Frisky felines in Russia are sure to be on their toes after getting slapped with a sanction that will ban them from international competition.
The sanction is one of many the world has hit against Russia as punishment for their ongoing special military operation in the Donbass region.
The International Feline Federation(FIFe), which first originated in Paris in 1949, has weighed in on the Ukraine crisis, banning Russian-owned cats from competing in its shows as a sanction for Moscow’s military attack on the former Soviet republic.
“The FIFe executive board is shocked and horrified that the army of the Russian Federation invaded the Republic of Ukraine and started a war,” the Paris-based federation said on Tuesday. The group added that it “cannot just witness these atrocities and do nothing.”
As a result, cats belonging to Russian residents will be banned from entry at FIFe shows.
In addition, no cats bred in Russia can be imported and registered in a FIFe pedigree book, the group said.
No cat belonging to exhibitors living in Russia may be entered at any FIFe show outside Russia, regardless of which organization these exhibitors hold their membership in.
The sanctions will remain in place through at least May and may be extended, presumably depending on what transpires in Ukraine. FIFe said it will use some of its budget to support cat breeders and fanciers in Ukraine.
“Our Ukrainian fellow feline fanciers are desperately trying to take care of their cats and other animals in these trying circumstances,” the federation said.
FIFe is a federation of cat registries with member organizations in 39 countries in Europe,South America and Asia.It’s also one of nine World Cat Congress members.
On social media Thursday, reactions to the federation’s ban – deemed by some as “cat sanctions” – were mixed.
Some critics called the move “ridiculous.”
“Russian breeders should not be punished for a war that isn’t of their making,” one user wrote on the federation’s Facebook page.
The decision to punish cats for Russian “aggression” is so surreal that many thought it was a joke, at first.
The news broke on the Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo, where one user asked:
“What’s all this [Russia-Ukraine conflict] going on with cats?”
Another said, “I thought this was fake news…”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrovcomplained on Wednesday that Western sanctions have been aimed not just at leaders of the state, but also ordinary people, contrary to international norms.
“I did not think that these sanctions, caused by impotent anger, would cover the sports movement, cultural exchange and would concern contacts between people,” he told media outlet Al Jazeera.
And I mean…Democracy is the new fascism.
In the future, symbols or flags of democracy will be treated as Nazi symbols and flags are treated today.
It violates not only international law, as Lavrov rightly says, but also every moral and political ethic these organizations are required to uphold.
No one in the West has any idea what will happen when this is all over.
How about a monkey used in a TV show, surely that can’t be wild?
The term “wild animal” comprises those species of which populations still exist in a wild state, in the country of origin – a species whose collective behaviour, life cycle or physiology remains unaltered from the wild conspecific despite their breeding and living conditions being under human control for multiple generations. This means that a lot more animals than most people realise really are wild. Picking up, handling, keeping, feeding and playing with a wild animal is vastly different than for animals that we call domesticated animals.
Domesticated animals, like our cats, have been selectively bred over thousands of years and generations and are genetically determined to be tolerant of humans. So, they often lack natural instincts that would help them survive in the wild, allowing them to avoid fear, and in many cases seek out the attention of people.
But wild animals have the natural instincts to survive in the wild. Humans are not a part of that wild, or at least if they were, they would be a threat to these animals’ safety. So, when we play, cuddle and pet wild animals (like reptiles, birds or snakes), while they may not look or sound distressed, in fact their instincts are telling them they are in danger and they often exhibit behaviours, that only animal behavioural experts can detect, that show they are suffering greatly.
Moreover, these animals are hardwired to need a wide range of conditions that only nature can provide. Being transported, trained, caged and confined doesn’t allow these animals to live how they naturally need to.
So how does Eurogroup for Animals work to protect wild animals?
What – A Positive List is a list of animals that are allowed to be kept and traded. This tool is the single most effective and efficient measure to reduce the suffering of exotic animals being kept unsuitably as pets in Europe.
Why – There are more than 200 million pets in Europe, including mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and amphibians. However, many species, especially exotic animals, are unsuited to a life in captivity. This may result in severe animal welfare problems, and can also be detrimental to biodiversity, have a negative impact on public health, and present a danger to the health of other animals.
How can you help? – Click on this link to log into the Conference on the Future of Europe website, and endorse our “IDEA” on the Positive List.
What – Use of wild animals in circuses is not only a problem for animal welfare, but also an important issue of public safety and security. Wild animals are unpredictable and can be very dangerous to people. The temporary nature of travelling circuses and the close proximity of these animals to the public means that this type of public entertainment can never be entirely safe. 24 EU Member States already adopted a national ban, why not the remaining three? (Germany, Italy, Spain).
Why – 478 incidents involving 889 wild animals have been recorded in EU circuses in the past 24 years – Read this report on Wild Animals in EU Circuses : Problems, Risks and Solutions.
How can you help? – Click on this link to log into the Conference on the Future of Europe website, endorse our “IDEA” on the EU-wide ban of wild animals in circuses.
What – Trophy hunting is the hunting and killing of animals for sport or pleasure, in order to acquire parts, or whole bodies as trophies. Current EU legislation allows the import and export of hunting trophies from threatened and protected species.
Why – The EU is the second largest importer of hunting trophies, and since 2016, the largest importer of lion trophies in the world. Many species victim to trophy hunting are classified as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, such as the African elephants and lions, and their populations must be protected to conserve our natural heritage.
How – EU Ban on the import of Trophy Hunting into the EU. This should be a priority in the revision of the Action Plan against Wildlife Trafficking
What – Wolves and other large carnivores are strictly protected species in the EU, thanks to the highly successful Habitats Directive and the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats. Sometimes, when the appropriate protective measures are not used, wolves can depredate livestock leading to conflict between wolves and livestock farmers.
Why – Lobby groups are trying to change the conservation status of wolves and other large carnivores. This will set a bad precedent for other animals and will allow the brutal killing of more wolf families.
How can you help? – Sign this petition to stop the hunt of 20 wolves in Finland. Help in his area could set an example for other Member States doing the same thing.
What – Invasive Alien Species (IAS) are animals and plants that are introduced accidentally or deliberately into a natural environment where they are not normally found, with serious negative consequences for their new environment. The EU IAS Regulation requires restrictions on keeping, importing, selling, breeding and growing. Member States also need to ensure they reduce introduction pathways for invasive species, they need to be able to detect and eradicate newly invasive species, and manage longer term and to manage species that are already widely spread in their territory. This should be done through effective, non-lethal methods that reduce animal suffering as much as possible.
Why – Currently, the regulation has resulted in the hunting and non selective trapping of huge numbers of individuals causing immeasurable suffering of animals in the list of Invasive Alien Species of Union concern (the Union list). These animals also become labelled as “pests” and “vermin”, meaning welfare concerns are often ignored. The same can be said for other animals that are not on the list.
End the import of kangaroo meat and skin products into the EU
What – In the last couple years, the EU has been Australia’s main market for the country’s kangaroo meat and skin exports. There are three major concerns with kangaroo hunting:
Animal welfare – this hunting is cruel as up to 40% of kangaroos that are commercially killed are not shot in the brain, as required, and joey’s skulls are often crushed by swinging their heads against a vehicle.
Animal conservation – there are serious doubts about how Australian authorities are counting certain species.
Sanitary concerns – dead kangaroos are transported, sometimes all night long, in unrefrigerated open trucks and kangaroos harbour multiple pathogens including salmonella species and toxoplasmosis. Kangaroo meat is routinely washed with lactic or acetic acid to reduce and hide the systemic contamination.
Why – Although these animals are suffering in Australia, the EU can act by prohibiting the imports of kangaroo meat and products.
The successful adoption of the pioneering resolution that ties animal welfare to people’s health and the environment is a first step towards animal welfare being addressed at a global level.
A resolution sponsored by six African countries and Pakistan was adopted today at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA)’s 5th session. It unequivocally links the way humans impact the health and welfare of animals as a critical driver of biodiversity loss, the emergence of zoonotic disease, climate change and environmental pollution.
The successful adoption of the resolution means that animal welfare is starting to be addressed at a global level.
We are proud of this watershed moment for the animal protection movement. It is a massive collective success for our members and partners and proves the impact of a worldwide coalition of animal NGOs. A holistic understanding of the links between animal suffering and environmental harm, and greater inter-agency collaboration with shared aims are critical stepping-stones for improving the well-being of animals across the globe.
James Yeates, Chief Executive Officer, World Federation for Animals
Animal welfare is not, currently, part of the UN Environment Programme’s mandate. This resolution calls on UNEP to prepare a report on the nexus between animal welfare, human wellbeing and a clean environment and include improving the wellbeing of animals into its work.
Eurogroup for Animals calls on European authorities to take this resolution into account in their development of the EU’s future Sustainable Food System policies.
WAV Comment: And who said that when big money and ‘favours’ are involved, some people ‘play it’ to ensure that they continue to get the perks; regardless of the rest ?
Whats more, the European Commission (EC) is made up of people who are UN ELECTED.
European Commission disregards wishes of the European Parliament by failing to take concrete steps to phase out animal experiments
2 March 2022
Press Release
In response to the European Commission follow-up to the European Parliament non-legislative resolution on plans and actions to accelerate a transition to innovation without the use of animals in research, regulatory testing and education, Eurogroup for Animals, Cruelty Free Europe and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Foundation issued a joint statement
Six months after the historic resolution of the European Parliament (EP) asking for an action plan to phase out the use of animals in science, the European Commission (EC) has failed to take note. The EP was resoundingly clear and nearly unanimous: an EU-wide Action Plan for the active phase-out of the use of animals in experiments with the inclusion of milestones and targets to incentivise progress towards the replacement of the use of animals is needed.
The EC provided, in a weak response, only a list of fragmented initiatives that could eventually lead to some reduction in the use of animals and it is not taking steps to implement the requested action plan to phase out animal experiments.
This leaves the EC with a status quo approach, leading to little impact and no sustainable reduction of the use of animals in areas where so much more can be achieved.
The efforts of the EC, even if slim at times, have helped to advance non-animal science and testing. However, we now need overarching scientific policies that can embrace the new science and technologies, making them the new normal in a stepwise approach.
To achieve sustainable changes towards a more effective and humane science, the current approach of the EC must set out broader coordination groups, as put forward by the EP, with clear objectives and processes for monitoring, assessing and ensuring progress and adapting strategies when appropriate.
Last September, the European Parliament took a strong stance for the phase out of the use of animals in Science, so the response from the Commission was eagerly awaited. A good element of this response is the intention of strengthening the private-public European Partnership for Alternative Approaches to Animal Testing. This partnership is essential to provide advice and build consensus in targeted areas of regulatory testing. But we need more: The action plan needs to involve Members States and the wider academic and industry community; it needs to establish concrete milestones and objectives for sustainable reductions of regulatory animal testing, but also of animal-based research and education, where the majority of animals are used.
Tilly Metz MEP (Greens/EFA, LU), President of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals
The Commission foresees no change for the funding of projects that aim to use and/or further develop non-animal models under Horizon Europe, when compared to the previous framework Programme, H2020, which spent 0.5% of its total annual budget on the development of non-animal models. This is not the message we were expecting from a Commission that stresses its goal of phasing out the use of animals in scientific procedures. The EU will not accelerate the transition to non-animal science with such a low commitment.
Eurogroup for Animals represents over eighty animal protection organisations in almost all EU Member States, the UK, Switzerland, Serbia, Norway, and Australia. Since its foundation in 1980, the organisation has succeeded in encouraging the EU to adopt higher legal standards for animal protection. Eurogroup for Animals reflects public opinion through its members and has both the scientific and technical expertise to provide authoritative advice on issues relating to animal protection. Eurogroup for Animals is a founding member of the World Federation for Animals which unites the animal protection movement at the global level.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Foundation along with the PETA international entities in France, Germany and the Netherlands, is dedicated to establishing and protecting the rights of animals. Working through education, research, legislative and policy change, outreach and international harmonisation, PETA seeks to accelerate the transition to animal-free science and advance the development and use of non-animal testing approaches to improve the protection of human health, the environment and animals.
Cruelty Free Europe is a Brussels-based network of animal protection groups working to bring animal testing to an end across Europe. With 19 associate members, we act as a force for animals in laboratories across the EU and the wider European neighbourhood. Working with elected Members of the European Parliament, governments, regulators, officials and supporters, our experts coordinate efforts to secure change for the animals currently suffering in experiments in Europe. We believe there is no rational moral justification for using animals in experiments. Instead, we champion progressive, humane scientific research and cruelty free living.
We’ve rescued thousands of animals, yet we are still in awe of each and every animal’s uniqueness. Some animals take time to get to know, while others wear their heart on their sleeve. We’ll never know what an animal is really thinking, in a human sense, yet the presence of life and of feeling, not different from ours, is unmistakable. They probably don’t know that they feel better because of the injection we just gave them, or the splint now stabilizing their fracture, but in the moment when their worried eyes become soft, and their tense shoulders relax, we rejoice in just knowing that we’ve helped them feel better.
Watch these wonderful recovery videos below and know that you, wherever you are in the world, have helped a tail wag, given a peaceful night’s sleep, made a hungry belly full, and surrounded a worried animal with love.
Despite a ruptured eye,Sunny hugged his rescuer!
Sunny’s tail wags in every single frame of this video. Unusual under any circumstances, but incredible that he shared joy even with the excruciating pain he suffered having a completely ruptured eye. His eye was damaged beyond repair, but he pulled through surgery with flying colors and immediately seemed to show–not fear, but gratitude! It’s simply awful to imagine such a joyful puppy suffering in pain. Without rescue, his tail would soon have stopped wagging forever.This little sweetheart is simply Love Itself in a puppy package.
Rose’s love helped heal her baby Petal’s horrific wound
Rose’s little boy, Petal, was terribly injured on the back of his neck with a deep wound filled with maggots. We knew they needed to be together but the day we rescued him we didn’t have room in our ambulance to bring them both. The next day our ambulance pulled in with a big beautiful surprise for this little angel: his mommy! Happily together with Mom, his healing process galloped along! Daily wound cleaning and fresh dressings enabled that awful wound to close within a couple of weeks.
Giving peace and safety to sweethearts like Shaney who have a long healing journey ahead
When Shaney arrived she was a suffering sweetheart who had a fracture on her shoulder. Her ears were also wounded in the accident. She needed medical care for her ears, and for her fracture, she needs rest and limited mobility. Here she is now,completely at home in the our sheep and calf area where there are, of course, no passing vehicles and where tension is completely lifted and all her energy can go into further healing and strengthening her leg.
Thank you for giving us the means to provide complete rehabilitation for those who need time to heal.
Compassion in our Community
A community street animal care-giver often evolves beginning with giving the adorable dogs outside their home leftovers and table scraps. Gradually the bright eyes of the dogs or cows invite irresistible pets and cuddles. For many people, this blossoms into a friendship.
Photographed here, this elegant boy’s guardian brought him in their car and drove him to Animal Aid when they noticed he had a puncture wound that looked infected. Sure enough it was infected, but with antibiotics and their close monitoring, he did not need to be admitted into the hospital and he could heal happy in his own neighborhood with his caregivers near by.
Biggest thank you to the people in Udaipur and across India who have opened their hearts and hands to the angels on their path.
On March 9th LAV is organising a conference at the Italian Senate to understand what concrete changes this milestone decision will bring about. The event will be accessible online with English interpretation
On March 9ththeprotection of animals, environment, biodiversity and ecosystems will be officially recognised in the Italian Constitution. What changes and what impact will this have?
These questions will be discussed the same day, during a conference organised by our member LAV, who, back in 1998 wrote and deposited the first draft law for the recognition of animals in the Constitution.
The event, which will take place at the Italian Senate, in the same building where the Constitution was signed in late December 1947, can be also attended online, with the support of English interpretation.
Our CEO Reineke Hameleers and Massimiliano Conti, Commander of CITES Carabinieri, will take the floor for a welcome address. Gianluca Felicetti and Carla Campanaro, respectively LAV President and Legal Office Manager, will moderate the conference.
Speakers include Professors Diana Cerini (UniBicocca Milano), Francesca Rescigno (UniBologna), Maria Vittoria Ferroni (La Sapienza Roma), Luigi Lombardi Vallauri (formerly UniFirenze and Cattolica Milano), Alessandra Valastro (UniPerugia), Sanja Bogojevic (University of Oxford).
On behalf of the political groups that supported the approval process of the new law, the first signatories of the bill and rapporteurs will take the floor: Loredana De Petris, Alessandra Maiorino, Valentina Corneli, Patrizia Prestipino, Michela Vittoria Brambilla, Doriana Sarli, Rossella Muroni and Gianluca Perilli.
The event takes place on Wednesday 9 March from 2 to 5PM CET.
All the details on how to attend online will be available on LAV’s website on Monday March 7th.
Instead of complying with the ruling of the Supreme Court, the Government amends the law on which the ruling was based
After having been defeated in Court by animal protection organisations who had appealed a ministerial decision allowing ritual slaughter of animals without prior stunning, the Greek government took the unprecedented step of getting rid of the existing animal protection law that stood in its way.
In October 2021, in a ruling that made history, the Supreme Administrative Court of Greece annulled a ministerial decision which, in 2017, had introduced ritual killing of animals without prior stunning, a killing practice until then prohibited under Greek national law.
The Court ruled that the Greek State had not made use of the “margin of appreciation” and the “level of subsidiarity” provided by the EU regulation which gives Member States the possibility to ensure wider protection of animals, by maintaining their national rules or adopt new ones – taking into account the evolution of values and perceptions in their society – especially given the fact that Greece has had a legislation prohibiting any killing of animals without prior stunning since 1981.
The government decided to remove the inconvenient article from the law, downgrading Greek animal protection standards to pre-1980s levels. This unacceptable amendment was slipped into a massive bill on corruption which was submitted three days ago and will be voted by Parliament with expeditious procedures.
Gergiev has since been thrown out. His offense: he did not comment!
As of today, the Philharmonie is free of Russians.
In order not to miss the circular conclusion to the “classic”, so one can say that something like this is a “fascist classic”.
At first glance, one might think that the unwanted Russian conductor Valeri Gergiev could now feel like a Jew in Munich in the 1930s.
Surely that’s pure exaggeration, but it’s guaranteed that Valerie Gergiev will soon think about whom to click his heels in the future.
Valery Gergiyev, Chief Conductor of the Mariinsky Theatre, with the symphony orchestra at Moscow’s Zaryadye Concert Hall – May 2, 2021
The artist agency that represented Gergiev canceled the contract with him. “In the light of the criminal war waged by the Russian regime against the democratic and independent nation of Ukraine, and against the open European society as a whole, it has become impossible and clearly undesirable for us to represent Maestro Gergiyev’s interests.” said the head of the agency.
And with that, the highest level of mental shallowness in this banana republic has been reached.
Munich has always been an interesting place for Nazis.
This has apparently not changed to this day, although this time fascism is making its debut in a different neo-dress.
By the way: an Edeka supermarket branch manager in Kiel (Northern Germany) also drew the “right” conclusions and banned Russian President Putin from his shop: “No beer for Putin and nothing else either!”
Putin will tremble when there is such missionary zeal for sanctions against Russia!
On February 10, wildlife advocates across the U.S. celebrated a federal district court ruling to relist wolves after the Trump administration removed federal protections for wolves in January 2021. The Biden administration failed to reinstate emergency federal protection, thereby opening up expanded slaughter across their range. Last week’s ruling reinstates federal protections for gray wolves under the Endangered Species Act across the lower 48 except for three separate groups of wolves. The first two groups, Mexican gray wolves and red wolves, are already federally protected. Tragically, the third group of wolves in the Northern Rockies states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, are not included in that ruling and still face intense persecution under state management with new laws allowing liberalized killing through trophy hunting, trapping, snaring, baiting, aerial gunning and night hunting. We’ve been advocating for wolf protections for a long time and now is no time to let up
Project Coyote‘s new billboard campaign in Idaho and Montana challenges this egregious mismanagement, calling for the relisting of wolves in the Northern Rockieswhere populations continue to attract millions of visitors to famed Yellowstone National Park from all over the globe to glimpse a wolf in the wild.
At the base of this mismanagement of wolves and other apex predators is a governance system that is out of sync with current science and public sentiment. Such a broken system is reflected in myriad other states where wildlife commissions continue to allow and even expand the wanton killing of wild carnivores. Some recent examples of where we’ve been countering the actions of commissions that simply shills for a small contingent of hunting and agricultural interests include: expanded opportunities to trophy hunt black bears in California and North Carolina, hound hunting of coyotes in Vermont, wildlife killing contests in Virginia and trophy hunting of wild cats in Colorado. We’re also part of a newly formed coalition called Wildlife For All that aims to reform state and federal wildlife agency governance structures and institutions pushing for change that reflects diverse values for wildlife, more democratic decision-making and recognition of wildlife as a common good to be conserved for the benefit of all. Across all these issues and more, Project Coyote is on the front lines, advocating on behalf of North America‘s wild carnivores who have no voice and are often still seen as vermin needing to be expunged from the landscape.
On another front, we’re excited to expand our reach into the Midwest through the Big River Connectivity project in collaboration with The Rewilding Institute, the Half-Earth Project and BeWildReWild. Through this partnership we aim to restore at least 9 million acres in the Midwest to create a wilder, more beautiful, more biologically diverse and more enduring Mississippi River watershed. We will do so by shifting the paradigm from traditional agricultural practices to a more holistic, sustainable and humane approach of interacting with land and wildlife.
Our work is defensive and offensive — working to stop wanton wildlife killing while concurrently seeking to educate, empower and inspire action for wildlife and wildlands. Read more about these efforts below and our expanded team who will help bring these bold goals to fruition.
We could not do this work without you — our supporters and the many foundations who believe in our vision for a wilder world. Thank you for helping foster compassion for the other beings with whom we share this planet.
As a result, cats belonging to Russian residents will be banned from entry at FIFe shows.
On social media Thursday, reactions to the federation’s ban – deemed by some as “cat sanctions” – were mixed.
Valery Gergiyev, Chief Conductor of the Mariinsky Theatre, with the symphony orchestra at Moscow’s Zaryadye Concert Hall – May 2, 2021
World Animals Voice 