In a callous act of neglect, a couple in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania locked one of their dogs in a cage on their back porch with no food or water and left him to die. The cage had been turned over with the door facing the ground, giving the desperate animal no hope of escape.
The dog became emaciated, deprived of sustenance or attention while his so-called guardians went on with their lives only steps away.
Pennsylvania State Police and animal control arrived at the home after neighbours reported the starving dog. When they arrived, they found the metal cage with the dog’s lifeless body inside.
Authorities confiscated five more dogs from the property, along with a cat and lizard. The animals were all malnourished and had clearly been living in their own feces and urine for some time, according to CBS Pittsburgh.
Police arrested Rachel Bonacci and Christopher Foreman, charging them each with a felony count of aggravated cruelty to animals, along with misdemeanor cruelty and neglect. They are also facing citations for failing to have a dog license or vaccinating their animals. Both remain in the Fayette County Prison on $30,000 bonds.
Tragically, neighbours say they made numerous animal cruelty complaints about the situation over the last few months, with no action taken.
Even Belle Vernon Mayor Gerald Jackson admits that there has been a failure in the system to allow this cruelty to continue for so long.
An innocent animal died due to the heartless actions of this couple, and authorities failed to step in and save him in time. Prosecutors now need to ensure they serve justice for this dog’s suffering.
Sign the petition urging Fayette County District Attorney Richard Bower to treat this case with the severity it deserves, and call for a lifetime ban on the defendants keeping animals, so no more dogs suffer this fate.
Go for it folks – please sign and lets get some justice !
We are currently sticking with live exports as like us, many visitors seem keen on this topic.
For those of you who want to keep up to date on what is happening in Ireland (EU) regarding live exports; we can suggest that you go to the CIWF Ireland Volunteer Facebook page at:
Here there is lots of news and articles about Irish exports.
You will see that investigations are finding that even after making the sea crossing from Ireland to France; after which calves should immediately go to a control post; some transporters are continuing their journey for at least another 5 hours. Some drivers have informed that the calves they carry have been on the truck for over 32 hours !
This is completely against the EU Regulation to allegedly protect animals during transport – Reg 1/2005. The same is the case with the temperatures for sheep exported from Romania to Kuwait. Is the EU concerned about enforcing its own regulations or not ?
Ship Tracking Update for Romanian Sheep Destined for Kuwait.
… And talking of the sheep exported from Romania; the Al Shuwaikh (Romania-Kuwait) is currently at anchor off of Port Said in the Eastern Mediterranean (North of Egypt).
We do not know at this time why the vessel is at anchor there at this time – to take on supplies and food for the animals ? – who knows.
We will continue to give position updates as we track the vessel.
Regards Mark (WAV).
Photos from Marine Traffic photographers as credited.
The Dutch Convict who still exports sheep from the UK to mainland Europe; and guess what, the EU does Nothing !
Photos by campaigner friend Val Cameron.
Here is a very brief insight into fairly recent events in England by a Dutch livestock exporter who was exposed for illegal activities back in 2010.
His name is Johannes Onderwater
Johannes Onderwater owns and operates the ‘Joline’ ship (or rather a bathtub – ex Soviet battle tank carrier for use on rivers) which undertakes services carrying livestock between Ramsgate (UK) and Calais (France) – across the English Channel, which is not a river.
Above – The river vessel ‘Joline’ Crosses the English Channel with full livestock transporters.
Onderwater is a convicted criminal. This conviction was proven by an animal export organisation I was personally involved with back in 2010, in a UK court of law at Folkestone, Kent, when, working in conjunction with Kent Trading Standards (KTS); on 5th July 2010 at Folkestone Magistrates Court, Kent, Onderwater Agneaux BV (Onderwaters company) pleaded guilty to no less than six (6) offences under the Animal Health Act 1981 of causing the transport of sheep in contravention of the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 and EU Council Regulation (EC) 1/2005 (Protection of animals during transport).
As a result, Onderwater’s company, Onderwater Agneaux BV (of the Netherlands), was fined at Folkestone a total of £10,370. And so, under UK law, by being prosecuted in this way, and pleading guilty to offences, Onderwater IS a convicted criminal.
As the lead up to this particular court prosecution; Onderwater was shipping live sheep out of Dover port; whilst declaring on paperwork that ‘boxed meat’ only was being shipped. At the time, and it is still the case, Onderwater was using sealed box type trailers for carrying livestock – not your conventional type trailers where you can actually see the animals. These are fully enclosed trailers which to all purposes, look like a typical refrigerated trailer.
Here is a photo of one loading onto the Joline – would you know this trailer is full of live sheep ? – it is.
So here he was exporting live sheep for slaughter out of England via Dover port; whilst declaring on export paperwork he was carrying ‘boxed meat’. It was only by chance and vigilance of the crew of the P&O cross Channel ferry that something suspicious (a smell) was noticed with the trailer. The captain of the ferry was called, the owner of the truck and trailer was forced to open it up; and then all the live sheep were seen rather than the boxed meat as declared on the carnet !
So, it was decided to take Onderwater to court for misleading the authorities and the ferry operator, and for ‘fixing’ the export paperwork; and for animal abuse. As you can read from the start, 5/7/10 was the day we finally got him into court.
In court, Onderwater Agneaux BV (Onderwaters company) pleaded guilty to no less than six (6) offences under the Animal Health Act 1981 (England) of causing the transport of sheep in contravention of the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 and EU Council Regulation (EC) 1/2005 (the Protection of animals during transport).
As a result, Onderwater’s company, Onderwater Agneaux BV (of the Netherlands), was fined at Folkestone a total of £10,370. And so, under UK law, by being prosecuted in this way, and pleading guilty to offences, Onderwater became a convicted criminal in the UK.
Cut to this week; mid July 2019; and Onderwater is still exporting live sheep out of England for slaughter at the festival of Eid. Whjy ? – because the Dutch authorities were too lenient on him at the time of the court case – his business is Dutch registered and so only the Dutch authorities can take action; they ‘ticked him off’ but continued to allow him to operate rather than close down the entire operation.
July 2019 – We are now as amazed as we were back in July 2010; that an exporter who pleads guilty in an English court of law to no less than 6 animal welfare offences; including the EU Reg 1/2005 on the transport of live animals; is still operating taking British sheep to mainland Europe for slaughter at Eid.
Is it us or is there a real problem with live animal transporters in the EU ? – we guess that the events in Romania involving 70,000 live sheep this week just go to prove that the EU has not got any grip on the issue of live animal transport.
Netherlands (Dutch) MEP Anja Hazekamp calls on the European Commission to launch an infringement procedure against Romania, after the country authorises mass transport of 70.000 sheep from the Port of Midia to the Persian Gulf while temperatures rise above 45 °C.
Fighting for the animals – MEP Anja Hazekamp
This is in breach with European rules on the protection of animals during transport, which state that inside the vehicle or vessel, temperatures must be maintained below 30 °C during the entire journey.
Over the past couple of days, MEP Hazekamp – as well as European Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis– urged the Romanian authorities not to authorise this particular transport. As Romania ignored their calls, the Kuwaiti vessel ‘Al Shuwaikh’ left the port on Sunday night, carrying tens of thousands of exhausted and mistreated sheep. “This is totally unacceptable! Despite the many warnings, Romania keeps on violating EU rules, allowing all these animals to suffer and perish aboard this monster boat,” says Hazekamp.
Hazekamp visited the Port of Midia last weekend, where she observed horrendous animal abuse during loading. “Sheep were kicked, beaten and attacked with electric poles, but Romanian authorities refused to intervene.
Europe can no longer look the other way. Animal welfare rules are being violated systematically. The Commission must act now.”
Total ban on live exports
In addition to the infringement procedure, Hazekamp has been advocating a total ban on live animal exports to non-EU countries.
Is the new President-elect of the Commission committed to making a change for animals?
Ursula von der Leyen will be the next President of the European Commission after a majority of MEPs voted in favour of her appointment tonight. While animals or agriculture weren’t mentioned in her statement addressing the European Parliament today, Eurogroup for Animals did welcome the support she expressed for renewed actions to improve animal welfare during hearings with Parliamentary political groups last week.
Following a question by Petras Auštrevičius at the Renew Europe meeting, she explained that animal welfare is included in the programme related to biodiversity and climate neutrality. She said that it is one of the questions the people of Europe want the European institutions to act upon, and that it is a “noble task to take on.” After a question by Yannick Jadot at the Greens/EfA meeting, she also stated that animal welfare “should be one of the main pillars of the Common Agriculture Policy”.
During her half-hour opening statement today on political guidelines for the next five years, the President-elect said that she would support the de facto right of legislative initiative for the Parliament – which could mean that long-awaited legislative improvements to animal welfare might finally be within reach.
Notably, Frederick Federley MEP (Renew Europe, SE), a Vice President of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals, said that the Parliament has long been asking for a framework law on animal welfare, and that since von der Leyen said that she would support a right of initiative – meaning that she commits to respond to Parliament own-initiative resolutions with draft legislation – they are going to “hold her accountable” for this, and would expect such a proposal to be forthcoming as a result.
“After a decade of legislative stasis, we are pleased to welcome a President of the Commission who is a friend to animals both personally and politically,” said Reineke Hameleers, director of Eurogroup for Animals. “We are encouraged by her statements last week, and look forward to working with herCommission over the next five years to deliver real improvements for animals across our Union and beyond.”
When she is sworn in on November 1st, the Brussels-born German politician – who is a horse, goat and dog-owner – will be the thirteenth President of the Commission and the first woman to hold the position.
Mark, with your support, we successfully stopped the live export of sheep into searing conditions in the Middle East from June to August.
But we know the highest risk period for heat stress is from May to October, and right now, exporters are preparing to resume their cruel trade and consign thousands of sheep to suffering from September onwards.
Right now, we have a chance to stop this.
Hit send on your response, and we can ensure the regulator stops live sheep exports during the incredible heat and humidity of September – as they should, and starting this year.
The Department of Agriculture has opened a public consultation on this issue, and is proposing three options for regulation of the trade, including an option that would see no ships leave for the Middle East in September.
We need your voice to call to back this decision in the final regulatory conditions – and importantly, to demand it’s extended to include October as well.
The science is clear. The evidence is indisputable. Sheep will continue to suffer and die in long-haul live exports during September and October.
Conditions on ships during these months are simply too hot, and too humid.
We have just 5 days to take action. Please, speak up for Aussie sheep today.
The murders in the meat industry all have the same goal: to make money with the blood and suffering of the animals. This also applies to most politicians and lobbyists.
A few days ago, a ship with 70,000(still) living beingshas been send from the Romanian port Midia to the Midle East.
The hangmen of the Muslim and Jewish slaughterhouses are a bit different from the hangmen of European slaughterhouses.
To understand this, the following video will help:
“Shot in December 2018 in a slaughterhouse in Aveyron, these images show the legal abuse of slaughter without stunning allowed in France by derogation for the Jewish and Muslim cults.
According to the INRA Animal Pain expert report, an animal shot without stunning can remain conscious for up to 11 minutes”.
The meat lobby is located in the individual countries, which are not interested in getting a handle on the transport problem.
Animal transports mean subsidies from Brussels and that is why corrupt politicians are involved in the business (as we see in the case of the 70,000 sheep from Romania to Midle East ).
In Europe we have something called Animal Welfare.
On the paper, we are right at the forefront.
First section-German animal welfare law, § 1
“Nobody is allowed to cause pain or harm to an animal without an acceptable reason”.
For this we -the Europeans- have entrusted to some brain-brillant commissioners the preservation of this law. With our voice and our money.
In recent years, however, we observe a provocative cooperation (man calls it tolerance) of the “competent” commissioners with the animal transport mafia, and especially with countries that, as poor and weak EU partners, the meat business under any circumstances operate because that’s their main financial source. With devastating consequences for the animals.
They try to enforce their own interests and power games, nobody controls them, ( because according to EU, animal welfare is “country thing” ) so their chances of maximizing their profit are very high. Let’s put it this way: they have all the options to live from the animas und from their suffering. And they do it.
And now to the case “Midia”, Romania.
“Nobody is allowed to transport 40-degree-a-day animals without water and food, unless one manages to make millions of them.” says the brain-brilliant Commissioner Andriukaitis a word of power, but finally the EU has learned to respect the law of the strongest, and thus ships the Kuwaiti Transport Mafia (with the permission of the Romanian Minister) the 70,000 animal victims in countries that do not need to give an “acceptable” reason for the muslim massacre, because they consider animal welfare as unacceptable!
With that, the topic animal welfare law is done!
At least for our continent, it’s not even worth the paper it was written on.
What is it about finally here?
It`s about torment, it’s about deliberate, illegal animal cruelty.
For days in the ship, with pre-programmed and painful death for many animals and with an unimaginable hell for the survivors. That`s about it!
And further, it is about the outrageous hypocrisy of the EU Commissioner, who allows all this, because “who is brutally killed in other cultures, is none of our business”! Animal welfare is murder thing!!
We can confirm that the AL SHUWAIKH which is carrying 70,000 live sheep to the Middle East (Kuwait) for Eid ritual slaughter is currently in the Med Sea to the West of Cyprus.
This is ritual slaughter ………….
It is currently expected to arrive at Kuwait on Saturday 20th July at around 0700 hrs.
It is travelling at a speed of about 15-16 knots.
It was built in 1986, has a gross tonnage of 18,341, and sails under the flag of Kuwait.
MEPs to vote on first female EU Commission president
Ursula von der Leyen, currently the German defence minister, has been nominated to take over from Jean-Claude Juncker.
The European Parliament will decide later whether or not to block the appointment of Ursula von der Leyen as the new president of the European Commission.
Ms von der Leyen, currently the German defence minister, was nominated to take over from Jean-Claude Juncker (Below) by the leaders of EU countries at a marathon three-day summit in Brussels two weeks ago.
The 751 MEPs of the European Parliament in Strasbourg will vote this evening in a secret ballot.
Ms von der Leyen needs 374 votes in order to secure the job but anything less than 400 would give her a weak mandate.
She has spent the past two weeks trying to secure her position by promising policy pledges to the various different political groupings in the parliament whose votes she needs.
It has emerged that the current secretary-general of the commission Martin Selmayr, a controversial shadowy figure who has wielded significant power under Mr Juncker, will not continue if she gets the job.
Her pitch culminated with a speech earlier in the parliament chamber setting out her agenda for Europe.
It is expected that the vote could be tight.
The group representing green parties from across the union has already said it will not be supporting her nomination.
This could put her in the unusual, controversial and contradictory position of having to rely on votes from far-right parties in order to be voted in.
She is a member of Germany’s centre-right Christian Democratic Unionist (CDU) party and is a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Ms von der Leyen has already said that she will stand down as German defence minister.
She said in a tweet on Monday: “Tomorrow I will ask for the confidence of the European Parliament.
“Regardless of the outcome, I will step down as Minister of Defence on Wednesday in order to serve Europe with all my strength.”
Her challenge is to make several different political groups from across the spectrum happy enough to vote for her.
The fact that she would be the commission’s first ever female president will hold some weight for MEPs.
She is from a centrist political party with values that should appeal to the majority of MEPs.
But against that is the fact that the EU member state leaders ended up ditching the “lead candidate” system in which the parliament proposed the candidates for commission president.
That angered a significant number of MEPs from across the board.
She is overtly a federalist who has said she would like to see a United States of Europe, though she conceded that it would not be likely in her lifetime.
On Brexit, she has said that she is open to a further extension if the UK requests it and there is good reason for it.
However no real changes should be expected in the EU stance on Brexit under her leadership because it is the EU member state leaders who drive the Brexit policy.
The commission and its president simply enact the mandate given to them.
WAV Comment – like stopping 70,000 Romanian sheep being exported to the Middle East in temperatures way above the maximum set under EU Reg 1/2005 – or not ! – Yes, NOT.
If any of you wish to make e mail contact with Romanian MEPs about their nation allowing 70,000 live sheep to be exported in conditions that do not meet EU transport standards – Regulation 1/2005; then here is the way to get the full list of all the MEPs which represent Romania in the European Parliament.
Then in the drop down box for ‘Country’ – select ‘Romania’.
You should then be presented with a photographic list of all the MEPs which represent Romania in the Parliament.
It is very easy to make contact. Lets take the first name on the list as an example – Clotide Armand.
Simply click on her name below the picture. This then enlarges to a larger picture with graphics below – if you put the mouse pointer over the first 2 then you will get e mail access. Simply click on either one of these and you should then have the ability to write an e mail direct to Clotide Armand.
SAMPLE LETTER TO COPY AND SEND
Dear MEP`s
We have read these days with horror in the media that a ship of the company AL SHUWAIKH (which made very negative headlines in the past and in the transport of animals) transports 70,000 sheep from Romania to the Middle East.
According to Article 3 of EU Regulation (EC) 1/2005, animals may not be transported if the transport results in injuries and unnecessary suffering (in this case, temperatures above 40 degrees are clearly an unnecessary suffering).
Although Romania is an EU country and subsidized accordingly, it disregards the instructions of EU Commissioner Andriukaitis to the Romanian Agrarian Minister Petre Daea to stop transport in Midia and acts in his own right and interest against animals, morals and laws.
KLTT, a major exporter of Australian sheep, was the subject of a major scandal that attracted attention from Animals Australia over the past year. This company has a long list of violations and is responsible for the death of more than one million sheep on board in recent decades.
In 2018, animals were found to bake on their own skin on KLTT vessels, gasping for breath, suffocating in faecal matter and not lying down to rest or even reach for food or water.
During such travels, heat and moisture combinations reached levels that caused heat stroke, resulting in sheep literally cooking alive in ship holds.
Such visions of Australian sheep, suffering and dying of heat stress, have sparked outrage throughout the country and across the world over the past year and led to comprehensive reform of the regulations – including the ban on trade in live sheep from Australia during the summer months in the Middle East.
EU membership requires certain moral rules based on common culture and manifested by basic civilization standards. We urge you, as EU representative of Romania, to ask the relevant ministry of your country to respect laws and ban animal transport in the summer.
Best regards,
Your name here
Other options you can select also include Twitter and Facebook.
Write to the Romanian MEPs now to express your disgust at what their nation is doing for 70,000 sheep en route to the Middle East.
German Development Minister Gerd Müller returns to Germany on Sunday after a week’s state visit to Brazil and complains that the rainforest is being cut down!!
Clearcutting: According to the Brazilian space research institute INPE alone in June 2019, 920 square kilometers of Amazon rainforest were destroyed. This is an increase of 88 percent over June 2018
His mission was to further develop the cooperation projects, in particular for the protection of the rainforest, the indigenous population and the Amazon Fund.
He says in the media: “I expect more engagement in the Amazon (!!!)
Why does he say it in the media and not his colleague, Ministerand lobbyist of Agriculture,Julia Klöckner?
It is well known that Germany not only supplies Brazil with dangerous pesticides, which are banned even in the EU, but is also responsible for cutting down the Amazon in Brazil.
Germany is not only one of the largest milk producers, but also one of the largest meat producers in the world. Subsidized with tax money!
Germany produces 8 million tons of meatevery year! In order to be able to produce that amount of meat at all, it needs food for the animals.
Germany imports most of the soya from Latin America. Incidentally, the most important supplier of beef to the EU is Argentina. To be able to produce this amount of soy, forests are cleared and burned. An extraordinary ecosystem with a high biodiversity disappears.
Few people are aware that an invisible bond of destruction is moving from European mass animal farms to the forests of South America. There huge soy plantations destroy the native fauna and flora.It is an environmental crime that often forests are cut down for cultivation, the soil is leached out and water is polluted.
In 2016, this was about 2.9 million tonnes of soy and soy products.
This soya is used by food and meat processors and is used for the rearing of chickens, pigs and cattle or for the production of eggs and dairy products, which are sold in many German supermarkets and restaurants.
So if the topic of Amazon, climate change or CO2 is discussed, why is the issue of factory farming not mentioned? Animal products are associated with high greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and inefficient land use!
Livestock for meat, eggs and dairy products has high CO2 emissionsand produces 15% of the world’s greenhouse gas. That’s more than all the cars, planes and other means of transport in the world. A person who eats plant-based foods 1 day a week for 1 year can lower their CO2 emissions by 234 kg per year (estimated based on the carbon footprint of various foods).
Please calculate this now, if you consider that Germany produces 8 million tons of meat per year and about 33 million tons of milk!
The agricultural lobby is powerful, that means. And it is subsidized in Germany with tax money, which then for education, care and so on. is not available. From the EU, the German agricultural lobby receives about 6 billion Euros and these are causing severe damage in other countries. On average, every EU citizen pays 32 cents a day for the EU criminal agricultural policy.
It is estimated that over 30 million tonnes of genetically modified feed are imported into Europe each year to feed pigs, poultry, dairy and beef cattle and farmed fish.
Much of the soybean and corn used for this purpose is grown in South America, including Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.
Cheap meat, milk and eggs can only be produced with cheap soybeans, which, however, cost the countries of origin expensive:Deforested rainforests, destroyed environment, poisoning of humans and animals are the result.
This is not agriculture. This is a murder factory in the field.
This documentary explores the effects of soybean cultivation in South America and shows people in South America and Europe alternatives to the devastating vicious circle. The Video is in English and Spanish with German subtitles.
Only incompetent and irresponsible politicians have Germany.
We are dealing with a ruling clique, with corrupt oligarchs who are at least interested in the rights of animals and the rescue of the climate.
Everywhere scandals and manure stands in slaughterhouses we read lately.
And instead of finally abolishing factory farming or at least punishing criminal slaughterhouse operators, the slaughterhouse’s girlfriend, Agriculture Minister Klöckner, wants stricter penalties for activists exposing these crimes.
No more subsidies for the meat.
Meat consumption must be private, as well as smoking.
This state-subsidized factory farming must cost as much as the damage it does.
I consider it a political prostitution to subsidize meat.
Clearcutting: According to the Brazilian space research institute 
World Animals Voice 