Category: General News

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Romanian Sheep Export Ship – Current Position: 24/7/19 0900hrs GMT.

AL_SHUWAIKH another 2

As Venus has just said in her post below:

The EU Commission is the police in the EU area, which means that, according to the will of Parliament, it should be allowed to impose fines on countries that do not comply with EU law.
Transports to non-EU countries in breach of EU requirements must also be systematically prohibited.

Update: 24/7/19 0900hrs GMT.

 

The Al Shuwaikh is now in the Southern sector of the Red Sea,

Between Al Hudaydah in Yemen to the East, and Eritrea to the West.

Maybe it will get to the Arabian Sea today, but breath not being held …………..

Regards Mark

AL_SHUWAIKH another 3

 

 

Environmental, General News

UK; Victory for Cetaceans! – Virgin Holidays Stops Booking Captive Whale and Dolphin Attractions.

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WAV comment – well done Sir Richard !

Victory for Cetaceans!

Virgin Holidays Stops Booking Captive Whale and Dolphin Attractions

Posted by Carly Day | July 18, 2019

 

Tour operator Virgin Holidays has announced that they will no longer be promoting or selling trips to attractions that have captive whales or dolphins. 

The company — part of Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group — plans to initiate the changes as soon as possible, with a deadline of July 31st.

“We have now decided the time is right to discontinue offering attractions featuring close encounters with captive whales and dolphins,” said Joe Thompson, managing director of Virgin Holidays. “We will instead focus our efforts on encouraging customers to see these creatures in the wild. We will also continue our efforts to support the development of sanctuaries for whales and dolphins currently in captivity.”

Virgin Holidays has donated $100,000 to the National Aquarium in Baltimore for their project, which aims to relocate their captive dolphins to a purpose-built sanctuary, set to open in 2021.

“We want to actively support this direction by encouraging more responsible wild watching, which puts animal welfare at the heart of things, meaning our customers get to experience these amazing animals with peace of mind and future generations can enjoy these wonderful experiences too,” said Thompson.

Virgin joins many other travel providers around the world who refuse to support animal-related attractions, such as TripAdvisor and Thomas Cook.

Since 1977, 70 orcas have been born in captivity; 37 of them are now dead, and none have survived for longer than 30 years. The average lifespan of a wild orca is 50-80 years.

According to National Geographic, there are 58 orcas in captivity on the planet; a third of these are held in the United States. These incredible animals live in social groups and are exceptionally intelligent and complex individuals, who cannot thrive when taken from their natural environment.

“It’s basic biology,” says mammal scientist Naomi Rose from the Animal Welfare Institute. “A captive-born orca that has never lived in the ocean still has the same innate drives. If you have evolved to move great distances to look for food and mates then you are adapted to that type of movement, whether you’re a polar bear or an elephant or an orca. Not one marine mammal is adapted to thrive in the world we’ve made for them in a concrete box.”

We applaud Virgin Holidays for taking a stand against animal cruelty and putting their money where their mouth is by supporting humane alternatives to marine animal attractions.

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Farm Animals, General News

Report: Demand for ‘Traditional’ Asian Medicine is Wreaking Havoc on Wild Cats.

Report: Demand for ‘Traditional’ Asian Medicine is Wreaking Havoc on Wild Cats

Image Credit: Blood Lions 

 

Report: Demand for ‘Traditional’ Asian Medicine is Wreaking Havoc on Wild Cats

Posted by Carly Day | July 14, 2019

 

 

World Animal Protection (WAP) has released a report documenting the heartbreaking suffering inflicted on big cats farmed throughout South Africa and Asia for the traditional Asian medicine industry.

“Trading Cruelty – how captive big cat farming fuels the traditional Asian medicine industry” describes how thousands of big cats are bred and killed every year only to be made into wines, capsules, gels, and balms — products that have never been proven to have any healing properties.

“Does the life of an animal mean nothing at all,” asks Dr. Jan Schmidt-Burbach, global wildlife advisor at WAP. “These big cats are exploited for greed and money – and for what? For medicine that’s never been proven to have any curative properties whatsoever. For that reason alone, it’s unacceptable. At each stage of their lives they suffer immensely – this makes it an absolute outrage.”

Lions are the main focus in South Africa, where cubs are either taken from their mothers in the wild or bred within special facilities. First, they are exploited at petting farms, then used for “walking with the lions” experiences, and eventually murdered at canned hunting game farms for a fee. Their body parts are used as trophies and shipped to Asia to be used in traditional medicines.

China has huge factory-style farms, where dozens of big cats are kept in tiny cells with only the basics to survive. Many discovered as part of WAP’s investigation were emaciated. Some facilities use their captives as entertainment, forcing them to perform in shows and charging visitors to have their photos taken with the miserable animals.

“Many of these animals will only ever see the world through metal bars, they will only ever feel hard concrete beneath their paws, and they will never get to experience their most basic predatory instinct – a hunt,” says Dr. Schmidt-Burbach. “Instead, they are taken away from their mothers as tiny cubs, forced to interact with people or perform tricks, to be then shot or slaughtered so that their bodies can be harvested for products.”

With so many big cats sourced from these horrific farms, you may assume that fewer animals are taken from the wild. This isn’t the reality. WAP discovered that nine out of ten people surveyed in Vietnam — and more than half of Chinese consumers — would rather consume products from animals taken from the wild than farmed. This shows that big cat farming is actually a driving force in the poaching of these magnificent endangered cats.

While the report documents enormous demand for big cat parts for traditional medicine, WAP also highlights some positive statistics. Their studies showed that 67 percent of Vietnamese residents would be willing to try herbal or synthetic alternatives to products sourced from big cats — if the products were reasonably priced.

The organization, along with myriad others around the world, continues to fight for the animals, with a focus on changing attitudes around the use of big cats in traditional Asian medicine.

“This should not be the life for these incredible animals – either in farms or entertainment venues,” states Dr. Schmidt-Burbach. “These animals are majestic apex predators – they are not playthings – nor are they medicine. Big cats are wild animals and they deserve a life worth living.”

 

Farm Animals, General News, Stray Animals

South Korea: Koreandogs.org 22/7 Newsletter. Read In Full Via Links.

South Kores

koreandogs.org

Click on the following link to read the full 22/7 newsletter:

https://koreandogs.org/newsletter-july-22-2019/?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=Daegu_Dog_Meat_Market_to_Close_Down__Dogs_Burned_Alive_in_Koreas_Slaughterhouse&utm_medium=email

 

Stories include:

 

Daegu to consider plans to close down dog slaughterhouses by next year

 

Below is a translation of Korea’s Nocut News reported on July 17, 2019:

The city of Daegu will consider plans to close down dog slaughterhouses in the Chilseong Market by next year. These plans include solutions for the livelihood of the shop owners.

Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-Jin said on July 17, “The problem of dog meat consumption goes against current trends, and dog slaughterhouses located in the center of Daegu have negative effects on our emotions (sentiment).”

Mayor Kwon also stated, “If the dog slaughterhouses were to close down, there’s the livelihood issue for these businesses, so we will find various ways to help them which includes measures to support their livelihood.“

Daegu Chilseong Market had dog slaughterhouses even before the Chilseong Market became permanently established in the 1940s. There are now two dog slaughterhouses and 17 restaurants and dog soju places that sell dog meat in the Chilseong Market.

More, and a call for action at – https://koreandogs.org/daegu-chilseong-market-close-down/?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=Daegu_Dog_Meat_Market_to_Close_Down__Dogs_Burned_Alive_in_Koreas_Slaughterhouse&utm_medium=email

 

Dogs Are Burned Alive!
CARE’s Investigation and Rescue in Cheonan

Sharing for the Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE).

We received a report about a dog slaughterhouse and dog farm in Cheonan, a city about one and a half hours south of Seoul, at which the owner of the slaughterhouse killed the dogs in an especially brutal way. With one of the boknal days—the three hottest days of the year when dog meat consumption increases—a couple of days away on the 22nd, we went to investigate on the evening of the 20th.

 

What we encountered when we arrived was horrific even for experienced investigators.

There were broken cages with dogs tied with short leashes exposed to the elements—it’s monsoon season in South Korea, and there have been a couple of days of heavy rain. There were cages on the ground—they are usually raised off the ground—with dogs standing or lying in muddy puddles. In total there were about one hundred dogs on this farm.

However, that wasn’t the worst of it.

This dog farmer slaughtered dogs in a particularly brutal way; they were hung by the neck and blow-torched alive. The slaughtering was done outside in full view of any dogs unfortunate enough to be able to see the area in which it was done.

 

Read more and actions – https://careanimalrights.org/2019/07/investigation-and-rescue-in-cheonan/?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=Daegu_Dog_Meat_Market_to_Close_Down__Dogs_Burned_Alive_in_Koreas_Slaughterhouse&utm_medium=email

 

Click on this link to read the full newsletter:

https://koreandogs.org/newsletter-july-22-2019/?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=Daegu_Dog_Meat_Market_to_Close_Down__Dogs_Burned_Alive_in_Koreas_Slaughterhouse&utm_medium=email

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Al Shuwaikh – Romanian Sheep Shipment (70,000 animals) – Current Position – Red Sea, Has Departed Jeddah.

AL_SHUWAIKH another 3

 

Update: 23/7/19 0945hrs GMT.

 

The Al Shuwaikh has now left Jeddah port and is underway using its own power, heading South down the Red Sea.

It is currently positioned between Port Sudan (Sudan) to the West, and Al Lith (Saudi Arabia) to the East.

We cannot confirm at the moment if sheep are on board or if they were all unloaded at Jeddah.

It is possible the ship is empty and returning to it ‘home’ of Kuwait.

 

We are currently looking at different routes we can approach to obtain accurate information from the authorities.

Regards Mark

 

AL_SHUWAIKH another 4

Recent posts on this:

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/07/21/romanian-sheep-ship-has-now-docked-at-jeddah-port-2300hrs-gmt-21-7-19/

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/07/21/the-case-midia/

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/07/20/romanian-sheep-shipping-news-20-7-19-new-kuwait-eta-over-another-weeks-sailing-time-now-set-what-are-conditions-like-for-the-animals/

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General News

USA: Petition – Men Accused of Murdering Dog Execution Style Must Be Punished.

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Men Accused of Murdering Dog Execution-Style Must be Punished

Posted by Jennifer McCue

Petition 2

Petition link – https://animalpetitions.org/760898/dog-reportedly-shot-and-killed-deserves-justice/

Target: Marilyn Hite Ross, State’s Attorney for Winnebago County, Illinois

Goal: Punish the two men who allegedly shot a dog multiple times, leading to the animal’s death.

An innocent dog was apparently shot multiple times in a shocking case of animal cruelty. The suspects in the case fled the scene and are still at large. Demand justice for this poor animal.

Rockford police are searching for two men in connection with the brutal slaying of an innocent dog. Per authorities, Kelvin Langston, 28, and Douglas Hollyfield, 26, entered a woman’s home and began shooting at the dog in her care. They took turns firing, the witness stated, and only targeted her friend’s animal. Sadly, the pup suffered serious injuries in the apparent attack and later died.

Langston and Hollyfield have been charged with aggravated cruelty to an animal, unlawful use of weapons by a felon, reckless discharge, and no FOID card. Both have warrants and bonds set at $150,000. Sign below to demand that these men are punished for their heartless crime, if convicted.

 

PETITION LETTER:

Dear State’s Attorney Ross,

A dog was apparently shot repeatedly by two men while being cared for by the owner’s friend. The poor animal later died due to the severity of the gunshot wounds. I demand that the people responsible be brought to justice.

They entered the woman’s home, the witness stated, and aimed their guns at her friend’s dog. They then reportedly took turns shooting the helpless animal, eventually inflicting fatal injuries. These men, identified by police as Kelvin Langston and Douglas Hollyfield, are accused felons and one is reportedly a gang member. Now, despite the continued efforts of the Rockford Police Department, they are on the loose and likely dangerous to other animals.

Those responsible for this innocent animal’s death must be found and brought to justice. Prosecute them and seek the maximum penalty to ensure the safety of all local animals.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Photo Credit: Brett_Hondow

 

 

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Romanian Sheep Ship Has Now Docked at Jeddah Port -2300hrs GMT 21/7/19.

Update: 21/7/19 2300hrs GMT.

 

AL_SHUWAIKH another 3

The Al Shuwaikh has now docked in Jeddah port tonight (2330hrs local).

Why ? – A ‘Route Plan’ has to be submitted under EU Regulations BEFORE the shipment can take place.  So did the Romanian approved Route Plan always declare Jeddah as the final destination ?, and the ship was simply to return to home base of Kuwait EMPTY from there ?

Now we need to check out the formal Romanian Route Plan to see what the sheep’s final destination actually was – Saudi Arabia or Kuwait ?

The AK could set sail from Jeddah in the next few days, but it does not mean the sheep are on board – it could be returning home empty to Kuwait.

Only the Route Plan approved by the Romanian authorities will declare exactly what the final destination of the sheep was to be.  It could have been Jeddah.

So does this from the EU Commissioner make any sense:

Ref https://www.eurogroupforanimals.org/australia-has-stopped-live-transport-during-high-temperatures-lets-not-lag-behind-commissioner-andriukaitis

 

Commissioner Andriukaitis’ said only:

On the subject of this weekend’s decision by Romania to go ahead with the transport of 70,000 sheep from Romania to the Persian Gulf, Commissioner Andriukaitis said that the Commission is investigating the issue and that “infringement proceedings against Romania cannot be excluded at this time”.

He said ‘Persian Gulf’ but the plan could have said Saudi Arabia (Jeddah), not Kuwait.  The East of Saudi is in the Persian Gulf; so ‘Persian Gulf’ could have actually meant ‘Saudi Arabia’.

But also, the question is – how many sheep have perished under the shipment conditions ?

The Romanians SHOULD have taken the temperatures for the sheep on the journey into account when they were looking at the submitted (but not approved at the time – Route Plan) in ADVANCE of the shipment.  Did they ?

We will get the Route Plan in some way now and check out what is says.

Regards Mark

 

 

General News, Live Transport

The case “Midia”

 

-flag-of-romania-pg

 

On July 15, 2019 we received two horror reports from the small port of Romania, Midia.

One was that 70,000 live sheep were to be transported to Kuwait by ship.
The other horror message was the impudent refusal of the meaningless Romanian Minister of Agriculture to ban the transport.

EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety’s Andriukaitis had emailed Petre Daea to ban this brutal drive of 70,000 sheep to the Persian Gulf.
“I urge you to stop the import of sheep to the Persian Gulf”, said Vytenis Andriukaitis in his letter.

The EU representative Anja Hazekamp was on site and had also demonstrated against the transport unmistakable.

The cruise should take 6 days. Until now (21.07.19, 19:34) the ship is still on its way, and the still alive animals suffer from dehydration, hunger, ammonia stench and heat stroke.

Finally, Agra Minister Daea writes Commissioner Andriukaitis on his ass and gives the green light to a transport that will soon become the mobile Auschwitz for a few thousand animals.

Petre Daea was just finished with his six-month EU- Council presidency when he admitted this illegal animal transport.

In this short time, Daea has been well aware of the inability of certain EU commissioners to benefit. He understood that he had nothing to fear because his EU colleagues had neither the authority nor the courage to force a meaningless minister to obedience.

And at once he acted with an outrageous authority over his colleague Andriukaitis, which disgusted every civilized and democratic man.

Due to the fundamental inability and ignorance of the EU Commission to take elementary measures against unnecessary suffering in animal transport (such as the ban on transport through Europe and to third countries in the summer), every corrupt minister becomes the head and hangman of the Animal Protection Act, and even in a continent that wants to assert itself as progressive and superior to China or Africa.

The EU Commission, including its 28 idle and useless commissioners, has failed.

All over.

This fact is not new, but it is getting more dramatic.
The case of Midia, including ministers and commissioners, is a scandal, it is cruel, it is inhuman and extremely irresponsible.

The deeper the disappointment for all animal rights activists grows, the more we hope that the new President of the EU Commission, the German Ursula von der Leynen, will bring an appropriate share of responsibility and authority to the lame men of the Commission.
We will talk more about this topic soon.

My best regards to all, Venus

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Romanian Sheep Shipping News – 21/7/19.Vessel Still In the Red Sea near Jeddah (Saudi); Speed to Virtually Nothing – Are There Problems ? – Destination Still Scheduled for Kuwait on 2/8/19.

AL_SHUWAIKH another 3

 

 

Romanian Sheep shipping news – 21/7/19.

Date – 21/7/19 – 10-50hrs GMT

We are tracking the vessel.

Things seem a little odd with this.

From what we can find out, the Al Shuwaikh is still sailing for Kuwait; with its arrival date now set at an ETA of 2/8/19.

But as of 10-50hrs GMT today, 21/7/19; she is still way up in the Red Sea; just to the East of the port of Jeddah / (near Mecca) in Saudi Arabia. The speed of the vessel over recent times has been between 0.2 and 1.5 knots.

 

jeddah sheep ship.png

Above – the planned route to Kuwait.

 

So, we ask, what is happening ? – are there mechanical issues ? – has ‘Kuwait’ as a destination suddenly changed to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia ? – yet the vessel is still scheduled to arrive in Kuwait on 2/8.

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0.2 -1.5 knots is not exactly racing along; so why the slow speed ?

With a cargo of 70,000 live sheep travelling under such extreme conditions; and with temperatures in the area at around 40 degrees, would the vessel not be trying to get to Kuwait as fast as it could ?

We think there are problems, as there have been with many of these livestock vessels in the past.

Unfortunately we cannot prove this at present, but this ship has been in the Red Sea for a few days now; and that is not really a great distance to travel.

 

More news to come if we can track with further updates;

For the Sheep

Regards Mark – WAV.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

Romanian Sheep shipping news – 20/7/19. New Kuwait ETA – Over Another Weeks Sailing Time Now Set ! What are Conditions Like for the Animals ?

AL_SHUWAIKH another 4

 

Romanian Sheep shipping news – 20/7/19.

 

Date – 20/7/19 – 10-25hrs GMT

According to all the information over the past week, the Al Shuwaikh which has been sailing from Romania to Kuwait with 70,000 live sheep, should have arrived at its destination in the early hours of this morning.

Instead, from information we have now obtained, the vessel is still only just half way down the Red Sea; and now the expected arrival date (ETA) has changed to 2/8/19; which is nearly another 2 weeks away !

We are trying to find out if this vessel has had any issues (such as breakdowns) which have delayed it (it is well known for past problems at sea); and we will publish these if we find out.  There could also have been issues relating to health and paperwork issues in allowing this vessel to get into the Red Sea from the Med.

God knows what the conditions are like on board for the animals; now that the journey appears to be destined to take more than twice its scheduled sailing time.  (see the video below which will show similarities).

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Obviously the Romanian government does not care about the suffering of animals; as it ignored the requests from the EU and other authorities to stop the sailing before it even commenced. This is Romania, an EU member state which does not comply with EU legislation, and which certainly does not give a toss about the suffering of animals; as we have seen for years regarding their approach to stray dog control.

This sailing is just one of many that are carrying livestock all over the world by sea. We wanted to follow this, giving you reports each day so that you can get a feel for the suffering the animals on board will be suffering. Now it appears that these poor Romanian sheep have over another week at sea before they reach their destination in Kuwait; only then to be greeted by ritual slaughter under the name of Eid.
https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/saying-goodbye-to-the-al-shuwaikh/ customs / health

 

Red Sea temperatures on 20/7 are between 38 and 43 degrees.

 

In Kuwait port today the temperature is 40 degrees.

EU Regulations (1/2005) for animals in transport, say that animals must not be transported in temperatures above 30 degrees.

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A32005R0001

 

 

 

Watch it; learn and repent !