Day: April 11, 2021

Hunting

US State of Winconsin: Hunters massacre 216 wolves

It took- for trigger-happy hunters in the US state of Wisconsin- exactly three days to slaughter around 20 percent of the wolf population.

216 animals were killed in the bloodbath that took place at the end of February. Experts estimate that there were between 1,000 and 1,200 wolves in Wisconsin before the hunt.

The reason for the permit for the three-day hunt was ultimately an oversight by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Wisconsin is the only US state in which the regulation of the wolf population is normally carried out by officials of the authority –
a shooting quota is set annually, which is based on standards for sustainability and the protection of the wolf population.

Jäger richten fürchterliches Massaker unter Wölfen an

Observations about the development of packs play a role. As a rule, only very old or sick animals or a few problem specimens that were noticeable through livestock cracks are shot down – the quota rarely exceeded 100.

However, since the Trump administration abolished numerous protections for wolves last year, hunter lobby groups and some Republican MPs have called for open wolf hunting.

The state of Wisconsin also wanted to hold one hunting, but only in the fall and not in the spring – because they were still waiting for new data on the population development and then wanted to incorporate this into the determination of the shooting rate.

But then the supervisory authority was taken by surprise by a lawsuit filed by the powerful hunting lobby group “Hunter Nation Incorporated” from the state of Kansas, which is 1,000 kilometers away.

According to the change in the law by Trump, the court ordered the supervisory authority to immediately permit hunting and allow applications for hunting permits.

The supervisory authority had no choice but to obey the court order – they simply had not recognized the legal situation in time and thus lost valuable time, for example, to develop control mechanisms.

More than 2,000 applications for hunting permits were received, and almost all of them had to be approved overnight, without careful scrutiny.

Continue reading “US State of Winconsin: Hunters massacre 216 wolves” →

General News, Uncategorized

Elephant Actions – Please Support, Thank You.

Fifty year old elephant Betty has lived a lifetime of suffering.

Captured from her home in Thailand at the age of just three years old, she was sold into the George Carden International Circus in 1986 where she has been forced to perform cruel circus tricks and to give rides ever since.

The Carden family continues to force Betty to perform despite the fact that she is chronically lame. She does not bend her left front ankle, which is evident when she walks or give rides. Betty also continually drags her trunk along the ground as she walks. It appears that she is using her trunk as a crutch to remain balanced or to hold her upright. Her impairment could pose a serious public health hazard should her lameness result in a fall while she was performing or giving rides.

In performance after performance, CompassionWorks International has found Betty exhibiting these clear signs of suffering, yet the Carden family and the USDA do nothing to help her.

Presently the Carden family has rented Betty out to Garden Bros Circus, where she is provoked to give rides and do tricks by Larry Carden. Garden Bros performs up to three times per day, which means that Betty is giving up tothree hours of rides and three performances per day.Afterward, she is loaded on a truck anddriven hundreds of miles only to do it all again.

Another Carden family elephant named Jenny lived a similar life of performance and tricks despite having health issues, and the USDA did nothing to help her. Jenny died. 

Isn’t it time the USDA DID THEIR JOB and took action for animals used and abused in traveling circuses?

Please join CWI in calling on the USDA to do their job: confiscate Betty and transfer her to a Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries-certified sanctuary where she can live out the remainder of her days without the stress and pain of circus performance.

248,000+ have signed this – add your name also.

Petition link:

Petition · Bernadette Juarez: Send Betty to Sanctuary Now! · Change.org

 

 

Dumba, the elephant hidden by a circus in a rubbish dump in Gard

It was after 10 pm on 1 January 2021 when we heard: at the end of a dirt track in a remote corner of the Gard countryside a single elephant constantly rocks back and forth in a tent, in the middle of a rubbish dump – a few square metres to move around in. Immediately despatched to the spot, our investigators are shocked to discover thatit has snowed, that the thermometer registers well below zero and that the elephant is shut in the trailer of the wagon opposite the tent. Dumba breathes heavily, sniffing the air with her trunk, which pokes out of a tiny half-open window in the roof. She has injuries on both sides of her head. We have submitted a complaint about her situation as a matter of urgency.

Dumba is over forty and her feet are so painful that she twists and turns even in front of strangers in an attempt to obtain relief.  The forced immobility and solitude to which she is subjected daily cause muscle wasting, musculo-skeletal pain and stereotypic movements.

Just like other elephants held in captivity by circuses, she was snatched from her family while she was a baby.  She has never been seen in the company of another elephant since.  Just like Baby, she is kept in solitary confinement by her trainer and rented out to the highest bidder for videos and performances.  Forced to have her photo taken with members of the public (which is illegal), in particular in the Cirque de Paris, she crossed paths with Jon, Patty, Marli, Céleste and Hannah before we obtained their release.  We had hoped to find her in March 2020 when we followed the Cirque de Paris.  On its usual site:  Baby.  She hadn’t been seen again in France since the end of 2018.  In Spain, where we are working in solidarity on her behalf with FAADA (Fundación para el Asesoramiento y Acción en Defensa de los Animales – Foundation for Advice and Action in Defence of Animals), she had been off the radar since the end of September 2020.

But one of our sympathizers came across her while out for a New Year walk, in an area that literally looks like a rubbish dump.

France, this refuge for trainers prosecuted for mistreatment. Her trainer had fled Spain with her in order to avoid court proceedings.  It would have been very easy for him to flee once again in order to hide Dumba elsewhere.  It was therefore essential that we act speedily.  Within a few hours we had despatched our investigators.

Foot problems are the main cause of death in elephants.  Dumba’s feet and her whole body are suffused with acute pain;  she is the very incarnation of suffering.  Elephants live in groups and continually communicate with one another in a very sophisticated way.  They help and support one another until they die.  Dumba is alone in her agony.  What sort of advanced country is it that still authorizes the abysmal mistreatment of these vulnerable giants?  I love elephants, I love my country, and I am ashamed.

Muriel Arnal, President and Founder of One Voice

The opinion of the expert on elephants to whom we sent the images was irrefutable:  skeletal problems, possible tuberculosis … injuries.  “The physical condition of this obviously elderly Asian elephant is very poor.“

«There are clear indications that this elephant is suffering from pain in her front legs, as shown by her alternating lifting of these legs and the fact that she brings her rear legs far cranial under her body.»

«The elephant keeps her mouth open for a much longer period than is expected and normal, which often is an expression of pain experience.»

«Keeping an elephant solitary for a prolonged period is an act against the welfare of the animal and as such illegal. When continued for several months and longer it inevitably changes the mental health permanently and irreversibly, expressed as stereotypic behaviour.»

Willem Schaftenaar, DVM
Retired zoo veterinarian of Rotterdam Zoo
Current competences and activities: Veterinary Advisor to the European elephant TAG (EAZA), Associate researcher of Elephant Care International

We have submitted a complaint of ill-treatment and neglect by a professional (an offence) to the court in Alès. Added to that is illegally operating an establishment keeping non-domestic animals. The seizure of Dumba must be organized as quickly as possible; a place in a sanctuary already awaits her. Sign the petition and let us join together to appeal to the relevant minister, Barbara Pompili, because we shall never abandon those whose suffering is scandalously hidden from view: circus animals!

Exploited under the big top, rented out to the highest bidder, kept in isolation in a wagon in the depths of winter – that’s what Dumba’s life is like as a circus animal. @barbarapompili this suffering must stop! #FreeDumba #CirquesSansAnimaux

Petition link:

Dumba – Baby et Dumba, éléphantes de cirque (elephantes-de-cirque.fr)

Please support these;

Thanks; Regards

Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

England / Scotland: From CIWF London – Investigation Exposing the Truth About Scottish Salmon Suffering On Scottish Fish Farms.

WAV Comment: Great work as always from friends Phil and all the crew; exposing the real truth about what lies beneath the surface. More Intensive farming under the waves; out of sight, out of mind ?

From Compassion In World Farming (CIWF), London.

Murky depths of the Scottish salmon industry exposed in new undercover investigation | Compassion in World Farming (ciwf.org.uk)

Our new investigation into the Scottish salmon industry, released today (23rd March), uncovers the hidden suffering of salmon on an industry-wide and endemic scale, breaches in animal welfare legislation and shocking mortality rates.

Warning: Some viewers may find the following footage distressing.

UNCOVERING UNDERWATER CAGES

Our undercover investigation – supported by a global network of 30 organisations – and accompanying report ‘Underwater Cages, Parasites & Dead Fish: Why a Moratorium on Scottish Salmon Farming Expansion is Imperative’  highlights the grim reality for many fish raised in sea cages to produce world-famous Scottish salmon.

Scottish salmon is big business. Every year, 24 to 56 million of these fish are shipped to over 50 countries – making Scotland the world’s third-largest exporter. Worryingly the Scottish government supports plans for massive industry expansion by 2030. But while the industry expands, animals pay the price.

APPALLING FINDINGS

We investigated 22 farms between September and November 2020, using both drone technology and, at 6 farms, underwater divers. On several of these farms, investigators found severe sea lice infestations and high levels of mortalities. They also found fish crammed in barren underwater cages, where these natural migrators have nothing to do but swim aimlessly for up to 2 years. These animals suffer to such an extent that as many as a quarter will die before they even make it to slaughter.

The appalling findings were documented on farms owned by all five of Scotland’s largest salmon producers (Cooke Aquaculture, Grieg Seafood, Mowi, Scottish Sea Farms and The Scottish Salmon Company), which together account for over 96% of the industry.

SALMON SUFFERING BROUGHT TO THE SURFACE

“Salmon are silently suffering, out of sight, in cruel underwater factory farms across Scotland. Even the experienced investigators were shocked at what they found,” said Sophie Peutrill, our Global Campaign Manager for fish welfare. “The footage reveals salmon with deformities and disease, missing eyes and large chunks of flesh and skin being eaten away by sea lice. This is completely unacceptable.

“Salmon are sentient beings – they should not be subjected to such awful misery. There is an industry-wide failure to protect these animals, and this must change. We need an immediate halt on the continued expansion of Scottish salmon farming”

PUTTING PRESSURE ON THE PLANET

Not only is salmon farming bad for animal welfare, but it is also damaging the environment. Organic and chemical waste from Scottish salmon farms is changing the chemistry of sediments and killing marine life on the seabed. Waste from farms can lead to poor water quality and harmful algal blooms. Millions of tonnes of wild-caught fish are reduced to fishmeal and fish oil in order to feed fish in intensive farms, and the list goes on.

“Given the numerous welfare and environmental issues within the Scottish salmon industry, plans to expand are completely irresponsible”, said Dr Krzysztof Wojtas, our Head of Fish Policy.

“We are calling on the Scottish Government for a moratorium on the expansion of the Scottish Salmon industry. Confining carnivorous species in underwater cages and depleting our oceans of wild fish in order to feed them, is pure madness. Ultimately, we directly challenge whether farming essentially wild, migratory fish, such as salmon, has any place in a sustainable food system.”

CALL TO HALT TROUBLED WATERS

The Scottish salmon farming industry is rife with fish welfare issues and serious environmental problems. At current production levels sea lice infestation and disease are out of control, causing fish suffering on an alarming scale and threatening wild fish populations. 

To address the issues brought to the surface by our investigation we have launched an open letter to the Scottish government, urgently calling for a moratorium on the expansion of the industry, with a view to phasing out intensive salmon farming.

ACT NOW TO STOP SALMON SUFFERING

Please sign our open letter to the Scottish Government, demanding a moratorium to stop the runaway growth of Scottish salmon farming.

Regards Mark