News
The number of news found: 29.
07/31/2004 KEDAH CULLS 411 PET BIRDS SEIZED AT BORDER!
Alor Star: A total of 411 pet birds were seized at the Malaysian-Thai border in Bukit Kayu Hitam and put to sleep. The move by the Kedah authorities is among the measures taken to prevent avian flu from spreading to Malaysia. Four hundred birds were found inside 30 boxes in a rented car early this month while 11 others were seized late last month, also from a rented car.Kedah Agriculture, Rural Development and Co-operative Development Committee chairman Datuk Mahadzir Khalid said the birds included those from the merbuk (dove) species which are famed for their melodious singing. He said the relevant government agencies had stepped up surveillance and taken measures to ensure that the dreaded flu, which has recurred in Thailand, did not spread to Malaysia. The agencies included the Veterinary Services Department, Royal Malaysian Customs, Wildlife Department, Marine Department, Anti-Smuggling Unit and police.
07/30/2004 COPS FIND 103 PANGOLINS IN TRUCH AT THAI BORDER!
Padang Besar: Police on routine duty at the border checkpoint here found 103 pangolins hidden in a Thai-registered cargo truck bound for southern Thailand on Tuesday. Classified as endangered, the pangolins were found crawling in a huge box in the truck. They were seized and handed over to the state wildlife authorities here. The 28-year-old Thai truck driver has been detained for investigation as he was transporting prohibited goods. Police manning the checkpoint stopped the truck as it was found to be overloaded.Besides the pangolins, worth some RM10,000 on the Thai black market, the police also uncovered 54 plastic bags holding 540kg of unprocessed palm oil, a controlled item, valued at RM1,080. Padang Besar OCPD Acting Supt Hadini Baseri, who confirmed the case, said this was the first time this year that the district police had uncovered pangolins during routine duty at the checkpoint.
07/29/2004 SEAWORLD KILLER WHALE ROUGHS UP TRAINER!
San Antonio - A killer whale at SeaWorld repeatedly slammed its trainer underwater during a show that was captured on home video in dramatic footage aired this week. The trainer, Steve Aibel, was not injured in the Friday incident.
07/28/2004 LEGAL BAN ON THE WILD ANIMALS IN CIRCUSES!
GAIA on the legal ban on wild animals in circuses: 'This is a big step forwards for animal welfare. Animal protectors have been waiting for this for the last 90 years' However there is still much the minister needs to do. GAIA is asking Minister Demotte to very rapidly set a cut off date to specify when the transition period for Belgian circuses currently in possession of trained wild animals will expire, as provided by the law. Minister Demotte must also act very quickly to put a stop to the use of dangerous animals like reptiles in circuses and travelling exhibitions. GAIA would have preferred an immediate and general ban on wild animals in circuses, but is nevertheless reasonably satisfied that this Royal Decree will be to the benefit of wild animals. 'This is a noteworthy result, a year and a half after the start of our campaign', says GAIA chairman Michel Vandenbosch.
07/27/2004 BRITAIN SEEKS END OF DOLPHIN KILLING FIELDS!
Britain is to seek the closure of Europe's major dolphin-killing fishing grounds, where most of the boats involved are French, the Government announced. It is asking the European Commission to shut the winter sea bass fishery in the Western Approaches to the English Channel, where thousands of dolphins are now thought to be dying every year after becoming entangled in fishing nets. The move was warmly welcomed by green groups, but it will be strongly resisted by some EU member states, led by France.
07/26/2004 BAN ON GOLDFISH IN A BOWL!
An Italian town has banned pet owners from keeping goldfish in bowls. The Monza town council believes fish get a "distorted view of reality" when they are kept in a bowl. "A fish kept in a bowl has a distorted view of reality ... and suffers because of this," council official Giampietro Mosca explained. "Also, this type of receptacle generally doesn't have a filter anddoesn't allow for good oxygenation of the water, unlike in rectangular aquariums. The new laws - which come into effect in a fortnight - also ban the sale of coloured chicks at fairs and the use of small animals as competition prizes.
07/25/2004 TROOPS MAY GUARD OXFORD LAB!
The Army may be placed on standby to assist the building of an £18 million laboratory at Oxford University, should further contractors pull out of the project because of harassment by animal rights extremists. Ministers are considering a plan to use army units to deliver critical building supplies to the site to ensure that the research centre is not derailed by violent protests.The university has vowed to press ahead with the scheme, which will bring together existing animal research facilities in a state-of-the-art new building, after the main building contractor, Walter Lilly, pulled out on Monday after a campaign of intimidation against its staff and shareholders. Shares in Montpellier, of which Walter Lilly is a subsidiary, fell by 19p to a four-year low of 18p last month after investors received letters, purporting to come from company directors, warning them of impending action from campaigners. The Government has thrown its full support behind the project, and David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, pledged to provide "whatever is necessary within reason to actually clamp down on people who are internal terrorists".
07/24/2004 ATHLETES ENRAGED OVER DOG KILLINGS!
Some of Canada's Olympic athletes are outraged the Canadian Olympic Committee won't take a stand against Athens officials who are poisoning up to 15,000 stray dogs in the city so the country looks pristine during the games. "It's horrible, but it has nothing to do with us. We have no official comment," said COC spokesman Stacey Smith. Since Athens officials are doing this for the Olympics, it has everything to do with the COC, said Olympic runner Leah Pells. "It makes me sick. The COC is pathetic and they need to take a stand. It's embarrassing to me that they won't do anything," Pells said. "Sporting organizations can and should influence the ills in society," said Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler Daniel Igali. Poisoning is a slow, agonizing death, Lynda Elmy of the Toronto Humane Society said. "We should all stand up and there should be a huge outcry against this because we are sending athletes to the games. It's just appalling," Elmy said.
07/23/2004 ITALY GETS TOUGH ON DITCHING PETS!
An Italian law that will soon be on the books should make people living in Italy - including Americans - think twice about abandoning their pets.The Italian Senate passed an animal cruelty bill last week that reportedly targets Italians who abandon their pets while taking traditionally long summer vacations. A report from Reuters said violators could face prison terms of up to one year and fines of up to 10,000 euros.The measure, approved by the country's lower house last year, goes into effect a day after it's published in the country's official gazette. Hailed by animal-rights activists - who say that hundreds of thousands of dogs and cats are abandoned each year - the measure also targets those killing or torturing animals or organizing dog fights.
07/22/2004 VEGAN BODYBUILDER COMPETES IN SACRAMENTO, JULY 24TH!
Kenneth G. Williams wants to become America's first professional vegan bodybuilder. In fulfilling this goal, he hopes to qualify for the Mr. Olympia championship - the most prestigious natural bodybuilding competition in the world. First, he has to go through some qualifying rounds, so he's competing in the Western USA Bodybuilding Championships on Saturday, July 24th. If you live in the area or will be visiting, come cheer him on as he flexes his vegan muscles in Sacramento! The event will be held at Cosumnes River College, 8401 Center Parkway, Sacramento, California.
07/21/2004 WORLD'S APPETITE FOR TUNA THREATENS SUPPLY!
Favignana, Italy - Over thousands of springtimes, as far back as Homer's Odyssey, the fishermen of Favignana have battled giant bluefin tuna lured into vast chambers of intricate netting. This year, the nets were empty. The ancient "mattanzas" (slaughters) of Atlantic tuna that come to spawn in the Mediterranean are now all but gone. The craving for sashimi in Japan and the world beyond has taken its toll, but that is only part of it.
07/20/2004 OVERHAUL FOR ANIMAL WELFARE LAWS!
No more goldfish given as prizes at fairs. No more tail-docking of puppies for canine beauty contests. No more 14-year-olds buying pets on a whim. Those were just three of the proposed changes put forward in what the Government is calling the most comprehensive overhaul of Britain's animal-welfare legislation for nearly a century.A new draft Animal Welfare Bill, which ministers hope will be included in this autumn's Queen's Speech, will replace a bundle of outdated legislation. It will consolidate and improve on more than 20 old animal-protection laws, ranging from the Protection of Animals Act, 1911, through the Cockfighting Act, 1952, to the Breeding and Sale of Dogs (Welfare) Act, 1999.Some changes are eye-catching, obviously overdue, and welcome. Giving animals as prizes - to those who may be unprepared for them - is to be outlawed, so the goldfish in the plastic bag given at a fair stall will be a thing of the past. Cosmetic tail-docking of dogs will also be banned as cruel, although an exception may be made for working gundogs which spend their lives scrambling through undergrowth and rough pasture. And unaccompanied children under 16 will no longer be allowed to buy pets from pet-shops. Furthermore, welfare regulations are to be brought in governing the welfare of circus animals (which in Britain are becoming fewer and fewer).But the most substantial change the law will bring in is an abstract one: to impose a duty of care on all animal keepers. In future, if you have an animal you will be legally obliged to look after it properly. The new duty of care will act to prevent ill-treatment rather than punish those who ill-treat (although ill-treatment will still be punished), and it was warmly welcomed by the RSPCA. "Getting this new welfare offence has been the RSPCA's prime objective and will represent the single most important piece of legislation affecting captive and domestic animals since the 1911 Protection of Animals Act," an RSPCA spokesman said.
07/19/2004 HUMAN SHIELDS FOR KANGAROOS!
Canberra - Australian environmentalists are, according to this story, threatening to act as human shields to stop shooters from culling kangaroos that have reached pest proportions in the national capital as severe drought hits surrounding areas. The story explains that the Canberra city government wants to shoot 1,000 of the marsupials, which also become increasingly aggressive as the drought forces the normally-shy animals closer to human settlement. The story adds that authorities have received reports of attacks on dogs and at least one human, while locals complain the kangaroos are using up the city's water supply by congregating around its main dam and eating food set aside for sheep.Government-commissioned kangaroo hunters have already killed about 150 of the animals but stopped Wednesday when the government ordered the cull temporarily suspended because of protests by animal rights activists.Animal Liberation spokeswoman Simone Gray was cited as saying that members of her organisation were prepared to put themselves between the kangaroos and the shooters' rifles, adding, "They are hoping their presence will be enough to stop the shooting going on. Obviously the government wouldn't want people killed."
07/18/2004 COLD WATERS LEAVE WHALES WASHED UP!
Whale strandings are no longer quite such a mystery - on the beaches of south-east Australia at least. An analysis of data collected over more than 80 years has revealed that a disproportionate number of cetaceans beach themselves in the region every 10 to 12 years. The stranding events appear to be triggered by a climate phenomenon called the zonal westerly winds. "Strandings were thought to be pretty random events - or suspected of being linked to climate events like El Niño - but nothing had been demonstrated. We have shown a clear pattern," says Mark Hindell of the Antarctic Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. Tasmania is one of the world's hotspots for cetacean strandings. Common dolphins, sperm whales and long-finned pilot whales are three of the species that most commonly beach themselves.
07/17/2004 WHALING MORATORIUM UNDER INCREASING THREAT!
The resumption of commercial whaling for the first time in almost 20 years could come a step closer this week amid concerns that Japan has"bought" enough votes to overturn an international ban on hunting. The annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC),in Sorrento, Italy, promises to be among the most contentious ever. The build-up has been dominated by fears that Japan may finally be able to secure a majority of countries prepared to overturn the moratorium on commercial whaling, in effect since 1986.The IWC comprises 55 members, though not all of them vote, and Japan may need as few as 23 votes to carry the day. Last year, its resolution on hunting minke whales drew 19 votes in favour.Although a simple majority would not overturn the moratorium - three-quarters of members must support the move for this to happen - it would strip the ban of its credibility and could enable Japan to undermine the Southern Ocean Sanctuary, which protects Antarctica. Japan kills more than 600 whales a year in the name of scientific research at present, using an IWC loophole.
07/15/2004 GREEKS 'TO GAS 15,000 DOGS BEFORE OLYMPICS'!
Experts fear up to 15,000 stray dogs will be poisoned before next month's Athens Olympics so the city looks "pristine". Authorities in the Greek capital fear the sight of packs roaming the streets will damage the country's bid to show it is modern and civilised, the RSPCA said.Greek animal welfare groups say slaughter of the city's estimated 15,000 strays has started. Eighty dogs have been found dead in Saronida, a coastal resort where members of the British team are expected to stay. One animal welfare activist said: "There's been a big increase in poisonings and we expect it to rise sharply." David Bowles of RSPCA International has been helping to trainGreek officials to catch and treat strays humanely. He said: "We're seriously concerned thousands of dogs will be poisoned so Greece can show Athens is a pristine, modern city. It would be barbaric and would solve nothing." He added: "A lot of the local authorities don't know how to treat dogs humanely." Another senior RSPCA official added: "If the Greeks continue to poison dogs they can't consider themselves civilised."The authorities insist there will be no mass poisoning but Athens' few dog shelters are already crowded.
07/14/2004 MERCY SOUGHT FOR KILLER SHARK IN AUSTRALIA!
SYDNEY, Australia - The death of a surfer mauled by a shark has rekindled debate over the safety of people swimming off Australia's world-renowned beaches but also the plight of sharks, some species of which are being hunted to the brink of extinction. Bradley Adrian Smith, 29, died Saturday afternoon after being savaged in the Indian Ocean off Left Handers Beach, south of Western Australia state capital, Perth. Witnesses said Smith tried to fight off at least one and possibly two sharks, which officials said most likely were great whites, although they said they could also have been bronze whaler sharks. Authorities Monday continued to hunt for the killer shark and said they would likely shoot it if they can conclusively prove they have found the animal responsible for Smith's death. But the shark also found an unlikely ally - with the dead surfer's brother saying the animal should not be killed. "I don't believe that the shark should be killed just for the sake of what's happened in this situation," Stephen Smith told reporters on Sunday. "I don't believe that Brad can be evenged by killing a shark."
07/13/2004 EIGHT MORE GORED BY PAMPLONA BULLS!
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- Eight people, including an American and a Frenchman, have been gored on the sixth day of the annual running of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. The American, a 26-year-old from New York who provided the initials M.S., but no name, was gored in the left thigh on the section of the course at city hall plaza on Monday. The Frenchman, Ludovico de Carlos Garcia, 24, was gored in the right knee on the uphill Santo Domingo section at the beginning of the 800-meter (half-mile) course, soon after the six bulls were released from the corral. Five of the other six people gored were Spaniards, including three from the Pamplona area. The identity of the eighth person was not immediately available, a Navarra regional government spokesman told CNN. One of the Spaniards, Julen Madina from Guipuzcoa Province in the Basque region near Pamplona, was gored five times in the entryway to the bull ring, where a group of runners had fallen into a pile and were attacked by one of the bulls. Madina was in serious condition, the spokesman said.
07/12/2004 SAD DOLPHIN SAGA CONTINUES!
MEXICO, On Thursday 8th, 15 dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) brought from the Solomon Islands last year were illegally transported from Parque Nizuc to their new facility in Cozumel island. 28 dolphins were illegally imported from the Solomon Islands to Parque Nizuc in Cancun on july last year. Since then legal actions have been started against this import, however only lies and impunity have so far succeeded in Mexico. Despite the owners of Parque Nizuc being instructed that they were not to move the dolphins, in a clear violation of all laws, half of the dolphins have been moved to Cozumel. We have learned that at least 3 of the Solomon dolphins have died since their arrival and also 2 calves have been born but have not survived. It is clear that it is time to protest to the authorities about this transfer of dolphins to Cozumel.
07/11/2004 AVIAN INFLUENZA IN ASIAN COUNTRIES FAR FROM OVER!
New outbreaks of the avian influenza virus H5N1 in China, Thailand and Viet Nam confirm that the virus is still endemic in the region, FAO said in a statement. "The new cases do not come as a surprise," said Joseph Domenech, Chief of the FAO Animal Health Service. "After the major outbreaks of a few months ago, affected countries succeeded in bringing disease under control. But the new outbreaks clearly demonstrate that the virus continues to circulate in parts of the region and new cases might flare up in future, posing a continuing threat to human health," he said.
07/10/2004 USA: 19,026 ANIMALS KILLED EVERY MINUTE!
To satisfy the public's ever-growing appetite for meat, slaughterhouses in the United States killed ten billion animals last year. That's 27,397,260 animals every day, 1,141,553 every hour, 19,026 every minute.Most Americans, largely disconnected from their food supply, assume these animals met a painless end, if they think about it at all. Even readers of books and articles about conditions in factory farms may not be aware of what happens to animals at slaughter. But every now and then that reality flashes briefly across the public consciousness, as it did during last year's news stories about mad cow disease, when television viewers glimpsed a sick cow being dragged along the ground to a slaughterhouse.
07/09/2004 AUSTRALIAN GREYHOUNDS USED IN VIVISECTION!
The Australian greyhound industry is passing on countless greyhounds that are no longer fast enough or making them a profit by selling or donating them to vivisection laboratories for experimentation, dissection, and surgical training. These helpless victims that have already been betrayed by the racing industry are adding to the number of tortured animals suffering in vivisection laboratories. They endure living in cramped cages in fear for their lives. They are being abused as "subjects" of painful and horrific experiments and then ending their days lifeless on laboratory slabs, dissected and used as body parts.
07/08/2004 EUROPEAN FOOD SAFETY AUTHORITY: KILLING ANIMALS!
The Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued an opinion relating to the welfare aspects of stunning and killing for the main animal species subject to commercial and farm slaughtering practices. The AHAW panel recommends that conditions and methods of stunning and killing most appropriate with respect to animal welfare should be selected for each species. Stun/killing methods which induce unconsciousness and death, either immediately or sequentially, should be preferred, wherever possible, in order to avoid pain and minimise animal suffering. Scientific experts highlight the importance of appropriate training for operators and call for further investigations of the mechanisms and effects of the different stunning methods.The European Food Safety Authority's Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) published an opinion relating to the welfare aspects of stunning and killing for animals such as cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, horses and farmed fish. Based on the data of the scientific report carried out by experts appointed by EFSA, the opinion is a scientific assessment of the welfare of animals during stunning and killing under commercial slaughterhouse and farm conditions. The AHAW Panel did not consider ethical, socioeconomic, cultural or religious issues in drafting its opinion. Stunning before slaughter is a legal requirement in the EU, with exceptions in some Member States for religious slaughter. By inducing unconsciousness and insensibility, stunning can avoid and minimise reactions of fear and anxiety as well as pain, suffering and distress among the animals concerned.
07/07/2004 PAKISTAN ALLOWING CRUEL BEAR SPORT!
LAHORE, (OneWorld) - Animal activists in Pakistan accuse authorities of encouraging a savage medieval sport in which de-fanged and de-clawed Asiatic bears are tethered to a post and set upon by ferocious pit bull terriers. A team of undercover investigators funded by the international body, World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), discovered that instances of "bear baiting", as the sport is known, increased from 10 in 2002 to over 20 in 2003. Law enforcement officials are accused of failing to follow up reports of the torture of these endangered animals or implementing laws against bear baiting. The WSPA - an umbrella organization of about 450 wildlife groups that operates in close to 120 countries - estimates there may be less than 300 bears in the wild in Pakistan. Adult bears are often killed so their cubs can be sold into captivity. "Our attempts to get the authorities to take action have been met with indifference and sometimes resulted in threats and intimidation," the WSPA's project manager in Pakistan, Fakhar Abbas, charged last week. Abbas, who has witnessed several illegal bear baiting events, says he has often been threatened and attacked for opposing it.
07/06/2004 INHUMANE SPINAL CORD CLASSES AT OSU!
Ohio State University is offering what may be the most inhumane course ever taught: A class in injuring the spinal cords of rats and mice. Participants in OSU's Spinal Cord Injury Training Course will be taught how to systematically injure the animals' spinal cords by major surgery and blunt trauma. The three-week course will subject 189 rats and 60 mice to multiple painful surgeries, laboratory procedures, and distressing behavioral exercises after the injuries. The course is going forward even though non-animal research on spinal cord injuries is yielding exciting results. For example, relevant data are being obtained through tests on human neural cell lines in culture, impact studies using human cadavers, clinical observations and trials, and other techniques that do not require the use of animals. If this course is not stopped, more than 200 animals will be subjected to painful surgeries and behavioral exercises every year.
07/05/2004 SPANISH POLICE SEIZE IVORY FROM 400 ELEPHANTS!
Madrid, (Reuters) - Spanish police have seized almost three tonnes of poached African ivory, which experts estimate could have caused the death of about 400 elephants. The Madrid haul is the single biggest ever of carved ivory, Spain's Civil Guard paramilitary force said in a statement on Friday. Members of the Civil Guard's specialised environmental arm Seprona started an investigation last year after confiscating 110 kg of elephant hair, some of which had been turned into jewellery. They subsequently found 3.4 tonnes of raw and worked ivory in a store in Madrid, whose owner had a licence to keep less than 500 kg, and confiscated the 2.9-tonne surplus.
07/04/2004 FIVE PYGMY ELEPHANTS TO BE RELEASED INTO THE WILD!
KOTA KINABALU: At least five of the 11 China-bound endangered Borneo pygmy elephants will be released into the wild soon. Each would be strapped with a global positioning system collar provided by WWF Malaysia so that their movements can be monitored. The remaining six would be kept at the soon-to-be opened Sabah Zoo near Lok Kawi here, according to wildlife officials. A total of 12 elephants were scheduled to be sent as gifts to zoos in China and Japan last year but it was stopped after environmentalists protested against the move because of fear that they would be ill-treated.
07/03/2004 GREAT SUCCESS IN POLAND!
This morning the Sejm (Polish Parliament) accepted, with a overwhelming majority of about 273 to 111 votes, the Presidential veto of the Animal Experimentation Act. The new act, proposed by the former Government of Leszek Miller, has been aimed at dismantling the ethical control of animal experimentation in Poland.
07/02/2004 RSPCA WELCOMES ARMY ACTION!
The army's decision to throw six soldiers out of the service had delivered justice for the four kittens they tortured and killed at a Townsville barracks, the RSPCA said yesterday.The army said the soldiers had brought shame and discredit on the Australian Defence Force and their behaviour at an Easter Saturday drinking session was well below expected standards. The soldiers are able to appeal against the decision and their discharge will be suspended until the appeal is dealt with.Their treatment of four stray kittens during the drinking session at the Lavarack Barracks prompted nationwide outrage. One kitten was dragged on a rope behind a motorcycle, then crushed under the tyre of a four-wheel drive vehicle and three others were doused with fuel and set alight. RSPCA national president Hugh Wirth said the organisation now had a measure of satisfaction that proper justice had been delivered for the kittens.
The number of news found: 29.
