, if it uncovered maladministration, for which there were hints, for example, by whistleblowers,” said Haferbeck.
Peta is not vulnerable anyway. “We only publish videos that have been taken by others.” The organization had already disbanded its “investigation department” in 2013. The German Animal Welfare Office, for example, argues similarly.
Contrary to what is often said, the entry into the stables is usually not “burglary”. For, for example, the Duden defines this as follows: “forcibly entering a building, into a room or similar (to steal something)“. But violence is usually not necessary to enter many stables: they are often not closed. There are also no (or few) cases, where farmers have accused the activists of opening doors or stealing something. Legally, the activists are therefore usually accused of trespassing. But even that usually does not last in court.
But violence is usually not necessary to enter stables: they are often not closed!!
“The results of the survey show how far the demands of some politicians, above all the FDP parliamentary group and the Federal Minister of Agriculture Julia Klöckner, are bypassing the will of the population,” said the six animal rights associations. “Again and again, new cases show that official animal welfare controls are not effective. The fact that the detection of abuses by animal rights organizations should be targeted is a scandal and does not coincide with the conviction of the German population. “
Posted on June 14, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
As we are fully aware:
Animals on fur farms are deprived of food and water, confined to filthy cages, beaten, electrocuted, and gassed before they’re skinned and dismembered while still conscious and able to feel pain.
These cruel and cheap killing methods are used by fur farmers to cut costs—with little to no regard for the animals’ well-being.
This is what animals endure in the fur industry for clothing and accessories like those found at Macy’s, yet the company refuses to stop selling fur.
Whether it came from an animal on a fur farm or one who was trapped in the wild, every fur coat, trinket, and bit of trim caused a living, feeling being tremendous suffering—and took away a life.
With so many innovative and environmentally friendly vegan options available today, there’s no excuse to kill animals for clothing.
ACTION
Please urge Macy’s to legitimize its claims of being an operation of “integrity” by leaving abused animals out of its stores.
Addressed to: Head of Government of the CDMX José Ramón Amieva
One month after the “electrocution of more than 250 puppies” by Laura Barajas Villegas, Director of Canine Control of Tláhuac and known as “The dog killer beast”, as well as the joint responsibility of Arturo Medina, Delegational Chief in Tláhuac. In the face of these brutal and inhumane acts, we demand the full application of the “Animal Protection and Welfare Law”, established in the Political Constitution of the CDMX and other applicable regulations, which punish with “Prison sentences between 8 months and 2 years and fines of 30,000 to 60,000 thousand pesos, to those who injure animals for cruelty and abuse.” That no official is above the Law!
Posted on June 14, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Today is the day that people all around the world are uniting around a single goal – to end the long distance live transport of animals. We are sickened by the cruelty inflicted upon farm animals during these long and dangerous journeys. This is a global problem that deserves a global response.
Campaigners in over 30 countries are taking action, from Brazil to Australia, from Israel to Mexico. We’re thrilled that so many Compassion supporters are staging events today or at the weekend. If you’re not already on your way, it isn’t too late to join an event! And, even if you can’t be with us in person, you can still take action for farm animals.
You can take selfies wearing the downloadable animal masks and post them online using #StopLiveTransport
And don’t forget to share the petition against cruel live exports from the EU.
You can spread the word to friends and family using ciwf.org.uk/EULiveExports
Posted on June 14, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Meyli is terrified. The floor around her is slick with the blood of dozens of dogs killed before her, and their bodies hang on hooks or soak in vats of water. The slaughterhouse reeks of death—and she and the other dogs in the holding pen are frantic to escape.
Soon, a worker will grab her with metal pincers and bash her over the head with a wooden club. She may not die instantly—and still struggle to breathe even after her throat is slit, writhing on the filthy floor before her skin is peeled off.
What dogs like Meyli experience seems like a scene from a horror movie, but it’s happening in Chinese slaughterhouses right now. An employee of one told a PETA Asia investigator that just that single operation killed and skinned as many as 200 dogs a day.
The investigator witnessed dog skin being turned into men’s work gloves and other items that are exported from China and sold all around the world to unsuspecting consumers. And it’s not just leather—dogs and cats sold at Chinese animal markets are also killed for their fur and sometimes skinned alive!
On Chinese fur factory farms, foxes, minks, and rabbits are confined to filthy, cramped cages until they are yanked out, bludgeoned, and skinned. Investigators documented that the hearts of some of those animals were still beating even after their fur was cut off their bodies.
With help from our determined supporters, PETA’s campaigns have reached so many consumers that now it’s rare to see a full-length fur coat—and more designers than ever are shunning fur, leather, and other animal-derived materials.
Even Donatella Versace—whose use of fur we vigorously campaigned to stop—has joined Michael Kors, Gucci, and others in going fur-free. PETA Asia’s exposé of the Chinese dog-leather industry inspired members of Congress to seek a ban on the importation of dog leather. And major brands like H&M, Zara, Topshop, and Gap Inc. are dropping angora and mohair in quick succession following PETA exposés of these grisly industries, so it’s clear that momentum is on our side—thanks to support from kind people like you.
Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Above – Zabivaka – the Dog Official symbol of the Russian world cup ??
he obviously survived the slaughter !
It is predicted that £119 Million will be spent on managing stray dogs this year, as these wandering creatures do not fit the ‘ideal image’ that officials want to portray of Russia for the World Cup.
This week, Russia will host the 2018 World Cup, one of the biggest international sporting events in the world. The country will play host to millions of tourists across the 11 host cities within the Russian Federation. Those visiting will be able to attend matches in Moscow, the capital city, as well as in tourist hubs like St. Petersburg, and lesser known regions like Saransk and Yekaterinburg. Given the significant influx of foreigners scheduled to visit these cities, regional governments have begun the long process of implementing cosmetic changes that would mask the glaring deficiencies in each of their cities. These changes include cleaning the streets, painting old houses and buildings, relocating homeless people, and slaughtering stray animals.
The culling of stray animals has even caused a schism within the Russian population. 1.8 million people signed a petition against the killing of stray animals, while protests are being held in several cities. Even notable Russian actors have spoken out against the campaigns. However, while the brutal slaughter of stray animals has been met with significant domestic and international resistance, those defending the animals continue to fight an uphill battle.
“There is a lot of money in these contracts, which are often awarded to state-run companies,” Vladimir Burmatov, the head of the State Duma’s ecology and environmental protection committee, told the Moscow Times. “And because these matters are governed by individual municipalities, there is nothing a federal official can do.”
The extermination of stray animals in the months leading up to an international event is not a new practice in Russia. During the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, culling companies used poisoned darts to exterminate animals on the spot, and were well paid for their efforts. This caused an uproar among athletes and tourists visiting the city, as well as international outrage when pictures of the murdered animals went viral. However, the negative publicity did not stop cities from hiring these companies again ahead of the World Cup.
The most recent incident involving Basya Service LLC took place in February 2018, when an animal activist stumbled upon the carcasses of 20 dead dogs in a ravine near a town in Krasnodar Krai. A Basya Service employee was arrested and he later confessed to poisoning the animals and throwing away their bodies—per the request of his supervisor—in order to reduce costs.
Despite the court filling and controversy surrounding Basya Service LLC, the company continues to work with various municipal governments. In 2018, the company won a contract to capture stray animals in Sochi. As of April 2018, the company has already killed at least 58 animals.
“We could sit here sniffling all day, but I am working within the framework of our constitution,” Alexei Sorokin, the owner of Basya Service, told the Moscow Times. “Why are we worrying about dogs when we should be worried about people?”
When culling campaigns took place ahead of the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, volunteers began to evacuate animals from the city. Moscow resident Igot Airapetyan made several trips between Moscow and Sochi and managed to evacuate over 100 animals in the process. Many of the animals were able to find new homes. Some even went to tourists and foreign athletes, who adopted them and started Instagram accounts for the animals.
However, when confronted about their brutal campaign to clean up the city’s streets ahead of the Winter Games, the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee denied any wrongdoing.
“All stray dogs that are found on the Olympic Park are collected by a professional veterinary contractor for the well-being of the people on the Park and the animals themselves,” the Committee said in a statement. “All healthy animals are released following their health check.”
This was followed by the erection of a government-funded animal shelter, which Sochi officials claimed would house the animals until after the games. However, activists saw the shelter as media distraction and an inefficient response that brought little more than cosmetic change. This strategy was repeated ahead of the World Cup in 2018, when deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko ordered all 11 cities hosting World Cup matches to set up temporary shelters for stray animals. Municipal shelters were built in St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, and Saransk, with foster centres being built in the rest of the cities. Some of these shelters can expect an influx of stray animals ahead of the tournament, many of whom will spend the remainder of their lives in overcrowded cages.
It should be noted that Russia lacks federal legislation that specifically deals with the culling of stray animals and prefers to leave such matters to the regional governments and their allocated budgets. This complicates matter greatly, as each city is in control of their budgetary funds. Therefore, cities will be able to contract companies like Basya Service to eliminate the animals in the most cost-effective manner, even if that is deemed inhumane or against federal policy.
Further, while the Russian government has suggested reactionary measures to temporarily isolate the animals from the influx of tourists, it does not address or resolve the long-term issue facing the country and its stray animals.
According to the World Organization for Animal Health, the capture and culling of stray animals is anineffective way to deal with stray animalsbecause it does not provide a solution to the uncontrolled breeding of such animals. This organization endorses long-term solutions such as sterilization and vaccinations. However, such programs are not in place in Russia.
Moscow once operated under a sterilization program for stray animals between 1998 and 2008.18,000 dogs were reportedly sterilized during that decade, yet the government shut down the project after ruling it “ineffective.” As a result, regional officials continue to believe that population control through culling is the most cost-effective and efficient method to control the stray animals.
Russia’s animal elimination programs are not the only example of inhumane animal treatment during a football event. In April 2018, the Russian Football Federation was criticized for bringing in a circus bear named Tim to entertain the crowd during a third division match between FC Mashuk-KMV Pyatigorsk and FC Angusht Nazran. The bear, who had been restrained with a muzzle over his mouth, was forced to stand on his hind legs and clap to the crowd. He was then given a football in his front paws, which he handed back to the referee.
Despite the public outrage ahead of the 2014 Winter Games, it appears that Russia has not taken any significant steps over the past four years to put an end to the mass slaughtering and abuse of stray animals. As long as local governments are empowered to hire animal contract killers, and as long as mass euthanization continues to be the preferred solution, animals will continue to suffer when Russia hosts any kind of international event.
This is the best translation of the letter that we can get – SAV:
Republic of Serbia
National Assembly of Serbia
Nikola Pašića Square 13, Belgrade 11000
Item: support to ban animal animals for production of furs
Honorable sirs,
You will be told by defense law on animal animals 89. Who says it will be held from member 7., attitude 1. Points of 37 of this law, from 1. January 2019.
The Republic of Serbia has a law-enforcement law on animal animals that includes animal protection, and will appear to be based on. By Removing all members of the law, Serbia’s Republic will stop by the shoulder of a 27.-Year-old European countries and take a significant step towards a 27.-Year-old.
In the procedure skin and furs use to 300 different chemical, according to European commission data. It’s a chemical compound that kontaminiraǰu land and public vodovode. That way comes to the utroška of these resources, because it is created by massive surface soil and water. The European Union has been making a major concern for the impact of these compounds in the air, and the air force is marked as a leading problem in the industry’s production of production. Also, the biological waste of animals contains high-end concentration and phosphorus. Gas in the animal junkyard, as well as the burn body of animals, affect the level of air pollution. The European commission has said that the pollution air has been taken care of.
According to data data from the site of a 18-Year-old agency’s website, it can also be used to 18 times more than. Tax-based tax in Serbia is zanemarl̂iv and minoran (biggest farm held by a 300.000-Year-old year-on-year tax, and in Serbia there are only 5 Farm Farms per.
To create a single bunde is killed between 150-200 Chinchilla, which is completely relieved future that there are many alternative natural coats. In terms of captivity, animals who are in charge of fur have no conditions to act in accordance with. They were given a physical response to the joints and bones and the konstanstno have been detailed by extreme fear with a hard-working instinct for escape that has no conditions to survive.
Serbia’s law of Serbia will be among the countries who care about animal animals and environmental environment and health people.
We can definitely not be able to create a quashing or an existing member from a member of 37. Laws.
With Respect,
1. Freedom for animals Belgrade, agent snow milovanović
2. Association for animal protection and development of civil consciousness “Phoenix” Belgrade agent milica ranković
3. LINK PLUS BELGRADE AGENT NATASHA VUKMIROVIĆ
4. Uzzž “friend” UB agent susana goǰković
5. Association for rights and protection of animal orpak kruševac – agent lela bucek
6. Association of citizens of Alpha Belgrade – Agent Jovan Mitrović
7. Hope for animals of riska belgrade agent miles of krivokuća
8. Association,, help of animal-help animals ” legally agent gold korǰenić
9. Animals for animals and nature, Belgrade
10. Nvo ” legally legally radenka živanović
11. Association of citizens of Pro Anima, Belgrade agent mirica
12. Association for protection and real animal “Klempa” Zemun
13. Association to worry about the animals of beta belgrade
14. Association of spaske kraljevo, agent Daniel Jović
15. Epar-Oipa Serbia, subotica, agent slavica mazak bešlić
16. Association to worry about animal timočke krajina beta – (Zaǰečar) – responsible person: miliǰana nikolić
17. Association to worry about animals of timočke beta beta – (Kn̂aževački) – responsible person: tiǰana božinović
18. Felix – Felinološko Society, subotica, agent clear lazic
19. Society for protection of animal-Prizorgo-Bačka Topola Agent: Thomas chest
20. Fans of animals and nature of green paws “, tomaševac Alexandra Radoǰčić
21. Animal Protection Association “Bobby” Upper Milanovac Agent: Vesna Marinkovic
22. Association of citizens of kanis, syrmia mitrovica buyer Adrian and ǰasminka vuča
23. Society for animal protection and nature’s ekolibriǰum dawn dawn kolarski
24. Association of citizens of “Anima Subotica” from subotica, agent željko elesin
25. Association for rights and protection of animal Mia, Belgrade Jelena Zarić, representative
26. Foundation Leviathan, Headmaster Paul bihali
27. Society of around cats / Asylum for cat ‘Zenka’ Belgrade ljubica landeka
28. Association of animal protection
29. Association for animal protection “Jupiter” Rum, rum, legally agent smil̂ana kolund̂ić.
30. Association for protection of rights animals “Buck” Municipality, nadal̂ agent svetlana đorđin
31. Society for animal protection ” ” Agent Pavlović Marianne
32. Association for rights and protection of animal maǰdanpek “Belka” Representative of Igor Janković
33. Association for protection of animal new United States new now CEO: Dinah Đušić
34. Animal Protection Association, pine agent nikola nedel̂ković
35. Association for protection of animal šumadiǰskog regions red paw ” agent radmila filipović
36. Animal Rescue Serbia
37. Company for protection and study bird of Serbia
38. Association of citizens of apatinska plovarica
39. Association of citizens of green vrbas
40. Coalition for life no kill coalition
41. Bc У. of help animals animals
42. Association for animal protection and nature’s best friend, vranje
43. Society for animal protection
44. Society for animal protection and environment of the environment
45 “European initiative 17”, Belgrade
Република Србија
Народна скупштина Републике Србије
Трг Николе Пашића 13, Београд 11000
Предмет: Подршка забрани узгоја животиња ради производње крзна
Поштовани,
Обраћамо Вам се ради одбране Закона о добробити животиња, конкретно Члана 7., Става 1., тачке 37 која забрањује држање, репродукцију, увоз, извоз и лишавање живота животиње искључиво ради производње крзна и коже и Члана 89. који каже да ће се забрана из Члана 7., Става 1. Тачке 37 овог Закона, примењивати од 1. јануара 2019. године.
Република Србија има напредан Закон о добробити животиња који обухвата заштиту животиња, индиректно се рефлектујући на добробит животне средине. Применом свих чланова Закона, Република Србија ће стати уз раме развијених европских земаља и начинити значајан корак ка придруживању Европској унији у контексту отварања Поглавља 27. Нема јаких аргумената који би били повод за пролонгирање или брисање спорног члана овог Закона .
У процедури штављења коже и крзна користи се и до 300 различитих хемикалија, према подацима Европске комисије. У питању су хемијска једињења која контаминирају земљиште и јавне водоводе. На тај начин долази до утрошка ових ресурса, јер се стварају огромне површине необрадивог земљишта и контаминиране воде. Европска унија је исказала највећу забринутост за утицај испарења ових једињења у ваздух, те се загађеност ваздуха наводи као водећи проблем у индустрији производње крзна. Такође, биолошки отпад животиња садржи високу концентрацију нитрогена и фосфора. Гасови у животињском отпаду, као и спаљивање тела животиња, утичу на степен загађености ваздуха. Европска комисија је утврдила да је загађење ваздуха водећа еколошка брига у процесу штављења коже и крзна.
Према званичним подацима завршних рачуна са сајта Агенције за привредне регистре може уочити и до 18 пута већа добит која је остварена код произвођача крзна од вештачких материјала него код произвођача крзна животиња. Порез на добит који уплаћују произвођачи крзна у Србији је занемарљив и миноран , као и број запослених на фармама које се баве узгојом животиња ради крзна , па не постоји ни економски интерес Републике Србије да се укине забрану. ( Највећа фарма која држи чинчиле годишње уплати око 300.000 динара пореза ,а у Србији постоје само 5 фарми чинчила по званичним записницима ветеринарске инспкеције)
За израду једне бунде сурово се убије између 150-200 чинчила, што је потпуно неоправдано будући да постоје многе алтернативе природном крзну. У условима заточеништва, животиње које се узгајају за крзно немају услове да се понашају у складу са природним нагонима и инстинктима који су својствени њиховој врсти. Развијају им се физички деформитети у зглобовима и костима и констанстно су изложене екстремном страху уз снажно развијен нагон за бег који немају услова да остваре .
Применом Закона Република Србија ће се сврстати међу земље које брину о добробити животиња и животне средине и здравља људи. Тиме се дефинитивно не можемо похвалити укидањем или одлагањем постојеће забране из члана 37. Закона.
С поштовањем,
1.Слобода за животиње Београд , заступник Снежана Миловановић
2.Удружење за заштиту животиња и развој грађанске свести “Феникс” Београд заступник Милица Ранковић
3.Линк плус Београд заступник Наташа Вукмировић
4. УЗЗЖ “Пријатељ” Уб заступник Сузана Гојковић
5.Удружење за права и заштиту животиња ОРПАК Крушевац – заступник Лела Буцек
6.Удружење грађана Алфа Београд – заступник Јована Митровић
7.Нада за животиње Риска Београд заступник Миља Кривокућа
8.Удружење ,,Помоћ животињама-Хелп анималс” Законски заступник Злата Корјенић
9.Солидарно за животиње и природу, Београд, невладина организација заступник Александра Дудић
10.НВО “ЕТИКА” Лозница Законски заступник Раденка Живановић
11.Удружење грађана ПРО АНИМА, Београд заступник Мирица Тома
12.Удружење за заштиту и права животиња “КЛЕМПА” Земун, законски заступник Јелена Драгутиновић.
13.Удружење за бригу о животињама Бета Београд Заступник Јелена Веселинов
14.Удружење Спаске Краљево , Заступник Данијела Јовић
15.ЕПАР-ОИПА Србија, Суботица, заступник Славица Мазак Бешлић
16.Удружење за бригу о животињама Тимочке крајине БЕТА – (Зајечар) – одговорна особа: Милијана Николић
17.Удружење за бригу о животињама Тимочке крајине БЕТА – (књажевачки огранак) – одговорна особа: Тијана Божиновић
18. Felix – Фелинолошко друштво, Суботица, заступник Јасна Лазић
19. Друштво за заштиту животиња-Призорго-Бачка Топола заступник:Тамаш Коша
20. Љубитељи животиња и природе “Зелене шапе”, Томашевац Александра Радојчић
21. Удружење за заштиту животиња “БОБИ” Горњи Милановац Заступник: Весна Маринковић
22. Удружење грађана Канис, Сремска Митровица заступници Адријана Недељковић и Јасминка Вуча
23. Друштво за заштиту животиња и природе Еколибријум заступник Зора Коларски
24. Удружење грађана”Анима Суботица” из Суботице, заступник Жељко Елесин
25. Удружење за права и заштиту животиња МИА, Београд Јелена Зарић, представник
26. Фондација ЛЕВИЈАТАН , управитељ Павле Бихали
27. Друштво љубитеља мачака/Азил за мачке ‘Зенка’Београд Љубица Ландека
28. Удружење за заштиту животиња ‘Псећа срећа, Милан Цветковић, Нишка бања, Ниш
29. Удружење за заштиту животиња “Јупитер” Рума, Рума, законски заступник Смиљана Колунџић.
30. Удружење за заштиту права животиња “БАК”Србобран, Надаљ заступник Светлана Ђорђин
31.Друштво за заштиту животиња “Друид” Алексинац Заступник Павловић Маријана
32. Удружење за права и заштиту животиња Мајданпек “Белка” Представник Игор Јанковић
33. Удружење за заштиту животиња Нови Сад Спанс Нови Сад Председница: Дина Ђушић
34. Удружење за заштиту животиња Борске шапе,Бор заступник Никола Недељковић
35. Удружење за заштиту животиња Шумадијског Региона “Црвена Шапа” Крагујевац заступник Радмила Филиповић
36. Animal Rescue Serbia
37. Друштво за заштиту и проучавање птица Србије
38. Удружење грађана Апатинска пловарица
39. Удружење Грађана Зелени Врбас
40. Коалиција за живот No Kill Coalition
41. П. У. Ж. ПОМОЋ УГРОЖЕНИМ ЖИВОТИЊАМА Велико Градиште
42. Удружење за заштиту животиња и природе Најбољи пријатељ, Врање
43. Друштво за заштиту животиња Алекс Суботица
44. Друштво за заштиту животиња и животне средине ” Храбро срце” Врбас
45„Европска иницијатива 17“, Београд
!!! Important!!! Important!!! Important!!! Just share. 45 United Association against corrupt politics, nepotism and alavosti.
Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV comment. We saw it all in Canada a few days ago when Trump left early and did not even bother to attend the G7 meetings for the day which revolved around global warming and the environment. As always, he was more interested in promoting himself for the Nobel peace prize (??) than giving a toss about the other living beings on this planet. Below is yet another revelation of the Trump attitude to wildlife – allowing Orcas to scrape the edge of extinction whilst gratifying in claiming to have ‘done something positive’ with regard Korea.
Starving West Coast orcas are plunging toward extinction.
Young whales, like a two-year-old named Sonic, are dying of severe malnutrition. Sonic was last seen in the fall emaciated and swimming lethargically alongside his mother and father. He disappeared, assumed dead, shortly after.
The Trump government has abandoned these intelligent creatures to a tragic fate.
So the Center’s launched an 11th-hour legal action to save them.
Our fight to save West Coast orcas needs your help. Please — give to the Endangered Species Defense Fund so we have access to the funds we need for a fast, uncompromising fight for our orcas.
Three years ago, in response to a Center petition, the National Marine Fisheries Service agreed to expand orcas’ protections for critical foraging grounds off the West Coast by 2017. But it never followed through on this promise.
It’s infuriating that we have to force the government to do its job. Southern Resident killer whales are one of the most endangered species on the planet, but the Fisheries Service keeps dragging its feet on ensuring they have enough food to survive.
Now, thanks to the agency’s inaction, only 76 of these West Coast orcas are left in existence — a 30-year low. There isn’t a moment to lose. Mother orcas are losing 2 out of 3 of their young.
A planet without these intelligent, graceful creatures is unthinkable. Orcas form lasting social bonds with each other, where everyone cares for the young, sick or injured. Grandparents can live to be up to more than 100 years old, but only if their food source isn’t plundered by corporate profiteers and they’re given safe space in the ocean to thrive.
We’re fighting with everything we’ve got to save these creatures from the tragedy of starvation and extinction. Any delay in saving them is unacceptable.
We’ve got the legal expertise and firepower to bring endangered species like West Coast orcas back from the brink. But we need you with us.
Please give today to our Endangered Species Defense Fund.
For the wild,
Kierán Suckling
Executive Director
Center for Biological Diversity
Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
A new survey of the critically endangered mountain gorillas conducted in the Virunga Massif, a mountain range that passes through the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda, showed their numbers have increased about 25 percent since the last census in 2010. Then, there were only 480 gorillas but the most recent survey, conducted between 2015 and 2016, counted 604 gorillas.
When including the gorilla’s only other habitat in the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda, there are now 1,004 mountain gorillas in total.
Map of the Virunga Massif, home to 604 mountain gorillas according to the new survey.
Another 400 mountain gorillas live in the Bwindi Impenetrable
National Park, Uganda, also pictured on this map.
Map of the Virunga Massif, home to 604 mountain gorillas according to the new survey.
Another 400 mountain gorillas live in the Bwindi Impenetrable
National Park, Uganda, also pictured on this map.
Conservation efforts help mountain gorilla grow from 300 to 1004
Although it might not sound like much, this is a big win for conservation efforts. In 2008, there were only about 300 adults left across both the Bwindi and Virunga Mountain habitats.
Alison Mollon, Director of Operations for Africa at Fauna & Flora International (FFI), praised her organization’s role in this turnaround, saying “Since FFI first began working to protect mountain gorillas in the 1970s, we have seen a remarkable transformation in the fortunes of this great ape, which at that time was on the very precipice of extinction.”
The conservations efforts have been wide-ranging, numerous, and required the participation of many stakeholders. Some of the strategies to protect the mountain gorilla included regulating tourism to the area, veterinary interventions, NGO collaboration, law enforcement of protections, and the active park rangers who monitored the park daily to remove traps and prevent poaching, just to name a few.
The parks’ managers have been especially instrumental in implementing conservation plans. The Director of Virunga National Park, Prince Emmanuel de Merode, and the head of the park’s Air Wing to monitor the park aerially and quickly get to areas that are difficult to reach on foot, Anthony Caere, are hailed for their environmental work preserving the mountain gorilla and its habitat.
“When I first visited the mountain gorillas in 1979, the situation was dire; the number of these remarkable animals was dreadfully small,” the vice president of FFI and a WWF ambassador Sir David Attenborough commented. “It is incredibly heartening therefore to see how the efforts of so many different groups – communities, governments, NGOs – have paid off. The threats to mountain gorillas haven’t disappeared entirely, of course, so now the challenge must be to ensure that these achievements are sustained long into the future.”
Survey team spent two years documenting mountain gorillas
To count the gorilla population, 12 teams walked a planned path through the Virguna Massif. The teams made two sweeps, once from October to December 2015 and again from March to May 2016. During their walks, the teams looked for signs of gorillas, illegal activities, and signs of other mammals such as elephants. When a team found droppings or other signs of gorillas, they tracked them. They found three recent nest sites, where they took samples to see how many different gorillas inhabited the nests.
In total, the survey team found 604 individual gorillas living in 41 groups and 14 solitary males.
Although the survey took place 2 years ago, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda didn’t release the results until June of 2018 to give researchers time to analyze the genetic samples.
Conservation efforts must continue to protect the mountain gorilla
“This is fabulous news for mountain gorillas and shows what we can do for wildlife when NGOs, governments and their communities work together,” Margaret Kinnaird, the Wildlife Practice Leader for WWF said, warning that despite the success, “the high number of snares encountered and the numerous other threats they face including climate change indicate that the battle is far from won.”
To continue this progress and increase the gorilla species further, Kinnaird advised that “The three gorilla range countries and their partners must continue to work together to safeguard the Virunga Massif – not only for the protection of these incredible creatures but also for the welfare of the local people with whom they share the landscape. The mountain gorilla story can be a model for how to restore and maintain our earth’s precious biodiversity.”
Posted on June 12, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Tiger selfies: Chinese, Indian tourists lead cruel social media trend that’s driving Thailand’s captive-wildlife industry
As tourists flock to venues such as Tiger Kingdom in Thailand in quest for ever more audacious photos to post on Facebook and Instagram, animal-rights groups claim the internet craze is the cause of a ‘lifetime of suffering’ for the felines
On the shabby outskirts of a seaside resort in Thailand, a Chinese couple in beachwear lean across the back of an adult tiger. The big cat yawns with weary insouciance as two handlers cajole it around its pen and prod it with bamboo sticks. In a smaller enclosure, another couple giggle as they dangle their infant son over a juvenile tiger. Nearby, a tourist in his 20s poses as if in mid roar over two dozing young tigers before – prompted by the handlers – grabbing their tails and putting them up to his mouth, as guffawing friends watch on.
This is the disturbing new face of wildlife tourism in Thailand, where tigers are hand-reared to provide social-media images for foreign visitors. Every day, busloads of tourists are whisked away from their sunloungers to spend an hour or so posing for pictures with unchained, surprisingly docile tigers. By the time they get back to their seaside hotels and settle down for sunset cocktails, many will have already uploaded pictures of themselves with the animals to Facebook and Instagram, to impress – or appal – their friends back home.
Tiger Kingdom, in Phuket, is one of more than a dozen “tiger selfie” attractions that have sprung up across the Southeast Asian country in recent years, driven by booming numbers of package-tour arrivals from mainland China and India, and the desire for ever more audacious social-media shots.
Along with elephant-riding venues, they provide bite-sized encounters with captive wildlife – albeit at a price. Tiger Kingdom charges 900 baht (HK$220) per person to pose with a small tiger, plus 500 baht should you need an in-house photographer to take pictures, and offers encounters with newborn tigers for 2,500 baht and with a “giant tiger” for 2,000 baht.
The attractions appear hugely popular with tourists from across the globe, although TripAdvisor posts suggest it is an experience some regret immediately afterwards.
“[It] is a tiger jail […] Tigers looked like [they] were drugged,” one Italian tourist wrote after visiting Tiger Kingdom last month. “Never, ever in my life again.”
An April visitor from Britain called the attraction cruel, also remarking: “Tigers kept mostly in concrete-floor cages. All seemed dopey almost like they [were] drugged up […] Not impressed when asked [by handlers] to pull tiger’s tail […] This is degrading to a beautiful powerful animal […] Disgusted – had to walk out in anger.”
For many others, however, getting up close to a tiger is clearly a highlight of their holiday and the largely positive reviews praising the “awesome experience” and “lifelong memories” of parks such as Tiger Kingdom – which categorically denies drugging its tigers – has triggered a campaign by Hong Kong-based Animals Asia Foundation to get TripAdvisor to stop listing the venues.
More than 40,000 people have signed a petition by the charity calling on the world’s largest travel website to stop hosting animal attractions featuring elephant rides and tiger selfies, which, they say, promotes “the exploitation of many thousands of wild captive animals in Asia and elsewhere”.
For its part, TripAdvisor says that delisting such places would be counterproductive, arguing that tourists who are forewarned are forearmed.
Another charity, World Animal Protection, estimates that there are now more than 800 tigers “posing” for selfies in venues across Thailand, and says they endure “a lifetime of suffering starting with early removal from their mothers followed by unrelenting handling and stressful interactions with visitors”.
As they grow, the animals are confined to small, barren cages, chained and subjected to harsh training, the charity says in a report. It also estimates that captive tiger numbers grew by more than 200 between 2010 and 2016 because of the booming popularity of big-cat selfies.
“When they visit tiger venues, people seem to think it’s a great experience for them to take a selfie with a tiger and use the photo on their social media,” says Somsak Soonthornnawaphat, head of campaigns for World Animal Protection Thailand. “They don’t understand the cruelty behind the scenes. “They do it for a fun photo, but the baby tigers have been taken away from their mothers from a very early age and live in a cage often with a chain. We did a poll and 93 per cent of tourists say they want to experience wildlife tourism because they love animals. They don’t know how they are trained and treated.”
Somsak says most visitors from China and India come with group tours.
“They buy a package and it includes different activities, and one of the top activities is visiting a wildlife venue like a tiger park,” he says. “Popular parks like Tiger Kingdom have very good marketing in the country where the tourists come from. They offer good commission to the tour operators and guides, and even taxi drivers as an incentive to bring people to the venues.”
World Animal Protection has launched educational campaigns in China and India, to discourage tourists and tour operators from patronising parks in which captive tigers and elephants are used for entertainment, but Somsak says the scale of the industry surrounding such operations presents a massive challenge.
“In China, there is a very big population and a huge number of tour operators, but only four tour operators have agreed to cooperate with us so far,” he says. “There is still a long way to go for them to understand and offer only animal-friendly venues to their customers.”
Even seasoned observers such as Somsak struggle to understand why the tigers are so passive when they are hugged and tugged by tourists in the selfie parks.
“It’s not natural behaviour,” he says. “Tigers are very strong animals and very active, and don’t usually behave the way you see them behaving in tiger venues.
“We don’t know if they use drugs or not, and we don’t have any evidence that they do. But when they are in the wild, tigers hunt in the nighttime and sleep in the daytime. In captivity, they mostly feed them chickens, and when they are full they don’t react.”
Thailand’s relatively lax animal welfare laws mean there is no mechanism for checking on the health of the animals kept in entertainment venues.
“It is the Thai government’s responsibility to oversee the operation of public zoos, including all the tiger parks, but they don’t visit regularly or check on the tigers’ health,” says Somsak. “They only look at licence issues.
“The zoos need to register and renew their registration every five years. They do checks but mostly they just check the enclosures and the condition of the venue. Then they make a decision on whether to continue the licence.”
TripAdvisor introduced an animal-welfare policy in 2016 and stopped selling tickets and issuing “certificates of excellence” to attractions such as Tiger Kingdom, which still proudly displays its 2015 certificate next to the animals’ cages. The travel company has also introduced a paw logo to indicate listings featuring wild animals, with links to expert advice on animal welfare from organisations including World Animal Protection.
Somsak believes TripAdvisor – which launched a Chinese site, DaoDao.com, in 2009 and expects China to soon become its biggest market – should go further.
“They should issue stronger advice to tourists about the venues,” he says.
Animals Asia’s animal welfare director Dave Neale has held talks with senior TripAdvisor officials to make the same case, and to present a petition calling for listings of attractions such as Tiger Kingdom to be removed altogether. He says the online giant is “floundering” on the issue.
“TripAdvisor says this should all be self-regulated by the public,” Neale explains. “They say it is better to have them on TripAdvisor with a bad review so people know, but in reality that isn’t working. They are getting very high ratings. They get occasional bad reviews but, generally, the ratings are good because people are ill-informed.
“The public aren’t always aware of animal-welfare issues, and some of these places go out of their way to try to make it sound like the animals have all been rescued and are being looked after. We investigated a swimming-with-dolphins place in Bali. On the way out, tourists are told the dolphins are free to go out to sea at night and come in during the day to interact with people. Obviously, that couldn’t possibly happen, but people believe it and think, ‘Wow, it’s lovely that the dolphins just love to be here.’ It’s easy to pull the wool over the eyes of the public when in reality animals are suffering and being made to do things they don’t want to do.”
Neale describes the craze for tiger selfies as bizarre.
“People do seem to leave their common sense behind when they get on a plane sometimes,” he says. “Imagine if someone rocked up in Oxford Street, in London, with a tiger and tried to get people to have their pictures taken with it. No one would go near it.
But get on a plane and people lose their heads and think if everyone’s doing it, it must be OK. And then, when everyone sees their pictures on social media, they seem to think it must be all right.”
The placid behaviour of the tigers in the parks is “quite amazing”, Neale concedes. “Drugging used to happen a lot and then it got exposed. Whether places are still drugging them and hiding it, I don’t know. A lot of the animals seem fully aware of what’s happening and seem uninterested in the public. I guess it is just due to the fact they hand-rear them. But that doesn’t make it right from the animal’s point of view.
“The fact you have to have someone standing around with a stick says a lot. It isn’t giving the animal free choice. It has to be there or be subjected to physical abuse.
“Rather than just taking pleasure out of having your photograph taken with the tiger, you should find somewhere they are in a natural setting and watch them being tigers.
“People should consider where they are kept when the places are closed. They are generally kept in small cages and the likelihood is they spend 16 hours a day in a very poor environment with limited ability to carry out any natural behaviour and interact with other animals.”
How the Trump administration is sidelining science and favoring industry over farmers and the public.
The USDA should rely on science to help farmers and meet the nation’s food needs. Instead, under Secretary Sonny Perdue, it’s more like the Department of Agribusiness.
Posted on June 10, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
A female scientist at the Department of Dermatology at Münster University has been banned from keeping and caring for animals. These animals have been bred and kept for animal experiments.
This follows from an ordinance order of the city of Münster, which the administrative court of Münster has provisionally confirmed (Ref .: 1 L 2222/17).
The court’s press release described frightening details about how experimental animals were handled earlier in the lab.
So to the details of the case: After an anonymous tip, the university had on June 20, 2017 at the Veterinary Office of the city of Münster, a self-indictment reimbursed, on an unauthorized livestock in the basement of the Department of Dermatology of the University of Medicine. In a check on the same day by two official veterinarians, 36 cages with a total of 77 mice were discovered in a cellar room of the skin clinic.
Three mice had to be killed to end their suffering.
According to the veterinarians, three of the mice were in a general condition that required their immediate killing.
One of these mice apparently was in the state five to seven days after a surgical procedure.
The animal had already suffered significant pain and suffering in the long term.
Another animal had high-grade stereotypes, which had expressed itself in the form of “running in circles “and could not be interrupted by external stimulus.
The third animal had a thumbnail-sized, necrotizing skin lesion in the neck area and lay in laterally curved posture with narrowed eyelids.
Most of the animals could be assigned to a female scientist.
After further investigations could be assigned to a female scientist 22 boxes with 40 of the 77 mice. The woman had the animals taken from the approved animal husbandry department of the dermatology clinic and had them transported to the relevant cellar room. By decree of 11 December 2017, the city of Münster then prohibited the scientist from holding and looking after animal experimental animals and ordered the immediate execution of this order.
Scientist defends herself in court – for the time without success.
The woman defends herself against this measure.
Their application for provisional legal protection, the administrative court Münster has now dismissed.
In essence, the court essentially stated:
The attitude prohibition as well as the supervision ban is obviously legitimate.
As a keeper of animal experimental mice, the woman has grossly violated animal welfare requirements and has given the mice significant and prolonged pain and suffering as well as considerable damage.
The female scientist, as the previous holder of the mice, is the right addressee of the animal keeping ban, the court said. The animals were assigned to her.
This is shown by the inscription of the cage boxes, from which the test houses were taken, and the information given in the documents.
According to current judgment of the court, she has also been the one who has given the instruction whether, when and which animals should be brought into the basement room.
Judges talk about illicit animal husbandry for years
Conclusion of the judges: The entire behavior of the female scientist is characterized by a significant deficiency of justice.
Her unlawful acts have apparently happened repeatedly for years.
It is about unauthorized livestock from the background and in a basement room.
The person concerned may appeal this decision within two weeks of being notified to the Higher Administrative Court for the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.
University set up commission of inquiry – First Results
After the allegations became known, the university also responded and convened a commission of inquiry.
Their results were presented one day before the publication of the court order and summarized by the “Rheinische Post”: “All animals were used only for approved animal experiments. However, because it was more convenient for the researchers, the animals had been kept in an unauthorized room for at least ten years. As a result, they were deprived of control. With the exception of six animals, all mice were in good condition when they were discovered. “
In addition, a responsible of the University is quoted as saying: “Some of the involved employees may no longer to the animals – for researchers whose career is linked to animal experiments, a very harsh penalty.” Further consequences under the law were examined. In addition, they wanted to “enforce a changed culture in dealing with experimental animals: Everyone from the zoo keeper to the professor must always be aware of his responsibility and wonder if everything is done properly.”
My comment:
I find it idiotic and outrageous to call the torture and murder of laboratory animals “culture in dealing with experimental animals”.
Really! an expression for idiots!
It’s always about the career, not the research.
The quality of research is not measured by how many people are helped by experiments.
But in the number of publications in renowned magazines.
The level of subsidies also depends on this.
The results of the animal experiments are never published. Only the name of the sadist or the psychopath who conducts the experiments is published.
And on this way do psychopaths career.
Until one covers, and brings them to trial, as in the case of the animal female torturer in the Münster lab.
Serbia latest: ‘Make Fur History’ event in Belgrade boosts keep the ban campaign
Respect for Animals Campaigns Director, Mark Glover, has today (7 June 2018) been in Belgrade countering the misinformation from fur industry lobbyists, who are desperately seeking to delay or cancel the upcoming fur farming ban in Serbia. Along with local campaigners, Mark presented the Fur Free Alliance’s Make Fur History exhibition to political figures and media representatives. Mark was joined by Stevan Lilic, Ljibjana Gledic, as well as Tamara Jevtovic, Snezana Milovanovic and Maida Sabeta from Freedom for Animals.
Serbia had already passed legislation banning fur farming due to come into effect in January 2019, but the ban is now at severe risk. On Tuesday, the agricultural committee decided to proceed with the deletion of the existing Serbian fur farming ban after a discussion full of false information supplied by fur trade lobbyists. In sensational and outrageous scenes, animal advocacy organisations were shockingly banned from proceedings. This decision will go to the Ministry for further procedure. The Ministry will create the ‘proposal’ which will then be delivered back to the parliament, probably in the early autumn.
The Make Fur History event was quickly considered to have been a success. Genuine political and media interest was generated and the misinformation by the fur trade comprehensively exposed.
The Make Fur History exhibition was launched earlier this year in the European Parliament by the Fur Free Alliance and Eurogroup for Animals. The exhibition exposes the facts about how real fur is produced and explains why more national bans on fur factory farming are needed across Europe.
Chinchillas are the only animals kept for fur in Serbia. The intense battery cage system used on fur farms deprives chinchillas from the opportunity to express their natural behaviour – such as running and jumping – and causes severe welfare problems. International studies have shown behavioural disorders, such as stereotypies, pelt-biting and infant mortality, are highly common on chinchilla fur farms. Learn more about welfare problems on chinchilla fur farms.
Mark Glover said:
This exhibition allows us to reveal the reality on fur factory farms, to present the facts about the animals bred and killed for their fur and to show why the fur industry belongs in the past. I strongly urge the Serbian government to keep the ban, due to come into effect in January 2019.
Posted on June 9, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Incredible recovery of dog dying in gutter: Phoenix’s Story
We got an urgent call that a dog was laying in a sewage ditch.
When our rescue team arrived they saw that she was only in a foot of water, but was actually starting to drown. Her nose dipped wearily into the water. Bubbles were emerging. If we had arrived even 5 minutes later, it’s possible she would have drowned.
When we lifted her out we could see that she had a completely fractured leg, hanging only by loose tissue. Maybe she had been hit by a car, was confused, lay in the water in a desperate effort to stop the bleeding or ease the pain.
Once back in Animal Aid we determined that she was in shock–her pulse was weak and she was hypothermic. We feared we might lose her. She urgently needed an amputation but was too weak to withstand surgery. So we spent several days stabilizing her–a balancing act between strengthening her, and holding the infection and pain at bay.
Her operation took place 3 days later and now–it’s like a miracle–meet Phoenix!
A dog lay in a coma by the side of a busy road, completely unresponsive.
We gently lifted him and rushed him to Animal Aid. We examined him from head to toe but found no sign of broken bones and suspected a head injury, so we treated him with a medicine that reduces brain swelling.
He didn’t awaken for 24 hours. And by the third day he—well, watch and see for yourself what Roxy’s pure radiant joy looks like today.
Posted on June 9, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Kangaroos are one of the most famous marsupials and are typical representatives of the Australian fauna. Farmers and landowners, however, claim they are pests and are cruelly slaughtered to secure farmland and feed for millions of livestock in the arid landscape. The killing of Australian kangaroos is the largest massacre of wildlife in the world: 1.5 million kangaroos are legally and systematically shot every year by the Australian Kangaroo Industry (Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia). Meat, skin and leather are traded internationally. There are also illegal killings by farmers, who see the animals as competitors. Especially the red giant kangaroo, eastern and western gray giant kangaroos and mountain kangaroos are hunted.
Germany as a market for kangaroo products
About 40 percent of the kangaroo meat is exported abroad and offered there either as a pet food or as an exotic delicacy. In the period from 2013 to 2016, Germany was the world’s third largest importer of kangaroo meat and leather, making it one of the kangaroo industry’s leading trading partners. Germany imported 19 percent of the world’s meat during this period. It is offered in well-known supermarket-chains such as Lidl, Netto, ALDI, Hit, REWE, Metro and Fressnapf as well as in restaurants predominantly as steaks or as dog food. In addition, Germany imports 10 percent of imports of kangaroo apparel and leather, as well as 14 percent of kangaroo skin used by, among others, Adidas, Nike and Puma for football boots or sold by companies other than outdoor and motorcycle clothing.
In 2016, about 1.5 million animals were legally killed, according to data from the Australian government. Scientists and animal rights activists in Australia complain about the extinction of populations from formerly rich areas. They fear that the mass killing endangers the long-term survival of the kangaroos. In large areas of Australia, such as Tasmania or Victoria, the stocks have fallen significantly: In 2010, the Red Kangaroo had disappeared in 56 percent of its original range, the gray giant kangaroo even in 69 percent.
There are fewer and fewer kangaroos
Exact population numbers are missing.
The official estimates of the government, according to experts are greatly inflated. But only on this official basis the shooting rates are calculated.
Thus, counts are made selective in areas of high population densities or low kill rates.
Environmental impacts, increasing habitat loss, and illegal shooting by farmers and landowners are not taken into account in the state-sanctioned pursuit of kangaroos:
Between 2001 and 2010 stocks fell dramatically, from an estimated 57 million to 34 million. Kangaroos are severely affected by environmental factors such as drought and exposed to ever-increasing pressure. Their habitat has already been drastically decimated in recent years, mainly due to urban development and increasing agriculture. Kangaroos are reproducing very slowly and the juvenile mortality rate is very high at more than 73 percent.
Cruel hunt at night
Notwithstanding all risks and criticisms, the Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia continues to promote the expansion of international trade in kangaroo products.
The killing of the kangaroos is extremely cruel: the animals are mostly shot in the dark of the night in remote desert regions. The Australian government’s regulations require killing adult animals with a direct headshot in order to save them unnecessary suffering. But this is very often not the case. Investigations by animal rights activists in Australia have shown that not all shot kangaroos are killed by the head, but at night precise targeting is difficult anyway. Countless animals suffer a long death struggle by neck or body shots. Even pregnant and breastfeeding mothers are hunted, the killing or the unprotected leaving the young animals tolerated as collateral damage. According to the rules of the procedure, kittens are to be beheaded from the mother’s pouch or killed by a blunt brain trauma, but in reality, young animals are often left behind and starve to death or are hit with their heads against a car. It is estimated that about 800,000 juveniles whose mother was killed die each year.
The killing is also often under unhygienic and health-related conditions that challenge the processing into meat: The marsupials are often gutted without controls and by insufficiently trained personnel in the field and uncooled on open vehicles without protection against flying or dirt at large Heat transported. 75 percent of human pathogens originate from wild animals, and kangaroos also carry many parasites and diseases. Tests in retail and supermarkets often show high levels of coliform and salmonella. Also impurities by shot cartridges are not uncommon.
Russia therefore stopped importing kangaroo meat in 2014.In 2015, California also stopped importing all kangaroo products. Meanwhile, there are synthetic alternatives for the coveted kangaroo leather, which unfortunately is still used by many manufacturers, as in Germany for example, where the trade in kangaroo products is still booming!
In order to remove the lucrative basis for the cruel death of millions of kangaroos, import bans from other countries and the renunciation of kangaroo’s meat and leather are urgently required.
Posted on June 8, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Here is ‘Kate the Bush’ – one of the foxes who comes round each night for something to eat.
She lays down on the path just like a dog; waiting until the door is opened and some food is given to her.
We keep a health check on them all who visit – making sure there is no sign of mange. If it did ever appear then we can treat with Arsenicum drops on the food for 2-3 weeks. Fortunately nothing is showing in the way of illness. Good eaters, healthy and carefully monitored.
She has quite a nice ‘Bush’ tail; and the ‘official’ Kate Bush is a Kent girl favourite singer of ours – so what better name than Kate the Bush !
…….. and the real Kate Bush – with Dave Gilmour of Pink Floyd on guitar.
Kate has been a Vegetarian for over 30 years. That’s why she looks so good !
Posted on June 7, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Animal experiments could not protect patients
The multiple sclerosis drug daclizumab (tradename Zinbryta) was withdrawn from the market worldwide in March 2018 after it had rapidly lost its patients’ deaths and serious side effects within a very short time. The symptoms were mainly meningitis and severe liver damage, up to acute liver failure. The previously conducted animal experiments on monkeys could not protect the patients from it, because they only fell ill with skin lesions. No other species was used for approval by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) because daclizumab is very specific only in humans and primates. There are no known animal experiments on other animal species during development – but they are likely. In the interest of humans and animals, the drug approval system must be put to the test.
Daclizumab (Zinbryta), a multiple sclerosis (MS) drug, was fully approved by the EMA in July 2016. This is despite the fact that serious side effects have already been reported in human clinical trials.
German market extremely attractive for the pharmaceutical industry
In contrast to other countries, German law allows a new drug to be sold directly after approval. And this at a price, that the manufacturer is allowed to determine. Only after one year does the manufacturer have to make a cost-benefit assessment.
The German market is therefore extremely attractive for pharmaceutical companies. They have a great economic interest in having a large number of patients prescribed their new medication in a short time. It is not surprising that Zinbryta was prescribed 2890 times in Germany alone. Throughout the rest of the EU there were a total of 400 regulations!
To achieve their goal, pharmaceutical companies are using a completely legal bribery method called applicationmonitoring. Doctors and clinics are paid to prescribe a specific medicine and then document the application. For Zinbryta, this was 1.320.000 euros per patient over 5 years.
The benefit that one supposedly gets through such a pseudo study, namely the recording of efficacy, safety and tolerability in everyday clinical practice is just as much a farce as the study itself. Because according to experts, these industry-paid studies are worthless, as a very much of the results will never be published! Although declared as a study, a so-called application observation is nothing more than a marketing strategy of the pharmaceutical industry.
In 2016 alone, there were 500 observational studies, with at least 25 million euros being distributed to the doctors!!
Drug development from ground up renew.
In March 2017, Biogen and AbbVie Zinbryta withdrew from the market worldwide due to the devastating side effects, and ongoing clinical trials were discontinued. Far too late, considering the over 2,800 MS patients in Germany who have put their hope in this new therapy.
Those responsible have learned nothing from this new drug scandal.
This would be an appropriate time to innovate the drug development system from the ground up. Because before the studies on humans, extensive animal experiments are carried out, which are partly prescribed. And even with Zinbryta shows again that they fool the patient only a false security. Because the “long-tailed macaques” diseased “only” to skin lesions. No damaging effect on the liver or the meninges was found even after long-term administration.
No wonder, because animals and humans usually differ considerably in their metabolism and thus also in the effectiveness and harmfulness of certain substances. Thus, according to a study, only 43% of the side effects of substances on humans in mice or rats are comprehensible. So, a coin toss would provide more accurate results.
Artificial production of MS on mice
In 2014, the transferability of the results of three “animal models”, who used very frequently in MS research, was questioned at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (Germany).
For example: by injecting a special protein, which causes the immune system to attack its own nerve cells.
In another “model”, a virus infection of the central nervous system is caused in the animals.
And in the third case, mice are so genetically engineered that their bodies overproduce a certain substance that plays a central role in inflammatory reactions.
All these artificially produced symptoms of the animals, however, have nothing in common with the causes and history of the actual illness “multiple sclerosis” in humans. Even after decades of research, these are largely still in the dark, as they have hitherto relied almost exclusively on results from animal experiments. And so, it is not surprising that the mentioned study also comes to the conclusion that the results from the animal experiments have an extremely poor transferability to humans. And that not only on humans, but also the individual “animal models” differ considerably from each other.
There are now more meaningful, human-based methods. In the days of highly sensitive imaging, multi-organ chips, and computer simulation, multiple sclerosis research and the identification of potential drugs can be made much more effective, reproducible, and safer.
However, as long as animal testing in drug development as a so-called “security hurdle” are installed, as long as the application of new drugs in humans will be like a lottery game. A paradigm shift is long overdue!
Posted on June 7, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
World Oceans Day takes place every 8 June. It has been celebrated unofficially since its original proposal in 1992 by Canada’s International Centre for Ocean Development (ICOD) and the Ocean Institute of Canada (OIC) at the Earth Summit – UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.[1] The Brundtland Commission, i.e. the World Commission on Environment and Development, provided the inspiration for a global oceans day. The 1987 Brundtland Report noted that the ocean sector lacked a strong voice compared to other sectors. At the first World Oceans Day in 1992, the objectives were to move the oceans from the sidelines to the center of the intergovernmental and NGO discussions and policy and to strengthen the voice of ocean and coastal constituencies world wide.
Ever since the United Nations declared June 8th to be World Oceans Day in 2002, people and groups from around the world have used the occasion to celebrate the ocean and take steps to protect it. Now, with the ocean facing more threats than ever, it’s time for all of us to come together to protect our treasured marine environment.
We celebrate World Oceans Day to remind everyone of the major role the oceans have in everyday life. They are the lungs of our planet, providing most of the oxygen we breathe. The purpose of the Day is to inform the public of the impact of human actions on the ocean, develop a worldwide movement of citizens for the ocean, and mobilize and unite the world’s population on a project for the sustainable management of the world’s oceans. They are a major source of food and medicines and a critical part of the biosphere. In the end, it is a day to celebrate together the beauty, the wealth and the promise of the ocean.
Action focus for 2018: preventing plastic pollution and encouraging solutions for a healthy ocean
Plastic pollution is causing tremendous harm to our marine resources. For example:
80% of all pollution in the ocean comes from people on land.
8 million tonnes of plastic per year ends up in the ocean, wreaking havoc on wildlife, fisheries and tourism.
Plastic pollution costs the lives of 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals per year.
Fish eat plastic, and we eat the fish.
Plastic causes $8 billion in damage to marine ecosystems each year.
The National Park Service (“NPS”) instituted regulatory provisions in 2015 to ban certain extreme hunting practices in the State of Alaska, recognizing that Alaska “has allowed an increasing number of liberalized methods of hunting and trapping wildlife … [that] are not consistent with the NPS’s implementation of [the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act’s] authorization of sport hunting and trapping in national preserves.” These banned practices include killing wolf and coyote pups and mothers in their dens, shooting caribou from boats or from shore, using dogs and bait to hunt and kill bears, and using artificial lights to kill mother black bears and their cubs as they hibernate.
Now Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and the NPS are proposing to adopt a rule (RIN 1024-AE38) that rolls back the 2015 regulatory provisions, and would again allow egregious and scientifically unsound methods of hunting native predators in Alaska’s National Preserves.
RIN 1024-AE38 is in direct conflict with the NPS’s congressional mandate to conserve wildlife to preserve biological diversity, and to ensure that generations of Americans to come may experience the full beauty of Alaska.
WE NEED YOUR HELP NOW to ensure that these critical protections for Alaska’s wildlife aren’t eliminated!
Please let the NPS know you oppose RIN 1024-AE38 by submitting your comments to the proposed rule here before the July 23 deadline.
Suggested talking points (and please personalize your comments):
·I’m opposed to the National Park Service’s proposed rule to repeal the 2015 regulatory provisions that prohibit killing black bears and their cubs with artificial light at den sites, using bait to attract brown bears for an easy shot, killing wolf and coyote mothers and pups in their dens, using dogs to hunt black bears, and killing defenseless swimming caribou.
·The National Park Service should not reverse its original rule, which was carefully deliberated, based on the best available science, and subject to extensive public input.
·As an American, I appreciate our native carnivores and believe that they should be treated humanely and with an appreciation for the critical role they play in maintaining a healthy ecosystem.
·The National Park Service is directly contravening its own findings that the described methods of hunting and trapping frequently allowed by the Alaska Board of Game to increase opportunities to harvest predators are not consistent with the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.
·The 2015 protections currently in place only restrict sport hunting in national preserves, which constitute less than six percent of the area in Alaska open to hunting. These limitations are sufficient and reasonable.
·The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act and other federal laws mandate that the National Park Service preserve national lands, including national preserves, for the benefit of present and future generations.
·The proposed rule will increase public safety concerns resulting from baiting of bears. This practice was originally prohibited by the NPS to help protect the public from food-conditioned bears, which are more likely to cause human injury.
Please share this Action Alert — and thank you for helping protect Alaska’s wildlife!
EDMONTON — The Edmonton Humane Society says it has adopted new procedures after a team that was transporting animals to its shelter accidentally left three cats inside a vehicle, and they weren’t discovered for 22 days.
In a statement posted on Facebook, the society says the cats were dehydrated, hungry and had minor urine burns on their paws, but thankfully suffered no major injuries or illnesses.
The statement says the team brought the animals to the Edmonton shelter from another agency on March 27, but that the three cats were overlooked when the vehicle was unloaded.
It says they weren’t discovered until April 18 when staff were preparing for another animal transfer.
The society says its medical team closely monitored the cats to ensure a full recovery, and they were transferred to a partner agency when they were medically cleared.
It says the cats have been rehomed through the receiving agency’s regular adoption process.
“Following this incident, EHS conducted a full internal review of team members involved and of our internal processes and procedures to ensure that this does not happen again,” the statement said.
“We are incredibly grateful the cats made a full recovery.”
The society said in the statement that it conducted a review of the team members who were involved, as well as its internal procedures, to make sure a similar accident doesn’t happen again. It says additional checks and balances have been introduced.
The society said it couldn’t release additional information due “the sensitive nature of this incident and to respect the privacy of the employees involved and impacted.”
Questions have been brought forward to us regarding an unintentional and disheartening incident that recently occurred when transporting animals. In an effort to answer these questions, we wanted to share with you our full statement on what happened. Please see below…
Posted on June 6, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV Comment – we have been working with ‘Respect for Animals’ for months now regarding this issue. There are a great deal of lies given out by the Serbian Ministry over the amount of people that they think are employed in this business. We have all the facts and they have been given to Respect. The Serbians have had nearly ten years to do a phase out of the farming ready for the ban which was supposed to come in on 1st January 2019. Suddenly now after nine and a half years of the phase out, the Serbian Ministry is saying that it will attempt to overturn the projected ban coming into force next year. How typically Serbian government !! – we expected nothing more really, as this is what you get from a government of animal abusers. We have experienced this for over a decade.
Serbia: animal welfare organisations BANNED from ‘public’ sessions to consider keeping fur farms
The fur industry has been lobbying the Serbian government ruthlessly, in a desperate attempt to keep the right to breed chinchillas in shocking fur farm conditions and avoid another embarrassing defeat. A public session has been arranged at the Serbian parliament on Tuesday 5 June to debate extending the proven cruelty of chinchilla fur factory farming. Shockingly, in an affront to the most basic principles of democracy, animal protection organisations has been prevented from attending the ‘public’ session.
Serbia has passed legislation banning fur farming which comes into effect in January 2019. The ban is now at severe risk.
Chinchillas are the only animals kept for fur in Serbia. The intense battery cage system used on fur farms deprives chinchillas from the opportunity to express their natural behaviour – such as running and jumping – and causes severe welfare problems. International studies have shown behavioral disorders, such as stereotypies, pelt-biting and infant mortality, are highly common on chinchilla fur farms.
The public session about the fur farming ban is scheduled just two days prior to the Make Fur History expo, that will take place in Belgrade on Thursday, June 7.
The exhibition – that was launched in the European Parliament on January 23 and is now touring Europe – invites lawmakers and stakeholders to discuss the negative impact of fur farming on animals, the environment and local communities and shows the urgency for more national bans. Respect for Animals will be attending the event as part of the campaign to end chinchilla suffering at the hands of the barbaric fur industry.
With a 10-year phase-out period, Serbian fur farmers have been given the opportunity to transition to a more economically stable and sustainable industry. With less than one year left before the transitional period runs out, any change to the previously agreed upon legislation would raise serious questions regarding the Serbian legislative process.
We have already written to Serbian politicians and a joint letter from the international Fur Free Alliance has been delivered to the Serbian parliament.
As part of the Fur Free Alliance, Respect for Animals urges the Serbian government to stay true to its legislative commitment to ban the farming of animals for their fur, and save sentient beings from a cruel life and death.
Posted on June 5, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Hesse Environment Minister Mrs. Priska Hinz: “The higher the stock of wild boar, the faster the spread of the disease is possible. Therefore, it is still very important to keep the local wild boar density low throughout Germany, “said the Minister on May 26 at the State Hunters Day in Fulda, and cordially thanked the legal killers of the forest for done an unprecedented mass murder in the amount of 96,000 wild boars!
In the hunting season 2017/18, a record distance was achieved for wild boar: in Hesse, around 96,000 wild boars were killed, which represents an increase of around 30 percent over the previous year.
There are no more taboos on wild boar hunting for more than two decades, in Germany.
The number of “motor hunts” has increased in recent years. Forest owners, farmers’ associations and political leaders in the ministries are calling for intensive action against the alleged “pig pests”!
Germany – closed seasons are no longer respected and apply high premiums for killed pigs.
Yesterday, however, came an interesting message in the newspaper www.topagrar.com, which said:
“The Danish parliament has decided: The country wants to build a fence about 70 kilometers long against wild boars. He is to prevent wild boars from wandering from Schleswig-Holstein to Denmark. The fence is part of a package against African swine fever, which was agreed by the liberal-conservative minority government in Copenhagen and the supporting right-wing populist Danish People’s Party. Politicians fear, that migratory animals infected with the disease are threatening the billion-dollar pork industry in Denmark”.
A much better-informed guy about the african pest, Schleswig-Holstein’s Environment Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) criticized the Dane as a “politically difficult signal” … “So far, there were only cases of swine fever in Eastern Europe, in Germany is still no disease of a pig known”!!
Why then the mass murder of 96,000 living beings in his neighbor country Hesse?
Obviously, the one, the unsuspecting Mrs. Priska Hinz, did not know that not a single fattening pig in Germany leaves his concentration camps in his entire short life, and therefore does not come in contact with meadow and other wild pigss, and therefore the fattening pigs can not get the plague.
The other, the Mr. Robert Hack, regardless of the motives of his honesty, is annoyed by his neighbor’s improper “political deeds”, but forcibly forgets the senseless genocide from the gun of his Hesse neighbors to 96,000 creatures, which will go into the criminal history of hunters.
After all the crap that we read in the press every day, we come to the conclusion that even a pig pest proves to be an unfit competitor to the politician pest.
Parliamentary debates don’t lead directly to changes in law, but they can influence decision-making and raise the profile of a campaign.
In this case, the campaign reflects a larger movement that seems to keep gaining momentum. In the past year, major fashion brands like Gucci, Michael Kors, and Versace have said that they’re no longer using fur in their collections. Meanwhile, the city of San Francisco banned all sales of fur, and both Norway and the Czech Republic announced plans to end fur farming in their countries. In the UK, London’s popular Camden market banned sales of fur as of March.
Opponents of fur believe that farming and trapping is cruel and unethical. At the same time, technology has produced faux furs so good that even the fanciest of luxury brands, such as Tom Ford, see them as viable substitutes—giving rise to the argument that, at this point, using fur is simply outdated. “Do you think using furs today is still modern?” Gucci CEO Marco Bizzari said to Business of Fashion last year (paywall) when talking about thecompany’s decision to stop using fur. “I don’t think it’s still modern and that’s the reason why we decided not to do that.”
Not all shoppers agree. In China and other parts of Asia, sales of fur items, such as coats, remain strong. There are still plenty of buyers for fur in places like Europe and the US, too, especially when the fur is used as a trim. Canada Goose parkas, with their hoods edged in coyote fur, are a common sight in the colder parts of America. And not long before Gucci ditched fur, it had a sales hit with its kangaroo-fur-lined loafers. They were one of the items that proved the brand was back on the upswing after its new creative director, Alessandro Michele, took over in 2015.
The UK itself prohibited fur farming in 2000, but still allows fur imports, which is where the dispute before Parliament now lies. The petition that prompted the debate says imports are coming from countries that aren’t safeguarding animals.
Mike Moser, CEO of the British Fur Trade Association, called it “seriously flawed,” in a statement issued by the group. The petition “erroneously states that much of the fur imported into the UK comes from countries ‘that have very weak or no animal welfare laws at all’ as justification for a fur import ban,” he said. “In fact, all fur farms, wherever they are, must be licensed by authorities and independently inspected in order to operate.”
But critics of the fur industry point to investigations that keep turning up cases of animal abuse, despite regulations. Last week, 50 veterinarians and animal behaviorists sent a letter (pdf) to Michael Gove, the UK’s secretary of state for environment, food, and rural affairs, saying there are “severe animal welfare deficiencies inherent to the fur trade.”
They supported Humane Society International UK’s call for a ban on fur imports to Britain.
Posted on June 4, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Grey wolf cubs – hiding from the idiot Trump
Dear Mark,
In an attempt to reverse yet another Obama regulation, the Trump administration has proposed to strike rules that forbid inhumane hunting methods on federal land in Alaska.
This proposal would allow bear and wolf families to be gunned down where they sleep.
Cruel hunting methods like bait, hounds and artificial lights would be used to target bears. And even swimming caribou could be shot by hunters chasing them in motorboats.
Please – Don’t Visit the UK
It’s all part of a new Trump policy to expand hunting on public lands and defer to states anytime there’s a conflict. But this is just cruel.
The iconic wildlife of Denali National Park and Preserve and other national park lands are public treasures. Officials need to hear that you value these animals in the wild and don’t want to see them killed by thrill-seeking trophy hunters.
Act now to demand that the National Park Service withdraw this heartless proposal.
Posted on June 3, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
South Africa is the world’s leading producer of mohair.
A shocking report by PETA Asia shows for the first time the full horror behind the scenes of the South African mohair industry. Workers dragged goats to and fro, threw them to the ground, mutilated them, and even cut the throat of the animals with full consciousness. Some yelled out loud. The groundbreaking footage shows only part of the abuse found on all 12 eyewitness-visited angora farms.
Systematic animal suffering Many goats were pierced with a pair of pliers sharp needles through the ears. The animals are in great pain. According to a farmer, the animals are supposed to scream terribly.
Another farmer said his goats “scream and roll around” when neutered without anesthetics. After all, it was “damn painful.” Another farmer explained, “We … cut … [the ear] just off” if there is any suspicion that it has cancer. A farmer cut a goat’s head – apparently without painkillers – with a knife. So, she wanted to drain the liquid from what she called an “abscess” !!!
Thousands of dead animals before and after the shearing One farmer said that in some farms, at least 25 percent of goats would die before the first shearing. The first shearing is usually done at six months.
The Shearing robs the goats of their natural cold protection. Farmers admitted that many goats freeze to death after the shearing, when it’s cold, windy and rainy. One man said that in South Africa, 40,000 goats died of hypothermia in just one weekend. Another said that on some farms up to 80 percent of goats would die after the shearing. Other goats succumbed to their injuries or died of dehydration because they got stuck in thorns during foraging in the pasture. The workers even shaved the wool from the rotting corpses!!!
Bathed in chemicals and pressed under water
The fur of some goats was smeared with feces. To clean the mohair before the shearing, a farmer dipped goats into pelvis with cleaning solution. He dipped their head under the water and admitted it poisoned the animals if they swallow the solution.
Clippers are paid per piece, not per hour.
This promotes rapid and therefore murderous work. The goats have cuts on them and often bleed on the face and ears. The clippers cut off whole pieces of skin and, according to a farmer, even teats. The animals did not receive any painkillers before the workers began to sew their wounds on the filthy soil.
Unprofitable goats died a painful death
The goats that survive the repeated scissors are exploited for five or six years because of their hair. About 90 percent of the South African Angora goats who lived so long are then sold for slaughter.Slaughter is often not in approved establishments, but privately. On a farm, a worker with goats fully consciously cut his throat with a blunt knife and then broke his neck. He immediately chopped off an animal’s head. Another animal was conscious for over a minute after the first cut and kicked.
Other goats end up in the slaughterhouse. In the battlefield the eyewitness visited, the goats received an electric shock and were hung upside down on one leg. Then they slit their throats, bleeding them, and skinned them.
Mohair is not a byproduct of the meat industry
The garment industry and individual companies state in part that the hair they sell, the skin and feathers are by-products of the meat industry. But Angora goats are only bred for their hair and many do not even reach the slaughterhouse.
What can we do?
We can best help the angora goats by not buying mohair! Always check the label in the store. Good check. If the word “mohair” is written on it, we leave the product on the shelf.
Posted on June 3, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV Comment:
A beautiful story from Harmony Fund. We got this story because we give money each month to Harmony – they help animals and people caring for them all over the world.
Please try to support Harmony with a monthly donation – your money will help animals welfare work the world over.
We love sharing good-news updates on how your donations are transforming lives, and today you’ve saved not only several dogs in Romania, but also the woman who cares for them.
In our last newsletter, we told you the story of this sweet Romanian woman named Mandache who became homeless a few years ago when the government took her home through eminent domain for industrial expansion.
Rather than wallow in her own suffering, Mandache summoned all her strength each day to find food for dogs who were also homeless. She would go through town, scavenging for scraps for the animals, despite her own declining health and battle with cancer.
Mandache asked us for help with adopting one particularly gentle dog whom she thought might be harmed by other street dogs when she left for a few days for the allotment of government funded cancer treatment.
Since that time, several of our supporters asked how they could help Mandache and we were able to find a small place for her to live. It’s a kitchen with a little bed to sleep on and a bathroom area. There is running water and heat and It is safe from bad weather and the dangers of the street. She can properly rest and heal in this space. But what has happened since Mandache moved in is nothing short of amazing.
Every morning, Mandache leaves her kitchen early to begin her rounds of street feeding. She has no intention of surrendering her mission to help street dogs, and it is an honor to help her. We’ve already rescued several of the dogs she was feeding and they’ve received full veterinary care and are up for adoption. When we showed Mandache photos of some of the dogs happily settled in at their new homes, she cried with joy and kissed each photo.
In this line of work, we often come upon people like Mandache who devote every ounce of their being to helping others. It is a true privilege to help her to continue in this work. The rent for her room is only $65 a month. Our own Debbie Evans sent her a wonderful gift of essential living supplies and we are providing food and medicines for the dogs on an ongoing basis and continuing a rolling rescue program there.
Posted on June 2, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
It follows the letter of a hunter, in which he explains his reasons, why he has hung up “the gun on the nail”!
After 12 years I finally got up the courage to quit the hunting community. During this time, I could fully recognize the mentality of today’s hunter. I also had the opportunity to work with several hunting associations, so the remarks below do not apply to a small circle of hunters – in which I was a member – but I dare say that the hunter mentality is more or less the same everywhere is.
Why should not one become a hunter?
1.The claim that hunters are environmentalists or ecologists is ridiculous, as is the claim that hunters spend many volunteer hours in the hunting district for the benefit of wildlife, animals and the environment.
Everything the hunter does in the hunting district is directly or indirectly linked to hunting = “harvesting”, shooting or social gathering. By the way: The so-called environmental protection works consist largely of the construction or preservation of the hunters’ projects – which are where they are, anyway a disturbing element – or for food preparation, which is in most cases only a lure for the wild animals; the feeders for animals in the forest are surrounded by high seats (podiums in the forest, where hunters shoot at the animals while sitting). The various cleaning actions in the forest and the corridor are only sand in the eyes of the general public – and of course pure hunter propaganda.The hunters with their high seats, vehicles and their presence are the biggest natural pests among all earthlings!
2.Even more ridiculous is the assertion that the hunt, in the first place, cares for the wild animals and shooting is just one of their activities. The aim of the hunt is the execution or killing, possibly the most beautiful animals as a personal trophy – and nothing else.
3. Do not believe that hunting is a Samaritan service to sick, injured or distressed animals. For the situations in which the hunters could act as Samaritans, you do not need hunters (in Germany: about 360 000) with the shotgun, but only a few professionally trained people who have a right attitude to the animals.
I assert that no act of success in blood can be honorable-least of all hunting, where the animal as a victim is helpless and vulnerable to the hunter.
4. The hunter world is much worse than you can imagine. You will not become a true hunter with the completion of the course and the exam, BUT:
– If you only see the animal as a thing and then, when you have killed it, it brings prestige to other people, raises your self-esteem and causes envy of colleagues.
– If you are willing to neglect your family, work responsibilities and yourself because of the hunt.
– When slander, hypocrisy, and alcohol the only strength is for you, or at least not strange is to you.
– If the pain and agony of the animals do not touch you anymore.
Leaving the hunting society was a great relief for me, and I believe that there are many hunters who accidentally go into this “organization”: on the recommendation of friends – hunters, like me, for example – or family tradition.
If you are still a hunter, then consider it: If you want to be animal and nature lovers, as most hunters like to claim for themselves, then you can be it – but please without a gun!
My intention is not to convince the jaded hunters of their error. From experience, I know that this is hardly possible, because hunting is paramount in their lives – and I have often had an opportunity to see what these people in the green uniform are ready for.
I appeal to those who flirt with the “green” brotherhood. I assure you from my experience: If you doubt a little more whether the hunt is really the right thing for you, then you have no business in hunting. Because then you are – thank God – not brutal enough for the soulless hunters! “
Posted on June 2, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV comment – Scotland has its own Parliament. The English parliament is at Westminster, London. There is always a type of ‘competition’ between the Scots and the English parliaments; and what one often does, you will find it is soon repeated by the other. For so many years we have been campaigning to get wild animals banned from circuses in England. We now predict that as the Scottish parliament has undertaken this ban, England will very soon follow for a ban in England.
PS – we (the English) are always better at football and rugby than the Scots – this is a massive issue between UK sports fans. England-Scotland sporting fixtures are notorious for their conflicts.
For overseas visitors; each nation of the UK has its own flag – you can see the Scottish flag above.
England has the flag of St George as shown here:
When ALL the nations flags are united under one flag – the ‘Union flag’, or ‘Union Jack’ as it is affectionately known; it is flown as a united (UK) front. The Union flag is not just a representation of England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland individually; it is a flag showing the combined (nations) force. British forces have always fought together in theatre as a combined force – thus the union flag is the only one ever flown. There is (to many peoples surprise). a right and wrong way of flying this. Look at the positions of the red diagonals on the Union flag below; this (their positions) determines the right or wrong way to fly the flag ! – Here is the Union flag; flying correctly:
Amazing news!
The ban on wild animal circuses is now officially in force in Scotland! As of 28th May 2018, it is no longer legal for any travelling circus with wild animals to make them perform demeaning tricks for crowds.
Thank you for everything you have done to make this long overdue ban a reality! Such a fantastic victory!
But sadly, not all animals are safe. This ban only applies to wild animals in circuses, not domestic animals like horses, birds, dogs and cats.
Right now, Zippos Circus is touring with domestic animals and will be in Scotland from 5th June.
They have 11 venues lined up across Scotland for their cruel shows. By tracking their journey between venues, we have calculated they will cover 1043 miles in Scotland alone – the animals will spend all of those miles in trailers and vehicles.
This is no way for any animal to spend their life! It is known that domestic animals can be stressed on long journeys and that making animals perform tricks repeatedly can cause injury. And of course, it uses them as objects of entertainment.
Take Action to help these animals too!
Protests are being organised at the venues that Zippos will visit in Scotland – today we have been sending out leaflets and posters for these protests.
We must celebrate the wild animal circus ban for animals – your hard work does make a difference! But I can’t help but feel frustration when I know animal circuses in Scotland have not come to an end, as long as domestic animals are exploited.
So let’s celebrate and use that energy to keep up the fight, until all are free!
For the animals,
Nicola O’Brien
Campaigns Director
P.S. Well done to you on this fantastic news! Now let’s help domestic animals in circuses too!
Posted on June 1, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Excitement in the Eifel, the German part of North Rhine Westphalia: Several predators of a private zoo have broken out, it was said. There is confusion this afternoon about a small, privately operated zoo located about 30 kilometers northwest of Bitburg, near the Belgian border.
But only one bear was really upset – and is dead now.
Authorities have warned on Friday before erupting predators from the Eifel Zoo in Lünebach. A bear was shot, after two tigers, two lions and a jaguar were searched, because even with them an outbreak was suspected.
Later it turns out that the animals have never left their enclosure!!!
The administration of the district of Bitburg-Prüm can initially give no precise information, even in the zoo nobody is reachable. The confusion may be related to the previous night’s events. Heavy thunderstorms broke over the region. The Eifel Zoo was also affected by the floods.
The Eifel Zoo in Lünebach is home to about 60 exotic and native species and a total of about 400 animals on 30 acres, including Siberian tigers and lions. The founder of the zoo, the Cologne businessman Hans Wallpott, died last year. He had acquired parts of what is now the zoo site in 1965, which was formerly used for fish farming. Over the years, the zoo was expanded and expanded. To this day, the Eifel Zoo is family owned.
Because of the keeping conditions of the big cats and the small enclosures the zoo is again and again in the criticism of animal activists. This also appeals to this video in the YouTube channel “Zoo Experience”, in which zoos are presented. Zoo Boss Isabelle Wallpott said in 2010 after an accident at the Bear enclosure. “Of course, we cannot keep up with the scientific standards of large zoos, but we have statutory housing requirements and we respect them.”
At that time, a three-year-old girl had climbed over a fence that was about one meter high and entered the enclosure of the “Mike” collar bear. The father jumped immediately after, the girl suffered only minor injuries from a blow with his paw. In 2007, the almost 200-pound bear had mangled one arm of Zoo chef Wallpott.
What does a zoo do when animals escape the enclosure despite all safety measures?
Every zoo must have alarm plans for such cases. A deadly shot is always the last resort. First, they try to push the animals back, capture them or stun them. The narcotic works within five to ten minutes if the animal is hit well.
My comment:A private zoo with incompetent staff and even more incompetent leadership panics a whole country for an escape that never took place.
You can sell it as a fairy tale, but you have to look long for children who believe that.
A bear is killed in vain, but so far no leader gives a fair explanation for a mistake, that has cost the life of an animal.
Because a bear’s life is just only the life of an animal, that can quickly replace the profit-oriented zoo boss.
Anyone, who tries to escape from the concentration camp “Eifel Zoo” is shot dead.
Does that remind you of a black age?
