Month: January 2021

Hunting

Fox hunting : organized animal cruelty

As a leisure activity, hunters across Germany kill up to half a million foxes in the cruelest way every year – many of the animals are “only” shot or downright crushed and mutilated in traps.

Foxes are a living target for hunters; there is no reason for the massive hunting of predators, neither from a wildlife biological nor from a health point of view. Politics must finally act and put an end to the senseless killing of useful animals.

Pain and suffering – what hunting means to wild animals. Shot … and dead!

Fox with stomach injuries-Image: pelli

In many cases, this is not the case. Studies in Great Britain have shown this, among other things. The accuracy is poor, every second fox is only wounded by a gunshot wound but not dead. Two-thirds of wild boars were shot dead after a driven hunt: in the back, in the stomach, or in the legs. Approx. 60% of the female animals in the deer were shot in the stomach.

According to the Veterinary Association for Animal Welfare, up to 70 percent of wild animals do not die immediately, especially during driven hunts, but rather suffer excruciating jaw, stomach, and barrel shots.

Lower jaw shot away: This young wild boar starved and died of thirst

Most foxes are hunted during the winter months. The snow makes hunting easier and the otherwise vigilant animals are careless because now is the mating season for foxes. For many fox pups who see the light of day from March, this means that they will grow up without the fox father. But it has a very important function in their rearing due to the procurement of food.

As a result, the young foxes are often physically weakened, their ability to survive is much lower than that of fox pups that were raised with a provider.

Little is known to the public that trapping is still allowed in Germany.
Both manslaughter traps and live traps can cause extreme animal suffering.
Most of the animals try to get the bait out with their paws. Then the safety stirrup slams shut and the leg is crushed.
Many foxes and cats will pull at it until they can escape with limbs half severed.
Fox mothers, who know their young are hungry in the burrow, even bite off their paws to escape.

Numerous studies now show that fox hunting does not “regulate” the fox population, nor does it contain wild diseases (e.g. distemper, mange, fox tapeworm), or makes a meaningful, sustainable contribution to the preservation of threatened species. Fox populations regulate themselves based on social fabric, food availability, and disease.

Fox hunting is prohibited in Luxembourg and other countries and regions – there are no problems with overpopulation there.

Please sign the Petition: https://www.peta.de/kampagnen/fuchsjagd-stoppen/

And I mean…Every year in January and February foxes are hunted even more intensely and ruthlessly in Germany than they already are.

The so-called “fox weeks” are held right in the middle of the mating season – now even a whole fox month, preferably during the full moon weeks in January and February.

During a defined period of time, as many hunters as possible take part, often across territories, to shot on the fox. As a result, the “loden jackets” enjoy (!) a few dozen dead foxes.

In almost every place cross-territory fox hunts are organized, to which territorial hunters and young hunters are invited in order to kill as many foxes as possible. After the hunt, the animals are lined up in a line and the killings are celebrated by the hunters.

According to Section 17 of the Animal Welfare Act, it is forbidden to kill or harm an animal without good cause.
Nothing else happens when hunting foxes.
Animal protection has been anchored in the Basic Law since 2002 and is to be regarded as a binding asset with constitutional status.
The state protection goal of “animal protection” has the status of a fundamental right – but not hunting.

Thus the hunting law is subordinate to animal welfare.

Unfortunately, the hunter’s lobby is well networked in government circles and politics. In Luxembourg, on the other hand, the government was not impressed by the lies and slogans of the hunters and in April 2015 enforced a fox hunting ban that continues to this day.

The result: “No major problems”. The Luxembourg hunting association “Fédération Saint-Hubert” nevertheless tried to take legal action against the hunting ban – without success.

In 2016, the administrative court upheld the ban on fox hunting and the hunters’ flimsy arguments were clearly dismissed by the judge.

Hunting in Germany is an unlawful area.
According to their own statements, 380,000 hunters kill around 5 million wild animals in Germany every year.

The truth probably looks even worse: Wildtierschutz Deutschland e.V. estimates that a total of over 9 million animals are killed by hunting in Germany every year.

The hunters carry out these executions with legal government assistance.
“Hunters and the state go hand-to-hand in the forest”, where the murderers, heavily armed to the teeth, kill defenseless animals

A civilized country is not understood as such if it brutally massacres 500,000 foxes annually and proudly presents itself in the media as a potent -execution- gang.

A civilized country is understood as such when it feels and practices respect, compassion, and protection for every species of animal.

And it is therefore a shame for our society, by silence and passivity to give a minority of 0.45% the right to decide about life and death to defenseless animals.

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, General News

Australian seafood consumers urged to stop buying flake to protect sharks.

Seafood being sold at the Sydney Fish Market
photo of the Sydney Fish Market. The Australian Marine Conservation Society aims to make people more aware of the need for shark conservation. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

Australian seafood consumers urged to stop buying flake to protect sharks | Australia news | The Guardian

Australian seafood consumers urged to stop buying flake to protect sharks

A new campaign highlights there is no legal obligation to label flake – a common term for shark meat – by species or where it’s from

Australian consumers will be encouraged not to purchase flake when they shop for seafood and to instead try sustainable alternatives in a new campaign that aims to put a spotlight on laws that permit the harvest of endangered sharks.

The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) is asking consumers to “give flake a break” because there is no legal obligation in Australia for retailers to label flake – a common term used for shark meat – by its species or where it’s from.

Guardian Australia reported last year that a loophole in Australia’s national environmental laws allows for the continued commercial harvest of endangered sharks such as the school shark or hammerhead, meaning their meat can be routinely sold in shops, restaurants or exported overseas.

Leonardo Guida, a shark scientist with the AMCS, said the organisation was launching its campaign to try to make consumers more aware of the need for shark conservation.

He said sustainable alternatives to flake included King George whiting, farmed barramundi, mullet, wild caught Australian salmon and luderick.

Research by the AMCS found there was an average $2 difference between these options and the cost of flake. In some cases the sustainable alternatives were cheaper.

“Australia legally permits the harvest of endangered sharks, which can end up on people’s plates and they wouldn’t even know it because it’s often called flake,” Guida said.

“There’s no legal requirement to call a shark for what it is.”

Guida said the system was broken “somewhere between the boat and the plate” because fishers routinely recorded what species they caught but by the time the meat ended up with a consumer that information could be lost or difficult to obtain.

Guida surveyed 10 fish and chips shops in each state and territory and found less than a third of the shark meat on sale referred to a specific species.

He said promisingly, however, at least 40% of retailers offered a sustainable alternative.

Consumers can use GoodFish, a website and app developed by AMCS, to research sustainable seafood options, or ask their fishmonger or retailer.

The loophole in Australia’s environment laws applies to certain marine species that are given a special status known as “conservation dependent” that allows for their continued commercial harvest.

Under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, marine species that are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered are classified as “no take” species, meaning they cannot be sold or exported.

But the eight marine species listed as conservation dependent – including the blue warehou, eastern gemfish, the scalloped hammerhead and the school shark – do not receive this protection.

Marine conservationists have long argued for the removal of this category from Australia’s national environment laws where it applies to threatened species but its existence continues to fly beneath the radar of most seafood consumers.

During last year’s review of the EPBC Act, led by the former competition watchdog head Graeme Samuel, the AMCS called for the species listed as conservation dependent to be given the threatened status they were eligible for.

The Humane Society International is the main organisation in Australia that nominates species for a listing under national environmental laws. It put forward several of the marine animals that were ultimately listed as conservation dependent.

One of those was the scalloped hammerhead, which qualified for an endangered listing but was given a conservation dependent status in 2018 after a six-year effort by the HSI to have it listed for protection.

“What we ask is that species be put in their rightful category because species that are endangered or critically endangered should be listed as that and protected from commercial utilisation,” said Nicola Beynon, the HSI’s Australian head of campaigns.

Samuel’s interim report, handed down last July, found Australia’s environment was in unsustainable decline. The report made several recommendations, but none in relation to the conservation dependent category.

He delivered his final report to the Morrison government at the end of October last year but it has not yet been released. The government is required to release the report sometime in February.

A spokesperson for the environment minister, Sussan Ley, would not say when the government planned to release the report but it would be within the statutory timeframe.

The spokesman said sharks were listed as conservation dependent based on advice from the threatened species scientific committee.

“Species listed as conservation dependent are subject to a scientifically determined and annually reviewed rebuilding strategy,” the spokesperson said.

In a submission to the Samuel review last year, the scientific committee said the conservation dependent category needed urgent reform and this was partly because it masked the actual conservation status of species.

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Austrian public broadcaster sheds light on live transport at prime time.

WAV Comment:

Please watch the video given in this post – you dont need to understand the language; the pictures say it all !

“Animal transports – cheap meat at any price?”

Austrian public broadcaster sheds light on live transport at prime time

18 January 2021

Four Paws

Cattle crammed into trucks, brutally loaded onto ships, slaughtered while fully conscious – disturbing images of animals being transported to the Middle East, including those of Austrian cattle in Lebanon, as well as interviews with Eurogroup for Animals’ members Four Paws and Animals International are featured in a new documentary which was broadcasted at prime time on Austrian television.

The documentary feature called “Animal transports – cheap meat at any price?” took a critical look at this much-discussed topic last Wednesday, 13 January 2021. The documentary looks at the crucial questions of how and why these animals from Austria are transported thousands of kilometres, also addressing the crux of why domestic calves are exported at all, while most of the veal for Austrian gastronomy is imported. In the past, these questions have triggered not only a public but also a political debate in Austria.

Every year about 45,000 calves are exported from Austria to countries such as Italy or Spain, while about 100,000 animals are imported to Austria to end up on the plates of local restaurants.

In Vienna, 60 per cent of the Wiener Schnitzel consists of imported veal. Most of it comes from the Netherlands and is produced under conditions that would not be permitted in Austria. This, however, is not comprehensible to the consumer as most menus are not transparent. A schnitzel from Austrian veal would cost 50 cents more, and 20 cents more for pork.

Read more at source

Der Standard

Fur and Fur Farming

Can we learn something from crisis?

“We are living in difficult times, suffering confinements, unable to enjoy our families. Many people feel overwhelmed, despair, anxious, stress …
All this, has made you think about how the animals used in the fur industry feel?

All these animals feel the same as you, and they suffer from birth to death.

They live locked up in these cages exposed to inclement weather, hunger, thirst, and loneliness, all their lives, all the time.

Don’t get dressed with their lives”!

Text: Animal Equality

And I would say… that we haven’t learned anything from the Corona catastrophe.
Because we don’t have the same level of suffering as the other animals.
Despite restrictions, we still live on the sunny side of capitalism and decide – as before -about the cruel life and death of millions of other animals.
We are habitual criminals.

Regards and good night, Venus

Farm Animals

Germany: “congestion” in the pig stable!!

There are a million pigs in German stables that are to be slaughtered!!!

The overhang of pigs that have not been slaughtered in Germany is becoming more and more threatening.
The pig farmers’ stables are bursting at the seams. There is a lack of slaughter capacities.

Due to the failure of large German slaughterhouses due to the Corona crisis, due to the lack of workers, and due to stricter hygiene rules, the entire system is about to collapse !!

The sows throw new piglets every day, while the farmers don’t get rid of their pigs when they are ready for slaughter.
Another problem: the animals are getting heavier. The optimal slaughter weight is around 92 to 105 kilograms per animal.
If the pigs are heavier, the price goes down. And the additional feed costs extra.

The Agriculture Minister of Lower Saxony, Otte-Kinast, pointed out the psychological strain on the farmers (!!!) affected by the pig jam:

“The desperation is huge,” she says.
In one week alone, 165,000 fewer pigs are slaughtered than in the previous year. These animals must continue to be fed and they also do not make room for piglets that are also accumulating.


Pig congestion is still the main problem for the pig market in Germany, with around 680,000 pigs recently – and this also has a very negative effect on the particularly closely linked markets in the Netherlands and Belgium.

“We can’t get the compartments cleared fast enough. That’s why we’re currently on a collision course with animal welfare,” says a farmer.
This is a consequence of the corona pandemic (???).

The slaughterhouses have cut their production significantly for months. At Tönnies, for example, the number of battles fell to around 70 percent of the pre-pandemic era.
Since then one speaks of a “pig congestion”.

https://www.ndr.de/wellenord/sendungen/zur_sache/Zur-Sache-Schweinestau-bringt-Bauern-in-Not,zursache2308.html

And I mean…“The economic consequences for the pig farmers are catastrophic”.
If it is not possible to murder, then that is «threatening».
Only the economic consequences for the animal exploiter are important, the fellow-creature is totally unimportant.

The farmers complained months ago that they are sitting on 500,000 pigs that urgently need to be slaughtered.

If you know that the average time a pig mother is carried is 114 days, why not pull the ripcord at 500,000 pigs?
Why was insemination continued and thus piglets “produced”?

These intelligent, pain-sensitive, social creatures are entitled to an average of six months before they are sent to death by suffocation.

Consumer goods can certainly be produced in advance, but Not living beings!
Now the farmers are complaining again because they lose a lot of money for each pig that is fed too long and no longer corresponds to the normal slaughter weight!

If the “business” doesn’t pay off anymore, get out, and plant potatoes, or do some agriculture.

There are now organizations that even help to get out.

That would mean a revolutionary change in the world

My best regards to all, Venus

General News, Uncategorized

Petitions – and South Korean Dog Meat Actions.

Hi all; here are a few petitions which need your support if possible – Thanks and regards – Mark:

Badly Injured Dog Reportedly Dragged Behind Speeding Car Deserves Justice

Petition Link – Badly Injured Dog Reportedly Dragged Behind Speeding Car Deserves Justice – Animal Petitions

Target: Gizat Nurdauletov, Kazakhstan Prosecutor General

Goal: Give person who reportedly dragged dog behind moving car the toughest sentence punishable by law.

A dog was allegedly tied to the back of a car and forcibly dragged as its driver sped down the road. Kazakhstan police have not named the suspect involved. However, he was detained and is now being questioned by authorities. This person needs to be put behind bars for the maximum amount of time if it is found he committed this unthinkable act of animal cruelty.

Video footage appears to show the dog being dragged behind a moving car with a trail of blood following his injured body. A witness told police that they honked their horn until the driver finally stopped. After the witness asked the motorist why they were mistreating the animal, he allegedly picked up the dog and threw the animal inside his boot before leaving the scene.

The dog was swiftly taken to a veterinary clinic to receive treatment after the suspect was detained. The animal reportedly needs to take pain killers to sustain any quality of life. Sign this petition to demand the person allegedly responsible for this blatant act of animal cruelty be given the longest prison sentence possible.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Prosecutor General Nurdauletov,

An unnamed suspect was recently detained for tying a dog to the back of his car and then speeding down the road,  dragging the helpless animal behind him. He needs to be given the strictest sentence under the law if it is found he committed this horrific crime.

The alleged incident was captured on dash camera. The driver was allegedly going so fast that it would have been impossible for the animal to run behind the car. Instead, the poor dog was dragged and badly injured. Witnesses described a trail of blood left in his wake.

The dog fortunately lived and was treated for his injuries. However, the wounds were reportedly so bad that the dog will experience prolonged pain and suffering. We therefore demand you suggest the person allegedly responsible receive the most stringent sentence allowed by law if it is found he committed this heartless act of animal abuse.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

SIGN: JUSTICE FOR DOLPHIN BEATEN TO DEATH WITH AXES AND STICKS

Petition link – PETITION: Justice for Dolphin Beaten to Death With Axes and Sticks (ladyfreethinker.org)

SIGN: Justice for Dolphin Beaten to Death With Axes and Sticks

PETITION TARGET: Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar

India’s Ganges River turned red with blood as a group of attackers beat a critically endangered and protected Gangetic dolphin to death with wooden rods and an axe.

Disturbing video footage captured by a witness shows one of the men yelling, “Hit it now, hit it now” and the attackers then holding the dolphin’s head underwater until he drowned. A local official later found the dolphin floating dead, with multiple lacerations and other wounds to its body, The Guardian reported.

The highly threatened Gangetic dolphin population is now an estimated 1,800 or less, and they are moving alarmingly closer to extinction.

Police in Uttar Pradesh arrested three suspects in connection with this horrifying act of cruelty. Several others who may have been involved in the senseless killing are reportedly still free.

Anyone who assisted in bludgeoning and suffocating this defenseless dolphin must answer for their actions.

Sign this petition urging Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar to push authorities to thoroughly investigate this appalling crime, use all available resources to find and charge any yet-unidentified suspects, and prosecute all perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law.

Korean cat and dog meat

Above Photo: Dogs are frozen to death in South Korea’s dog meat farms. Korea Animal Welfare Association(KAWA)..
 

Despite the fact that dog and cat meat consumption is an everyday occurrence and is being carried out all over South Korea, it is NOT LEGAL in that country. Their Government does nothing to stop this illegal practice and they seem happy to ignore it; many Korean citizens are just as apathetic and must also be held accountable.

This is the 21st Century, and it is high time that all South Koreans, leaders and general public alike, stand up and take responsibility to enforce their own country’s laws. South Korea and South Koreans cannot continue to ignore these brutal and unethical trades, so let us campaign to urge each of South Korea’s cities to enforce their laws and to put an immediate end to these illegal dog and cat meat trades. 

The e-People petition is the South Korean government’s official petition site and your petition will receive a response from the Korean government. Anyone from all countries can file a petition using the e-People petition.  It’s quite simple to file e-People petitions, but you can find help on (1) how to file e-People petition and (2) how to check the status of your e-People petitions on our website.

Read the full newsletter with plenty of actions at:

https://r.newsletter.koreandogs.org/aiok4kodtht7e.html?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=_We_have_the_power_to_stop_their_suffering_with_our_voice!_&utm_medium=email

Further Action

Please click on the following link to see loads of other petitions which you can support; go to:

https://animalpetitions.org/

Farm Animals, General News

India: More Greats From ‘Animal Aid Unlimited’. January 2021.

We are in regular contact with Erika at AAU; and are always amazed at the work that is done by the AAU crew to help suffering animals. Here are a few of the latest videos that have been sent to us. We wish them growing success, and may all their fantastic work continue – one day soon it will be across ALL India !

Regards Mark

You’ve probably heard the song that goes, “What the world, needs now, is love sweet love”? It was written in the 1960s but it’s certainly still true. While the world battles the pandemic and plenty of political chaos, the animals here have, every moment, reminded us that the most enduring, stabilizing and beautiful fact is that love works. It supports, soothes, heals and energizes all of us.

No surprise that chickens, too, thrive with love, when it is expressed as a safe place, plentiful food, fresh air, and friends. Happy New Year from our rescued rooster Rockstar, who joins us all in thanking you for your love, sweet love, which the world needs now, and which you give us every day.

Butterfly’s eyes seem to speak as her healing begins.

Someone noticed a donkey in a field whosebone was exposed from a devastating friction wound, made worse by maggots. Our rescuers found that she flinched when approached, telling us that she didn’t trust people.During her first treatment, she lay perfectly still, her expression fearful and defeated.

Her eyes conveyed so much, it is hard to summarize in just a word. They held anguish, resignation, fatigue. But they also radiated kindness, announcing her profound sweetness. As soon as we eased her pain with medicine, stabilizing bandages and a splint, her glow of life brightened–you could just see it. Watch this girl, so inward and dejected at the start, unfurl her beautiful wings and beam with life as she heals.

We call her Butterfly. You’ll see why. Please donate

2020 was also a beautiful year!

Watch this short video about the GOOD you helped achieve

(16) Watch | Facebook

Every loving moment we shared with animals in 2020 refreshed our hearts and gave us so much strength. The animals awakened our humor, and filled us with energy to do our best each day. Even though the pandemic made it a difficult year, the animals and your extraordinary help through thick and thin, kept us going strong.

We’ll keep it going in 2021 with your help. Make a donation today!

A paralysed dog growled and barked, but patience brought the sweetest reward.

We don’t know what caused this sweetheart’s injury.His spine was hurt and he could not stand. His legs were limp, and someone had loosely tied them together; we don’t know why. It seemed he had a story to tell. At first, rigid with pain, he merely endured his initial assessment, but ate with so much relaxed enthusiasm that we named him Comfy.

Some time later, though, feeling a bit better, he let us know that perhaps we had named him “Comfy” too soon. He told us we were not welcome to touch him. He growled. He barked. And he kept it up for a while. We knew that without physiotherapy he might never walk again, but how could we manage it if he wouldn’t let us touch him?

Watch Comfy’s transition from paralysed and frustrated to becoming fully mobile, happy and finally…a comfy bundle of love. 

Kindness changes outcomes.

Please donate

Spotlight on the team   One of the gems in our midst is Deepak Nath.

He joined the team as a care-giver a year ago and doesn’t pass by an animal without giving a cuddle.   You know someone is incredibly special when on their days off from work they bring injured animals they’ve found to Animal Aid for treatment.








One of the gems in our midst is Deepak Nath. He joined the team as a care-giver a year ago and doesn’t pass by an animal without giving a cuddle.
 
You know someone is incredibly special when on their days off from work they bring injured animals they’ve found to Animal Aid for treatment

Most of the people we hire for the role of care-giver have never before worked with animals.

While this can pose a challenge for us it also gives us hope when we see how people from all different backgrounds can take on animal protection as a way of life.   Click here for latest positions from Emergency Call Attendant to Veterinary Doctor for residents of India.

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

England: Major Job Now Completed !

18/1/21

Update – UL Live Export Consultation.

Last night, 17/1, I completed and submitted to the UK government our responses regarding the proposed ban on live animal exports from the UK.  Almost immediately I was informed that our submission had been accepted by the Ministry and would join others for the final review.

References:

England: Full Info on the UK Ban Live Exports Consultation. Finishes End of Jan 2021. – World Animals Voice

UK: Live Exports (Ban) Consultation. – World Animals Voice

Our response, once completed, comprised of 41 written pages of written text; without any photos but with video footage and also links to past media coverage on specific issues.

I am not going to show our responses here on this site; as some of the data relates to specific investigative operations undertaken in the past, which we do not want to make them public.  In the information provided to the government we have requested that our information be kept private and confidential; only to be reviewed by the government; and not openly presented to wider audiences as it could have been.  Again, we have had confirmation of this request.

As you probably know by now; live animal transport is my major ‘hate’ in this animal abuse world.  It has taken me personally 32 years of activism to get to the situation we are now at – and with stories from 32 years stored away (in my still functioning head I think ?) there is a lot of info to look back at and select as important.  Saying that, the aim of the response to the government is to get a ban on live animal transport this year; and I feel confident / hopeful that in the end we will succeed.  I know that several other personal contacts in the ‘animal rights world’ are also making submissions at this time; so hopefully we can look for change in the near future.

As a member state of the EU; and despite the vast majority wishes of most UK citizens for a ban to be introduced for many years; the British government was banned (by the EU) from introducing a ban on live animal exports.  As the UK broke away from the EU completely at the end of last year (2020); it can now take back its own control and have its own laws on issues – and the potential ban on live transport is one of them.

This does not mean that we now forget the tens of thousands of animals in transport across the EU; and the fact that many of them are evading EU regulations to end up being ritually slaughtered (against EU legislation) in places such as Lebanon and Libya.  We will continue to work as always with our EU friends to ensure that combined, we get the very best we can for the animals.

Review some of our past posts on the subject here – Search Results for “live animal transport” – World Animals Voice

I am now glad that task is completed and I can get onto to other things.

Regards Mark

Here are just a small selection of photos I have taken on this disgusting business over the years:

Below – exposing French calves being imported into the UK (a scam) to obtain compensation payouts by the UK government which should have only been made to British industry only ! – things turned real nasty after I took this photo; we caught them and they did not take kindly – but then few things in life are ever perfect !

Above – British calves being exported by the Dutch to the ‘crate’ systems.

Below – Mrs ‘Plod’ makes sure I behave !

Above – Protesting against the calf trade with Ellie and Liza

Above – and below – Crated calves in the EU

‘Eyes on Animals’ – NL.

Above – A transporter driver sends us his best regards !

England: Another Terrible Loss – John Callaghan. – World Animals Voice

Below – great export mate ‘Mike’; now passed.

Above – You bet they are worth fighting for !

Fight for the better ways !

Regards Mark