New Zealand: Way Behind Other Nations – Plans To Undertake Legal High Drug Testing On Animals – Petition and Letter – Please Sign.

Posted on March 17, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

NZ

NZ Testing

Petition Link

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/the-new-zealand-house-of-representatives-hon-peter-dunne-leave-animals-out-of-legal-high-testing

Petitioning The New Zealand House of Representatives; Hon Peter Dunne

The New Zealand House of Representatives; Hon Peter Dunne : Leave Animals Out of Legal High Testing

LEAVE ANIMALS OUT OF LEGAL HIGH TESTING

The New Zealand Anti-Vivisection Society (NZAVS) has joined forces with SAFE and the New Zealand SPCA to prevent the testing of psychoactive drugs (“party pills” or “legal highs”) on animals.

These tests would involve suffering and cruelty to both large and small animals (rats and dogs) leading to pain, distress and death. Using animals as the subject of tests for recreational drugs is unethical and unnecessary.

NZAVS, SAFE and the SPCA want the New Zealand Parliament to include a clause specifically prohibiting animal testing in any proposed legislation aimed at the regulation of these substances.

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If you’re in New Zealand email NZAVS at nzavs@nzavs.org.nz for paper petition signature sheets and get your friends, family, workmates and acquaintances to sign them. You can add your signature to both the paper and online petition.

What is the Government planning?

A Bill is being introduced to regulate the sale of low risk psychoactive drugs (“party pills” or “legal highs”) for recreational use. This will require safety testing. The final stage of the testing will require human trials. Some indication of the risk to people needs to be known before that stage. The main proposal the Ministry of Health (MoH) is considering requires four rounds of fatal animal tests to be carried out on both large and small animals (usually rats and dogs). For these tests the animals will be exposed to large doses of the drugs until adverse effects are found (acute toxicity); repeated long term exposure before being killed to allow internal examination; carcinogenicity and toxicokinetic tests (long term fatal tests that look at the drugs’ passage through the body).

Why oppose animal testing of recreational drugs?

Using animals as the subject of tests for recreational drugs is immoral and unethical; and not only that, it is also unnecessary. The UK has banned all use of animals for the toxicology testing of the recreational drugs tobacco and alcohol since the 1990s, Canada requires three toxicology tests for all tobacco products, none of which use animals.

Investigating the potential harm of these drugs does not require the use of animals. The very idea that animals could be used in this way and killed to facilitate the sale of recreational drugs is something to which the majority of New Zealanders are opposed. By signing the petition you can add your voice to this opposition.

What are the other options?

There are many types of tests available that serve the required purpose that do not use animals. Tests using cell cultures, bacteria and advanced computer modelling can provide all the information, and more, that animal tests do. For example, there are long established carcinogenicity tests that are in common use as they give better results than animal tests. There are non-animal tests that have been approved for use by many regulatory bodies internationally, including in both Europe and the US1, that can be used for all four types of tests the MoH is considering.

What else can I do to stop this happening?

Make a submission to the Select Committee considering the Bill. NZAVS is providing information on how to do this to anyone that is interested. For an info pack send your address by email to nzavs@nzavs.org.nz and one will be posted.

You can also email NZAVS for petition signature sheets and get your friends, family, workmates and acquaintances to sign them.

Peter Dunne is the Minister responsible for the legislation; you can let him know what you think about this issue by contacting him via email: peter.dunne@parliament.govt.nz or by post with no stamp required: Hon Peter Dunne / Parliament Office / Private Bag 18 888 / Wellington 6160.

To:
The New Zealand House of Representatives; Hon Peter Dunne

PETITION TO STOP ANIMAL TESTING OF PARTY PILLS

To the House of Representatives

We, the undersigned, respectfully request that the New Zealand Parliament includes a clause specifically prohibiting animal testing in any proposed legislation aimed at the regulation of Psychoactive Substances
(“party pills” or “legal highs”).

Sincerely,
[Your name]

Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, GLOBAL PETITIONS - Anything Animal, Anywhere !, LETTERS | Leave a comment »

Time Out !

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

widescreen wallpaper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=-vkqLi8bxPI&feature=endscreen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ff8UwvPK0G4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KQW4thcMDY

 free goth 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUiTQvT0W_0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94wZxJBbv3g

 

free goth 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72d5-xP5SnM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ydls3iAcs0A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAD0XLytC0w

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V44Pubi2DWs

free goth 4 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juD4ayBbHdY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iY9pIO8mlgg&list=AL94UKMTqg-9CQJlQcj0w-qQHgpRA_Tf5k

free goth 6 

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aregy6eni_k

 

 

free goth 5

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I Look At His Eyes …..

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

slaughter rabbit

Hi Mark,

look at this rabbit.  I look at his eyes and I  could see his mind.

He  wants to say to us:

Look at me now. Look at my welfare.  Never forget these are the most difficult  moments of my life –  until I am waiting  my own  violent death and  am hearing the screaming of my sisters and brothers. – those of  you who would eat me and wear  my skin, must think about  the last seconds of my life .

That was my one and only life.

If you are a  ‘thinking species’ – then think about this.. Where is now  my ‘welfare’ ? – what  about  your so-called ‘animal welfare; organisation’s speak’ ?

Maybe some of them could  try this ‘welfare’ on  themselves, maybe  then  they would not  further  to be  hypocritical  and maybe  they would not just think about the collection of  donations  by spreading lies about  my welfare.

My welfare – is my  right to live free to the natural end of my life .

 

Regards

Slavica (Serbia)

 

 

 

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Canada: Luka Magnotta Court Case Update.

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

Canada

luka-rocco-magnotta-manhunt

 

Below you can see the latest court / trial updates to the situation in Canada regarding Luka Magnotta.

– March 2013:

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/member-of-luka-magnotta-s-legal-team-withdraws-1.1194668

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2013/03/15/montreal-luka-magnotta-cries-during-preliminary-hearing.html

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Luka+Magnotta+case+Father+victim+rushes+courtroom+again/8104832/story.html

 

Our SAV past posts associated with this case:

https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2012/06/20/canada-luka-magnotta-arrives-back-in-canada-after-capture-in-germany/

https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2012/05/31/remember-luca-magnotta-who-proudly-posted-cat-killings-on-the-internet-it-started-with-animals-and-as-we-always-say-leads-to-human-abuses-again-welfare-people-appear-correct-and-the-politic/

 

 

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China (Yet again): 6,000 Dead Pigs Dumped in River by “local pig farmers who lack awareness of laws and regulations”.

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

china

pigs in river

Report link:

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/03/13/world/asia/pigs-china-river/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

 

Chinese farm says it dumped dead pigs in river

By Madison Park and Dayu Zhang, CNN

March 14, 2013 — Updated 0518 GMT (1318 HKT)

Hong Kong (CNN) — A Chinese farm admitted to dumping dead pigs into Huangpu River, which had about 6,000 bloated carcasses pulled from its water this week, state media reported.

The pig farm in Jiaxing City said it dumped carcasses in the Huangpu River, raising concerns about the quality of water supply.

The labels in the ears of the pigs indicated the city as their birthplace, according to Xinhua, the Chinese state-run news agency. The city is south of Shanghai, in the Zhejiang Province.

Earlier, local Chinese media had suggested the dead pigs had come from the area with local officials blaming dumping on “local pig farmers who lack awareness of laws and regulations.”

The city’s government said a total of 70,000 pigs died from “crude raising techniques and extreme weather” at the beginning of the year, according to Xinhua. But it also insisted that the collected corpses were disposed safely.

The selling of diseased pigs appears to be a bigger problem in the area as on Wednesday, a court in Zhejiang Province, issued prison sentences for 46 people convicted of selling meat from diseased pigs, Xinhua said.

The sentences ranged from six months to 6 and a half years in prison, the report said.

Shanghai water concerns

The “dead pig dumping scandal” in Shanghai has been growing since Friday, Xinhua reported.

Chinese officials have said they expect to find more carcasses in the river — but they insist the Shanghai water is fine.

The scandal has incredulous residents one-upping each other on the country’s popular microblog service, Sina Weibo.

“Since when is finding dead rotting pigs in a major river not a public health problem?” Weibo user, xxx asked. ”    Answer: When this happens in China.”

A report in the Shanghai Daily newspaper earlier Wednesday said that no pollution had been found in the river.

“Since apparently, the water has not been contaminated, big leaders, please go ahead and have the first drink,” Weibo user,@_Nina_Burbage quipped.

However, a later water sample was found to contain a porcine circovirus, Xinhua said.

The World Health Organization says there are two types of porcine circoviruses, but neither is known to cause disease in humans.

An official from a Shanghai water plant was quoted in Xinhua saying, “If the water is contaminated, we will put more the disinfectants and activated carbon to purify the water.”

‘Dead pigs all around’

Sanitation workers, clad in masks and plastic suits, have been fishing the bruised pig bodies surfacing in the Huangpu River. The pink, decomposing blobs have wreaked foul odors and alarmed residents.

“There were dead pigs all around and they really stunk,” one local resident told CNN. “Of course, we’re worried, but what can you do about it? It’s water that we have to drink anduse.”

If the water treatment process is very effective and can handle the sudden glut of contaminants, it’s possible to minimize the impact, said Julian Fyfe, a senior research consultant specializing in water quality at the University of Technology Sydney.

However, “most treatment plants would not be designed to accommodate that level of shock loading. It’s such an unusual event,” he added.

Fyfe spoke in general terms about water quality issues, as he is not involved with Shanghai’s water treatment.

“If they are chlorinating heavily, which a lot of places may do, especially if they’ve got a very polluted water body to start with, then the effects could potentially be small,” Fyfe said.

Pig corpses that have been in the water for days would leak blood, intestinal fluids and other pollutants, which could alter the taste and color of tap water.

Many residents have begun drinking bottled water due to fears of contamination, according to the Global Times, a Chinese newspaper.

Ripe for satire

The agricultural commission in China said it had tested organ samples from the pigs and the results suggested the animals had contracted a porcine circovirus.

On Tuesday, national officials acknowledged the pig incident in a press conference Tuesday.

“According to monitoring statistics, there’s no evidence to show that there’s an outbreak of any major animal epidemics,” said Chen Xiaohua, the national vice minister of agriculture. “But in the meantime, the incident shows how we need to improve our work in the future.”

The situation appeared ripe for satire.

A movie poster for “Life of Pi” was doctored and replaced with “Life of Pigs,” with the main character’s boat filled with dead pigs, and the water dotted with the bruised corpses.

One weibo user joked: “I finally figured out why drinking boiled water makes me gain weight — because it is in fact pork soup!”

Local authorities say they’re looking into how the pigs ended up in the river.

 

 

 

 

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China (Again): Plans To Destroy Cambodian Rainforest By Flooding – Please Take Action (see below).

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

cambodia

china

Cam forest 1

RAINFOREST ACTION ALERT              PLEASE SEND, SHARE, LIKE, FORWARD!

Massive Chinese Dam Threatens Cambodia’s Cardamom Rainforests

By Rainforest Portal a project of Ecological Internet: http://www.rainforestportal.org/ with John Seed, Rainforest Information Centre: http://www.rainforestinfo.org.au/

March 14, 2013

TAKE ACTION to ensure Cambodia’s Cardamom rainforests remain standing:

  http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/alerts/sendsm.aspx?id=cambodia_dam

The Areng Valley in the Cardamom Mountains of south-west Cambodia is threatened with flooding by a Chinese hydropower dam. This biodiversity gem – home of the Siamese crocodile and indigenous Khmer Daeum – is to be destroyed for a relatively small amount of electricity. Standing large, connected, and ecologically intact old-growth forests are required for local and global ecological sustainability and well-being.

Please send the following alerts to protect old-growth rainforests as well:

Tell Avon, New Jersey: Old-Growth Rainforest Boardwalks Cause Abrupt Climate Change
http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/alerts/sendsm.aspx?id=rainforest_boardwalk

Protest Tasmanian Old-Growth Logging in Proposed World Heritage Area
http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/alerts/sendsm.aspx?id=tasmania_forests

Ecuador Tribe Will “Die Fighting” to Defend Rainforest #IdleNoMore
http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/alerts/sendsm.aspx?id=ecuador_oil

—
Please support Ecological Internet’s campaigns to protect and restore old
forests at http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/donate/
cam forest 2

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Germany: Boars Shot By Hunters Are Highly Radioactively Contaminated – How Many Have Been Shot By Hunts During the Last 5 Years and Presented to a ‘Certified Measuring Body’ Before Going Into the Human Food Chain ?

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

GERM0001

For explanation: the here used term “Swabia” refers to Baden-Wuerttemberg, with Stuttgart as its capital.

It is interesting to note that there is no mention of other “game”, which is also shot in high numbers in Germany and consumed (except for foxes, where the fur is used) – sold via local shops and in local restaurants. Deer also dig for food at this time of year. The following pics have been taken in the local forest (Southern Germany).

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Below – The remains of locally shot boar/deer – Jan. and Feb. 2013.

Normally only the head, legs and skin is discarded in the waste bins.

The meat is sold locally by shops for human consumption and also used in local restaurants.

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SAV4

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http://www.welt.de/regionales/muenchen/article114358170/Ganze-Wildschweinrotte-radioaktiv-verseucht.html

12.03.13

ANIMALS

Entire group of wild boar radioactively contaminated

Even 27 years after the reactor catastrophe at Tschernobyl the effects are measurable.  After a boar hunt near Augsburg all shot animals had to be disposed of: the sows very heavily contaminated.

SAV8

Wild boars in the forest. By foraging for food they plough through the ground. There, especially in mushrooms, a lot of radioactivity is still concentrated.

37 radioactive Swabian wild boar make the Greens feel uneasy. The animals had recently been shot during a “Saujagd” (boar hunt) near the city of Augsburg. All 37 were afterwards disposed of due to a too high exposure dose, said Christine Kamm, with the Augsburg Green party.

The readings came up with Caesium-137 values of 10,000 becquerel per kilogram. From 600 becquerel onwards game is declared unfit for consumption, said a representative of the Augsburg regional environmental authority.

The reactor catastrophe at Tschernobyl in 1986 is still considered the main source for Caesium pollution. The radioactive metered values for the recently shot 37 sows are even higher than those of previous measurements, said Kamm. “The values rise, although the radioactive half-life of Caesium is 30 years”:

The Greens intend to submit an inquiry to the state parliament in order to find out if Swabian sows are a special case and how many radioactively contaminated animals have been shot in the last 5 years. Boars shot during hunts must be presented to a certified measuring body – unless the hunter intends to consume the meat himself.

Radioactivity in the Ground

The high level of contamination of these 37 Swabian boars may also have seasonal reasons. Caesium-37 is measured for the most part in the surface soil of the forest, said a representative of the environmental authority. In years with a good food supply the boars ate mostly acorns and beech nuts. In bad years the boars took to ploughing through the ground looking for mushrooms. “This can lead to fluctuation between years”.

The state authority conducts radioactivity measurements of its own within the framework of the precautionary radiation protection legislation (Strahlenschutzvorsorgegesetz). From 1st of March 2012 to 1st of March 2013 only 12 of 136 examined sows tested positive for elevated radiation. One of the animals came from Swabia, the other 11 from Bavaria.

 

 

 

 

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