Via Defenders of Wildlife:

The Bristol Bay Deserves Protection!

The Bristol Bay is home to endangered Northern Pacific right whales and Steller sea lions. It is also one of the world’s most productive fishing grounds, with and important snow crab fishery and the planet’s largest sockeye salmon run.

But President Bush has a different vision for this precious piece of the Pacific: he wants to turn it over to profit-rich Big Oil, lifting a moratorium that has been in place since the disastrous Exxon Valdez spill.

Take Action now! Tell President Bush not to let Big Oil into the Bristol Bay!

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts defenders+of+wildlife environment environmental environmentalism environmentalist oil bristol+bay conservation whales

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Farm Sanctuary – info [at] farmsanctuary.org
Date: Dec 15, 2006 3:36 PM
Subject: Farm Sanctuary’s E-News & Action Alert 12/15/06

New Jersey Landmark Legal Case

On December 13, oral arguments were held in a landmark legal case in New Jersey to challenge the cruelty of factory farming. Farm Sanctuary and others are suing the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA) for its sanctioning of cruel, industrialized farming practices. One decade ago, the New Jersey legislature directed the state Department of Agriculture to draft standards for the “humane” raising of farm animals. Instead, the NJDA drafted regulations to protect factory farming and provide exemptions for many cruel standard practices. Our suit is challenging these inhumane regulations.

Help Save University Teaching Project Rabbits Rescued From Slaughter!

Farm Sanctuary has come to the rescue of six rabbits who were being used as part of a veterinary school teaching project, and we need your help. After their time was up at the university, the instructors were planning to slaughter the rabbits for food. Thankfully, a compassionate student intervened and Farm Sanctuary was able to secure custody of the rabbits. Now, we need your help to provide a safe home for the rabbits at Farm Sanctuary’s New York Shelter. Donations are needed to fund feed, bedding, toys, as well as spay and neuter surgeries and basic veterinary care for all the rabbits. With your help, rather than being “dinner” on someone’s plate this holiday season, these sweet rabbits will be protected from harm forever – showered with the love, care and affection they deserve.

MAKE A DONATION – Please, make a donation today to help care for these needy rabbits. Your gift will make it a happy holiday for six very special individuals. Click here to donate now, or call 607-583-2225 ext. 221.

HOMES NEEDED – We are also seeking adoptive homes for the rabbits. If you are able to provide a loving home, please contact us at mailto:shelter [at] farmsanctuary.org or call 607-583-2225 ext. 266.

Letters to the Editor

There’s no better time than the holidays to educate people about making kind choices. Even if you can find only a few quiet moments amidst the hustle and bustle of this busy season, take time for the animals. By engaging in a small act like writing a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, you can reach countless individuals and make a big difference for the farm animals who are commonly exploited for holiday meals and gifts. Learn more.

From the Best Chefs in the World

Introducing the best vegan food (and coffee and chocolates and flowers and “cowches” and wine) in the world delivered! Buykind.com offers delicious vegan foods from some of the best vegetarian restaurants in the United States, delivered right to your door. And as a special holiday thank you to the friends of Farm Sanctuary, buykind.com is offering a $3 gift certificate when you place your first order! Just enter the code word FARMSANC when checking out. Visit www.buykind.com today!

In the News

Before the barn door shuts, judges consider treatment of farm animals
Trenton Times, December 14, 2006

New Jersey suit a test case on farm animal cruelty
Reuters, December 13, 2006

The next city ban?; Foie gras foes emboldened by New York’s trans fat restriction
Metro New York, December 12, 2006

High IQ linked to being vegetarian
BBC, December 15, 2006

Shopping

Stemware
Our charming glasses (11oz. with frosted design) for those special occasions Made in USA

About Farm Sanctuary

Farm Sanctuary is the nation’s leading farm animal protection organization. Since incorporating in 1986, we have worked to expose and stop cruel practices of the “food animal” industry through research and investigations, legal and legislative actions, public awareness projects, youth education, and direct rescue and refuge efforts. Our shelters in Watkins Glen, NY and Orland, CA provide lifelong care for hundreds of rescued animals, who have become ambassadors for farm animals everywhere by educating visitors about the realities of factory farming. For more information about Farm Sanctuary or our programs, please visit www.farmsanctuary.org or call 607-583-2225. To become a Farm Sanctuary member or to make a donation today using our secure online form, www.farmsanctuary.org/join/donate2.htm. For updates on previous action alerts, www.farmsanctuary.org/actionalerts/update.htm.

Please forward and distribute widely! Thank you
Farm Sanctuary, P.O. Box 150 Watkins Glen, NY 14891.

–

To subscribe: www.farmsanctuary.org/signup.htm

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts farm+sanctuary animal+research vivisection rabbits animal+abuse cruelty+to+animals nj new+jersey letters+to+the+editor

Via the Natural Resources Defense Council:

Save wild Patagonia from “electrocution”

A European energy company is now scheming to build massive hydro-electric dams on every major river in Chilean Patagonia. We need your immediate action to stop this proposed “electrocution” of one of the wildest regions on earth.

Endesa-Spain’s disastrous proposal would flood thousands of acres of irreplaceable habitat for a vast array of rare wildlife including South American deer, southern river otters and many birds found only in Patagonia.

For the sake of its own profits, the company is claiming that stopping up Patagonia’s mighty rivers to produce electricity — which would then be transmitted thousands of miles — is the only way to fuel Chile’s economic growth. As part of the same plan, Brookfield Consortium, a Canadian company, would clearcut a 1,200-mile swath through five national parks and two wilderness reserves to make way for the world’s largest transmission line.

But smarter alternatives to strengthening Chile’s economy — such as stricter energy efficiency standards and the use of localized, clean and renewable energy sources — are readily available.

Chile’s new president, Michelle Bachelet, has pledged to make environmental protection a priority in her administration. To fulfill that promise, she should take a hard a look at every possible alternative before sentencing wild Patagonia to electrocution.

Please go to www.savebiogems.org/patagonia/takeaction and tell President Bachelet to spare the life of this untouched expanse of breathtaking rainforests, glaciers, fjords and rivers.

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Tagged: environment environmental environmentalist environmentalism action+alerts nrdc natural+resources+defense+council chile dam Michelle+Bachelet Patagonia hydro-electric+dam

UPDATE (via Ecological Internet), 1/12/07:

UPDATE – Jan 12, 2007: The rainforest destruction crisis in Uganda, which we first informed you of in December, has worsened considerably. The Ugandan President now proposes to degazette over nine additional municipal forest reserves, presumably to spur industrial and agricultural development. This is in addition to two existing proposed large agricultural plantation projects in Uganda’s important protected rainforests, and those that buffer Lake Victoria, to grow palm oil and sugar cane crops. Destruction of Uganda’s surviving forests will have grave ecological consequences, changing the country’s climate including more frequent droughts and floods, threatening hundreds of rare species, sparking soil erosion, and further reducing the health and water volume of Lake Victoria by removing a crucial buffer against pollution. Please contact the Ugandan government to insist these projects be abandoned and that existing protected forests maintain their status, informing the government that Uganda needs more not less protected intact rainforests if they are to develop in an ecologically sustainable manner and have any hope of alleviating poverty in the long-term.

———–

Via Ecological Internet:

Protest Plans to Destroy Uganda’s Few Remaining Rainforests for Plantations

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is pursuing legally dubious plans to destroy much of Uganda’s last few rainforests to grow palm oil and sugar cane crops. Uganda has long been facing a deforestation crisis, with forests covering 20 percent of Uganda 40 years ago, but now just covering seven percent. Loss of forest cover in Uganda has had devastating ecological impacts which will be intensified by the proposed projects. Deforestation has been directly responsible for declining levels of waters in Lake Victoria and the River Nile, resulting in a scarcity of drinking water and reduction in hydroelectric energy production. The whole matter seems to reflect a desperate power
grab by the President to reward cronies under false and illusory promises of industrialization. The government has no legal mandate to give out constitutionally protected forest reserves to be cut down by private companies.

Please contact President Yoweri Museveni, the entire Ugandan parliament, and Ugandan ministries and embassies and insist that these projects be abandoned, and Uganda’s remaining rainforest strictly protected as ecological reserves while restoring forests where they
historically occurred.

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Tagged: environment environmental environmentalist environmentalism action+alerts ecological+internet uganda rainforest conservation oil

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Kinship Circle – info [at] kinshipcircle.org
Date: Dec 15, 2006 10:28 AM
Subject: DUE 12/20: No Charges For Cat Stoned To Death

Kinship Circle Primary – PERMISSION TO CROSS-POST AS WRITTEN
(Please do not delete identity/disclaimer information)

This action alert expires on Dec 20, 2006!

12/15/06 – No Charges For Cat Stoned To Death
KINSHIP CIRCLE ACTION CAMPAIGN

www.KinshipCircle.org

SOURCE OF INFORMATION:

Two CU employees suspended over animal abuse

CU cat killers should face prosecution

Cat trapped in dumpster, beaten to death – Springfield, MO (US)

To send a webfax letter to the contacts in this case:

www.pet-abuse.com/action/10168/

Animal abuse cases are TIME-SENSITIVE — depending upon the nature of a crime as well as court dates. To check the status of a case, search the Animal Abuse Crime Database for updates. Many animal cruelty cases (but not all) are on file here: www.pet-abuse.com/database/. Also check National Court Watch about upcoming cases: www.pet-abuse.com/pages/courtwatch.php.

=========================================

SAMPLE LETTER

Feel free to use portions of our letter, but please add some original thoughts. Hundreds of identical letters may lessen the impact.

=========================================

(More below the fold…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: ASPCA – news-alert [at] aspca.org
Date: Dec 15, 2006 6:31 AM
Subject: ASPCA’s Top 10 Cold Weather Tips/Busted for Animal Cruelty!

December 15, 2006

Welcome to our weekly email newsletter, your source for the latest news from our animal welfare community and information on pending humane legislation.

——————————
ASPCA NEWS ALERT
——————————

HOT OFF THE PRESSES: OUR TOP TEN COLD WEATHER SAFETY TIPS

Brrrr…it’s getting cold outside! As the mercury begins to dip in many parts of the country, our ASPCA experts offer guidelines to help you protect your companion animals. Puppies, kittens, adult dogs and cats–we’ve got them covered (and you can keep them cozy!).

ASPCA SUCCESS STORY OF THE WEEK: JACK OF ALL TRADES

Lola the Jack Russell terrier needed out of her cage at a local Texas shelter–bigtime.

ASPCA COMMUNITY TOPIC OF THE WEEK: CLIP, SNIP, WASH & DRY–GROOMING 101

We want the lowdown on the various services provided by your cat’s personal manicurist and hair stylist (errr, that’s you!).

QUEENS MAN SENTENCED IN ANIMAL CRUELTY CASE

20-year-old gets 16 months in prison for starving a family of pit bulls.

RING IN THE NEW YEAR WITH WINDSOR VINEYARDS

Planning to pop open some bubbly this New Year’s Eve? Then we’ve got a deal for you, ASPCA supporters.

ALWAYS IN STYLE: GIVE THE GIFT OF LIFE THIS SEASON!

Start a holiday tradition this year by actively honoring the special people, animals and events in your life with an ASPCA Honor gift.

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ASPCA ADVOCACY
—————————

SUPER STOCKING STUFFER: OUR STATE LAW CARDS!

Listing each state’s cruelty laws and penalties, our laminated, wallet-size cards are an invaluable instant resource tool for law enforcement, humane investigators, legislators, shelter staffers and the public. Up-to-date cards are available for CA, CO, FL, IL, IN, MS, MO, NH, NJ, NY, OK, PA, TN, TX, WA and VT.

OUR PETS NEED YOUR HELP, ILLINOIS RESIDENTS

Please call the Governor’s office at (217) 782-6830 or (312) 814-2121 and ask him to sign HB 4804 to protect pets in disasters.

MORE ALERTS FOR YOUR AREA…

—————————————
THE ASPCA GOES MOBILE!
—————————————

Sign up to receive text messages on pet care and pending legislation from ASPCA experts.

Sign Up Now!

———————————
ASPCA ONLINE STORE
———————————

Shop at the ASPCA Store and cross everyone off your holiday gift list!

Order by midnight, December 18, for guaranteed delivery before Christmas Day.

- Top Sellers

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=Z4nAO5lq8ipTwDfjNvUMOQ..

- Gifts for Him

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=gzWLpCMxfc7Wc5CLaZk8Vw..

- Gifts for Her

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=BHnx5Id4TWxZYngJvu7l-w..

- Gifts for Teens

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=oxw1r5Z_iWcpGsJofst_sw..

- Gifts for Kids

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=KjdqwUDUOc8waEOiGCyCjw..

- Gifts under $15

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=ZX8TlMZoDwqgy0e83BS2zw..

- Gifts under $35

www.aspca.org/site/R?i=_C2Hj7xVTGTf8TY6A4uQSw..

——————————–

© 2006 The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®
424 E. 92nd St
New York, NY 10128
Visit us online at www.aspca.org

——————————–

Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts aspca animal+abuse holidy cold+weather cold+weather+tips safety+tips

Via Greenpeace:

All I want this year is a green Apple

‘Tis the season, and stockings are being stuffed with ipods, and Macs nestled under the tree. But not all is well in Whoville, and there’s a grinch of a surprise inside these Apple gifts: toxic chemicals. And as last year’s gifts are tossed to make way for shiny new Apples, they will likely find their way to developing countries, where children of all ages will unwrap and unleash the toxic chemicals within.

Well, there’s no place like New York to light up the night with a holiday wish. We’ve been telling Apple to go green for years, and tonight, more than 60 activists took to the streets of New York to shine green lights on Apple’s iconic 5th Avenue store. Now it’s your turn to shine a green spotlight on Apple.

Send Apple a special holiday card and tell Steve Jobs that all you wish for is a green Apple.

—————–

Tagged: environment environmental environmentalist environmentalism action+alerts greenpeace apple mac steve+jobs toxic pollution reuse green

Astute readers may notice that all of the email addresses posted on easyVegan.info are spam-safe. Rather than publishing email addresses in a format that’s easily harvested by spambots, I try to break ‘em up so that the addresses aren’t inundated with spam. So, instead of posting an email address in its actual format, such as abc@xyz.com, I’ll post it as abc [at] xyz.com. In order to utilize the email addresses, readers hafta fix ‘em. If any given action alert contains only one or two email addys, that’s not too big a hassle. On the other hand, if there are entire blocks of alerts (such as in the Kinship Circle alert I just posted), it takes valuable time to edit each one manually. Thus, a tip.

If any given alert contains more than a few email addresses, copy the spam-safe addresses and paste them into a blank Word document. Then, under the “Edit” drop-down menu, choose “Replace”. In the window that pops up, do this: in the “Find what” field, enter ” [at] “, and in the “Replace with” field, enter “@”. Be sure to include the spaces before and after “[at]“, so that these are deleted. Otherwise, you’ll still end up with a useless email address. After the find and relace is complete, simply copy the new, working email block and paste it into your email program.

Of course, any program with a similar find and replace function will work. I’m not all that Mac-savvy, so if anyone has a Mac-related (or other) suggestion, kindly leave it in the comments.

By the by, I do plan on including this and other tips in an easyVegan.info FAQ. Most of the site is completed, but as you can see, I’ve been putting off the FAQ for, what is it, six months now. Mainly because I’m not really sure what questions/answers to write up! So, if you’ve got a suggestion, let me know! It can be most anything, from “Where do all those alerts come from?” to “What if an email address bounces?” or “I’d like to recommend a resource, what should I do?” Tech questions will work too, so long as they aren’t too complicated.

Now, back to those alerts.

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Tagged: site+admin word microsoft+word find+and+replace

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Kinship Circle – info [at] kinshipcircle.org
Date: Dec 12, 2006 3:49 PM
Subject: Target: HLS Customer Scios + SHAC & SPEAK Updates

Kinship Circle Primary – PERMISSION TO CROSS-POST AS WRITTEN
(Please do not delete identity/disclaimer information)

12/12/06 — Target: HLS Customer Scios + SHAC & SPEAK Updates
KINSHIP CIRCLE ACTION CAMPAIGN

www.KinshipCircle.org

IN THIS ALERT:

1. Scios Inc. CONTACT INFORMATION
2. Scios Inc. SAMPLE LETTER
3. SHAC 7 Days of Christmas
4. SPEAK Founders Facing Imprisonment

SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (UK), www.shac.net
info [at] shac.net

RESOURCES:
Customers of Huntingdon Life Sciences

www.shac.net/HLS/clients.html

HLS EXPOSED FOR THE SIXTH TIME – WORKERS REVEAL THE TRUTH INSIDE HLS
Download report in PDF format: www.shac.net/ACTION/newsletters/Inside_HLS.pdf
Help the campaign: www.shac.net/MISC/Inside_HLS_What.html

Close HLS

www.CloseHLS.net

WHO IS HUNTINGDON LIFE SCIENCES?
Fact Sheet: www.kinshipcircle.org/fact_sheets/default.html

INSIDE/OUT: DIARY OF MADNESS
($10) Booklet with graphic images from HLS protests and investigations
To order, email name and street address, to: info [at] kinshipcircle.org
To order online: www.kinshipcircle.org/store/default.html

(More below the fold…)

Last week I shared some individual pics of Santa’s Little Monsters. This week, the “group” shots we managed to coax out of them the next day. I say “group” because we actually had to separate them into two groups; 3 and 2 dogs was workable, whereas 5 clearly was not. Maybe next year.

Here’s Rennie, Ralphie & Peedee:

And Kaylee & Jayne:

Now for those carnivals:

* Carnival of the Green 57

* Carnival of Hurricane Relief 66

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Tagged: friday+random+cuteness carnivals my+furbabies link+dump dog canine dachshund wiener+dog hot+dog rat+terrier Jack+Russell+terrier

Wow, has it been a month already?

Awhile back, you may remember, Lantern Books sent me my very first package of swag, which consisted of Dr. Michael Greger’s newest book, Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own Hatching, as well as Hillary Rettig’s recent release, The Lifelong Activist: How to Change the World Without Losing Your Way.

After a long delay, here’s my Amazon review of The Lifelong Activist.

And then ‘scuse me while I go get moving on Bird Flu – which, I might add, is available in full online (!). How cool is that?

(More below the fold…)

Via the World Wildlife Fund:

Stop killing wolves in Switzerland

Thanks to conservation efforts wolves returned to Switzerland in 1995 after being driven to extinction throughout most of Western Europe at the beginning of the last century.

But the future of the species in Switzerland now hangs in the balance once again.

In late November a wolf, which was reported to have killed around 30 sheep, was shot dead in the Valais region in south western Switzerland. This was the second wolf killed this year, following the shooting of a female in October.

Although the wolf is classified as a ‘strictly protected’ species in Europe, animals can still be killed legally under exceptional circumstances. Yet despite the fact that the Swiss region’s highest court ordered a halt to the cull until a formal decision could be made, the authorities carried out their threat and killed the wolf regardless.

The authorities in Valais have completely failed to promote prevention measures, which can drastically reduce attacks on livestock, and have even ignored advice from their own highest court.

This sets a terrible example, which unless it is challenged, could soon be followed by other regions in Switzerland.

Click here and call on the authorities in Valais to stop killing wolves.

Find out more information about this action here.

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts environment environmental environmentalist environmentalism wwf world+wildlife+fund switzerland wolves

Via the Humane Society of the United States:

Kansas: Stop the Logan County Prairie Dog Poisoning

The commissioners of Logan County, Kansas, have decided to poison the largest prairie dog town in Kansas. A 1901 state law permits county governments to go onto private property, despite the owner’s objection, and exterminate prairie dogs. Last week, one Logan ranching family was given the option of killing the prairie dogs on their land or paying for county employees to do so, at a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

So far, the family has protested, saying that prairie dogs play an important role in the health of native grassland ecosystems. They also don’t want poisons, which kill many species besides prairie dogs, on their land. Furthermore, they have proposed their land as potential reintroduction sites for the most endangered mammal in North America, the black-footed ferret, a species completely dependent on prairie dog colonies for its survival.

Click here to take action on this issue.

More information is available here.

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts hsus humane+society humane+society+of+the+united+states prairie+dogs poison kansas logan+county

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: In Defense of Animals – takeaction [at] idausa.org
Date: Dec 14, 2006 8:00 AM
Subject: Writing Alert: Bob Barker pledges money to send LA Zoo elephant to sanctuary

The Mercury News and other publications around the country ran stories on a pledge by Bob Barker of $300,000 to care for Ruby, an elephant at Los Angeles Zoo, should she be sent to a sanctuary.

Please write a letter to the editor of the Mercury News (or your local paper if it prints the story) in support of sending Ruby to a sanctuary. Send letters to the Mercury News editor at letters [at] mercurynews.com.

Read Bob Barker pledges money to send LA Zoo elephant to sanctuary online.

(More below the fold…)

I just completed the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s (DCCC) “100 Hours Legislative Survey.” Though only one question deals with environmental issues – and NO questions address animal advocacy concerns – there is a box where participants are invited to share the “other issues [you would like] like the 110th Congress to take up in the first 100 Hours?” Please take a moment to complete the survey and ask the 110th Congress to repeal the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) immediately.

Other suggestions you can include are for Congress to act on the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act and the Animal Fighting Prohibition Act.

————

Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts free+speech first+amendment censorship aeta Animal+Enterprise+Terrorism+Act terrorism animal+terrorism eco-terrorism activism advocacy horses horse+slaughter dogs canines dogfighting cockfighting American+Horse+Slaughter+Prevention+Act Animal+Fighting+Prohibition+Act 110th+congress

Here’s the TOC from IDA’s 12-13-06 newsletter.

Click on the links to take action, or read the whole newsletter online.

IDA Action Alerts

Start Your Holiday Shopping Now with Animal-Friendly Gifts; IDA’s offers great ideas for all the guardians and animal friends on your list

Spread Compassion this Holiday Season with Good Food & Cheer; A primer for vegetarians and vegans on having a happy and healthy holiday

Rep. Dennis Kucinich: Congress’ Lone Voice against the AETA; Vegan Congressman releases statement opposing unconstitutional bill

Campaign News & Updates

Victory: Successful Outreach Prompts Schumacher Furs to Move from Downtown Portland; IDA to continue outreach and education efforts with community leaders and public

Ohio Kitten Killer Gets Maximum Sentence; IDA Action Alert helps bring animal abuser to justice

Reward Money Leads to Arrest of Suspect in Dog Dumping Case; $3600 incentive offered by IDA and others brings witnesses forward

An archive of past IDA eNews newsletters is available here.

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts ida in+defense+of+animals animal+abuse dogs canines fur christmas x-mas gifts presents humane Schumacher+Furs William+Whitlow aclu american+civil+liberties+union free+speech first+amendment censorship aeta Animal+Enterprise+Terrorism+Act eco-terrorism animal+terrorism activism kucinich dennis+kucinich

UPDATE, 1/17/07:

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: API Newsletters
Date: Jan 17, 2007 4:04 PM
Subject: European Union Permanently Bans Imports of Wild Birds for the Pet Trade

European Union Permanently Bans Imports of Wild Birds for the Pet Trade

Thanks to all of you who took action to help birds stay wild!

Good News! On January 11, 2007, European Union (EU) officials announced new trade regulation governing the import of live birds that which will effectively ban the importation of wild-caught birds for the pet trade.

A temporary wild ban was placed on the importation of wild bird to the EU in October 2005 after birds that died in British quarantine were found to have bird flu. The ban was extended until the end of December 2006 when the EU’s chief veterinary officers were charged with deciding whether it should continue.

In mid-December 2006, Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that the United Kingdom was in support of a permanent ban on the importation of wild-caught birds to the EU, citing concerns for the welfare of imported birds.

The EU new restrictions actually exceed the protections set forth by the United States’ Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992. For example, the EU restrictions will cover all exotic birds, unlike the Wild Bird Conservation Act which exempts certain “approved” species from import restrictions.

The EU was the largest importer of wild caught birds in the world, responsible for over 90 percent of imports of threatened and endangered species. Prior to the current ban the EU imported approximately 1.76 million birds for the pet trade each year. With this ban in place, the biggest importer of wild birds is now Japan.

For several years API and many other advocacy organization and individual activists have urged the European Union to stop the trade in wild-caught birds.

Thanks to all of you who took action through letters and petitions to help the European Union realize that birds are more beautiful wild!

(More below the fold…)

Given the disheartening lack of coverage of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) in the mainstream media, I thought a roundup of recent news coverage might be helpful. (Of course, there’s always Green Is the New Red for breaking updates!) Though AETA never should have passed through the House OR the Senate, the good news seems to be that opposition is growing.

Prior to the House vote, the Institute for Humanist Studies included an anti-AETA article in their newsletter, Humanist Network News. It’s a great piece, and the fact that it doesn’t come from the “animal terrorist” sector makes it that much more impressive.

Here’s a brief excerpt:

(More below the fold…)

UPDATE, 12/27/06: More links over at the Veg Blog, including a very thoughtful post from Eric at An Animal-Friendly Life.

————-

This time of the year, my inbox is inundated with requests for donations, sponsorships, and the like. One of the more objectionable solicitations I’ve received (probably due to my membership on many enviro mailing lists) is from the Heifer Project. The Heifer Project “work[s] with communities to end hunger and poverty and to care for the earth” – through the “gift” of animal agriculture. “What’s wrong with the Heifer Project” may seem glaringly obvious to you and I – or anyone who cares about the fate of animals – but, unfortunately, many well-meaning people are suckered into donating to a cruel and misguided cause.

So, a link dump: If a friend or family member is considering donating to the Heifer Project or a similar organization, pass these articles along to them, along with recommendations for more humane recipients. (My current favorites are Best Friends Animal Society, Farm Sanctuary, and the Equal Justice Alliance.)

* What’s Wrong with the Heifer Project, by Rev. Gary Kowalski

* The Heifer Project: A Bad Approach to Solving World Hunger Problems, by Evelyn Giefer, DVM

* Heifer Project International Information, by Evelyn Giefer, DVM

* Heifer Project International: A Critique, by Ellen Bring

* Vegetarian Advocate: Heifer Project International Breeds Animal Slavery , by Jack Rosenberger

Hat tip to Episcoveg, where I found many of the above links.

———–

Tagged: animals animal+rights vegan veganism vegetarian vegetarianism meat sustainable agriculture sustainable+agriculture animal+agriculture Heifer+Project environment environmental environmentalism environmentalist

Via Greenpeace:

Danger in Bristol Bay!

President George Bush might be on the verge of lifting the moratorium on oil and gas development in Alaska’s Bristol Bay. Bristol Bay hosts the world’s largest wild salmon run and is home to countless whales, seals, walrus and fish, as well as Alaska Native communities dependent on these resources. So much of Alaska is already open to oil and gas development, we can’t risk damaging the delicate ecosystem of Bristol Bay with the threats posed by oil and gas development.

Click here to take action.

————

Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts environment environmental environmentalist environmentalism greenpeace whales drilling oil alaska bristol+bay