News

Lockwood Animal Rescue Center Needs Help With Large Wolf Rescue

2011-12-05T03:41:33Z

Nestled on all sides by the Los Padres National Forest and only 70 miles from the Westside of Los Angeles, the Lockwood Animal Rescue Center (LARC) offers permanent sanctuary to wolves, wolfdogs and other animals in need. The brainchild of Dr. Lorin Lindner and her partner Matthew Simmons, LARC currently has 19 rescued wolves, wolfdogs, and coyotes. However, that is soon to change!

Right: Dr. Lorin Lindner gets a wolf kiss from Rider.

Lindner and Simmons are leaving on December 8th to do their most ambitious rescue yet. Thirty wolves are slated to be destroyed by the State of Alaska if they are not immediately removed and that is the aim of this quickly planned trip. “We are not going to wait a moment longer to rescue these majestic animals – regardless of how adverse conditions get,” exclaimed Dr. Lindner, and she was not just referring to the 30 below weather. The wolves are currently part of a criminal prosecution of a roadside attraction outside of Anchorage where they have been kept on 7 foot chains their entire lives. Lindner, Simmons, and their crew of both volunteers and employees have been busy building “super-sized” wolf-proof enclosures to ensure these magnificent animals get to live the rest of their lives in as natural a setting as possible. “No more chains, ever,” Simmons asserts.

Each one of these wolves will need to have a sponsor through Lockwood’s “adopt a wolf” program. Besides helping the wolf, sponsors receive an annual holiday calendar, photos of their wolf and special visits for the sponsors and their friends. Sponsors are allowed in the “shooting pen” to take photos with “their” wolf – the only way a wolf should get “shot.” Please see LARC’s website to make a donation towards the care of these wolves:

www.lockwoodarc.org

Simmons, a decorated combat veteran helped LARC launch its Warriors and Wolves program which pairs returning combat veterans from Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere with wolves that have been rescued from abusive and exploitive situations like roadside shows and ill-equipped zoos.

Helping these wolves integrate into their larger society — an actual wolf pack — is similar to the transition required by veterans who have difficulty reintegrating into society after being in combat and who face such issues as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. Both wolf and man have experienced traumatic events that require the rebuilding of trust in relationships and that’s a big part of what will ultimately enable them to integrate into their respective societies. Caring for the wolves also helps the veterans gain confidence and the new job skills they need to secure full-time employment and a permanent place in the community.

Right: Denali is one of the wolves in need of sponsorship once off his chain and safe at LARC.

LARC also brings wolf ambassadors to schools, agencies, and other special events and teaches about wolf family life, the threat to wild wolves, and the importance of wolf preservation. School trips to LARC include wolf education tours and talks (Lindner was originally an animal behaviorist before switching to humans!).

LARC holds Volunteer Days on the third Saturday of every month and welcomes people with everything from construction skills to cooking expertise (to feed the volunteers). Donations are always helpful, too (LARC is a 5013C tax-exempt IRS-recognized nonprofit animal charity).

Visit: www.lockwoodarc.org

Jeffrey Masson: Is there such a thing as "humane" meat? (VIDEO)

2011-12-03T02:59:31Z

Here's a special video excerpt from the upcoming GET HEALTHY NOW YELLOW DVD set.

Bestselling author, Jeffrey Masson, has written many popular books about animals, such as When Elephants Weep, Dogs Never Lie About Love, and The Face On Your Plate.

Watch Jeff talk about a few topics: Cesar Chavez encouraging him to go vegan; how children have to be indoctrinated against their instincts to eat animals; and what Jeff said to his friend, chef Alice Waters, when she told him that in her gourmet restaurant, Chez Panisse, they never serve an animal that hasn't led a wonderful life.

Jeff's response will crack you up!

This is a very short excerpt from the Q&A portion of Jeff Masson's fascinating talk.

Watch video now:

Order your copy of the full Get Healthy Now Yellow DVD. Click here

Animal Testing - is it necessary? Interview with HSUS

2011-06-23T11:10:38Z

While food production constitutes the main way that we humans abuse our fellow animals, as the film Earthlings (available for free view in a number of languages at www.earthlings.com) points out, we also impoverish the lives on non-human animals for other purposes, such as for entertainment. Another area of concern involves the use of non-human animals for medical testing.

Towards the goal of throwing some light on this topic, and not to raise divisions among vegetarians, ‘IVU Online News’ was fortunate to be able to interview Kathleen Conlee, Senior Director, Animal Research Issues at the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

What is The HSUS?

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is the nation's largest animal protection organization—backed by 11 million Americans. Established in 1954, The HSUS seeks a humane and sustainable world for all animals—a world that will also benefit people.

The HSUS’s mission statement is “Celebrating Animals, Confronting Cruelty.” We work to reduce suffering and to create meaningful social change for animals by advocating for sensible public policies, investigating cruelty and working to enforce existing laws, educating the public about animal issues, joining with corporations on behalf of animal-friendly policies, and conducting hands-on programs that make a more humane world. To learn about all of our programs helping animals, visit: www.humanesociety.org/issues

What is HSUS’s view on animal use in biomedical research and testing?

The HSUS advocates an end to the use of animals in research and testing that is harmful to the animals. We carry out our work on behalf of animals used and kept in laboratories primarily by promoting research methods that have the potential to replace or reduce animal use or refine animal use so that the animals experience less suffering or physical harm. Replacement, reduction, and refinement are known as the Three Rs or alternative methods. The Three Rs approach, rigorously applied, will benefit both animal welfare and biomedical progress.

Certain species, such as chimpanzees and other apes, cannot be kept humanely in laboratory caging and should not be used in harmful research given their highly evolved mental, emotional, and social features and their concomitant vulnerability to suffering from living in captivity in research settings. Consequently, we place high priority on these species being phased out of harmful research and being relocated to appropriate sanctuary facilities.

What are your current projects that aim at helping animals used in biomedical research and testing?

Here is a brief summary of some of our current projects:

Chimps Deserve Better is our campaign to phase out the invasive use of chimpanzees in biomedical research and testing and retire them to permanent sanctuary. One main component of this effort is federal legislation, known as the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act (www.humanesociety.org/issues/chimpanzee_research)

Human Toxicology Project Consortium: The HSUS is a founding member of this consortium, which is working to move forward the National Research Council’s 2007 “Toxicity Testing in the 21^st Century: A Vision and a Strategy”- a vision of replacing animals for assessing the adverse effects of chemicals on humans (htpconsortium.wordpress.com)

Ending Animal Suffering in Experiments is an effort that seeks to end all suffering in animal research until the day when animals are no longer used. This includes a major effort to get universities to adopt their own policy prohibiting severe animal pain and distress (www.humanesociety.org/issues/pain_distress )

Pets in Experiments: Dogs and cats are collected from random sources, such as flea markets, auctions, shelters and other sources, by what are known as Class B dealers. These dogs and cats are then sold to animal research facilities. We are working to stop this source of animals for experimentation (www.humanesociety.org/issues/pets_experiments)

Cosmetic Testing: The HSUS is member of the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC). The CCIC recruits cosmetic companies to adopt a strict cruelty-free standard, ensuring that no final products or ingredients are tested on animals, and we encourage consumers to choose these cruelty-free companies when shopping (www.humanesociety.org/issues/cosmetic_testing)

Our website has additional information about all of our current projects as well as what we are doing to move them forward www.humanesociety.org/about/departments/animals_research.html

What are three facts about animal testing that most people, including most vegetarians, do not know?

There are animal research institutions in almost every state (www.humanesociety.org/AnimalResearchMap) and your alma mater likely conducts animal research--there are more than 500 colleges and universities in the US that use animals. About forty percent of the National Institutes of Health’s budget funds animal research, equalling about $12 billion-therefore every taxpayer is a stakeholder in this issue.

The Animal Welfare Act, the main law that provides minimal protection to animals in laboratories, specifically excludes 95% of the animals used for research, namely purpose-bred mice and rats. As a result, we do not know the total number of animals used for research in the United States each year. Many people are also surprised to learn that dogs and cats are among the animals used in harmful research and testing. The United States is the only developed country that still uses chimpanzees in invasive research and testing.

What is xenotransplantation?

The transplantation of organs, tissues and cells from one species into another is known as “xenotransplantation” (XT)—including from nonhumans into humans. XT can involve raising genetically engineered animals and killing them for transplantation of their organs into another species. If this practice ever becomes a routine clinical procedure, tens of thousands of animals would likely suffer this fate.

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) recognizes that the current demand for transplantable organs exceeds the available supply, that organs from animals are being considered as a means to help bridge this gap, and that humans already raise and kill many species of animals for food. However, we are concerned that XT represents a short-sighted "fix" that not only exploits animals, but ultimately may prove dangerous to human health.

The HSUS believes that XT should not be pursued as a solution to the problem of organ failure and alternatives should, instead, be given a high priority.

What is your experience interacting with vegetarians about the issue of animal testing?

My experience is that people who become vegetarian largely for ethical (rather than health) reasons are often more familiar with the issue than the general public. But the majority of people, vegetarian or not, believe that we should be embracing innovation and moving toward a day when animals are no longer used -not only for the benefit of the animals, but for the benefit of people. We can certainly do better.

Some advocates of vegetarianism on the grounds of health have been involved in research using nonhuman animals or cite such research. Do you work with such people?

I once worked in a primate research facility that bred and used monkeys for research, and my experience there led me to The HSUS to advocate for these animals. Some animal research has led to medical treatments and methods that have helped humans and other animals—but we should be seeking better ways. It is also important to remember that results from non-human animals do not necessarily mean that the same results will occur in humans. For example, many drugs that have been successful in animal studies have not been successful in humans—and have sometimes caused harm in humans.

The HSUS believes that more funding should be devoted to alternatives in order to make such advancements without the use of animals, with fewer animals, or without causing pain and distress to animals. A true commitment to alternatives by the research community has, thus far, been inadequate.

Some people say that it’s impossible to avoid medicines and medical procedures that have been tested on animals. Is this true? What is your advice for someone who uses allopathic medicine and medical procedures but does not want to be linked with animal testing?

The US government’s Food and Drug Administration currently requires that all drugs labelled safe for human use be tested on animals first. Therefore, under current regulation, as long as someone uses FDA-approved medications, then they will be using products tested on animals.

While, as just mentioned, testing the safety and efficacy of drugs and certain other products is required by current practice by some regulatory agencies, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the research community should be aggressively pursuing the development of alternatives and also working to get regulatory agencies to accept these alternatives. As one example, FDA required animal testing to test the safety of fluoride oral care products, but Tom's of Maine petitioned the agency to accept an alternative that didn't involve animal use. This petition was successful and Tom's of Maine uses non-animal alternatives to safety test these products. The result of such efforts would be better prediction of the effects of drugs and other products on humans.

Vegetarian and other animal welfare activists differ on many issues. How can we work together despite such differences?

The HSUS is a firm believer in dialogue and finding common ground with others to determine and work toward common goals that will benefit humans and animals alike. There’s no shortage of animal protection issues to work on—and every little bit that you do counts. For more on how you can help animals in laboratories, please visit The HSUS website at www.humanesociety.org/animalresearch

Do you have a joke that you can share with us?

I saw a cartoon that had two people in white lab coats and one said something along the lines of “Now that we can’t experiment on animals anymore, we’ll need new subjects who have a controlled diet and are healthy.” The second one said “What about vegans?”

The above is from the July Issue of IVU Onlins News for the full issue go to: www.ivu.org/news

Raw diet heavy in greens is key to gorilla slimness and health

2011-06-09T18:58:24Z

The New York Times recently published an article asserting that a high protein intake -- similar, they say, to the Atkins diet -- is the reason gorillas in the wild are thin and in good health.

What?!

Yep, you read that right: the New York Times is using gorilla nutrition to try to promote the Atkins diet.

The Atkins diet is of course high in eggs, meat, dairy, bacon and other cholesterol-laden foods, while low on carbs. It's your basic garbage nonsense diet designed to lose weight fast and put you into an early grave -- Atkins himself died at the age of 72, weighing 258 pounds, at 6 feet tall.

So what kind of Atkins Diet are gorillas eating?

Gorillas are folivores - an herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. They eat a diet that is predominantly leaves and vegetative matter, although they also eat smaller amounts of fruits, roots, and insects (i.e., about 3% of their diet is termites).

In other words, gorillas in the wild suffer from no obesity or health problems - because they eat a very lowfat, essentially raw food diet, emphasizing leafy greens.

This is not a surprise, nor is it an Atkins diet. It is high in protein because of the obvious high protein content of greens. Spinach is 49 percent protein, kale is 45 percent protein, broccoli is 45 percent protein, lettuce is 34 percent protein, Chinese cabbage is 34 percent protein, and so forth.

So is the New York Times telling Atkins to make his diet a raw food diet? Here's what the New York Times says:

During certain times of the year, when fruits are not available, protein-rich leaves dominate the gorilla’s diet, the report found. About 31 percent of the total energy intake is protein during these times. This is similar to the protein content in high-protein weight-loss regimens like the Atkins diet...

Modern societies “are diluting the concentration of protein in the modern diet,” Dr. Raubenheimer said. “But we eat to get the same amount of proteins we needed before, and in so doing, we’re overeating.”

The article is written by someone who is mesmerized by the meat industry propaganda about protein, taught to children starting in grade school.

According to the World Health Organization, human requirement for protein is about 2.5 percent of calories, so they set the minimum, just to be safe, at 5 percent.

The myth of the necessity or even usefulness of protein is exposed when you see what the protein needs of humans are during the period of most growth - infancy. Breast milk is only 6 percent protein. So the idea in the New York Times that apes or humans actually require 31 percent of their diet as protein, and that we are eating ourselves to death in order to get that much required protein - is utterly ridiculous.

The take home message of the report on gorillas, as it may apply to humans, is to eat a plant-based diet and include plenty of green leafy foods. That will lead you to slimness and health, not Atkins.

Protein is the mantra of the brainwashed: Where do you get your protein? the indoctrinated ask.

The medical term for protein deficiency is -- oh wait, there is no medical term for it. Because it's never diagnosed.

How would you even test for a protein deficiency? The only way to tell if you are protein deficient -- is if you are staving. Starvation means you are simply not eating enough calories, and thus you aren't getting enough protein (or carbs or fat...or anything).

The moral? The protein pushers are insidious, and can't even acknowledge that a very close relative of humans is thriving magnificently on a healthy plant-strong diet which is 97% vegan.

Wayne Pacelle: Animal Welfare Not Big in Japan -- But Saving Your Pet in a Disaster Is

2011-03-22T18:42:43Z

The Humane Society of the United States is no stranger to the political stage. For example, the organization aggressively pushes state ballot measures on animal welfare and has called for a boycott of Canadian seafood until the fishing industry agrees to give up its annual seal hunt. But weighing in on natural disasters is a little different, especially if it's a natural disaster in a country that doesn't exactly embrace animal welfare on a large scale. And why weigh in at all when that country is struggling with a devastating human toll?

But Humane Society Chief Executive Wayne Pacelle managed to tread delicately on that ground onstage during the organization’s annual Genesis Awards gala Saturday night at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza. He talked about the devastation in Japan, and something he had observed about the aftermath.

"Japan has a terrible animal welfare record," he said, noting its commercial whaling interests and disregard for dolphins. But the individual survivors are obviously connected to their pets, he said. "It provides a reminder of the bond between animals and people."

The Humane Society International -- the global arm of the group -- has already provided $170,000 for supplies and temporary shelters for animals in Japan. And the organization is helping Japanese animal welfare groups as well.

"Amidst the catastrophe there’s an opportunity to have a Katrina moment," Pacelle said after the awards show. For animal welfare advocates, Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans underscored the loyalty that went both ways between people and pets: Many residents clung to their pets, reluctantly evacuating without them or, in some cases, refusing to leave without them.

"I do think pet-keeping is on the rise in Japan," Pacelle said. "We want to nourish that." He details his organization’s efforts in Japan on his blog.

Alley Cat Allies -- 80 Million Ferals Need Help

2011-03-18T19:38:01Z

Here's a great organization and individuals helping alleviate suffering of abandoned cat populations.

SCROLL DOWN TO WATCH VIDEO

Chickens are capable of feeling empathy, scientists believe

2011-03-10T05:03:04Z

Editor's note: Note that this article mentions animal studies. We see animal studies receiving attention in the media, and we see government bodies sometimes basing nutritional policy on such work, at least in part. Because this kind of information is being discussed in the public sphere, we bring it to our readers so you may be informed. But talking about animal research does not mean we endorse it. In fact, we do not.

Domestic chickens display signs of empathy, the ability to ''feel another's pain'' that is at the heart of compassion, a study has found.

The discovery has important implications for the welfare of farm and laboratory animals, say researchers.

Empathy, long thought to be a defining human trait, causes one individual to be affected by the emotional state of another.

Feelings are ''mirrored'' in the observer, leading to a shared experience of being happy, sad or distressed.

The research demonstrated that hens possess a fundamental capacity to empathise, at least with their own chicks.

Scientists chose hens and chicks for the study because it is thought empathy probably evolved to aid parental care.

A number of controlled procedures were carried out which involved ruffling the feathers of chicks and mother hens with an air puff.

When chicks were exposed to puffs of air, they showed signs of distress that were mirrored by their mothers. The hens' heart rate increased, their eye temperature lowered - a recognised stress sign - and they became increasingly alert. Levels of preening were reduced, and the hens made more clucking noises directed at their chicks.

Researcher Jo Edgar, from the School of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Bristol, said: ''The extent to which animals are affected by the distress of others is of high relevance to the welfare of farm and laboratory animals.

''Our research has addressed the fundamental question of whether birds have the capacity to show empathic responses.

''We found that adult female birds possess at least one of the essential underpinning attributes of 'empathy', the ability to be affected by, and share, the emotional state of another.''

Florida law would make it a felony to photograph factory farms and puppy mills, even if not trespassing

2011-03-09T19:23:08Z

About ten years ago while driving from Los Angeles to San Francisco along Interstate 5, we stopped and took some photographs of the Harris Ranch, a huge feedlot operation which provides a lot of meat for California fast food outlets.

We were on a public street, and pulled over and took several shots. (Link at end of article below to original story and photos.)

While taking the shots, a small dark sedan pulled up behind our van and parked. The man in the vehicle didn't get out, just watched us (see photo below of black car behind us).

A few days later, I received a phone message from a detective in the Fresno County Sheriff's Office, wishing to speak with me. I called him back, and "Special Detective Asselin" told me Harris Ranch had reported my license plate and said I had been engaged in "suspicious activity," and he said that on viewing my website, he noticed I was somehow associated with an organization called Earthsave.

After questioning me about Vegsource, Earthsave and why I was taking photographs of what must be the single largest taxpayer in Fresno County (i.e. someone the Fresno County Sheriff's office obviously feels it must keep happy), I guess Detective Asselin was satisfied that I wasn't planning to try to blow something up.

That was the old days...the cops looking out for big corporate farms, harassing people who took photos of the operation.

Today in Florda they're taking it a step further.

A new law SB1246 has been introduced which will make it a felony to do what I did, to simply be on a public street and take a photo of a factory farm or puppy mill, unless you have written permission of the corporation whose farm you snap.

That's right, if Republican state Senator Jim Norman of Florida has his way, it will be a felony to photograph from public property or even set foot onto a factory farm -- and not just any felony, but a first-degree felony, which carries a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison.

First-degree felonies in Florida include drug trafficking, child molestation, rape, murder -- and soon, photography.

And again, the law also makes it a first-degree felony if you simply trespass on a factory farm or puppy mill, without written consent.

Here is what the law states, as proposed by Florida Republican Senator Norman:

(1) A person who enters onto a farm or other property where legitimate agriculture operations are being conducted without the written consent of the owner, or an authorized representative of the owner, commits a felony of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, Florida Statutes.

(2) A person who photographs, video records, or otherwise produces images or pictorial records, digital or otherwise, at or of a farm or other property where legitimate agriculture operations are being conducted without the written consent of the owner, or an authorized representative of the owner, commits a felony of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, Florida Statutes.

(3) As used in this section, the term “farm” includes any tract of land cultivated for the purpose of agricultural production, the raising and breeding of domestic animals, or the storage of a commodity.

Note that subsection 2 is independent of subsection 1 — photographing farms would be made a felony even if the photographer isn’t trespassing (for instance, because he’s on a public road, or lawfully on neighboring property). And not just any felony — a first-degree felony, which is the highest degree felony other than capital crimes and “life felonies” (which carry a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison). The precise term of imprisonment would be dictated by the Florida Sentencing Guidelines, but the maximum would be 30 years.

Plus subsection 1 has problems of its own. First, it makes simple trespasses into serious felonies. Second, it covers even behavior that isn’t trespassing, because it covers visits that are based on oral permission (e.g., going to a party at somebody’s farm), and visits that would generally be seen as implicitly permitted or otherwise nontrespassory (e.g., stopping at someone’s farm to ask for directions, or to sell Girl Scout cookies). And as stated, this law protects puppy mills from being photographed in any way as well, as it prohibits photography of "farms" involved in "the raising or breeding of domestic animals."

As one of our readers expressed: so the law allows you to protest in ugly and profane ways at the funeral of a fallen US soldier, but you go to jail for 30 years if you photograph a cow from a public street? Yes, the highway still belongs to the people -- for now. (Republicans are undoubtedly working to privatize that, as well.)

It would seem this should be a First Amendment issue which Florida would have a hard time making stick, though some people could spend a long time in jail while a group like the ACLU worked to have such a law overturned.

Still, you look at the number of freedoms taken away by the Patriot Act and Homeland Security, and it's not such an illogical next step.

Here is a link to the original story from 10 years ago, when we were investigated and interrogated simply for simply snapping some shots of a factory farm from the side of a public road: A "Tail" of Harris Ranch with photos

Zoo Gorillas Go on Plant-Based Diet and Reverse Heart Disease

2011-02-18T19:31:31Z

Let's be honest, folks. It is heartbreaking that animals are kept in captivity like this. Keeping animals locked up for human entertainment is barbaric and should be unacceptable in a so-called civilized society.

And as if it weren't enough they've received a life sentence for the crime of not being born human - instead of being able to eat their natural diets in their unnatural environment, gorillas in zoos are fed human produced junk food. The results are not so surprising for our gorilla cousins; they are becoming as sick and fat as their human relatives.

So not unexpectedly, it turns out heart disease is the leading cause of death in adult male gorillas living in zoos.

Why, you might wonder, would zoo keepers be feeding processed junk food to captive animals in the first place? Why not feed them their native natural diet?

Well one researcher in charge of two gorillas at the Case Western Rserve University decided to do something about the gorillas' health problems, and try to improve their health with a plant-strong diet.

The results are astounding.

The gorilla's previouss processed food diet was high in sugar and starch and low in real vegetables.

After a year on their new high-vegetable-low-processed-food diet, the gorillas are svelte, and healthy -- having each lost 65 pounds after their plant-based switch, even though they're eating twice the calories than before.

And their behaviors have improved dramatically.

The research may lead to all gorillas in zoos being put on healthy plant-based diets.

You can watch a video about the gorillas, and read a longer story from a website in Cleveland, linked here.

WATCH VIDEO:

Confirmed: Sea Lice From Salmon Farms Infecting Wild Fish

2011-02-12T22:34:26Z

The first link between salmon farms on the British Columbia coast and elevated levels of sea lice on juvenile Fraser River sockeye salmon has been demonstrated by new research published today.

While there has been speculation that lice from captive salmon has been transferred to wild salmon, the new study is the first to show a potential role of salmon farms in sea lice transmission to juvenile sockeye salmon during their critical early migration to the sea.

The research by scientists from Raincoast Conservation Foundation, Watershed Watch Salmon Society, and the Universities of Victoria and Simon Fraser is published in the journal "Public Library of Science ONE."

The authors conclude that their work "demonstrates a major migration corridor past farms for sockeye that originated in the Fraser River, a complex of populations that are the subject of conservation concern."

The rapid growth of marine salmon farms over the past two decades has increased host abundance for pathogenic sea lice in coastal waters, and wild juvenile salmon swimming past farms are frequently infected with lice, the authors say.

"Given the high intensities of lice observed on some juveniles in this study - up to 28 lice on a single fish - there's an urgent need to understand the extent of threat posed by sea lice to juvenile Fraser River sockeye," said co-author Dr. Craig Orr of the Watershed Watch Salmon Society.

Sea lice on a juvenile salmon caught in the Georgia Strait (Photo by Daniel Beltra courtesy Greenpeace)

The scientists examined sea lice on migrating sockeye in an area of Canada's west coast between Vancouver Island and the mainland known as the Discovery Islands, taking samples in 2007. This region hosts the northeast Pacific's largest salmon farm industry, 18 active salmon farms, and also hosts one of the largest migrations of salmon in the world, primarily to and from the Fraser River.

The scientists genetically identified 30 distinct stocks of infected Fraser sockeye that pass by open net-pen salmon farms in the Strait of Georgia, including the endangered Cultus Lake stock.

The study found that "parasitism of Fraser sockeye increased significantly after the juvenile fish passed by fish farms."

These same species of lice were found in substantial numbers on the salmon farms.

Not only did juvenile Fraser sockeye host higher lice levels in the Georgia Strait after they passed salmon farms, the researchers found that these fish hosted "an order of magnitude more sea lice" than Skeena and Nass River sockeye that migrated along the north coast where there are no farms.

The new study contradicts the Canadian fisheries agency's statement that, "Juvenile sockeye that migrate past salmon farms in the Discovery Islands are significantly larger than pink salmon ... when they migrate into the ocean, well beyond the threshold for susceptibility to sea lice."

Sea lice can compromise regulation of fluid within the bodies of the host fish, induce behavioral changes that increase predation risk, reduce growth rates and, in sufficient numbers, result in host death. Sea lice also have been shown to serve as vectors for the spread of fish diseases.

San Francisco Activists against live poultry sales sue farmers' market and vendor

2011-02-01T20:25:26Z

What started out at the Heart of the City Farmers' Market as a cultural conflict between animal rights activists trying to block live poultry sales and vendors catering to hundreds of Chinese customers, has taken a legal turn.

On Wednesday morning, Raymond Young Poultry, which has sold live chickens at United Nations Plaza for two decades, and the market -- the only one in the city that allows the sales -- were served a lawsuit from two animal rights activists.

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday by San Francisco attorney Matt Gonzalez, charges Young and his employees of assault and human rights violations, and the market of negligent supervision, among other complaints.

Activists with LGBT Compassion began protesting last March, videotaping and replaying footage of how the fowl were handled.

The two most adamant activists, Alex Felsinger, 25, and Andrew Zollman, 43, of LGBT Compassion, cite more than half a dozen instances of being physically or verbally attacked by Young's employees.

Felsinger said he started looking for a lawyer in the days following Dec. 29, when he was wrapped in a tarp by a Young employee, punched by another and had the memory chip of his camera removed by a third.

"It's not surprising that people that act violently towards animals would also act violently against humans," he said.

Arizona eatery takes "lion tacos" off the menu after public outrage

2011-01-28T17:16:06Z

From an AP story: An Arizona restaurant has decided to scrap plans to offer African lion meat in its tacos.

Bryan Mazon, the owner of Boca Tacos and Tequila, said Monday that his Tucson eatery has received "many threats" against the restaurant, family members, customers and vendors since he announced last week that he was taking prepaid orders for the exotic tacos.

Boca planned to start serving the lion tacos Feb. 16 at a cost of $8.75 apiece.

Mazon says his restaurant received orders from people around the world. The eatery already has served up python, alligator, elk, kangaroo, rattlesnake, oysters, turtle, duck and frog legs in its tacos.

- - -

The restaurnteur's plan was to used African lion raised in captivity in California for his "lion tacos." Now that this stupid idea has been shelved, let's look at why lion meat causes indignation and death threats, but killing cows, pigs and chicken for meat is no big deal.

Why is that?

Is it because we figure cows and chickens are stupid, and there are a lot of them? So who cares?

Are lions more intelligent, or more "noble," or more what than other animals?

Why is the idea Simba Tacos repugnant to many, while Babe bacon is just fine?

Anthology Probes Humans' Links to Other Animals

2011-01-25T15:13:39Z

‘Other Nations: Animals in Modern Literature’, edited by Tom Regan and Andrew Linzey, is the world’s first anthology designed to employ the power of fiction to illuminate our moral relationship with animals.

Other Nations includes the writing of such well-known authors as Ernest Hemingway, George Orwell, and Alice Walker.

Organizing the literary pieces according to the means by which human beings relate to the non-human animals discussed—as companions, as sources of food, as objects of sport and entertainment, and as subjects in scientific research— enables readers to relate these texts (and these non-human animals) to their own experiences and to the manifold issues now discussed in public forums.

Buy the book: www.amazon.com/Other-Nations-Animals-Modern-Literature/....

See complete issue of IVU Online News: www.ivu.org/news/online/February_2011.pdf

Tommy Lee Blasts SeaWorld: Whale's Treatment 'Sick And Twisted'

2010-12-09T15:07:16Z

Musician Tommy Lee recently wrote a letter to Terry Prather, President of SeaWorld, as a response to SeaWorld's announcement that they would no longer allow trainers to have any personal contact with Tilikum, the orca whale involved with the death of three people. Lee, citing the support of PETA, expressed confusion and outrage over SeaWorld's latest decision, claiming trainers "masturbate" the whale with "a cow's vagina filled with hot water." He accused SeaWorld of not releasing the whale because it is their "chief sperm bank." Lee wrote:

Even during my wildest days with Motley Crue, I never could've imagined something so sick and twisted. Simply put, how can SeaWorld claim that trainers no longer have direct contact with this whale when they are jacking him off?

SeaWorld was quick to respond to the Motley Crue drummer's allegation, as a SeaWorld representative told TMZ, "The process of collecting semen for [artificial insemination] doesn't differ in any meaningful way from the techniques employed in managing livestock or other species for zoological display."

Sarah Palin Killing Animals For Fun

2010-12-08T15:35:48Z

(Warning: Following post contains NSFW language.)

"Unless you've never worn leather shoes, sat upon a leather chair or eaten meat, save your condemnation."

You're right, Sarah, we'll all just go fuck ourselves now.

The snotty quote was posted by Sarah Palin on (like all the great frontier women who've come before her) her Facebook page to respond to the criticism she knew and hoped would be coming after she hunted, killed and carved up a Caribou during a segment of her truly awful reality show, Sarah Palin's Alaska, broadcast on The-Now-Hilariously-Titled Learning Channel.

I eat meat, chicken and fish, have shoes and furniture made of leather, and PETA is not ever going to put me on the cover of their brochure and for these reasons Palin thinks it's hypocritical of me to find what she did heart-stoppingly disgusting. I don't think it is, and here's why.

Like 95% of the people I know, I don't have a visceral (look it up) problem eating meat or wearing a belt. But like absolutely everybody I know, I don't relish the idea of torturing animals. I don't enjoy the fact that they're dead and I certainly don't want to volunteer to be the one to kill them and if I were picked to be the one to kill them in some kind of Lottery-from-Hell, I wouldn't do a little dance of joy while I was slicing the animal apart.

I'm able to make a distinction between you and me without feeling the least bit hypocritical. I don't watch snuff films and you make them. You weren't killing that animal for food or shelter or even fashion, you were killing it for fun. You enjoy killing animals. I can make the distinction between the two of us but I've tried and tried and for the life of me, I can't make a distinction between what you get paid to do and what Michael Vick went to prison for doing. I'm able to make the distinction with no pangs of hypocrisy even though I get happy every time one of you faux-macho shitheads accidentally shoots another one of you in the face.