General News, Hunting, Stray Animals

USA: New York Feral Pigeons Being Illegally Captured and Sold To Gun Clubs To Be Shot.

Pictured: a pigeon pirate spotted on January 8 along Broome and Norfolk streets in the Lower East Side, captured in a photo posted to Instagram by food blogger Mike Chau

Pictured: a pigeon pirate spotted on January 8 along Broome and Norfolk streets in the Lower East Side, captured in a photo posted to Instagram by food blogger Mike Chau

The pigeon poachers, one pictured with a net full of pigeons above, are known to sell the birds to hunting and gun clubs for live shoots

The pigeon poachers, one pictured with a net full of pigeons above, are known to sell the birds to hunting and gun clubs for live shoots

Pigeon pirates are spotted illegally catching birds on the streets of Manhattan to sell to gun clubs to be SHOT for sport, animal rights activists claim

  • Pigeon pirates are illegally catching the birds on the streets of Manhattan to sell them out of state gun clubs to be killed for sport, animal rights activists claim 
  • On January 16, Susan Tang and her husband, Nicholas, witnessed two men in a van bearing New York plates as they captured about 50 pigeons in Hell’s Kitchen
  • ‘It was deeply disturbing. I’m a born and raised New Yorker. I love everything about this city. The pigeons are as NYC as you can possibly get’ Tang said 
  • Another pigeon pirate spotted with a net full of pigeons on January 8 along Broome and Norfolk streets in the Lower East Side 
  • Punishment for the crime was not streamlined in NYC until 2019, when a new bill made it a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1000 fine 
  • A permit is required in order to trap pigeons citywide 

Pigeon pirates are illegally catching the birds on the streets of Manhattan to sell them out of state gun clubs to be killed for sport, animal rights activists claim after two incidents were reported this month.

On the morning of January 16, Hell’s Kitchen residents Susan Tang and her husband, Nicholas, witnessed two men in a Dodge Caravan bearing New York plates as they tossed seeds along 10th Avenue between 58th and 59th streets, according to the New York Post.

The poachers ended up capturing about 50 pigeons with nets before throwing them into the van and fleeing the scene. 

‘We followed the van as much as we could to try to focus on the license plate, which was obscured by a plastic cover of some sort,’ Susan Tang told the Post.

‘The driver was aware he was being followed and was blowing red lights and almost struck a group of pedestrians.’ 

While it has been illegal to capture and sell pigeons for years in New York City, punishment for the crime was not streamlined until 2019, when a new bill made it a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1000 fine.

A permit is required in order to trap pigeons citywide. 

The couple, who took a photo of the van prior to losing sight of it, filed a complaint with both 311 and the state Department of Environmental Conservation, as well as notified the NYPD.  

‘It was over and done with from start to finish in 20 seconds,’ Tang recalled. 

‘It was deeply disturbing. I’m a born and raised New Yorker. I love everything about this city. The pigeons are as New York City as you can possibly get.’

According to Tang, investigators with the Department of Environmental Conservation already ‘know the suspect’s name and address and located the van complete with tons of feathers and pigeon poop inside.’

‘I have told him that my husband and I will testify if the case progresses,’ she added.

Elsewhere in the city, another pigeon pirate was spotted on January 8 along Broome and Norfolk streets in the Lower East Side, and was captured in a photo posted to Instagram by food blogger Mike Chau.

‘New York or Nowhere (yes that’s a whole flock of pigeons caught in a net being stuffed into the trunk of a car),’ Chau captioned the post. 

As in the Hell’s Kitchen incident, the avian poacher made off with the birds without issue. 

The incidents are currently ‘under investigation by the Animal Cruelty Investigation Squad,’ according to an NYPD spokesman. 

Authorities believe they are a part of a group known for selling pigeons to various hunting and gun clubs for live shoots in Pennsylvania.

‘These helpless pigeons are sitting ducks. They are New Yorkers like you and I,’ said animal advocate John DiLeonardo.

The issue of pigeon pirates is hardly a new one in the Big Apple.

In 2008, animal rights activists accused a Brooklyn man of selling pigeons he caught for $5 to $10 to shooting contests out of state.

In 2015, roughly 300 pigeons were netted and captured from Washington Square Park, which were similarly sold to Pennsylvania live shoots.

Pigeon pirates spotted illegally catching birds on the streets of Manhattan to sell to gun clubs | Daily Mail Online

Regards Mark

Farm Animals, General News

Italy: Seems To Have Major Problems When It Comes To Enforcing Protection For Animals.

WAV Comment – Italy seems to have big problems when it comes to enforcing animal welfare !

New investigation documents culling of thousands of chickens due to avian flu

1 February 2022

Essere Animali

A new investigation by Essere Animali documents culling operations on a farm where cases of avian flu were detected. The film shows chickens being collected with the blade of a bulldozer and then herded by the thousands into containers which, once sealed, are filled with gas.

Since October last year, over 300 outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian flu (subtypes H5 and H5N1) have been recorded in domestic poultry, and several other cases have been found among wild animals in Italy. So far it is estimated that the number of animals slaughtered due to avian flu in Italy exceeds 15 million.

Essere Animali conducted an investigation in the most affected region, Veneto, which has the largest number of poultry farms and animals. Using a drone, they were able to capture footage from a farm in the province of Vicenza with a capacity of 300,000 animals where an outbreak of the flu was recorded.

As the video shows, the chickens are unloaded into containers at least two metres high, which are densely packed with animals. Inevitably, the chickens in the bottom layer are crushed by the weight of the chickens above. It takes about 30 minutes for the loading, covering, and gassing to be completed. The death of these animals is surely preceded by long minutes of fear and stress.

During this procedure, some chickens fall from the blade, risking physical injuries following the impact and further prolonging the agony of the animals.

 

AVIAN FLU: 300,000 chickens stacked and killed with gas

We are disseminating these images because we believe it is necessary to reflect on our food system, which is based on excessive consumption and production of meat, made possible only by raising animals intensively. These farms are hotbeds for viruses, and as long as animals are raised by the thousands in confined spaces, avian flu outbreaks will continue to recur regularly with devastating effects. We are ignoring the cruelties inflicted on these animals and underestimating the potential risk to public health. Several experts have talked about the possibility that the virus could mutate and develop the ability to transmit among the human population.

Simone Montuschi, President of Essere Animali

Previous avian flu epidemics that have hit European farms demonstrate that it is not possible to limit an outbreak inside factory farms. It is precisely the conditions in which the animals live that cause viruses to spread rapidly and, if highly lethal like avian, kill most of these animals.

In addition to crowding — the average capacity of an intensive poultry farm in Italy is over 21,000 animals per complex — genetic factors also play a significant role: in farms, animals are selected to grow very quickly and produce enormous muscle mass, which in itself can cause physical problems. Moreover, they usually are genetically very similar to each other, so a virus can act undisturbed without encountering genetic variants that prevent its spread. To prevent epidemics from spreading, we need to review our food system based on the consumption of animal products.

Regards Mark

Environmental, General News

“Basic rights for primates”- Referendum in Switzerland

A very special vote is scheduled for February 13, 2022 in the canton of Basel-Stadt (Switzerland).
The people of Basel will then decide on the “Basic rights for primates” initiative. But what is it actually about? Who is for and who against? You can find out more about this here:

What does the initiative “Basic rights for primates” want?

The cantonal people’s initiative by Sentience Politics demands that over 300 primate species be given a “right to life and to physical and mental integrity”.
These include, for example, gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans.

Who is for the introduction?

The initiative comes from the association Sentience Politics. He fights for the rights of sentient animals. Living beings that can feel happiness or suffering are meant as sentient.

According to the association’s reasoning, animal protection does not go far enough here. For the supporters of the initiative, the relationship between primates and humans is particularly important: “They are genetically very close to us and, like us, have a highly developed central nervous system.”
Therefore, these animals are particularly worthy of protection.

Who is against fundamental rights for primates?

The initiative met with a lot of rejection, especially in politics. The government council even had it declared invalid in 2018.
The case ended up in the federal court, which admitted the submission. Parliament and government of Basel-Stadt are of the opinion that the rights of primates are already adequately regulated in the Animal Welfare Ordinance.

The Association of Swiss Zoos also rejects the initiative on the grounds that animals need protection and not human rights.
If the initiative were implemented, comprehensive protection of particularly endangered monkey species would no longer be possible (!!!)

On the national level, on February 13, Switzerland will also vote on the ban on animal testing, among other three issues.
This initiative wants all animal experiments to be stopped in Switzerland.
In addition, according to the initiative text, products that have been tested on animals should no longer be imported.

https://www.watson.ch/schweiz/abstimmungen%202022/636617548-alles-zur-initiative-grundrechte-fuer-primaten-in-basel-stadt

And I mean…Over three hundred other primate species are our close relatives – the so-called “non-human” primates.

Despite the large overlaps that we have with them, such as maintaining family life, cultural rules, social rituals, friendships, strong communicative understanding, complex learning processes, empathy and feelings, non-human primates have no self-determination for us humans.
Because the Animal Welfare Act always subjects the treatment of animals to a weighing of interests.

People have rights, animals are property.
They are used for entertainment and research, and cannot defend themselves against exploitation and excessive interference in their lives.

The worldwide extinction of species and the loss of biodiversity also show that in order to adequately protect animals and nature, we need to rethink and treat them differently than we have done up to now.
The initiative therefore calls for restricted rights for all non-human primates in the canton of Basel-Stadt: the right to life and the right to physical and mental integrity – no more, no less.

The animal protection legislation – but not only in Switzerland – is completely inadequate and is hardly implemented.

Primates have no autonomy and are abused for human purposes, yet politicians want to claim that” primate rights are already sufficiently covered by the Animal Welfare Ordinance”.
They would have to explain that to us again.

Should species affiliation determine how one is treated, or level of sentience?
The latter is the rational answer.
Because if a living being can feel pain and suffer, there is no reason that could justify this suffering that we humans inflict on animals in animal experiments or in industrial livestock farming.

The initiative wants to tackle and minimize as much as possible this grievance that exists
We are already looking forward to the voting campaign in Basel!

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental

Hawaii becomes first US state to ban fishing for shark 💖🦈

Fishing for sharks is a major problem worldwide.

Around 100 million of these wonderful animals are cruelly captured and killed every year.
The stocks hardly have time to recover, since sharks only become sexually mature at 20 to 30 years of age.
A collapse is therefore inevitable if something does not suddenly change worldwide.

The US state of Hawaii is now setting a good example and has banned the fishing of sharks in its territorial waters since January 1, 2022.
Both fishing and angling are prohibited.
This means that no removal of any kind from the regional stocks may take place, nor any capture with the purpose of locking up the shark in any facilities and displaying it, and the deliberate killing of a shark has been considered a criminal offense since then.

After the ban on swimming with dolphins, Hawaii is thus taking on a pioneering role among the coastal states of the USA with regard to the protection of marine animals.

As early as 2010, Hawaii banned the killing of sharks for the purpose of obtaining their dorsal fin, i.e. “shark finning”.
Quoting Brian Neilson from the Hawaiian authorities:
“We are aware of how important sharks are for a healthy ecosystem in the oceans.”.

He also stressed that the ban underscores the importance of sharks to Hawaiians and their culture.
The first violator of the ban will be fined $500, the second $2,000, and the third $10,000.

In addition, an administrative fee of $10,000 is due from the very first violation.
The authority is also entitled to confiscate the fishing or fishing license and to confiscate the boat and equipment.

Fishermen are encouraged to steer clear of shark territory and use barbless circle hooks to release mistakenly caught sharks quickly and without serious injury.

We very much welcome this step by Hawaii and hope that many other states will follow suit.

The shark is a fascinating creature and by no means the beast it is often portrayed as.
If we don’t invade its habitat and don’t disturb it, then it doesn’t pose any danger to humans.

Today the last chance is to do something against the ethical crime of “shark finning” in the EU.

Please take a few minutes and sign the important citizens’ initiative “STOP FINNING – STOP THE TRADE” if you haven’t already, tomorrow will be too late:
https://eci.ec.europa.eu/012/public/#/screen/home

https://www.thepetitionsite.com/de/642/510/595/were-killing-off-sharks.-without-them-the-oceans-may-not-survive./

Text: Together for the animals

AndI mean…Sharks are disappearing at an alarming rate, largely due to shark fishing and being victims of bycatch. Humans need sharks, but there are few laws that protect them.
But now, Hawaii is paving the way for change.

Despite the new law, there are exceptions that allow a lot of wiggle room for offenders to get away. For example, sharks caught as bycatch will not be counted as a violation. Special permits may also be granted to fish sharks by DLNR.

Hopefully, other states will also follow Hawaii’s lead on banning shark fishing and help better protect our oceans, because we, human animals are most certainly willing to hunt a species to extinction..

But we can all do something to help save sharks, and not just these animals.
When we stop eating fish, meat and all the products of animals

My best regards to all, Venus

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

England: Remembering Jill and The Tragic Event of 1/2/95.

You can read lots here about Jill and her death at Coventry airport whilst trying to stop the export of live calves.  Visit the links at:

Search Results for “jill phipps” – World Animals Voice

Jill was killed on 1/2/1995.  The link given above will provide a lot of different information on her life, her death trying to protect animals; and the people involved in it; including (her death), Christopher Barrett-Jolley, was a known gun runner who had flown arms to vulnerable developing countries including South Yemen and Sierra Leone.  He was behind the calf shipments from Coventry, and was later jailed for 20 years for attempting to smuggle 270 kg of cocaine into Southend airport, Essex, England.

England: There Is More To The Jill Story When You Have the Facts. – World Animals Voice

We will never forget the actions of Jill; and this is a simple tribute to an animal advocate who was murdered, literally, by a system that at the time viewed animal rights activists as the ‘bad’ ones; rather than looking more into the actions of the ‘other side’ who were involved in the abuses.

Thank you Jill for your actions – you will never be forgotten.

Regards Mark

Veal EU 2
Farm Animals, General News

Denmark: Good News – Danish Retail Chain Commits To Huge Boost In Animal Welfare.

31 January 2022

Dyrenes Beskyttelse

The Danish retail chain REMA 1000 will significantly increase sales of pork and poultry raised at the highest level of animal welfare. This is happening through a new partnership with Animal Protection Denmark, in which REMA 1000 is the first retail chain in Denmark to enter a total phasing out of fast-growing poultry.

REMA 1000 customers will soon be able to buy significantly more food products from animals that have lived out in the open and with more space. Animal Protection Denmark and REMA 1000, a leading discount chain in Denmark, have recently signed an agreement to raise animal welfare to the highest level for far more products produced from pigs, chickens, and cows.

Among other things, the agreement means that, within the next two to three years, 25 percent of the sale of all fresh pork and poultry must come from free range productions.

At the same time, the sale of the fast-growing chicken breed Ross 308 is being phased out completely.

This is very good news for all of the many farmed animals for whom the agreement will mean a life with access to the outdoors, more space, and the opportunity to live out their natural behaviours. The agreement with REMA 1000 is the result of a long and thorough dialogue, in which ambitious goals have been set for both the short and long term. These are goals that will very quickly impact our range of products as well as the marketing of goods with high animal welfare so that the Danish consumer can easily choose good animal welfare when making their daily purchases. This is an agreement that in many ways shows the path forward in the Danish retail market.

Britta Riis, CEO of Animal Protection Denmark

We’re finding that more and more customers want to buy products with high animal welfare, which are approved by Animal Protection Denmark, because there is enormous trust in their brand. Trust that we share, and we want to give the customers the opportunity to make even broader choices.

Anders René Jensen, Purchasing and Marketing director at REMA 1000

The ‘Approved by Animal Protection Denmark’ label is a registered guarantee and certification label, which may only be used on products where the production has been approved by Animal Protection Denmark in accordance with established requirements. The label has existed for 30 years on the Danish market and has only one level of animal welfare, meaning, among other things, that it is only given to agricultural operations where the animals have access to the outdoors.

Regards Mark

General News

Sam Rowley’s mice: “Behavior of mice determined by our everyday life”

Passers-by in London’s underground stations give Sam Rowley a strange look as he lies on the platform with his camera at the ready.
But it’s worth the effort: his photo of two mice fighting over breadcrumbs just won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year audience award.

The two brawlers in action were also a very special moment for experienced mouse photographers like Sam Rowley. Their fight for breadcrumbs that passers-by had carelessly dropped lasted for fractions of a second before the victorious mouse scuttled away triumphantly.
“I hope the photo shows people the untold drama that can be found in the most ordinary cityscape,” says Rowley.

Sam Rowley shows mice mid-battle inside a London Underground station
© Sam Rowley/Wildlife Photographer of the Year

 

His photo was shortlisted for the Lumix People Choice Award 2019, chosen by the Natural History Museum London from over 48,000 images from around the world.

Internet users could vote for their favorite picture with a click of the mouse. Rowley prevailed against meaningful pictures: portraits of an orangutan being forced to box fights against other members of the same species; white reindeer that almost disappear in the white of the arctic; or intimate moments between a baby rhino and his human surrogate mother.
“Behavior of mice determined by our everyday life”

And museum director Michael Dixon also fully agrees with the choice on the Internet: “The picture provides a fascinating insight into how the animal world functions in an environment dominated by humans. The behavior of the mice is determined by our everyday life, by how we move around what food we throw away.”

The winning image serves as a reminder of how deeply connected humans are to the natural world on their doorstep and could help make that relationship more appreciated, Dixon said.

Rowey’s mice are on display at the London Museum in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition until May 31.

https://www.geo.de/natur/tierwelt/22600-rtkl-preisgekroentes-bild-maeuse-im-kruemel-kampf-ein-foto-ueber-das-ungeahnte

Sam Rowley shares how he got into this project of photographing mice:
“Obviously every Londoner knows about mice in the underground but I did a bit of research and found that nobody had actually photographed them. It felt like a story that needed to be told.”

Sam’s winning shot beat entries from all over the world, with images taken in Lebanon, Canada, the UK and Spain all picking up the ‘highly commended’ accolade.

Capturing the mice mid-fight was no mean feat, with Sam having to wait patiently for one week for the split-second of action.

He said: “It involved me lying on my stomach for five hours a night for a week to get the perspective nobody else sees.

“The main challenge wasn’t the mice but actually having to dodge people and trying to shut down conversations with them.

“It was really nice that people took an interest in what I was doing but every time someone spoke to me it scared the mice away.
“As it was late at night and approaching Christmas lots of these people were hammered too, so it really was quite tough.”

Sam did not want to reveal which station he took the photo at but said it was in central London.

He said this week’s sudden media frenzy, which has seen him interviewed by a wide range of media including Sky, ITV and BBC, has been ‘crazy but good fun’.

Great job Sam! we think it’s great that this, your photo, was awarded the prize.
Mainly because these animals are treated like dirt by most.
When their fate is shown at the London Museum, maybe things will change.

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

So; EU Sells Pig Meat to Japan, and Under JEEPA; Japan Sells Pig Meat to the EU. That Makes Environmental Air / Sea Mile Sense, Or Does It ? – They Call It An ‘EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement’; We Call It Environmental Destruction.

EU and Japan should use their trade deal to do more for animals

27 January 2022

WAV comment – so, under the JEEPA; the EU imports cattle, hens and pigs from Japan. But hey, does the EU not export (from Germany) pig meat to China  ?   Germany is one of the largest meat exporters in the world with approximately 58 million pigs are slaughtered in Germany every year.

So, lets get a grip – the EU produces pig meat within the EU (Germany) that it then exports outside of the EU.  At the same time through JEEPA, the EU is importing pig meat from Japan on the other side of the planet ! – this must be so effective in reducing all the meat transportation miles and cutting down on air and sea miles I don’t think. 

Sounds to me like a to hell with the environment; as long as we have good export and import figures, who cares !

Why not German pig meat be sold in the EU, and Japanese pig meat sold in Japan or China ? – this shown the environmentally destructive results of ‘economic partnership agreements’ that our master politicians pride themselves on so much.  Fools or sense ?

Regards Mark

From Eurogroup for animals.

The EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (JEEPA) entered into force in February 2019, but the partners have not yet started any discussion on animal welfare. At the occasion of the third joint civil society meeting under the trade deal, Eurogroup for Animals calls on the EU and Japan to make use of the provisions on animal welfare cooperation listed in the agreement to foster a transition towards a more sustainable food system, in which animal well being is respected.

Read our report.

While JEEPA liberalised the trade in most animal products without any condition related to animal welfare, it also provided two channels that could be used to improve animal well being: the provisions on animal welfare cooperation, and the chapter on Trade and Sustainable Development (TSD), which covers wildlife trafficking, sustainable aquaculture and fisheries. 

While the EU does not currently import significant amounts of animal products from Japan, reduced tariffs have still led to more imports of Japanese animal products. For instance, between 2018 and 2019, imports of Japanese fresh and chilled beef increased by 31% and pig meat imports more than doubled.

As tariff reduction was not conditional on the respect of any animal welfare standards, and as Japan has poor legal requirements in the field, the increase in trade is likely to have favoured mostly industrialised intensive farming practices. This is not only detrimental to animal welfare, but also fuels challenges such asclimate change, biodiversity loss, antimicrobial resistance, and the spread of zoonoses. 

Using the mechanisms available under JEEPA to promote higher animal welfare is thus essential to ensure that trade policy does not impede the EU’s efforts in combating these problems.

In July 2020, in a reply to a joint letter sent by Eurogroup for Animals, Japan Anti-Vivisection Association (JAVA) and Animal Rights Center Japan (ARCJ), the European Commission agreed that increased animal welfare cooperation should be part of the EU-Japan cooperation. At the occasion of the third anniversary of JEEPA, Eurogroup for Animals reiterates its call for concrete actions to take place in the field through the publication of a report on what the EU and Japan could do for animals under JEEPA. 

The report describes the areas that would be the more promising for EU-Japan animal welfare cooperation either because of the EU imports (cattle, hens and pigs), or because the sectors are key in Japan and therefore any improvement to animal welfare could have a significant impact on animals and on the sustainability of food productions (laying hens and broiler chickens), and lastly  because the EU exports live animals who end up being farmed in these sectors in Japan (horses). 

Hopefully, 2022 will be the year such a cooperation starts. This would contribute to the achievements of the objective listed in the Farm to Fork strategy: to use its trade policy to “obtain ambitious commitments from third countries in key areas such as animal welfare”.

Read our report.

Regards Mark

About Us, General News, Uncategorized

29/1: A Message From Venus and Mark To All Our Site Visitors.

Venus and Mark; the co founders of WAV, would like to thank some of you for the comments you leave in the way of replies on the site.  We read them all and they are all to be viewed under ‘Recent Comments’ on the left hand side on the site.  We are both of the same feeling on most animal issues; we provide input individually but consult when necessary, and the following has been released with approval from us both.

WAV is an information site run by us, animal advocates.

We run this animal rights blog independently, do not act as representatives any organization or political party (from any country) and we finance our work ourselves – independently; free  from outside sources.  Where possible on our posts, we always publish the original source of our data, as well as providing links directly to animal advocate organisations if we feel it will be beneficial for further progress.

Many WAV visitors often make contact, asking how they can support us.  We do not ask for your money or your financial membership; we have no membership – instead we ask that you invest your donations (if you are able) directly to the animal organisations that we give information on; but just as important, if not more important, is something that everyone can do as supporters, and that is:

Sign the petitions,

Share the videos of the atrocities we provide; films in the slaughterhouse, animal farms, labs, bear bile farms, dairy systems, fur farms, trophy hunting to name but a few; in addition to everyone giving up the support of these businesses which are directly associated with meat, dairy and the use of any animal products.  Plant based is the way forward and we promote that.

These are the minimums that we owe the animals, and with your support, can make such a difference, whilst at the same time have a very positive effect by delivering a severe blow to those who exploit and torture animals.

Thank you for your interests in supporting WAV either financially or in other ways; but rest assured, it is not necessary.  If you can do the above, it is more than we ask in the way of full support.

It is the positive changes that drive us, and we are witnessing this each and every day from the feedback we get from all corners of the world.  Visitor Traffic for Worldanimalsvoice.com (clustrmaps.com) – this is the only inspiration we need to be a world animals voice.

Our best regards and thanks to you all for your actions and support;

Venus and Mark.