Environmental, General News

China Outbreak Fears as 18 ‘High Risk’ Viruses Found In Wet Markets: ‘Pandemic Waiting’.

China outbreak fears as 18 ‘high risk’ viruses found in wet markets: ‘Pandemic waiting’ (msn.com)

China outbreak fears as 18 ‘high risk’ viruses found in wet markets: ‘Pandemic waiting’

The Huanan Seafood Market where traders sold live mammals, reptiles and fish was linked to the initial outbreak of coronavirus in 2019. According to British scientist Dr Eddie Holmes, Chinese experts had highlighted the risk of a virus “spilling over” from animals to humans five years before the start of the pandemic. Now experts have sounded the alarm over history repeating itself.They warn that wildlife species that are traded sold and consumed in China’s wet markets are a “pandemic waiting to happen”.

A new study published on November 12, has identified 71 mammalian viruses, including 18 “high risk” that could be dangerous to humans and other animals.

According to the researchers, the most worrying was the microbes found in civets, a small nocturnal animal.

This species is believed to have carried the SARS coronavirus from bats to humans in China in 2002.

Co-author of the study, Edward Holmes, said: “This study highlights exactly why the wildlife trade and live animal markets are a pandemic accident waiting to happen.

“This paper also shows that humans regularly transmit their viruses to other animals. There’s clearly two-way virus traffic.”

Experts have also identified cross-species transmission of animal viruses with the most worrying being the transmission of a bat coronavirus to a civet.

Professor Holmes added: “A further species jump from civets into humans could easily start a major outbreak.

“The animals sold as game in live animal markets carry a wide range of viral pathogens.

“The right virus in the right animal at the right time could easily trigger a global pandemic.”

The origin of COVID-19 remains a mystery.

But recent analysis does suggest that closely-related viruses are much more widely distributed than previously believed.

The report, written by Etienne Simon-Loriere of the Pasteur Institute in Paris and Veasna Duong of the Pasteur Institute International Network in Phnom Penh, was based on two samples obtained from horseshoe bats in Cambodia.

Their conclusions suggest similar coronaviruses may be endemic in large areas of south-east Asia.

The report, published by Scientific journal Nature last week, highlights horseshoe bats (genus Rhinolophus) as the “main natural reservoir” of SARS-related coronaviruses, also named Sarbecoviruses2.

It states: “Indeed, a high diversity of coronavirus species have been found in Rhinolophus bats collected in several provinces of China.

“To date, the closest relatives to SARS-CoV-2 were identified from horseshoe bats sampled in the Yunnan province, southern China.”

When will politicians actually take note and vent their anger at China killing so many around the world ?

Regards Mark

Environmental, General News

NL / UK: Shell; Eco Destroyers, Pull the Plug on the NL and Ready Instead for the UK. Watch the Environmentalist Girl Do Her Bit With the CEO On Video – Welcome Mr CEO to the UK !

WAV Comment – Is being in the EU everything ‘they’ wish it to be ?

Maybe others need to do a ‘Brexit’ and take back some of their own national control; and pride !

Once Shell move entirely to the UK, campaigners can really start on them and show what their alleged climate action is all about.

There is an obvious reason for the move, and I would have a slight haphazard guess that it is something to do with money and possibly orders from the Dutch courts.

Who knows the real reasons ? – we never will; but for the future, welcome Shell to the UK; people are ready for you;

Like this for example:

Recent information:

‘Losing Dutch pride because of EU’ Nexit fury as Shell chooses Brexit Britain as new home (msn.com)

Dutch government only has itself to blame for Shell move to UK (msn.com)

Some of our recent posts relating to Shell:

Netherlands: ‘The climate has won today’ – Shell ordered to cut CO2 emissions by 45% in landmark climate case.

The video is worth a watch:

UK; Twas The Night Before COP26 – British Comedian Joe Lycett Holds ‘Shell’ (Oil Giant) To Account For Their Green Sales Techniques. He Literally Talks Shit ! – World Animals Voice

Netherlands: ‘The climate has won today’ – Shell ordered to cut CO2 emissions by 45% in landmark climate case. – World Animals Voice

Regards Mark

General News

Birds of prey and owls on German zoos-a life in clains

Photographs taken between June and October from various German zoos where birds of prey were kept show that the “rulers of the skies” are literally vegetating there.

With the exception of rehabilitation measures in recognized rescue centers, the animals have NOTHING to look for in captivity – they belong in the wild. That is why tethering birds of prey and owls must be prohibited in Germany! ❌

In many zoos and falconries, birds of prey and owls are chained to present them to the public.
In this so-called tethered posture, the wild birds are usually tied to a block of wood with a short leather strap for hours or even days.
The animals are only allowed to move for a short time during air shows or when the falconers “grant them free flight”.

Everything that defines their life in freedom is taken from the animals.
For many of them, this is probably the main form of keeping for months.

A sad life in chains

The animals spend most of their lives on a leash close to the ground.
When the tethered wild birds try to fly, they are torn back by the leather strap on their feet.
A few short hops between the seats are all you can get around most of the time.
Some animals also nibble on their ankle cuffs to free themselves.

According to the current guidelines for keeping birds of prey and owls in Germany, it is even permissible to only let the animals fly briefly every other day in this type of keeping.

According to a study of air shows with birds of prey in Great Britain, the birds were only able to move freely for an average of 11 minutes during the flight demonstrations, so they were tied up for the majority of the day.

Why are birds of prey and owls tied up?

In this form of keeping, falconers have easier “access” to the tied animals, as the birds do not have to be taken out of the aviaries.
Birds such as hawks, eagles and eagle owls are used in the zoos on sightseeing flights and thus abused for entertainment purposes.

Sometimes the animals also have to serve as an attraction in order to be held or even petted by visitors for selfies.
For the stress-sensitive wild birds, this forced contact with humans is associated with enormous stress.
The research recordings also show that owls, which are mostly active at night or at dusk, are often used for demonstrations during the day, contrary to their natural rhythm of activity.

In Austria, the permanent tethering of birds of prey for air shows is already prohibited, as this represents a massive restriction for the animals.
In addition, birds of prey and owls are abused by falconers to hunt other animals – such as rabbits or pigeons – and thus degraded to living weapons.

Tethering birds of prey and owls must be prohibited

Currently (as of November 2021) a revision of the outdated guidelines for keeping birds of prey and owls is planned (“Minimum requirements for keeping birds of prey and owls” from 1995).
However, tethering, which is cruel to animals, is likely to remain allowed under pressure from the falconry and zoo associations.

In November 2021, we at PETA Germany reported those responsible for eight German zoos with raptors for alleged violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
According to Section 2 No. 1 of the Animal Welfare Act, an animal must be nourished, cared for and housed appropriately according to its type and needs.
In the “falconry” tethered system, birds of prey and owls are considerably restricted in their natural flight behavior.

These zoos with tethering were displayed by us:

Kurpfalz-Park Wachenheim (Rhineland-Palatinate)
Sababurg Zoo (Hesse)
Wildlife and Leisure Park Willingen (Hesse)
Edersee Wildlife Park (Hesse)
Wildparadies Tripsdrill (Baden-Wuerttemberg)
Tambach Castle Wildlife Park (Bavaria)
Wisentgehege Springe (Lower Saxony)
Gangelt Wildlife Park (North Rhine-Westphalia)

We are committed to ensuring that tethering of birds of prey and owls is prohibited in Germany.

With the exception of rehabilitation measures in recognized rescue centers, birds of prey and owls have no business in captivity.
They belong in freedom.

https://www.peta.de/neuigkeiten/anbindehaltung-greifvoegel/

And I mean…Many ignorant, uninformed parents fall victim to the dirty advertising that these companies are selling on the Internet and rush to the “open air” prisons with their children because they see them as part of their entertainment and want to take selfies with the wild objects so that they have the wild objects in the family album
Like many millions of other animals, these wild birds are deprived of their freedom to entertain stupid zoo and park visitors for a lifetime.

Rights and dignity are tacitly reserved exclusively for humans and are seldom granted or even completely denied to non-human animals.

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, General News, Vegan Recipes

UK (Scotland): How the ‘Eat Local’ Food Myth Led to COP26’s Menu Failure.

WAV Comment:   Thanks as always to Stacey at Our Compass for sending us the article.

https://our-compass.org/author/ourcompasses/

This is of special interest as I (Mark) have been dealing with the issue of plant based foods (or not) on the menu at COP26.  See the link here:

October 8th;

England: Vegan Food At COP26. Why None ? – WAV Now Write To MP and Ask Him To Contact Mr Sharma For Responses. Keep Ramping It Up Sort Of Thing ! – World Animals Voice

Today (15/11) I have still had nothing back from anyone associated with my request to my MP / Alok Sharma.

UK: Ever Visited Your GP With A Cough And Then Been Prescribed 20 Cigarettes A Day ? – World Animals Voice

UK: UN COP26 Climate Summit – vegan eating can reduce food-related carbon emissions by 73%. Eating meat and dairy is part of what got us into this mess. So Why No Vegan Food At the Summit ???? – Take Action Below. – World Animals Voice

UK: COP26 – ‘You Can’t Be A Meat-Eating Environmentalist’ Declares New (Bus) Campaign (In Glasgow) Aimed At COP26. Go Vegan !! – Also, Don’t Have Blood On Your Hands ! – World Animals Voice

The article below shines a lot more light on the food / menu served at COP26 – I think you will find it interesting; info which goes above and beyond the fancy spin put out at the conference to make us normal people think that they, the conference goers are all so plant based environmentalists.

Please read and absorb.

Here is a link to actions undertaken by Viva! (England) which also relate to COP26 activism:

Viva! Campaigns Newsletter (mailchi.mp)

More reading:

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/cop26-food-menu-criticised-mostly-25372431

Regards Mark

————————————————

Stopping animal exploitation does not require any human benefit, people don’t need profit to be opposed to human exploitation, the same is true for animals. However, given that nonvegans live on a planet hurtling towards destruction and potential extinction, you would hope people would at least embrace a plant-based diet, if not for them, then for their children.

Using plastic straws and reducing animal consumption is the same as doing nothing. it’s meaningless “baby steps” that will result in the same planetary destruction: don’t pretend to support the disingenuous nonsense that consuming animals is “environmentally friendly”, the scientific data has proven time and again that consuming NO animals is ideal for the environment despite the cherry-picking animal farmers/consumers/execs desperately manipulate to satisfy their greedy agendas: as I have asked previously, if you’re vegan, where will you get the decomposing flesh, rotten blood, bacteria, parasites, disease, necrotic organs, feces, gore, and pus to maintain an environmentally stable position? See? Ludicrous.

I’m not asking anyone to do more than I do, but even if you don’t care about justice or decency for animals – for whom veganism is a moral imperative versus a plant-based diet – at least care about the human ones. SL

Source Sentient Media

By Caroline Christen

he 2021 United Nations Climate Conference (COP26) hosted by the UK in Glasgow is drawing to a close. As the conference unfolded, environmental advocates criticized COP26 for serving animal products instead of a more climate-friendly, plant-based menu.

While the COP26 menu includes vegan haggis, mushroom risotto, and lasagna topped with plant-based cheddar, it also offers beef burgers and haggis made from sheep offal. More than half of the menu’s items contain meat, dairy, fish, and eggs, according to Levy, the company in charge of catering at COP26.

Despite the accelerating climate crisis, yet another COP conference chose to serve attendees some of the world’s most climate-damaging foods. A closer look reveals that livestock producers were selected as suppliers for a simple reason: being based within 100 miles of Glasgow. The COP26 menu failure is a direct result of the “Eat Local” myth, the misguided belief that locally sourced foods are ecologically superior to imported foods regardless of their other qualities.

Continue on next page.

Pages: 1 2 3
Hunting

Spain: 16,000 partridges bred to be shot by hunters

ANSE denounces the release of 16,000 farm partridges for hunting in championships
The organization points out that the mass release of captive-bred species endangers biodiversity.

The Association of Southeast Naturalists has denounced the authorization issued by the general director of the Natural Environment, Fulgencio Perona, to 29 hunting societies for the release of 16,000 partridges from farms a few days ago after the opening of the general small hunting business period.

The environmental organization considers that this type of practice “moves away from an acceptable hunting management and seeks to cover up the situation of decline of the red partridge, allowing massive releases of animals born in captivity, being a practice more typical of intensive reserves.”

The fate of these captive-bred partridges is to be killed on the morning of their release, so it would be practices similar to those developed in intensive reserves, to which this organization has been showing its opposition for a long time.

In these places, “instead of managing and taking advantage of populations of wild animals, specimens raised on farms for that purpose are killed.”

https://www.laopiniondemurcia.es/comunidad/2021/11/08/anse-denuncia-suelta-16-000-59311378.html

And I mean…Hunters are not just professional killers, they are professional liars too
Hunters LIE when they say they control overpopulation this way.
It’s not about reducing overpopulation – not even about meat production – they could kill the tame animals with a knife.

The animals should be shot in flight because it’s so much fun. None of these criminals is interested in the fact that most animals are badly hit and that the injured are often attacked by hunting dogs.
That is terrible cruelty to animals.

Unfortunately, it is not forbidden for a hunter to hold thousands of breeding birds in order to shoot them.
As long as no one knows what’s going on out there, hunters have absolute freedom.

And even if the public learns about it and some press portals report about it, authorities and municipalities hurry to protect this violent and bloody action in many ways.

For this reason: everything that is practiced with the purpose of sneaky shooting down animals– including canned hunting, the release of farmed pheasants, year-round feeding of deer and the killing of animals of endangered species – is the worst animal cruelty and must be prohibited by law.

P.S: For everyone who cannot imagine such a killing gate, here is a short video example from “Association against animal factories” (VgT, Austria )where in less than a minute it becomes clear what massacre it is and what sadistic fun it is.

https://fb.watch/9i5mWuN-oh/
Many animals on the run have broken jaws and open injuries, and some are tortured to death by dogs.

My best regards to all, Venus

Farm Animals

The story of the young goose Fibi

When the young goose Fibi on the morning of December 24th wakes up, she has no idea what is in store for her. 💔 While the world around her is full of anticipation for the Christmas holidays, Fibi has to embark on her most dangerous journey yet … 😨

The Most Violent Time Of The Year

 

Even though I’m only a few weeks old, I’ve been through so many terrible things:
Again and again I am kicked, beaten or grabbed by the neck and simply thrown through the hall.
Again and again I have to eat huge amounts.
I don’t want to anymore and I can’t anymore.

My life is hell
I only know this dark, filthy hall.
There are countless other geese around me, and they are no better either.
Nobody knows why we are here, but we all want to get out of here. My mom has to be somewhere too, I call for her day and night, but she doesn’t answer.
I miss her so much. Sometimes people pick up those of us who can no longer get up.
I also find it difficult to get up.
My legs hurt so much.
There must be something else out there.
It just can’t be that this is my whole life!
I just want to be loved and be free.
I overheard the people who come with the food in the morning.
They say they’ll all pick us up next week to turn our necks.
I’m so scared!

https://www.tierschutzbuero.de/

…If, after a long period of blindness and denial, one has managed to turn one’s back on these unworthy “traditions” and to eat and live as vegan as possible, then it is almost unbearable to endure the nonsense that is told by the “traditionalists” to justify the millions of crimes against animals, especially on the festival of love.

One often hears the argument, “But it is tradition, it has been practiced this way for centuries, the St. Martin’s goose is part of Christmas”

Most of the time tradition is associated with the greatest injustice and the fact that this injustice is legalized is not a valid criterion for judging acts and perpetrators.

We leave all animals out of the plate!
Also in Christmas as every day!

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, General News, Uncategorized

England: The Fight To Get Better For Feral Pigeons. By Mark (WAV).

The press took up the issue and covered it well. I spoke in defence of the birds as always !

Personal experience has shown me that, although many ‘officials’; the top people who work in regional authorities, regardless of their position and title; do not really have much a clue when it comes to pigeon management in their area.  This includes reproduction, feeding and general issues which affect them and the birds welfare.

Venus travels several miles each day to her local town to give feed to pigeons in need.  With so many clampdowns at the moment; her actions are literally a matter of life or death to many of these birds.

Some people call them ‘vermin’ or ‘flying rats’; but at the end of the day, they have a reason to exist as part of ‘the system’; are sentient creatures, and thus should be treated as such.

Feral pigeons are like stray dogs and cats; people in authority often (very wrongly) have the mindset, and undertake the principle that, if you kill of all (or as many as possible) of the birds in ‘your’ town or region, then they have largely resolved your pigeon ‘problem’ and will become a bird free town or region.

WRONG – just like the issue of stray dogs, culling pigeons often only largely eradicates the older and generally sicker, non breeding birds.  But, by undertaking a cull, it lets the younger, healthier, and very reproductive birds remain in the area, or move into the area which will be new to them; in their search for more / better food; thus; just like killing stray dogs and cats, the ‘problem’ of bird numbers actually increases populations in an area rather than decreasing it.

I am not a pigeon specialist, but I have worked with, and know a man that is.  His name is Guy and he is the founder of PICAS, set up in here in Southern England many years ago.  I learned a lot about pigeon management from Guy.

I had the pleasure of getting to know (and respect) Guy when we worked together to fight for the pigeons in my (then) local town.  His advice and expertise on the subject has always remained with me; just like the pigeon numbers that have remained or increased in the town as the local authority did not take his / our advice on pigeon management and control techniques; which I outline below.

PICAS stands for the Pigeon Control and Advisory Service, and their web site can be found at:

PiCAS Humane Non Lethal Methods of Bird Pest Control (picasuk.com)

Why lethal control fails:

PiCAS Humane Non Lethal Methods of Bird Pest Control Why Lethal Bird Control Fails (picasuk.com)

“Pigeons control their own numbers very effectively according to the volume of food available to them. An adult pair of pigeons will usually breed 4-6 times a year but can breed more frequently in optimum conditions, producing 2 young each time. If, however, the food supply reduces and there is only sufficient food available to support the existing flock, adult birds may only breed once or twice a year or possibly not at all. Pigeons will not breed if there is insufficient food to service the needs of their young.

If the food supply increases for any reason (following a cull for example), pigeons will breed continuously until the flock reaches the point where it is fully exploiting the food available to it. In other words, there is a minor population explosion each time a cull takes place.

The end result is an estimated 15% -30% increment in flock size over and above the pre-cull figure.

Commercial values have now overtaken good working practice in the pest control sector with pest control contractors recommending culling at every opportunity; as a direct result of this stance pigeon numbers throughout the UK continue to rise year on year. This is clearly not in the interest of those experiencing problems with pigeons (and other species of wild bird) and it is yet another example of the pest control industry putting profit before client’s needs”.

After a full visit and review of the local town site, Guy, with my own support, decided to present a non lethal approach to controlling and reducing pigeon numbers in the town.

A simple cote (with pigeon) used for population control.

A series of dovecotes (easily constructed – we supplied lists of materials and construction info) and feeding areas (located directly below them) were suggested as a primary means of control.  This feeding area would allow people to continue feeding the birds if they wished, (as many do), but by having the cotes; a facility will be provided which will not only provide pigeons with a daytime perch, but also with an overnight roosting and breeding facility where flock size can be controlled by birth control (important). This is achieved by removing eggs say once every day or other day, as laid, from the dovecote and replacing them with dummy eggs. This simple but very effective method of numbers control will dramatically reduce pigeon flock size and is very cheap and simple to maintain. Although the infrastructure required to implement this type of system is straightforward, the overall programme is complex and should not be considered unless it is being provided in conjunction with advice from PiCAS.

PiCAS Humane Non Lethal Methods of Bird Pest Control Artificial Breeding Facilities (picasuk.com)

Part of our dovecote presentation – Materials and construction method.

To cut to the chase; in the end, after a detailed presentation to the local council to outline our proposal; which included suggested sites around the town; construction materials lists; and cote construction sizes); allegedly due costs, council officials decided to ignore the control advice given and go instead with simply putting up a few ‘warning’ signs around the town asking people not to feed the birds. 

This method of sticking up a few signs around the town is about as useful as a chocolate fireman !

Lots of people love to feed (and watch) birds.  A few signs mean nothing.  People will always feed regardless of signage.

Nothing in the way of costing for the signage and ‘alternatives’ were given as a comparison against our proposal.

The council letter to myself outlining reasons for not taking up our suggestions.

Also, in their letter to myself (see above), the council suggested that they had been in touch with other councils and had no proof that the system proposed actually worked.  As part of our presentation; we did supply information on several councils that had adopted the PIUCAS method of bird numbers management.  The PICAS site now reflects some more recent issues:

PiCAS Humane Non Lethal Methods of Bird Pest Control Further Reading (picasuk.com)

Hey ho; some you win, some you lose.

As said, I learned a lot knowing Guy and the relationship with PICAS.  This was quite a while ago and I have not returned for years now to see the current situation re bird control in the town.

We tried, we failed; but in the end you have to ask yourself who has been the real loser in this issue.  I was glad to be part of it regardless; PICAS continues and the council ?; do they all live in a pigeon free zone now, one has to ask ? – I very much doubt.

Regards Mark

Environmental, General News, Uncategorized

UK (Scotland): COP26 Is Now Completed. Please Review Links Provided and Decide For Yourselves; Good Or Ineffective ?

Thousands of people takes part in a demonstration against climate change in Brussels, Belggium on October 10, 2021, ahead of the COP26 climate summit.

There are potentially positives; but have we not heard the issue of funding suffering nations from meetings in the past, and which have never been fulfilled ?

One thing is for sure, the world is in a crisis; and until world governments who really can make a difference for those who only suffer as a result of their actions, or inactions, we will continue to remain in crisis.  The clock is ticking, and is very near to midnight.

So, please read the info in the attached links and hopefully at least get a better overall picture of both the pros and the cons.

Regards Mark

 

Milan, Italy - October 2 2021: People protesting against global warming and climate change in fridays for future strike after Youth4Climate Milan COP26

Cop26: Sharma appeals for nations to seal deal in ‘moment of truth’ for world (msn.com)

‘COP26 is dead’: Expert says global temperatures could rise 2.4°C and spark ‘dramatic change’ around the world (msn.com)

Cop26: Nations announce landmark Glasgow climate pact after last-minute weakening on coal (msn.com)

Cop26 ends in climate agreement despite India watering down coal resolution | Cop26 | The Guardian

COP26 – BBC News

Lots of good images – Cop26 Images, Stock Photos & Vectors | Shutterstock

Milan, Italy - October 2 2021: People protesting against global warming and climate change in fridays for future strike after Youth4Climate Milan COP26
Demonstrators in London demand action on climate crisis- London-06-11-2021
General News

The art of slowness- Butenland farm

Report from Hof Butenland (sanctuary)

We are used to slow-moving traffic from our cow fraction, but today there was a complete traffic jam.
Of course we immediately dispatched the general supervision (Pippilotta), but unfortunately even this highly qualified expert could not find any reason for the blockage.

https://fb.watch/9fRsbk4cIx/

It is probably a closed protest of the herd, Chaya is presumably dictating her demands to Omic.
But we are deeply relaxed, it can only be a matter of little things like new times for the straw bale service, faster maintenance intervals for the cow cleaning machines or an immediate increase in the daily apple quota.

So nothing that cannot be eliminated easily. We even think it’s nice when something like this is mooed openly, because that’s the only way we can keep improving.

https://www.facebook.com/HofButenland/videos/

And we mean…That is the enjoyment of slowness.
Slowing down makes you enjoy what you are doing better

regards, Venus