Posted on February 28, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Opinions differ on the ethical and, in our eyes, clearly cruel background to showjumping.
However, the fact is that only recently in January of this year a horse was brazenly and cold-heartedly beaten with a whip by the German showjumping professional Kevin Lemke in front of an audience.
And this is proven by a horrific video of evidence that any doubters can watch under the following link (be careful: not for the faint of heart !!!): https://vimeo.com/516459284
During a show jumping competition in California, the horror scenes occurred after the horse “Good Luck” refused to jump over an obstacle.
PETA Germany immediately demanded legal action against the alleged animal abuser,PETA USA has already filed a criminal complaint.
The “Desert International Horse Park” was the scene of this cruelty to animals. “Good Luck” refused to jump over an obstacle and in a probably uncontrolled, massive outburst of aggression you can see Kevin Lemke hitting the poor animal like crazy.
The showjumper proceeds with incredible rigor so that the whip whips can not only be seen clearly on the evidence video but can also be heard. This earned the German disqualification.
But the torture continued.
Disqualified show jumpers are still allowed to take part in the so-called correction jump after they have been eliminated.
When riding a combination, the battered horse stumbled over the first obstacle due to the extremely stressful situation in which it was and refused the following.
Kevin Lemke with “Good Luck” – This is about more than a mere rule violation – it’s about cruelty to animals.
More than 850 cattle that have spent months adrift in the Mediterranean are no longer fit for transport and should be killed, according to a confidential report by Spanish government veterinarians.
A lawyer for the cattle ship’s management company told the Guardian on Saturday that he planned to resist the move, even as a video from the port appears to show preparations being made to unload the cattle.
The report, compiled after Spanish officials were able to board the vessel earlier this week, said that the captain had told them of 22 deaths among the 895 calves on-board.
Another nine cattle were not accounted for, it said. The ship’s management said the calves, all bulls, are about seven to eight months old now.
The report concluded that the animals had suffered from the lengthy journey and were generally in a poor state. Some of them were unwell and not fit for transport outside of the European Union, nor should they be allowed into the EU, it said. Euthanasia would be the best solution for their health and welfare, it concluded.
The animals were rejected by several countries over fears they had bovine bluetongue virus. The report did not say if the cattle had bluetongue disease but it noted a range of other skin, eye and leg conditions including alopecia, flaking, scabs and joint inflammation compatible with septic arthritis.
The lawyer, Miquel Masramón who represents the ships’ management company, said on Saturday that it appeared preparations to kill the cattle were being made at the port. In a video Masramón sent to the Guardian, a metal ramp can be seen leading down from a ship toward a series of metal containers lined up along a dock wall.
The lawyer said the ship’s managers will attempt to resist any move to unload the cattle and that he is in the process of contacting Lebanese authorities.The vessel is owned by Khalifeh Livestock Trading and managed by Talia Shipping Line, both based in Lebanon, while the cattle are owned by a third party.
“In the video you see the closed containers, they are not for living livestock,” said Masramón on Saturday. “We have no official information, but we think they will discharge the animals and then kill them with electrical guns.”
He added that blood samples taken from the cattle on Wednesday night by Talia Shipping Line, to test for a bovine disease called bluetongue, had been blocked at the port by Spanish authorities and were not allowed to proceed to a lab for analysis.
The insect-borne bluetongue virus causes lameness and haemorrhaging among cattle but does not affect humans. The Spanish ministry’s report counted 864 animals alive on board the Karim Allah this week. Twenty-two cows had died at sea with two corpses still onboard, it noted, adding that the remains of the others that died were chopped up and thrown overboard during the journey.
Spain’s agricultural ministry did not reply to a request for comment on Saturday.
Masramón previously told the Guardian the shippers aimed to resell the cattle outside the EU if they tested negative for bluetongue. Talia Shipping Line estimates that current losses on the cattle transport could be up to €1m. Spanish authorities have said the company was also liable for the cost of killing the animals and destroying the carcasses. The company estimates this will cost them a further €1m.
“We are trying to resist, if they take the animals, and to get a new private expert animal health report,” said Masramón. He added, however, that if Spanish authorities were to remove the animals on health grounds they would probably succeed.
“In my opinion the animal health regulations will prevail [over maritime ones] and they, [the] Spanish officials, will be able to take the animals and cull them,” he said.
Masramón said although he was not an animal health technician, he did not agree with the official Spanish veterinary report released on Friday. “From what I understand, none of the diseases [noted in the report] are worth euthanizing the cattle for. They are normal after two months at seas and the animals could recover.”
In an interview, a source close to a second cattle ship, the Elbeik, which has similarly been at sea for two months since leaving the Spanish port of Tarragona with a cargo of nearly 1,800 cows, said he was watching the Karim Allah developments closely.
The Elbeik is currently moored off the Turkish Cypriot port of Famagusta having loaded animal fodder and straw. The source said that once the loading was complete, the Elbeik would probably sail to Greece to load bunker fuel for the ship.
Asked about apparent moves by the Spanish authorities to begin unloading and killing the cattle, the source said the health problems identified by the official Spanish vet report could “easily heal”. He said the decision, if taken, to kill all the animals was “amazing”. He added: “If the animals can heal why would they want to do that?”
There is an old saying which goes “a picture says a thousand words”. Have a look at these 2 pictures of the ‘Karim Allah’: are they not fairly indicative of the majority of the live animal transport maritime situation now ? – rust bucket ships that should have been scrapped years ago still transporting innocent, sentient beings to their (often) barbaric deaths the world over.
Have a look at this picture – this is Mr Bernard Van Goethem.
Here below is the structural chart for the Commission of Health and Food Safety – Sante. Mr Van Goethem is the ‘leader’ responsible for ‘Crisis Preparedness in Animals’, which includes ‘section G2 – Animal Health’. You can see all of this on the right hand side of the chart.
In 2015, the European Commission launched a three-year Pilot Project aiming at improving animal welfare during transport by developing and disseminating Guides to Good and Best Practice for the transport of the main livestock species.
In September 2017, the contractor of the project published five extensive guides to good practices (only in English) as well as 17 technical fact sheets focusing on the most practical information in A4 format. Fact sheets are available in eight EU languages (English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Polish, Romanian and Spanish).
This publication is followed by a road show in eight Member States and presenting the guidelines to the professionals concerned (transporters, drivers, farmers, official veterinarians, etc.). The project will also produce five videos (one per species in eight languages).
Council Regulation EC 1/2005 defines the responsibilities of all actors involved in the transport chain of live animals entering or leaving the EU. It lays down efficient monitoring tools and stricter rules for the transport and for the specific checks to be carried out by officials. It also provides for non-discriminatory inspections of animals, means of transport and accompanying documents.
EU countries are required to submit to the Commission, by 30 June each year, an annual report for the previous year on the non-discriminatory inspections together with an analysis of the major deficiencies. Click here to access the annual reports.
In order to reduce the administrative burden on EU countries, Commission Implementing Decision 2013/188/EU, which came into force on 1 January 2015, established an harmonised model form for the annual reports.
We at WAV, as of 28/2/21, make the following statement: Is the situation where hundreds of live EU animals have been stranded in the Mediterranean on 2 different ships not a ‘crisis’ ? – and should we have not seen intervention by the EU ‘Crisis Preparedness in Animals’ team, led Mr Mr Van Goetyhem, on this issue several weeks ago ? If this is not a crisis, then what is ?
If the EU crisis team are not going to get involved and take action at times of a crisis, then what is the point of them even existing ?
As you can see from the various EU links above; they at EU Commissions are specialists at blowing their own trumpets; leading the reader / web site visitor all over the place to find information (or maybe confuse them !) on their highly constructed, expensive, and detailed website; (at EU taxpayers expense); in some wildly bland attempt to make the reader think that they are completely and utterly in charge of the situation when it comes to controls and regulations for the welfare of animals in transport.
Well they are not – the website and all the sub sections and statements are simply massive smokescreens because they, the EU Commission, are utterly incapable of having any controls over the international situation of ensuring live animals welfare during transport throughout the EU, and way beyond into third countries such as Turkey and Libya.
This was in relation all those years ago to the EU having no control of the welfare of animals during transport; here is a video produced at the time to show that:
Here are a few other links we published on this issue at the time:
So what changes over all these years at the EU ? – very little it seems. Plenty of waffle; plenty of PR; plenty of web news; people are doing this, and people are doing that; when in reality, nothing actually changes for animals in transport.
As you can see in the above links, in the past we have called for the resignation of Mr Van Goethem; we think that with these terrible situations over the last few months and not a whisper from the EU on the crisis from the crisis management section of the EU Commission; maybe it is time to get another petition underway calling for resignations due to incompetence. When we get this organised we will publish.
Regards Mark
Latest news:
Saturday 27/2/21:
More than 850 cows that have spent two months at sea on a ship crossing the Mediterranean are facing slaughter, following a report from Spanish vets.
The cattle have suffered “hellish” conditions, according to animal rights activists.
The Karim Allah vessel originally left the Spanish port of Cartagena to deliver the cattle to Turkey but were refused entry due to fears over bluetongue.
The insect-borne bovine virus causes lameness and haemorrhaging among cattle but does not affect humans.
After being turned away from Turkey, owners failed to find a new buyer for the animals.
The ship was subsequently rejected by several more countries, even to replenish animal feed, leaving the cows to go several days with just water.
The ship became a pariah vessel and it has now returned to its starting point in Cartagena.
The confidential report by Spanish government veterinarians and seen by Reuters says the animals have suffered from the long journey and should be killed.
While it did not confirm whether the animals were suffering from bluetongue or not, it said they should not be allowed into the EU.
Ownership of the cattle is unclear.
Animal rights activist Silvia Barquero, director of the Igualdad Animal NGO, called the crossing “hellish” for the cattle and questioned what had happened to the waste produced by the cows during the crossing.
“We are sure they are in unacceptable sanitary conditions.”
Twenty-two cows are believed to have died at sea, and while 20 of the corpses have been chopped up and thrown overboard, two dead cows remain on board.
A lawyer representing the ship owner Talia Shipping Line, which is registered in Lebanon, said he believes the slaughter will now definitely go ahead.
Meanwhile, a second ship, the ElBeik, which also set sail from Spain in December with a cargo of nearly 1,800 cows, is currently moored off the Turkish Cypriot port of Famagusta.
The agriculture ministry has been approached for comment
Posted on February 27, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
A new investigation from Animal Equalityexposes the abuses and crimes of India’s fishery and aquaculture sector and shows the inefficient use of precious resources, like water and land.
THE DETAILS: Animal Equality investigated several Indian fish and shrimp farms, hatcheries, and fish markets from Feb 2019 to May 2020 in West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, which are known for their fish production.
The cycle of cruelty seems to never end, with our team witnessing fish suffering in a variety of ways.
One particularly brutal practice is “fish milking,” an extremely painful process in which the eggs from a female fish are squeezed out by hand.
In another, farmed fish are killed by asphyxiation as workers pull them from the water and put them on ice to slowly and agonizingly suffocate to death. Our investigators also found:
-Thousands of fish bred in small, overcrowded ponds, which are prone to disease spread.
-Many fish crushed to death by the weight of other fish when they’re caught in nets and dumped into containers.
-Workers cutting the gills of fish without prior stunning, resulting in the animals bleeding to death.
-Some species of fish, like catfish, are slaughtered and sold at unsanitary markets.
-Conscious catfish clubbed several times in an effort to slaughter them.
-Children were seen slaughtering fish, which violates child-employment laws.
WASTED RESOURCES: Fish farms need an exorbitant amount of water for operation and pump out large quantities of groundwater, which comes from nearby rivers, leading to drastic reductions in the region’s water table. In addition, fishery and aquaculture farms require large tracts of land in areas with an abundance of water, reducing the agricultural yield from these sectors.
Cattle stranded at sea ‘face immediate slaughter’ if ship docks in Spain, says manager
Livestock company still hopes to find a buyer for animals on board ship for two months, after rejection by Turkey and Libya
The manager of a ship that has spent months at sea with hundreds of cattle on board has accused Spanish officials of failing to answer his call for help and of threatening to kill all the livestock if the ship enters port.
The Karim Allah is one of two vessels that left from different ports in Spain before Christmas to deliver cargoes of young bulls, but were refused entry by various countries including Turkey and Libya, owing to suspected outbreaks of the bovine disease bluetongue onboard both ships.
The vessel is owned by Khalifeh Livestock Trading and managed by Talia Shipping Line, both based in Lebanon, while the cattle are owned by a third party. The ship took 895 male calves on board at the Spanish port of Cartagena in mid-December and sailed for Turkey.
However, the Karim Allah’s manager told the Guardian that a mistake on the Spanish government’s animal health paperwork led Turkey to reject the cattle, fearing they may be infected with bluetongue.
Attempts to sell the animals to buyers in Libya also failed and the Karim Allah eventually travelled back to Spain. The ship has been docked just outside Cartagena since Sunday. Only 15 animals are dead, the manager said, and the rest are in good health.
“We remain at anchor outside Cartagena port because first the Spanish authorities told us we could not enter. That was on Sunday or Monday,” said Majed Eid, Talia Shipping Line director.
“Then the Spanish authorities said we could enter [the port] but that all the cattle – they are all bulls about seven to eight months old – must be slaughtered,” said Eid. There has been no mention of vets inspecting the ship or testing for bluetongue, he added.
“We do not want to slaughter the healthy animals. That is the proof of the good care we have taken, only 15 dead after more than 60 days at sea. We expected people to thank us, not criticise us,” he said. “We are crying out for help but the Spanish government is not helping us. No one is helping us.”
Eid said the cattle shipment first ran into problems in Turkey due to an error in the Spanish authorities’ paperwork. “That was why the cattle were not accepted in Turkey or Libya, due to fears they might have come from a bluetongue area.”
Eid said the priority was to test the cattle so healthy animals can be certified and new buyers found. “We want to do blood tests to prove they are free of bluetongue then we can find a buyer. We don’t want to kill healthy animals. We expected Spain would want to help us with the blood tests but they are not helping, it’s very complicated.”
Miquel Masramón, a lawyer for Talia Shipping, said that blood samples were taken by a private company from some cattle on the ship on Wednesday evening. “According to the vet team no symptoms of bluetongue were found and test result will be known in 24 to 48 hours,” he said.
Legal documents, received last week by Masramón from the Spanish Animal Health Authority and seen by the Guardian, say the cost of slaughtering cattle re-entering Spain in this situation must be borne by the companies involved.
Masramón estimates the cost of slaughter and carcass disposal will be more than €1m (£860,000). “This should be added to the losses already suffered with unpaid demurrage [a charge payable to the owner of a chartered ship on failure to load or discharge the ship within the time agreed] and expenses which we estimate now at another €1m,” he said.
Maria Boada Saña, a vet with the NGO Animal Welfare Foundation, said it was good news that so many cattle were still alive. But she said it was unlikely the animals were in good health. “They might not have bluetongue, but that does not mean they are healthy,” she said.
Boada Saña said she believed slaughter, rather than another attempted sale involving further sea transport, was a better option for the cattle. “We are calling directly for euthanasia. They have been adrift for two months. The [animal] transports we see might take a week or so and that already means the animals arrive in poor condition, so imagine two months.”
On Thursday, a spokesperson for Spain’s agriculture ministry said the Karim Allah was free to enter Cartagena if it wished, but would not comment on the legal documents sent to Talia Shipping indicating the cattle would have to be immediately slaughtered.
A second livestock ship, Elbeik, which left the Spanish port of Tarragona carrying 1,776 animals on the same day as the Karim Allah, is at anchor in Turkish waters off the coast of Cyprus. It too was turned away by Turkey and Libya due to bluetongue fears.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Spain’s agriculture ministry described the ships’ plight as a “failed operation by a Spanish exporter, who was going to sell the animals in Turkey, then tried unsuccessfully to sell them in Libya”.
The spokesperson added that the Karim Allah, “now arriving in Cartagena, left Spain with animals that had the corresponding health certificates and which were from areas free of bluetongue. The animals therefore left the port of Cartagena in good health.”
Masramón told Spanish media that the certificates noted that some of the cattle were from Aragon, one of the regions that saw an outbreak of bluetongue late last year. As it couldn’t be shown that the cattle came from a place that was more than 150km from the source of infection, the cargo had been rejected. He confirmed they had been able to obtain fodder for the animals in Sicily, but not unload them.
The ministry has said the Elbeik was also carrying cattle from bluetongue-free areas.
In a second statement on Thursday, the agriculture ministry said: “The master of the vessel Karim Allah has been requested to take appropriate measures to allow inspectors to board the vessel safely. This request has not been complied with by the captain of the ship by the deadline, which was today, 25 February, at 11am.”
It added that Spanish maritime officials have now, “prohibited the ship Karim Allah from leaving the port until the appropriate inspections and actions have been carried out on the vessel.”
Posted on February 26, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
In 2016, the New Zealand government passed a law amending its constitution: henceforth, all animals are recognized as sentient beings. This is accompanied by groundbreaking changes for the animal world within the country’s borders.
Mankind has always argued whether animals are capable of feeling emotions just like us.
Anyone who has already had an intimate relationship with an animal friend would undoubtedly answer this question in the affirmative.
The complex social behavior that animals display cannot possibly be based on instincts alone.
Image: pixabay.com
Research confirms the emotional world of many animal species
In the meantime, research has advanced to the point where many animal species have feelings.
Laboratory mice are used not least to test antidepressants because it has been discovered that they can suffer from depression.
It is well known that elephants mourn their deceased family members.
New Zealand serves as a model for all states!
By ensuring that all animals are recognized as sentient beings in New Zealand’s constitution, the government is following not only common sense but also what is scientifically proven.
This change in the law will mean groundbreaking changes for all wildlife within New Zealand’s state borders. The change in the law will facilitate the criminal prosecution of animal abusers and the ban on animal testing in research.
Animal rights activists celebrated the decision that went into effect in February 2016!
Posted on February 26, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Animals’ Angels e.V.
ANDA and Animals‘Angels report animal welfare violations during the transport of ‘slaughter’ horses in Spain
On February 23, ANDA and Animals’ Angels filed a complaint against Spain because the regulations for the protection of horses during transport are regularly not observed there.
The complaint initially relates to the transport route from Spain to Italy.
The NGOs have been monitoring the conditions of horse transport on this route since 2007.
In 14 years we have noticed the same violations again and again.
To this day, the responsible regional and national authorities in Spain are not doing anything to stop them sustainably.
The EU Animal Welfare Transport Regulation stipulates that horses that are not used to a halter may not be transported for more than eight hours.
Still, the vast majority of horses transported from Spain to Italian slaughterhouses have never worn a halter in their short life.
In addition, the regulation stipulates that horses must be transported in individual boxes on long journeys. This rule is not observed when transporting horses between Spain and Italy, as they are almost always transported in groups.
Posted on February 25, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
In our latest investigation, Animal Equality has brought to light distressing scenes from a “farm of horrors” located in Catalonia, Spain, where the highest concentration of intensive pig farms is located.
THE DETAILS: The investigation’s footage shows the farm’s non-compliance with Spanish regulations for the protection of pigs in the country, with evidence found of sanitation irregularities, animal abuse, and possible environmental crimes.
And I mean...In July 2020 the German Animal Welfare Office also documented the horror conditions in a pig farm in Germany, which is the supplier of the German pig baron Tönnies.
The video shows a similarly serious violation
The strategy of governments, vet offices, authorities, ministers … is always the same: first of all, close the farm until the public has calmed down.
Then it goes on as before.
Several such cases, like the one in Catalonia, were reported years ago in Germany, and everywhere the perpetrators were hardly or not at all molested by the authorities.
There will probably never be a trial in Catalonia, too. The perpetrators will live on without punishment and as innocent citizens.
And they will continue to torture animals.
And the stupid consumer still believes the jubilant nonsense that such crimes in factory farming are only “isolated cases”.
With the governments and all these amateurish EU officials with whom we are “blessed”, the worst crime in human history, the animal holocaust, will continue.
Posted on February 25, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
A sellout crowd lined up outside Rudy’s Vegan Butcherfor the plant-based meat’ shop’s grand opening on World Vegan Day!
Hundreds of eager customers wrapped around the block, leaving them sold out a day after opening their doors! Rudy’s offers mouth-watering, plant-based barbecue staples and meatless charcuterie cuts of smoked ham, salami, pepperoni, and pastrami.
The London scene just got WAY more sustainable, and we’re so here for it!
@rudysdvd via IG
And I mean…Wow! Who would have thought 30 years ago that they would still experience all of this … everyone thought… utopia!
The next step will follow, of that we are sure, and several branches of the vegan butcher shop will be opened across the UK.
Because demand determines the supply
Posted on February 25, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
The cattle ship Karim Allah docked in Tarragona, Spain, 2020. Photograph: Animal Welfare Foundation/Tier Schutz Bund Zurich
WAV Comment – BIG thanks to ‘The Guardian’ (London) for sticking with, and reporting on this incident so very well over the last few months. Click on our live export tag Live Transport – World Animals Voice to read all the previous news from the Guardian (and more) about this most disgusting business in sentient beings.
Cattle stranded at sea for two months are likely dead or ‘suffering hell’
Two livestock ships have been refused entry to multiple countries on health grounds since leaving Spain in December
One of two livestock ships at sea since mid-December with thousands of cattle on board is now at the Spanish port of Cartagena, but the fate of its cargo is unclear.
The two vessels left from different ports in Spain before Christmas to deliver their cargoes of animals, but were each refused entry by various countries including Turkey and Libya, owing to suspected outbreaks onboard both ships of the bovine disease bluetongue.
Spain’s government and the country’s largest association of beef producers, Asoprovac, have both said the cattle came from areas free of bluetongue.
On Tuesday, the Spanish news agency EFE reported that although Turkey had originally agreed to take the cattle, satisfied they were bluetongue free, the animals were rejected on arrival because of disease fears.
A Spanish government source confirmed that the Karim Allah, carrying a reported 895 calves, was anchored just outside the Spanish port of Cartagena. The other ship, Elbeik, carrying 1,776 animals, continues to sit at anchor in Turkish waters off the coast of Cyprus.
Silvia Barquero, the director of Animal Equality Spain, said she understood that many animals were already dead and any still alive would be “suffering a real hell”.
Official veterinary inspections of both ships had been due to take place late last week in Cyprus and Sardinia, but neither ship approached shore to allow vets on board.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Spain’s agriculture ministry described the ships’ plight as a “failed operation by a Spanish exporter, who was going to sell the animals in Turkey, then tried unsuccessfully to sell them in Libya”. The spokesperson did not respond to questions about animal numbers, conditions on the ships or possible next steps.
The spokesperson added that the Karim Allah, “now arriving in Cartagena, left Spain with animals that had the corresponding health certificates and which were from areas free of bluetongue. The animals therefore left the port of Cartagena in good health.”
Last week, the ministry said the Elbeik, which left from the Spanish port of Tarragona, was also carrying cattle from bluetongue-free areas.
Maria Boada Saña, a vet with NGO Animal Welfare Foundation, said she feared that at least 100 animals on the Karim Allah were already dead.
“The Karim Allah arrived Sunday night at Cartagena, sailing away from a planned veterinary inspection Saturday morning in Sardinia,” she said.
She added that a Spanish agriculture ministry source said that although the ship was in Spanish waters, it had not yet requested entry to Cartagena port.
“That means we have no idea right now if animals are alive or dead,” said Boada Saña. “Other sources, though, have told me the Karim Allah has not asked for animal feed. To me, the way it sailed away from an inspection, the way it is waiting and not asking for food probably means most of the animals are dead.”
Dead animals would have to be removed from the ship by hoist and the operation could take at least a day, or much longer, depending on numbers, said Genoa-based lawyer Manuela Giacomini.
In a related development, a Spanish government source confirmed that Cartagena port had temporarily suspended the departure of livestock ships until the Karim Allah docks. The vessel continues to be anchored in front of the harbour and the decision to enter the port was up to the owner of the ship, the source added.
Prof Kristen Stilt, director of Harvard’s animal law and policy programme, who is writing a book about the transport of live animals, said it was an inherent risk with live transport that the animals would be rejected at their destination port.
Once labelled as rejected, Stilt said it was “very likely that no other country [would] accept them, as we are now seeing with the two vessels at sea with calves from Spain”.
Another problem for crew and livestock, she said, was the absence of an international arbiter that could assess claims of disease and make a binding determination. The result, she said, was “usually catastrophic in terms of loss of animal lives”.
Dutch MEP Anja Hazekamp said “the only way to stop animal cruelty related to animal transport” was to introduce a total ban on the export of live animals outside the EU.
“Both vessels concerned have EU certificate approvals, which means that they can load European animals and send them to third countries, such as Libya, Lebanon, Egypt and Saudi Arabia,” she said. “In total there are around 80 vessels with such a certificate.”
Sign up for the Animals farmed monthly update to get a roundup of the best farming and food stories across the world and keep up with our investigations. And you can send us your stories and thoughts at animalsfarmed@theguardian.com.
Posted on February 24, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
South Korean Meat Dogs.
View the latest newsletter and actions to take via the following links. \Please watch the video as it shows the reality of what a disgusting animal abuse situation this is.
Posted on February 24, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
From our campaigner friends at Animals Australia.
People power stops new live export business in its tracks
A plan to begin exporting live animals from Namibia to Kuwait has been quashed thanks to a united, global effort drawing attention to the suffering caused by the trade.
The idea that when one door closes another opens, is mostly reassuring. But when it comes to the global live export trade, this universal truth is the reason we need to remain ever vigilant. You see, as countries have become clued-up to the cruelty inherent to live export — and widespread opposition to it — live exporters have found it harder to shore up business.
When Australia restricted sheep exports during the dangerous northern summer months, exporters knocked on Romania’s door. And Animals Australia was there. When Romania began questioning the trade, they went to South Africa. Again, we were already there. When South Africa’s NSPCA took the battle to stop the trade all the way to the High Court, it was abundantly clear: this global trade in animal cruelty is well and truly matched by a global effort to stop it.
From Australia to New Zealand to Brazil to South Africa and to dozens of countries throughout Europe — there is a powerful, international collaboration of groups and individuals working together to save animals from this ruthless industry.
And it’s a compassionate effort that has just paid off in Namibia, with new plans to begin live export from the Southern African nation put on hold indefinitely.
The business plan put forward by Tradeport Namibia proposed to import 70,000 live sheep, 50,000 goats and 5,000 cattle from South Africa and Botswana for live export from Namibia to Kuwait.
As exposé after exposé has revealed — it’s a sea journey fraught with risk for the animals who would be confined in cramped and stressful conditions for weeks before facing terrifying fully conscious slaughter upon arrival.
A rapid-fire public and media education campaign was launched in Namibia to highlight the reality of live export for the animals. In its submission objecting to the business plan, Namibia’s SPCA noted that the trade undermines Namibian laws and standards and that allowing live export would:
And the warnings have been heeded. In announcing that plans to export live animals would be ‘put on ice’, Tradeport Namibia noted the strong opposition, locally and internationally, to the export of live animals and that the company did not want to be involved in a business that will attract widespread outrage.
A united global front is turning the tide on live export. We don’t always win, but we are always there. And every action you take to support these efforts takes us another step towards shutting the door on this industry, for good.
Posted on February 24, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
WAV Comment – we are covering a lot at the moment re live exports. This is not current news but goes back to November 2019 when the ‘Queen Hind’ sank shortly after leaving the port of Midia in Romania; allegedly carrying 14,600 destined for slaughter in Saudi Arabia.
For information; it would appear that several secret decks were found on the vessel during attempts at salvage; and that in fact, many more sheep had been carried to those declared officially. Naturally, Romania has denied this, and the EU being the EU, has dragged its heels in every respect with regard to getting official information about this.
The only information to emerge since the sinking has been the discovery of secret compartments onboard with dead animals inside, by the company hired to remove the ship from the water.
We have no faith in the Romanian system or what its government says. They are certainly not the best animal welfare nation on the planet. With our experience in live animal transport, we would have no surprise whatsoever that additional (secret) decks were fitted into the vessel; simply to increase numbers and to obtain more profit. Was overloading due to the secret decks the reason that the Queen Hind capsized shortly after leaving Midia, we ask ?
Have a read of the information and links to that we have supplied below. If we ever witness the EU taking action against Romania regarding this incident then it could be considered progress. When everyone keeps quiet and ‘below deck’ about the realities, it could be said that there is a cover up. Please read the info and make your own decisions.
Despite promises from the Romanian government that the results of the capsize will be published on the Ministry website; our search today (24/2/21) has still revealed nothing.
Regards Mark
Secret decks found on ship that capsized killing thousands of sheep
Discovery by salvage divers off Romania raises new questions over EU exports of live animals
Secret decks for extra animals have been found in a livestock carrierthat sank off the Romanian port of Midia in November drowning thousands of sheep, according to the company carrying out the massive salvage operation.
Only 180 sheep survived out of the 14,600 initially believed to have been onboard the Queen Hind, which was carrying them from Romania, the EU’s biggest exporter of the animal, to Saudi Arabia.
But the revelations about secret decks are likely to increase the death toll by several thousands, and raise fresh questions on whether overloading was to blame for the capsize.
The vessel was left on its side in the water as it sank not far from port, with sheep corpses piling up around it. Images of the tragedy made headlines worldwide and led to renewed calls by animal activists to impose a ban on live exports from Europe to non-EU countries, particularly the Middle East and north Africa.
The Romanian national daily Adevărul reported on Sunday that the firm that won the auction to bring the vessel to shore, Grup Servicii Petroliere (GSP Offshore), made its first attempt on Saturday but operations were halted after the crane’s cables were unable to bear the load.
Gabriel Comănescu, GSP’s president, was quoted by Adevărul as saying that “during the operation, the divers entered the water, [and] found additional decks.
These additional decks also have animals on board”.
Comănescu added: “There are decks not included in the cargo plan, they are undeclared. It is the problem of the authorities to find out why they were loaded and why they were not included in the cargo plan. It’s a big question. There is a much larger load than over 14,000 sheep.”
Gabriel Paun, of Animals International, said the revelation “confirms our initial suspicion that the vessel capsized because of overloading”. He added: “We are outraged that this came out from the company bringing the vessel back to the shore and not from the Romanian government itself.”
Animals International said it will file complaints to the EU commission and the Romanian prosecutor’s anti-corruption department.
“[GSP] came with the right equipment last week and they tried to lift it up with a crane and bring it to the shore,” Paun said. “They had calculated that the ship was full of water and animals, so they were prepared to lift more [weight] but still the cables broke.”
He had been told that the head of the company had sent down divers to investigate, and discovered secret decks loaded with thousands of animals.
Brian da Cal, UK director at the animal welfare organisation Four Paws, said he feared that the death of thousands of sheep could have been avoided.
“The allegations regarding hidden decks on the ship are of huge concern and strengthens our calls for an outright ban of long-distance transports of live animals and a maximum of eight hours transportation duration. No matter how strict the rules may be and how tragic this accident is, mass deaths like this are becoming more common.”
He said Four Paws was able to rescue 254 sheep from the half-sunken ship but several died later of exhaustion and injuries – 180 survived and are now being kept in a location north of Bucharest.
Paun said: “We’re saying that Romanian authorities are not to be trusted because this vessel has been inspected by the Romanian government [and] they’ve missed the extra decks which were not in the cargo plan.”
Paun said Romania exports about 3 million sheep annually. European live animal exports rose from a value of $1bn (£800m) in 2000 to $3.3bn in 2018.
An official from the Romanian national veterinary and food safety authority, in comments carried by Adevărul, appeared to dismiss the allegations and said the vessel was heavier because “dead sheep do not have the same weight as the live ones”.
A border police spokesman also dismissed the story as speculation.
The Guardian has contacted MGM Marine Shipping, the management company behind the Queen Hind, for comment. The Romanian embassy was also approached.
Salvors working on the capsized livestock carrier Queen Hind claim they have found extra decks on the vessel.
The Palau-flagged Queen Hindcapsized shortly after departing the Port of Midia in Romania on November 24 last year. While the crew escaped safely, only 180 of 14,600 sheep were saved. Salvors Grup Servizi Petroliere (GSP) claim that there could have been more sheep lost, as divers found that the extra decks had animals on board.
Divers were sent to investigate after cranes were unable to lift the vessel as planned. Cables snapped under the extra weight which could mean that several thousand more sheep were onboard than previously reported. The salvors claim the extra decks were not documented on the cargo loading plan.
The claim that extra sheep were on board has been disputed. Local media reports cite an official saying that the salvors may not have accounted for the extra weight of water-logged sheep; the salvors dispute this. Additionally, it has been noted that exact counts of sheep are not made at boarding.
The Guardian reports Gabriel Paun, a spokesperson for Animals International, saying the vessel was suspected to have capsized due to overloading. Animals International plans to make a formal complaint to the European Commission about the case.
Secret decks found on capsized livestock carrier off Romania
More than two months after the livestock carrier ‘Queen Hind’ capsized and sank off Romania taking down over 14,o00 sheep, the company tasked with the ship salvage has discovered secret decks that could accommodate a higher number of animals. This has created allegations that the sheep death toll was higher than thought.
The livestock carrier was heading from Romania to Saudi Arabia, when it overturned just off Midia Port, Romania, on 24 November, with approximately 14,600 sheep and 22 crew members onboard. The crew was saved but only 180 sheep survived.
However, the recent revelations by the salvage company on extra decks are likely to increase the death toll by several thousands, and raise fresh questions on whether overloading was to blame for the capsize, The Guardian reports.
In particular, the salvage firm Grup Servicii Petroliere (GSP Offshore), halted operations Saturday, after the crane’s cables were unable to bear the load, the Romanian national daily Adevărul reported.
As such, the divers entered the water and found additional decks, which also had animals onboard, Gabriel Comănescu, GSP’s president, was quoted as saying.
There are decks not included in the cargo plan, they are undeclared. It is the problem of the authorities to find out why they were loaded and why they were not included in the cargo plan. It’s a big question. There is a much larger load than over 14,000 sheep,
…he stressed.
Meanwhile, this news re-surges initial suspicions that the incident occurred due to overloading.
In light of this, animal welfare organization Animals International said it will file complaints to the EU commission and the Romanian prosecutor’s anti-corruption department.
Posted on February 24, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
4000 turtles could be saved from freezing to death!
On an island in southern Texas, more than 4000 sea turtles have been rescued from the cooled water in the Gulf of Mexico in the past few days and temporarily housed in a conference center to warm up there.
Foto: Miguel Roberts/dpa
The severe onset of winter in the US state of Texas triggered a large-scale rescue operation for thousands of sea turtles.
The organization Sea Turtle Inc, which cares for the protection of sea turtles in the region, started the rescue operation.
The animals were spread out on plastic sheets in rooms and corridors of the congress center.
Sea Turtle’sSanjuana Zavala told the German Press Agency on Thursday that the turtles were in a kind of rigidity in which they could not move, eat and drink until they were warmed up again.
This state lasted for several days. “We just have to wait and see now.”
There are real heavyweights among the turtles
The animals don’t necessarily have to be in the water in this state, emphasized Zavala.
In the beginning, they used the children’s paddling pool for some of the rescued turtles. But given a large number of animals, there weren’t enough such tanks.
As soon as the water temperature in the sea rises above 12 degrees Celsius again, the animals could be brought back there. The rescued turtles would have a weight of up to 180 kilograms.
A severe onset of winter is currently plaguing large parts of the United States and has led to massive power outages. The state of Texas in the south of the country is the hardest hit.
South Padre Island is near the US border with Mexico.
Zavala said that in the past few years her organization had occasionally had to rescue turtles from the sea in winter. But it was never more than 200 at a time. “We have never had it to this extent.”
Therefore one had to switch to the congress center. There, too, there were temporary problems with the electricity in view of the snowstorm.
But in the building, the turtles are protected from wind and weather and protected from the cold water in the sea.
Posted on February 24, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Again it is the “death trap”Farewell Spit in New Zealand, where several pilot whales ran aground within one day. Volunteers formed a human chain to drive the whales into deeper water.
More than 20 pilot whales have been returned to deeper waters after a second stranding off New Zealand. “The whales are currently swimming freely off the coast and are monitored by a boat from the nature conservation authority,” said the organization Project Jonah on Tuesday.
Project Jonah volunteers tried to pull the pilot whales back into the water on Monday Source: AFP / HANDOUT
Volunteers formed a human chain to drive the whales into deeper water.
On Monday, February 22nd, around 50 animals were stranded on the Farewell Spit headland. Many of them died, but about 28 survived the night.
Numerous helpers were on duty to cool the whales until the tide set in, as the broadcaster Radio New Zealand reported.
Why the marine mammals were stranded was still unclear. For the group it seemed to be the first time, the animals showed no abrasions, the station quoted the ranger Amanda Harvey
The scientists suspect that the animals have orientation problems as a reason for stranding or that animals want to come to the aid of their previously stranded conspecifics. Source: dpa / New Zealand Doc, Matt Nalder
Scientists are still trying to find out why such incidents are more common at Farewell Spit, it said. In February 2017 alone, between 600 and 700 whales were stranded there, 250 of them died.
Whales are repeatedly stranded on the coasts of New Zealand. Why marine mammals lose their bearings is unclear.
Presumably, they follow a stray or sick animal into shallow water. The animals may have responded to calls from their conspecifics who were stranded on Friday, as Daren Grover of the animal welfare group Project Jonahinvolved in the rescue said.
The largest mass stranding of pilot whales in New Zealand occurred in 1918 when a thousand mammals landed on the remote island of Chatham.
In 1985, 450 pilot whales stranded in Auckland.
At the Farewell Spit headland, which is around 150 kilometers west of the tourist town of Nelson, there have been at least nine mass strandings in the past ten years.
And I mean … Scientists don’t know, nor do we know why the animals were stranded.
We can only be happy about the survivors and would like to thank the people from the bottom of our hearts who have contributed with all their might to the rescue
Posted on February 23, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
“Stop putting ideology on our children’s plates,”French minister says after major city removes meat from school lunches French Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie has argued against injecting “ideology” into school lunches after the city of Lyon removed the meat from the menus.
Local officials said it would help them follow Covid-19 protocols.
“Let’s stop putting ideology on our children’s plates,”Denormandie tweeted on Sunday.
“Let’s just give them what they need to grow well. Meat is part of it,” he wrote, adding that he had asked the region’s perfect, a state-appointed official, to overrule the move.
Officials in Lyon, France’s third-largest city, said schools would have a meat-free menu starting on Monday.
They argued that the change would help to “streamline” the work of cafeterias while they followed the requirements on social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Stephanie Leger, the city’s top education official, told AFP the new menu “will allow us to speed up the service and, thus, allow us to cater to all children.”
“To match the tastes of the largest number [of students], we have decided to remove meat,” Leger said. She added that the menu could not be considered vegan because the cafeterias would continue to serve fish and eggs, and that meat would return once the “sanitary situation allows it.”
Nevertheless, the idea to exclude meat from school lunches immediately caused a backlash from right-wing politicians. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin labeled it an “unacceptable insult to French farmers and butchers.” (!!!)
“We can see that the moralizing and elitist policy of the Greens excludes the popular classes. Many children often only get to eat meat at the school canteen,” he tweeted, calling it a “scandalous ideology.” (!!!)
Naître dans un élevage intensif. Le début du cauchemar 😢
And I mean...For God’s sake, Monsieur Denormandie! those are adventurous arguments that you bring!
Animal fats are the leading cause of diabetes, obesity, and heart attacks. More and more children are suffering from it!
And do you recommend that?
Is it really an “extreme ideology” for you to refuse to actively participate in an ecological catastrophe?
When one refuses to ignore the barely comprehensible suffering of pigs, chickens, and cattle, etc.?
You should know that veganism is a very promising way to soon be able to feed 10 billion people adequately without completely destroying the earth.
If you are interested in saving our planet, of course.
To dismiss that as “scandalous ideology” is cheap, belittling, and simply idiotic!
And by the way: Meat eaters are really militant, there are a lot more of them than militant vegans, and they are also much more aggressive: because they have no argument against non-meat eaters, except that they want to support their “French farmers and butchers”!
Posted on February 22, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
A walker sent PETA images showing numerous foxes hung up on the Doimahof in Alxing, Bavaria.
The dead animals were tied to wooden pegs there.
PETA filed a complaint about harassment of the general public under Section 118 of the Administrative Offenses Act.
In addition, PETA calls on the people in charge of the Doimahof – which also runs a hotel and restaurant trade – to stop making their property available for such life-threatening activities.
And I mean…The German hunters, the best of all people, show the stupid world once again how to properly do and show mass murder.
A law always helps because the worst part is that it is legal.
Willingness to use violence and the protection of the law, that is all that hunters need for an animal massacre
The village society is obviously outraged by the “indecent” souvenirs on the tree, which give the village a bad reputation, but not for the annual mass murder of 500,000 foxes in Germany by hunters
These are unbearable images for a civilized country
Posted on February 22, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Report- Committee Against Bird Murder (CABS)
Employees of the Committee against Bird Murder(CABS) and a special unit of the Italian police have jointly taken action against illegal hunting and the trade on migratory birds in the Veneto region over the past 10 days.
The main focus of the controls was the lagoons south of Venice, in which hundreds of thousands of waterbirds from northern and central Europe are currently wintering.
As reported by the Committee against Bird Murder, 22 hunters were caught red-handed shooting down protected species or hunting with prohibited bait systems.
In addition, 21 shotguns, 6,400 rounds of ammunition, nine prohibited electronic decoys, and three professional poultry plucking machines were seized.
In a butcher’s shop in Paduasupplied by the poachers, 961 frozen wild birds were seized during a search, including gadfly, pochard, teal pintail, shoveler, and white-fronted geese.
Criminal proceedings were initiated against the suspects for poaching, possession of unregistered firearms, and violating the marketing bans.
In the weeks leading up to the action, experts from the committee (CABS) had spent days collecting evidence against poachers from rubber dinghies, and then leading Carabinieri officials to their shooting huts.
The action is the largest campaign to date against poaching in the difficult-to-access lagoon landscape, which is of international importance for nature conservation as a resting and wintering area.
Committee chairman Heinz Schwarze thanked the authorities involved for the good cooperation and announced further assignments in Venice.
And I mean…Many of the animals were freshly shot, says the committee, and had just been handed in by hunters, while others were already plucked and frozen in sacks.
All species are strictly prohibited from marketing in Italy.
The birds – almost all of them endangered throughout Europe – were intended for restaurants in Venice.
Excellent job in all respects!
We thank and congratulate the courageous activists of the CABS
Posted on February 22, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
At the end of January 2021, a raccoon was shot in Appenzell Innerhodischen Wasserauen.
He stayed “illegally” on Swisssoil and looked for food in a house. The raccoon was healthy.
He was peaceful and did not attack or put anyone in danger.
The federal law on hunting and the protection of wild mammals and birds allows raccoons to be shot all year round.
They are not at home in Switzerland and could unbalance the ecological balance that has been devised and prescribed by humans.
In “specialist circles” they are listed as neo-zones, that is to say, “introduced and alien animal species” or clearly expressed as “animal non grata”.
Speciesism versus the raccoon
All over the world people are still discriminated against, humiliated, and often persecuted because of their origin and skin color.
In Switzerland, the racist criminal norm rightly prohibits discrimination against people on the basis of their ethnicity, skin color, and religion.
Because no one is better than the other.
We all have the right to life and to be treated with respect and decency, no matter where we come from and what skin color or religion we have.
With animals, however, it looks different.
No protection is granted to non-resident animals: they are undesirable and “worthless”, although they too are no longer considered a thing.
Their right to life is denied to them by law because of their origin and in the name of the ecological balance dictated by humans.
This is lived “speciesism”, which means: the human being shows with his attitude towards alien animals once again that he is convinced that he is superior to all other species due to his nature and can therefore treat them as he wants.
This attitude is more than reprehensible and can no longer be accepted.
Together for the protection of raccoons on Swiss soil
The PETITION aims to protect raccoons in Switzerland.
Raccoons should no longer be hunted and killed because of their origin. The right to life should apply to them too.
In order to prevent an overpopulation of raccoons and to protect the local biodiversity, the possibility of an oral contraceptive for the female raccoons should be examined.
And I mean...” On the basis of being human” everyone has the right to life, to freedom, to integrity, to protection from discrimination, torture, and much more.
When it comes to animal rights, things get more difficult.
Humans are brought up with the principle of Suprematism, which says that humans are a very special animal that must by no means be mentioned in the same breath as the others.
Therefore the favored species is always the human.
Humans have rights, all other animal species have no rights.
The best thing that could happen to the raccoon would be a grace, which however would not belong to his rights, but is subject to the goodwill of the perpetrator.
We are a society of perpetrators who decide about the life and death of the weaker and also show solidarity with the perpetrator.
Those who belong to the privileged class do not know how it feels to be constantly under the power and violence of the ruler.
Therefore: we fight for the rights of those who have none, the rights of animals.
We stay on the right side
Posted on February 21, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
“When all the animals that have suffered in vain would scream at the same moment an incredible catastrophe would devastate the world and the few surviving people would become deaf and wander around in madness. “ (unknown)
Posted on February 21, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
From the Facebook page “Animals want life”
(Text under the Foto) : “We pay tribute to the brave and selfless women and men who take it upon themselves to make the films and pictures in animal factories and slaughterhouses that we can then use to educate the world about these terrible conditions”
“Being an animal rights activist is a tough job We should show respect to these people for their commitment, instead of complaining: Why do you just film instead of helping?
The fact is: animal rights activists help the animals, by documenting and forwarding them to the responsible authorities or media. Often animal rights activists on site can do nothing more than a document, as they often put themselves in danger.
Received charges of assault and theft, in addition to the offense: trespassing I myself document the animal suffering in stables in order to report violations to the responsible veterinary office, with luck the animals will be confiscated And yes, it breaks my heart every time I can’t save the animals. Try to save e.g. 10,000 turkeys from the next fattening facility yourself, right?
200 piglets, or 36 cattle, in which the latter – among other things – I have already succeeded
So please, don’t blame animal rights activists who put themselves in danger to help animals
Please help us by sharing the posts and drawing the attention of as many people as possible to animal cruelty.
Thank you very much” 💓 “Animals want life”
The undercover investigators have our full respect.
And our heartfelt thanks
Weeks, or even months in animal farms or animal research laboratories, are confronted with incredible suffering and live permanently under the risk of being discovered.
Posted on February 21, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Last week the Dutch House of Representatives approved a motion to remove both the brown hare and the rabbit from the “Wildlife List”. This means that it would no longer be possible to hunt these species in the Netherlands in the future.
The Dutch Hunters Association criticizes the application as “unnecessary and legally unfeasible”.They say: Rabbits and brown hares would still be common and widespread in the Netherlands.
The “Partij voor de Dieren”(Party for Animal Welfare) recently tried to change the National Wildlife List in a parliamentary debate.
At the time, the party demanded that game species that are on the “Red List” be automatically removed from the list of huntable species.
Since a majority was not foreseeable at the time, the party withdrew its proposal.
Even then it was unclear whether a change in the “Wildlife List” could be legally enforced at all since the “Red List” has no legal status.
The hunters’ association claims that the animal welfare party had already tried in the past to abuse the corona crisis or the outbreak of bird flu for hunting bans.
In a renewed attempt to change the huntable species, the party was now successful.
With the support of the “Democrats 66”, the required majority for the “Partij voor de Dieren”proposal was now available.
The “Hunters` Association” accuses the “Democrats 66” of having cheated voters with the 180-degree turn shortly before the elections.
In December, the “D66” was still critical of the change to the “game list”.
As a result of the re-evaluation of the brown hare and rabbit on the basis of the updated “Red List” in 2020, both wild species were classified as “endangered”.
The hunters’ association does not want to accept the change in the game list without a fight and, if necessary, take it to the European Court of Justice (!!!)
And I mean... one thing in advance: The European Court of Justice will not work, they have other worries
They are particularly busy with the naughtiness of the Germans, as we reported yesterday.
And in this case, it’s about bigger “rabbits”!
We welcome the correct decision of the Dutch Parliament!
The great pleasure of the Dutch hunters (like all hunters), to shoot defenseless animals cowardly from ambush while looking for food, – although no one needs their flesh and skin to survive- is now over.
As murderous as they are, they will try to fight this morally very progressive decision of the Dutch parliament by all means.
But the days of hunter dominance in media, politics, and society are finally over.
There is no such thing as a hunter ideology, and the majority of society regards hunters as militant, harmful weirdos.
Thousands of cattle remain stranded at sea on two livestock ships that left Spain in mid-December, as campaigners desperately seek veterinary support for the animals.
The two vessels were bound for Libya but owing to an onboard outbreak of the bovine disease bluetongue were refused entry at multiple ports, said Maria Boada Saña, a vet with Animal Welfare Foundation (AWF), which has been tracking the ships via maritime websites.
On 19 February the website myshiptracking.com showed one of the ships, the Elbeik, anchored off the coast of Cyprus, and the other, Karim Allah, off the coast of Sardinia. The vessels left the Spanish ports of Tarragona and Cartagena on 18 December respectively.
A spokesperson for Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food said the ships’ situation had “nothing to do with the actions of the Spanish administration” and had left the country with health certificates and had come from areas free of bluetongue.
They added that officials were monitoring the vessels’ movements and were in contact with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the European commission “to find a solution to the situation”. A spokesperson for the commission said the Spanish authorities were willing to receive both ships back.
Boada Saña said marine traffic websites indicated that the Elbeik had about 1,700 cattle on board and the Karim Allah almost 900. The Spanish authorities did not respond to questions about animal numbers.
Given the Karim Allah’s proximity to Italy, Manuela Giacomini, a Genoa-based lawyer who works with AWF, said she filed a request with the Italian health ministry asking it to perform an urgent veterinary inspection of the ship in collaboration with Sardinia’s port state authority in Cagliari.
Olga Kikou, the head of Compassion in World Farming EU, lodged a similar request that asked the Cypriot authorities to arrange an urgent inspection of the Elbeik.
Cyprus’s chief veterinary officer said the Elbeik was being monitored, adding that when the vessel approached Cypriot waters, the country’s authorities would “proceed accordingly with checking this case”.
Kikou, who is in Greece, said the most immediate priority was that veterinary services boarded the ships to “check the animals and euthanatise any that are suffering. The conditions inside the ship cannot be good after two months. And then a solution needs to be found between the different authorities to determine next steps for any animals that can be saved.”
An email from the the International Maritime Organization said its seafarer crisis action team was aware of the situation and that it was concerned for the “wellbeing of seafarers and the safety of navigation [and] in this case also the livestock”.
Asked for comment on the two ships, the OIE said in an email that it was “in contact with the concerned member countries and also with our regional offices” to “minimise negative impact on animal welfare during transport operations and emphasise the joint responsibility of all people involved in the different stages of the transport”.
Tilly Metz, the Luxembourg MEP who chairs the European parliament’s animal transport inquiry committee, said this was “yet another live animal transport scandal involving ships. After the 2019 tragedy of the [Queen Hind] ship, which capsized with 14,000 sheep on board, now allegedly over 2,600 bovines [are] stuck on two vessels wandering from port to port in search of help. How can it be that there is no contingency plan in case of diseases or other unforeseen events?”
Metz said a key animal transport problem was that time spent on the ship was considered “resting time” and not “transport time”.
“This means there is no limit as to how many hours animals can be on these ships: days, weeks, even months. Many consider this to be a legal anomaly and a loophole in the rules on the protection of animals during transport,” she added.
This case, she said, “proves again a ship is not a floating stable. It is an unnatural, often stressful, overloaded and understaffed environment, with inherent risks such as disease outbreaks, feed shortages and refusals to unload”.
Attempts to contact the ships owners and operators by phone were unsuccessful.
Posted on February 20, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
The EU Commission is suing Germany before the European Court of Justice for violations of current nature conservation law for years.
One infringement proceeding remained unsuccessful.
The EU Commission, chaired by Ursula von der Leyen (left), sees deficiencies in the implementation of the nature conservation directive and the European arrest warrant by the German government of Chancellor Angela Merkel. (Photo: Johanna Geron / AP)
Among other things, Germany has “still not designated a significant number of areas as special protection areas,” the Brussels authority announced on Thursday.
It is about the implementation of the Flora-Fauna-Habitat (FFH) Directive for the conservation of natural habitats and the protection of wild animals and plants.
The core is the designation of protected areas in the EU states.
These include so-called conservation goals to protect or restore the population of species.
The EU Commission had already initiated what is known as infringement proceedings against Germany in 2015, but Berlin has not dispelled the concerns over the years.
The “deadline for completing the necessary measures for all areas in Germany” expired in some cases more than ten years ago, the EU Commission announced on Thursday.
The authority complained, among other things, that “the conservation goals set for the individual areas in Germany are not sufficiently quantified and measurable”.
The EU Commission is assuming that it was the practice in all federal states and at the federal level not to set sufficiently detailed and quantified conservation goals for all 4606 areas of Community importance.
This has “significant effects on the quality and effectiveness” of the measures.
But the EU has to have a little understanding for Germany. After all, Germany only had 20 years to implement the directive!!
Only 6 years have passed since criminal proceedings were initiated.
It can be assumed that any failure to achieve the self-set goals will simply be sent to the next over time because the game with the time factor has still worked so far.
And speaking of the EU, by the way: it was the EU that ensured that the form of agriculture that is common in our country, i.e. one that is absolutely hostile to nature, was carried to all EU countries, to those countries that were previously Had nature, like Slovenia, Croatia, Poland or Romania.
This day of honor for the large marine mammals was initiated by animal rights activists on the island of Maui and has been celebrated there since 1980.
It coincides with the time when a large number of humpback whales roam the coast of Hawaii to give birth and raise their young.
The day is meant to indicate the threat posed by these majestic giants.
Posted on February 20, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Mink at a farm in Jyllinge, Denmark. In November it was announced that the country would cull 15 million animals. Photograph: Ole Jensen/Getty
Mink farms a continuing Covid risk to humans and wildlife, warn EU experts
Health experts call for regular testing of staff and animals after coronavirus found at 400 breeding units across Europe
All mink farms are at risk of becoming infected with Covid-19 and spreading the virus, and staff and animals should be regularly tested, EU disease and food safety experts said on Thursday.
Mink are highly susceptible to coronavirus, which spreads rapidly in intensive farms that often breed thousands of animals in open housing caged systems (outdoor wire cages covered with a roof). Humans are the most likely initial source of infection.
Denmark, the world’s largest exporter of mink fur, announced that it would cull up to 15 million mink in November, after discovering a mutated variant of the virus that scientists feared might have jeopardised the effectiveness of future vaccines.
As of January 2021, the virus had been found at 400 mink farms in at least eight countries in the EU and European Economic Area – 290 in Denmark, 69 in the Netherlands, 17 in Greece, 13 in Sweden, three in Spain, two in Lithuania and one each in France and Italy.
While mink-related variant viruses were a risk to human health, experts from the European Food Safety Authority and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) concluded in a new report that, “so far these have not shown to be more transmissible or causing more severe impact compared to other circulating Sars-CoV-2”.
The World Health Organization warned this week that the risk of Covid-19 spreading from fur farms to humans and wildlife remained high.
EU experts have now called for weekly testing of animals at all mink farms and frequent testing of everyone in contact with the creatures to ensure the early detection of infection and reduce the risk of disease spread. As mink are usually farmed in open housing systems, the close contact between the animals may help spread infectious diseases.
A number of countries, including Denmark and Sweden, have suspended mink farming after outbreaks of Covid-19. And in the US, officials have recommended workers on US mink farms be given a Covid vaccine as a priority. Breeders expect that a vaccine, currently in development, will be available to use on mink in April or May.
Mark Oaten, CEO of the International Fur Federation, said he supported the testing of workers and mink, “as long as it is reasonable”, but he opposed weekly testing. “It might be that you do more regular testing in areas where Sars-CoV-2 has been detected, and less in areas with no infection. It is not a one-size-fits-all. It would depend on the density of farms in the area too.”
Mink producers said the price of pelts was rising despite fears around Covid-19 and calls for a ban on fur farming to reduce the risk of disease spread.
“We don’t see any further threat to the fur industry from Covid-19 and the price of pelts is rising. It is at about $30 (£21) per pelt and we expect it to be about $40 by this time next year. We are beginning to feel there may have been an overreaction in Denmark [in terms of the Covid related cull],” said Finnish fur auctioneer Magnus Ljung, the CEO of Saga Furs.
Posted on February 20, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Dairy calves are usually separated from their mothers… Credit: Animal Equality
Februdairy: A Desperate Attempt To Promote The Declining Dairy Industry
Demand for cow’s milk is declining and plant-alternatives sales have surged…
As public opinion continues to shift, increasing numbers of people are falling out of love with dairy products. Enter Februdairy…
Recent years have seen a significant shift in consumer attitude towards dairy, as more people understand the environmental, health and animal welfare issues associated with the industry.
The UK’s leading vegan campaigning charity, Viva!, has investigated countless British dairy farms and exposed the brutal reality of the industry – helping many people make the switch to dairy-free.
An increasing number of dairy-alternatives are widely available including cheeses, yogurts, milks, and chocolates. Most supermarkets have their own ranges of vegan food – proving these products are big business.
Although the milk market is much bigger, valued at over £3 billion, demand for cow’s milk is declining and plant-alternative sales have surged 10 percent over the past two years.
It’s undeniable, dairy-free sales are booming and show no signs of slowing down. Considering these factors, it comes as no surprise that the dairy industry is desperately trying to claw its way back into public favor.
So what on earth is Februdairy?
Februdairy is a social media campaign created by the dairy industry in a desperate attempt to boost sales and portray dairy in a more favorable light. This is the industry’s fourth annual campaign and is pitched as a direct response to Veganuary.
This year Veganuary announced a record number of sign-ups with a whopping 400,000 people going vegan for a month. Milk producers, pro-dairy consumers, and industry experts, are encouraged to create and share pro-dairy content during the month of February on social media using the hashtag #Februdairy.
Social media Vs Februdairy
When the campaign launched in February 2017, the vegan community commandeered the hashtag to highlight the darker side of the dairy industry, where pain and suffering is an everyday occurrence.
Social media has played an instrumental role in the rise of veganism. It’s clear vegans are well versed in using it as a platform to educate and inform others.
A slew of animal rights advocates and groups such as Viva!, Animal Equality, and Animal Aid, use Februdairy as an opportunity to expose the cold-hard facts surrounding dairy production .
This doesn’t go down well with the dairy industry….
Posted on February 20, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
This is Norbert
Norbert is hunter
Norbert says: I’m a wildlife manager
Conservationist Animal rights activist butcher Hygiene specialist Veterinarians Dog leader ecologist biologist Epidemiologist Snipers police officer
He has worked hard to achieve this 2000 for the hunting license 8 hours of nature conservation 4 learning hours of hygiene law 4 hours of study on wildlife diseases 4 lessons “everything about dogs” 16 hours of learning hunting law 02 lessons in gun law And of course weapons, binoculars, etc.
He now shoots the four-legged family members of others. He controls and instructs others in the forest He pays no dog tax and is a dog expert He gets a 25% new car discount He tells other epidemiological tales of rabies, owls, and fox tapeworms He rescues fawns and shoots them four months later He is suing photographers who use telephoto lenses to disrupt wildlife
Norbert is a nature and animal rights activist
Norbert is a specialist. Because actually, Norbert is a lawyer
Posted on February 19, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
10 February 2021, CAS International (Comité Anti Stierenvechten)
Mexican state Sinaloa prohibits bullfighting
The government of the Mexican state of Sinaloahas agreed to prohibit bullfighting. Sinaloa is the fifth state in Mexico with a recent ban on bullfighting, after Sonora, Guerrero, Coahuila, and Quintana Roo.
Dog fights are also prohibited.
In parliament, a unanimous vote was taken in favor of an extension of the current animal protection law. In addition to the ban on bull and dog fights, wild animals must be better protected. Unfortunately, cockfights are yet allowed to take place in Sinaloa.
Bullfights
Bullfights take place in the city of Mazatlán every year, during Carnival.
This is the only town in Sinaloa where bullfights are held. Mexico is one of the most violent countries in the world and within society, there is increasing support for a ban on bloody spectacles with animals because they would stop a development towards a peaceful society.
Animal suffering is also an important argument to prohibit this type of cruel event. 7 out of 10 Mexicans are in favor of a ban on bullfighting.
Animal Protection Law
Some other new points have been included in the amended animal protection law.
And I mean…During a bullfight in Puebla (Mexico) in May 2019, a 500-kilo bull runs at the little murderer, impaling her face with his horns.
Blood shoots from her face, as it also sheds from his deep wounds.
She falls motionless on the floor, is operated on for hours, and is not allowed to enter the arena for six months. Unfortunately only for six months!
One of the toreros was killed in a bullfight in southern Mexico in 2015.
A bull victim took the bull killer Eduardo del Villar by the horns in the arena of Seybaplaya in the state of Campeche and tore open the artery in his thigh.
Juan José Padilla (39), unfortunately, had a lot of luck in Zaragoza, Spain, in 2011, he only lost one eye when the robust bull victim managed to defend himself against his killer.
He returned, he can’t stop killing and continues to kill in Mexico
An eleven-year-old mini-killer massacred six bulls in a bullfight in his native Mérida, Mexico, in 2009.
Unfortunately, he got away with no injuries, instead, he got the two ears of the dead animals as a trophy, and his dream is to get into the Guinness Book of Records as a super potent bull killer!
Unfortunately, the “accidents” with the human killers were too few compared to the 250,000 bulls (in Spain) that are brutally murdered annually.
This perversity, which in Mexico – as well as in Spain – is sold as something “festive”, “artistic” and a “fair competition” for stupid tourists and can only inspire a few dull, mentally weak proles, is now banned in one more city of Mexico!
We are happy about this decision, very happy in fact!
Countries that maintain these medieval spectacles are tarnishing their country’s reputation.
Posted on February 18, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
The inhabitants of Mwingi and Bolesa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo need our help: Local activists were jailed after a protest against PHC, a palm oil company.
To: the authorities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
“We demand the release of the activists and an end to violence and land grabbing. Local people must finally get their land rights and the right to free consent.” Read letter
Communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have suffered under palm oil companies for decades, and violence has erupted time and again: In 2015, a couple accused of stealing palm oil fruits was killed, and in 2019, the villager Joel Imbangola was beaten to death.
In February 2021, following a protest march against the palm oil company PHC, villagers, including local members of RIAO-RDC, were beaten and jailed.
Two reportedly received death threats, and women were sexually assaulted.
The occasion for the protest march was an anticipated visit by Kalaa Mpinga, the new CEO of Feronia-PHC. His Mauritius-registered corporation took over the plantations in 2020.
The villagers are accused of “inciting revolt”. Their taking photos of the protest march and giving interviews to journalists is also being held against them.
The roots of the conflict go back 110 years when the first plantations were established.
The local people were never consulted but were simply robbed of their ancestral land and thus their livelihood.
And I mean…Where previously there was a dense jungle, now only cut tree trunks lie on top of each other.
Criminal oligarchs from the palm oil mafia are to blame for this.
25,000 hectares of forest have already fallen victim to the company’s operations. The concessions are vast: They extend over 107,000 hectares – an area roughly the size of New York City.
The oil palms are originally native to Africa, but Malaysia and Indonesia are the largest producers in the world.
According to statistics, the Democratic Republic of the Congo produced 300,000 tons of palm oil in 2013, which puts it in twelfth place, behind other African countries such as Nigeria and Ivory Coast.
Indonesia
But because the area for palm oil is slowly running out in Southeast Asia and the demand for it continues to grow on the world market, more is now to be cultivated in Africa.
That was always the fascist principle of domination of the Europeans against Africa.
The people in Africa don’t want anything for free
They just want us to stop stealing their resources.
Maybe we can help them, we owe it to them. Please sign and share.
Produced by We Animals Media, the film follows the work of award-winning photojournalist and author Jo-Anne McArthur. McArthur has spent over a decade documenting the horrors animals endure around the globe. She welcomes viewers into her world:
Join me as I climb transport trucks, and stay quietly and diligently with animals as they go to slaughter. Join me in the dusty roads and at my little hotel room editing desk, as Miguel and I discuss animals, animal photojournalism, and ultimately, kindness.
Animals suffer long, grueling journeys to slaughter, up to 28 hours in the United States, with no food or water. And transport trucks are not built to protect animals from harsh weather. During summer, temperatures in the trucks rise to well over 100°F. Many animals suffer heat stress, asphyxiation, and heart attacks.
In winter, farmed animals endure below-freezing conditions and are exposed to snow, rain, and frigid winds. Some die from hypothermia, and others even freeze to the floors or sides of truck beds. McArthur stated:
We have enough photos in the world of beautiful wildlife. We get it. It’s time to show the harsh reality of how the rest are living.
Shot and produced by filmmaker Miguel Endara, Moving Animals focuses on the plight of cows. The film documents cows so weak from long journeys that they can’t even lift their heads. McArthur captures heartbreaking images of desperate cows sticking their tongues through the bars of a truck in an attempt to eat the leaves off a nearby tree.
According to McArthur, when she started documenting farmed animals 10 to 15 years ago, no one was interested in her stories. Now, she is seeing concern for animals making its way into mainstream newspapers around the world.
We can all help spread awareness of animal suffering. Share this powerful film with your friends and family, and follow We Animals on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Of course, the best thing we can do for animals is choose plant-based food. Download our freeVegetarian Starter Guide to learn how.
Posted on February 18, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Help the elephants! Public consultation on new EU measures to ban trade in ivory
16 February 2021
On January 28th the European Commission published draft measures aimed to effectively ban EU trade in ivory.
The draft Commission regulation and guidance are now open for final public feedback before being adopted by the Commission. The period of public feedback will last until 25 February 2021.
Across Europe, ivory continues to be traded online, in auction houses and markets. The EU and Japan are among the last countries with large, legal domestic ivory markets, while other major markets in the USA, China and the UK are now closed or in the process of closing.
Luckily, there is wide support in the EU for the closure of domestic elephant ivory markets, from the EU Council to the European Parliament, and among EU citizens and civil society.
The European Commission has the mandate to introduce comprehensive measures aimed at closing the EU domestic ivory market, thereby showing global leadership. Only by so doing, the EU will remove any financial value from ivory, reduce the opportunity for new ivory to be laundered through legal markets, and send a clear message to the rest of the world that the EU no longer considers ivory a commodity.
We therefore welcome the European Commission’s draft measures to ban the ivory trade in the European Union (EU) and urge the EU and its Member States to support and implement them without further delays.
We would nevertheless like to highlight the following recommendations for the European Commission’s public consultation:
We strongly recommend that the EC assess within the next few years the real effectiveness of both the implementing Regulation and the Guidance.
We ask that the changes made to the guidance document on the EU regime governing trade in ivory is integrated into the EU Commission Regulation, in order to ensure that the guidance becomes legally binding and a consistent language in both the Guidance and the proposed Regulation is used.
We fully support the proposed measures which provide that antique worked ivory may only be traded within the EU with a certificate. However, only independent approved/recognised experts should be authorised to assess whether an item has been legally acquired or not in order to avoid conflict of interests.
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
don’t follow everything blindly
just because tradition dictates it for generations…
some traditions have expired
and above all those that involve violence and human supremacy
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
In collaboration with Italian television, Animal Equalityhas released a new investigation that reveals the cruel reality for pigs bred for meat in Northern Italy—a region that markets its products with the stamp of the “excellence of Made in Italy.”
THE DETAILS: In September 2020, Animal Equality and Italian journalistRoberta Spinelli visited a pig farm in Brescia,Italy, and documented terrible abuse and suffering—images in stark contrast from the idyllic picture of contented animals on green pastures often painted by the region’s producers.
The investigative team found:
-Pigs abandoned and left to die in corridors
-Bodies of dead pigs amongst the living
-Workers dragging pigs by their legs with ropes
-Animals with cysts and sores, unable to walk because of their open wounds
-Animals crammed together and forced to live in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions
-Pigs covered with feces and urine
-Cockroach, rat, and worm infestations
-Sewage not properly disposed of in a ditch adjacent to the farm and fields
WHAT WE’RE SAYING:“Thanks to this investigation, the horrors of Bascia’s pig farms are clearly revealed.
We can no longer turn our heads from the suffering to which these sentient beings are forced to endure—mistreatment that happens behind the closed doors of these polluting farms which are often beneficiaries of public funds.
We need more checks and balances for these places, and we need them now,” says Alice Trombetta, Executive Director of Animal Equality Italy.
And I mean…The horror situation in the farms is not new – from our experience, we can say that the situation has been this way for over 20 years – maybe it has gotten even worse.
Incidentally, and of course, all of this applies not only to pigs but also to cattle, etc., and an even greater “mess” can be observed with poultry.
In addition, the (dismantling) personnel in a slaughterhouse, called dismantling columns (!), mostly from third countries, are usually housed in a way that could well be described as ‘barracked’!
What is shameful about this is that ‘politicians’ are surprised today and pretend that none of this was known!
Meat producers are simply criminals, nothing more and nothing less.
Are the beneficiaries of a corrupt system.
But the good fact is: each of us has a conscience, a large brain, empathy, and the ability to make decisions
If we use these wonderful properties, we can decide against animal exploitation, animal cruelty, and animal mass extermination.
Mentally, morally, socially healthy people with decency do not need such disgusting, fascist system structures.
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Las Palmas: On Monday morning, residents of the island’s capital, Gran Canaria, noticed an unusual, strong smell of stables in the streets.
The cause: a freighter that is supposed to transport more than 16,000 cattle to Turkey.
As reported by the broadcaster Canarias7, among others, the freighter Bader III, which is supposed to bring the cattle from Uruguay to Turkey (!!!) made a planned stopover in the port of Las Palmas.
The ship, which sails under the flag of the Bahamas, has been sailing for several days.
The animals had to be supplied with feed and freshwater, and fuel had to be refueled. The wind from the south-east ensured that the smell of the stable spread through the city.
In the afternoon, Bader III, a ship around 200 meters long and 27 meters wide continued its voyage towards Iskenderun.
And I mean…The capital residents probably didn’t like the stench, but this stench will come more and more often, so those who can not stand this stench should stop eating animals.
Animal cruelty stinks too, but only for those who also keep their eyes open.
As soon as the 200-meter mobile coffin makes its way to Turkey with the 16,000 moribunds, every carnivore from Las Palmas can breathe a sigh of relief again, problem deleted.
The motto is also common nowadays: close your eyes, it will all pass
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Over A Third Of Brits Now Avoid Animal Products After Watching David Attenborough’s Latest Film & Other Eco Docs
App development and digital product company, 3 SIDED CUBE recently conducted a survey with over 2,000 people to provide insights into the public’s opinions and motivations with respect to sustainability and the data found that six in 10 Brits are thinking of switching to sustainability due to David Attenborough and over a third of Brits are avoiding animal products due to his recent film ‘A Life On Our Planet‘ as well as other documentaries like James The Game Changers, famously backed by James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Premiering on Netflix late last year, the WWF and Silverback Films co-produced documentarypresents an important message from nonagenarian broadcaster and natural historian Attenborough that humans must make drastic changes to their diets in order to save the planet.
In the trailer for ‘A Life On Our Planet’, Attenborough explains that the films aims to raise awareness among people about the rate at which global warming is happening and press upon the message that the time to act is now. “I had the most extraordinary life. It’s only now I appreciate how extraordinary. The living world is a unique and spectacular marvel. Yet, the way we humans live on earth is sending it into a decline. Human needs have overrun the world.”
Findings from the survey show that Attenborough is right at the top (59%) when it comes to encouraging consumers to be sustainable and shift to a plant-based diet. Over half of British consumers (51%) also feel pressure from wider society and four in 10 (40%) give young Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg credit for helping them switch to sustainable choices in their personal life.
Apart from Attenborough’s A Life On Our Planet documentary, data found that the 2018 documentary film about the benefits of plant-based eating for athletes, The Game Changersbacked by James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger was also responsible for people in the U.K. to avoid animal products.
According to a report by the WWF, stopping animal meat consumption by 50% would not only reduce carbon emissions but also save 12,000 species per year as well as 1.72 million square miles of land.
A majority of Brits (77%) understand the importance of changing their lifestyle to become greener with 73% of consumers agreeing that businesses too have a responsibility to minimize their environmental impact and 64% urging the government to frame a new legislation that will ensure that businesses give details about their environmental footprint on the products they’re offering.
In an interview with Plant Based News, 3 SIDED CUBE managing director Richard Strachan mentioned that with influential figures coming ahead to talk about sustainability, the general public is motivated to follow in their footsteps. “Thanks to influential public figures such as David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg, Brits are taking the climate crisis much more seriously now. Now is the time to come together and tackle the crisis wholeheartedly. It is not just up to governments; it is up to businesses and consumers as well.”
Data from the poll further found that 61% would like an app to help them make more sustainable buying decisions and 50% call for an app to calculate and understand their personal carbon footprint with more than half of respondents agreeing that technology can be vital for living a sustainable life.
Discussing how this new data will help them in the Ignite program, Strachan added: “These findings show a clear case for the use of technology, specifically apps, to boost sustainable behaviour change and environmental protection initiatives. The technological tools to help consumers be greener are available to us, we just need to start developing and using them as soon as possible. This is why we have launched Ignite. Through this technology, we can empower consumers, businesses and NGOs to help protect ecosystems, be smarter with energy usage, and reduce our carbon footprints. The Ignite program is wholly dedicated to bringing organisations together on these issues and making these apps a reality.”
Attenborough also released another documentary, Extinction: The Factsthat talks about mass biodiversity loss and the consequences that the world will face as a result. Over the course of the one-hour program, Attenborough takes viewers on a journey through scenes of destruction due to activities conducted by humans on Earth.
Another noteworthy mention in a list of sustainable films to watch is Craig Leeson’s documentary A Plastic Ocean and his upcoming The Last Glaciers, and you can check out his interview here where he shares his journey from writing to filmmaking as well as throwing light on the world’s most pressing issues and what can be done to protect the planet, and ultimately, save humankind.
If you’re looking for an app to track your personal carbon footprint, you can check out Singapore-based startup Capture that has created an app that helps users keep track of their climate footprint from their everyday transportation choices, and offsetting their impact through forestry planting projects across the globe.
And if you need an easier way to buy plant-based alternative products, check out this new mobile app FoodForage, which is developed to help vegans and individuals looking to buy plant-based alternative products and offers a feature where you can share your findings with the community.
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Pholk Beauty Is The Black-Owned Vegan Skincare Line Dubbed As “Soul Food For The Skin”
When it comes to skincare, you deserve the absolute best. From facials and lotions, to washes, mists, and everything in between, your skin is meant to feel soft, healthy, and glowy all the time. There are so many different skincare products out there claiming to offer these results but feature ingredients that you’ve never heard of, can’t pronounce or have no idea if they actually work. There has to be an easier way to figure out which product is right for your skin needs, right?
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
It’s only meatless meals for some kids who have a passion for animals
Adopting a vegetarian or vegan diet also benefits the health of people and the planet.
There is a good chance that you have at least one vegan or vegetarian friend. It’s the kid who refuses to eat hot dogs at birthday parties because they are typically made from a cow or pig.
But you might wonder what a vegan is and how they are different from a vegetarian. A vegetarian doesn’t eat meat, including beef or seafood. A vegan doesn’t eat meat or any food that comes from animals, such as eggs, cheese and milk. Both may also not wear animal skins, such as fur, leather or wool.
Lone ‘veggie’ in the family
It’s becoming more common for kids to become vegetarian or vegan even when the rest of their family is not.
When Annie Kay from Ontario, Canada, learned that meat comes from animals, she watched several animal rights documentaries. She felt guilty each time she ate meat, so she stopped.
“I just knew it was wrong to eat animals. Their life is just as important as ours; it’s not fair that we eat them,” the 13-year-old said.
A vegetarian for more than a year, she has inspired several friends to try to stop eating meat. But Annie is the lone “veggie” in her family.
“My parents eat meat,” she said. “They put animals in sandwiches, and it makes me feel kind of disgusted.”
Annie’s parents support her decision, however, and make her separate meals.
A healthy choice
Many doctors say that it’s healthy to follow a plant-based diet and that by not eating animals or animal products, you help protect yourself from illness.
The Mayo Clinic, one of the best cancer and heart-care hospitals in the United States, says a vegetarian diet helps reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes and some cancers. But it can take more meal planning to make sure you, a growing kid, get enough protein, calcium and vitamins such as D and B12. You and your parents should ask your doctor for advice.
Not eating meat or dairy also helps the planet’s health. A vegan diet helps fight climate change by reducing greenhouse gases (such as methane from cow burps). It also helps keep pesticides (used to grow animal feed) and animal waste out of the water, and reduces the need to cut down trees for animal grazing.
Max Murphy, who was raised vegan from birth, is an animal activist. The 8-year-old from Ontario has attended protests against the fur industry and marine parks and volunteered at animal rescues around the world. Max volunteers at an animal shelter near his home and helps his mom foster dogs they have rescued from other countries.
Max feeds, socializes and sometimes grooms the foster dogs.
“I have grown up with dogs,” he said. “We get new ones, and then they get adopted.”
Max loves all animals equally.
“There is no difference between a dog, cow, pig or cat. They are all living animals,” he said. “Dogs might have fur and be fancy and cute, but really pigs are the same. They are all the same.”
Max is also determined to find a way to stop pollution.
“Greenhouse gases are going to get too bad from factory farming and gas cars, machines and factories,” he said. “We might not be able to live on this planet if things don’t change.”
Try it
1. Meatless Mondays is a global movement encouraging people around the world to not eat meat one day a week for their health and the planet. It’s a fun way to start your veggie journey. Try these vegan proteins instead of meat: beans, chickpeas, lentils, nuts, quinoa and tofu.
2. Try dairy milk alternatives: oat, rice, soy, coconut or almond. Have you tasted chocolate coconut ice cream or cashew cheese?
3. Not all vegan foods, such as Oreos and soda, are healthy. Doctors recommend eating plenty of vegetables, fruit, whole-grain foods, plant-based-protein food and drinking plenty of water.
4. Watch kid activist and Youth Climate Save spokesperson Genesis Butler’s TED Talk on her experience as a vegan. bit.ly/2LKU53T.
Posted on February 17, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
To stop this “justifiable homicide”, the brutal violence against animals, we have to do something more than just demonstrate for peace or organize chains of lights.
In the 19th century, there was a civil war in the USA because of slavery.
Black people were recognized by law as persons with the right to freedom.
We have to stop defining animals as “things” by law.
And that may become a reality when the animal rights movement understands that we are at war.
In a war where the enemy fights against the life, against the freedom of Non-Human animals.
Perhaps in the 21st century, we will also become a resistance movement for the abolition of nonhuman slavery
Posted on February 16, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
View the lives of innocent pigs, born on concentration camps called “Farms for toxicBacon” (USA)...and see how it is far from natural or humane…in fact, it is a torturous and abusive, living hell….this video shows just how cruel and barbaric this industry is to one of the most intelligent of all animals…
The excrement of Smithfield hogs (America’s largest pork producer, is Smithfield Foods) is hardly even pig shit: On a continuum of pollutants, it is probably closer to radioactive waste than to organic manure …
Industrial pig waste contains … ammonia, methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide, cyanide, phosphorous, nitrates, and heavy metals.
In addition, the waste nurses more than 100 microbial pathogens that can cause illness in humans …
Smithfield’s holding ponds — the company calls them lagoons — cover as much as 120,000 square feet … The liquid in them is not brown. The interactions between the bacteria and blood and afterbirths and stillborn piglets and urine and excrement and chemicals and drugs turn the lagoons pink.
In addition, humans who have fallen into these lagoons have died.
In an average week, more than 2 million pigs are slaughtered in the U.S., almost exclusively to be processed and eaten by people as “pork” products—primarily bacon,ham, and sausage.
Humane Society of the United States–Sometimes dead piglet parts are ground up and fed to living pigs.
In 2017, about 235 million pigs were sold in the U.S., and 95% of those were raised on concentration camps called “Pig-Farms“ with 5,000 or more individual pigs, under the cruel way, we saw on the video.
US’s largest “farm” keeps over 900,000 female sows at any given time designated for breeding until they are “spent” and slaughtered.
Don’t believe the myth of the happy pig next door that the advertisements want to sell you as a happy animal that doesn’t suffer under industrial violence.
Anything associated with animal consumption is suffering.
Posted on February 16, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
These days, whether you’re a vegan, sensitive to milk or just don’t like the taste, there are many non-dairy options available. Check it all out here by clicking on the following link:
Almond milk is made from ground almonds, water, and (in the majority of cases) sweetener.
Many varieties of almond milk are also fortified with minerals and vitamins.
Naturally nutritious, this milk is also a good milk to make at home.
As well as being low in fat and calories, almond milk is naturally high in many beneficial minerals and vitamins, including vitamin E.
There’s no cholesterol or saturated fat in the milk.
Furthermore, it is low in sodium and high in healthy fats (such as omega fatty acids), which helps to prevent heart disease and high blood pressure.
2- Oat Milk
Oat milk is made with pre soaked oat groats, which are hulled grains broken into fragments.
An interesting fact about oat milk is that it contains more calcium in one serving than regular cow’s milk.
Oat milk contains 36% of the RDA for calcium, while one serving of whole milk contains 28%.
In addition, one serving will also give you 10% of your recommended daily amount of iron.
The oat milk is one of the best vegan milk alternatives to dairy milk.
3- Soy Milk
Excellent for cooking, baking, in a glass or over cereal, soy milk is an easy method to add protein and dimension to your recipes.
Soy milk may also contain natural substances called isoflavones, which have been linked with a reduced risk of heart disease and a 25 percent decrease in breast cancer recurrence when at least 10 mg of isoflavones are consumed daily.
4- Flax Milk
Flax seeds are a natural source of Omega-3s, and it is the best non-dairy option for this purpose.
Flax seed milk has high levels of phytochemicals, ideal to nourish our bodies and to balance the hormones, particularly in women.
5- Coconut Milk
Coconut milk is immensely rich in minerals and vitamins, such as – potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc or vitamin C and E.
6- Hemp Milk
It is prepared from the seeds of hemp tree and is regarded as one of the healthiest choices for dairy-free milk.
Hemp milk contains 10 essential amino acids, making it an ideal choice for vegan bodybuilders and athletes of any dietary persuasion who are constantly needing to refuel and build muscle.
7- Rice Milk
Rice milk is a delicious, healthy beginning for anyone trying to find a healthy alternative to milk products.
Low in fat and naturally high in B vitamins, this milk contains selenium and manganese, which are potent antioxidants that help protect you from cancers and infections.
8- Hazelnut Milk
Hazelnut milk is an amazing vegan alternative to dairy milk.
Rich in folic acid, which is crucial for growing adults and babies, and also is it is rich in plant-based omega-3 fatty acid ALA, which has been proven by many studies to help keep cholesterol and blood pressure in check.
9- Macadamia Nut Milk
Macadamia nut milk is a nutritional powerhouse of omega-6 fatty acids, antioxidants, and phytochemicals guaranteed to improve your health.
They also contain moderate amounts of calcium, zinc, copper, phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium.
10- Cashew Milk
Cashew milk is lactose-free, but the nutrients vary depending on whether you make it at home or buy a commercially prepared product.
One cup of homemade cashew milk made using 1/4 cup of cashews has 10 grams of carbohydrates and 189 calories.
11- Quinoa Milk
Quinoa milk is high in dietary fibre, protein, vitamins, and all essential amino acids.
This great taste, easy-to-drink product also contains important minerals such as manganese, magnesium, iron, copper, zinc and phosphorus.
12- Potato Milk
Potato milk has lots of health benefits, particularly for anyone who has food intolerances or allergies, including children with autism.
That’s because potato milk is gluten-free, dairy-free, casein-free, cholesterol-free, fat-free, and soy-free.
13- Sunflower Seed Milk
This amazing non-dairy milk recipe is satisfying and less expensive than using nuts.
Because sunflower seeds are high in vitamin E, this milk keeps our immune system rockin’ and our skin glowing.
Additionally, they’re loaded with magnesium that helps keep our bones strong and our muscles relaxed.
Tip
Make your own dairy free milk.
It’s incredibly easy and in some cases, more economical and healthier to make your own vegan milk.
Posted on February 16, 2021 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Thousands of unweaned NI (Northern Ireland) calves face ‘cruel’ exports of up to 30 hours without food, say charities
DAERA has admitted that 5,863 weeks-old calves were exported last year
Thousands of unweaned calves from Northern Ireland are ‘cruelly’ going without food for up to 30 hours as they are shipped live for slaughter abroad, animal welfare charities claim.
They say some are just weeks old when they are packed into lorries and shipped to ‘suffer’ long journeys from Antrim and Armagh to Spain via Wexford’s Rosslare Port.
PETITION TARGET: South Korean Ambassador Lee Soo-hyuck and South Korean President Moon
Crammed into filthy metal crates and cages, more than 200 dogs cowered in fear waiting to be sold for slaughter at the Nakwon dog auction in Namyangjusk, S. Korea. Sadly, an estimated million dogs suffer similar fates in the nation’s horrifying meat trade.
But there is new hope for the dogs hung, electrocuted and butchered for profit. A bill proposed by Congresswoman Han Jeong-ae — the country’s newly installed Minister of the Environment — would “eradicate the culture of dog” meat as food in South Korea for good.
Ten members of the Korean National Assembly have already backed this bill. Add your voice now to help this lifesaving legislation pass!
Lady Freethinker’s undercover footage of the Nakwon House of Horrors made international headlines and sparked public outrage by exposing the terrifying, sickening conditions endured by dogs bred, brutally killed, and dismembered for dog meat.
But the horrors have continued in S. Korea — the only country in the world that still has large-scale, commercial dog farms. And some of the country’s legislative leaders have had enough.
House Bill 7035 proposes an amendment to the country’s Animal Protection Act that would explicitly ban the slaughtering and processing of dogs for food or their meat.
The bill provides for penalties against violators, but also includes a 5-year grace period and subsidies for businesses transitioning away from the dog meat trade.
More South Koreans than ever before — an estimated one in four — keep dogs as companion animals and people’s attitudes toward them are changing, the bill’s sponsors note.
“The general public’s awareness of animal welfare has also greatly improved, and there is a very high demand for socially banning dog consumption,” the bill’s text reads.
A Nielsen poll conducted last year reported that 84% of South Koreans polled said they didn’t or wouldn’t eat dog meat. The poll also reported 59% of those polled supported the outright banning of dog meat and 57% believed dog meat consumption reflected poorly on their country.
South Korea’s current leader, President Moon Jae-in, has compassion for animals and even adopted a dog rescued from the dog meat trade named Tory. He’s in the perfect position to leave a legacy for animals that won’t ever be forgotten.
Sign this petition asking President Moon and the Korean Ambassador to the U.S. to support this important bill that will show the world what a great and compassionate country South Korea is and that will prevent the suffering and deaths of thousands of innocent dogs killed in the horrific dog meat trade.
Kevin Lemke with “Good Luck” – This is about more than a mere rule violation – it’s about cruelty to animals.
Foto: Miguel Roberts/dpa
The hunters’ association does not want to accept the change in the game list without a fight and, if necessary, take it to the European Court of Justice (!!!)
