Another day, another idea for intensive farming.

I received a message from Peta UK informing me that South Derbyshire District Council plan to build an intensive pig farm in their district. It wasn't long ago that a similar thing happened with regards to an intensive dairy farm.

The plans were submitted by Midland Pig Producers (MPP) and they hope this huge development will produce one thousand pigs per week to be transported to the slaughterhouse. The development could keep around 26,000 pigs. The Managing Director of MPP, Martin Baker, was voted "Pig Farmer of the Year" back in 2009 and claims that factory farmed animals are better off than free range.

Please click here and fill in your details in order to contact South Derbyshire District Council and tell them you oppose MPP's plans.

If you can spare the time to amend the subject header and to add some extra points in then the letter will be a lot more effective.

Peta have provided the following ideas for addition to the letter:

*Confining so many pigs to one space will inevitably guarantee nothing but a massive rise in disease, infection and injury as well as extreme suffering for the animals. Intensive farming also contributes to the spread of diseases to the human population. The nearest inhabited dwelling is only 20 metres from the perimeter.

*MPP claims that the pigs' welfare would be better served by being kept indoors. This is a ridiculous suggestion, as the pigs would be denied the right to express their natural behaviours, such as foraging for food and nurturing their young in a natural environment.

*According to a new UN report, less consumption of animal-derived products is necessary in order to save the world from the worst impacts of climate change. Local governments should adopt policies that encourage a move away from the consumption of meat and dairy products and towards sustainable projects that are aimed at reinvigorating land and growing crops to feed people directly.

Pigs are very social and intelligent animals, they certainly don't deserve to spend their entire life in an intensive farm before being slaughtered.

Something to be ashamed about.

Me swimming with the dolphin a few years ago. Yes, it an experience but at the dolphins expense :-(

Back when I was 12 years old and in secondary school I really began to become aware of issues affecting animals. One of the first things I campaigned against was animals in captivity and I focused especially on sea mammals such as whales and dolphins. A few years back I had the opportunity to swim with a dolphin in an Aquapark in Turkey, blinded by excitement and desperation to swim with this gorgeous creature I succumbed and actually paid for the privilege. I have to say that I am thoroughly ashamed of myself for doing this as I was contributing to the whole animals used for entertainment industry.

I can't even remember why we ended up in the Aquapark in the first place, I know that we went at my insistence all because I love animals and wanted to see seals, porpoises and dolphins but I really wish that I had remembered everything I knew and didn't go anywhere near the place where wild animals, who belong in the expansive oceans, are kept in confinement for our selfish enjoyment. I think about the dolphins and other animals in that Aquapark all the time and rather than simply feeling guilty for what I did, I want to make something positive happen. I want to learn from my mistakes and do something to help stop animals being used to make money from tourists.

I will never visit an aquapark or dolphinarium again (unless to protest in some form)

I have found quite a few stories about some dolphins in particular that are situated in a dolphinarium in Oludeniz near to the Aquapark I visited, these dolphins named Misha and Tom are being kept in an area of water the size of a swimming pool and were allegedly transported there in the back of a fruit and veg van without any type of support. The dolphinarium is not able to open to the public as the owner Aleksandr Kuznetsov does not have a licence.

The good news is that tourists and local people are speaking out against the dolphinarium and major tour operators are boycotting it.

Born Free sums up things perfectly and makes me hang my head in shame “As long as people are prepared to pay to see captive dolphins then opportunistic facilities like this will continue to spring up. But at what cost to the dolphins?”

Born Free has contacted the owner and asked him to consider their proposal of entering the dolphins into a rehabilitation programme.

I will keep you updated and will let you know of more ways to help.

Helen Worth and Amanda Holden are some of the celebrity campaigners that have spoken out about this cause.

Please join the Facebook Group and you will find some letters to send to relevant authorities and also a petition to sign.

Born Free

Fluffy Friday #5

After a horrific accident nine months ago, beautiful Oscar (who looks just like Dusty) lost both his back paws after a run in with a combine harvester. Two year old Osacr is the first cat in the world to have the operation to attach new feet. Groundbreaking Veterinary Surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick operated on Oscar using cutting edge technology.

As both his back paws were severed it was unlikely Oscar would be able to have a good quality of life with just two front paws so Noel devised a way of attatching the prosthetic paws to Oscar's ankles. The operation was three hours long and used cutting edge implants which were developed by the University College London.

The implants enable Oscar to do all the things that cats love... walk, climb and run but unfortunately they are not suitable for outdoor life so he will be staying indoors for now.

See Oscar on the first episode of a new BBC show called The Bionic Vet.

WHALING BAN STAYS!

After two days of talks in Agadir - Moscow, delegates from the IWC were unable to agree on a proposal which would see commercial whaling being legalised. Therefore the ban still stands. However, Japan, Iceland and Norway continue whaling outside the IWC sanctions.

Despite presentations by pro-whaling advocated the majority were not convinced by their arguments that killing whales via commercial whaling was acceptable. It has also been rejected that quotas be given whilst the ban still stands. (Quotas meaning the amount of whales killed)

Australia and the Latin America countries were clear in their opposition and after weeks of uncertainly the EU took a strong position and rejected the proposed deal but is still willing to negotiate. The pro-deal advocates did not push their proposal to a vote so they didn’t risk being publicly rejected.

WDCS anticipated further discussions but calls on the world to realise that the old world view of whaling is over. Nicolas Entrup the spokesperson for WDCS in Agadir says “We now call on governments to work together to ensure the moratorium is implemented fully and effectively ending commercial, and so-called scientific whaling, which have no place in the 21st century. WDCS believes that the IWC has a strong future, but not one that legitimizes this cruel, unmanageable and unnecessary industry.”

The IWC meeting now continues and will now be looking at agenda items including a demand from Denmark that Greenland is allowed to expand it’s hunt to include 10 humpback whales per year.

WDCS Report
IFAW Report

Response from Caroline Spelman on The Badger Cull.

I received a response from Caroline Spelman regarding the Badger cull. It is always interesting to hear what your local MP may have to say about issues that concern you. Unfortunately I did not receive the response I wanted and I do feel that money seems to be Mrs Spelman's chief concern.

"Thank you for contacting me about bovine TB and badger culling. Bovine TB is one of the most serious diseases facing our livestock industry. Last year over 36,000 cattle were slaughtered and the annual costs of control measures reached £108.4m. Since 1997, around 250,000 cattle have been slaughtered at a total cost of over £600m. The emotional and financial toll on farmers is considerable, as underlined by a recent report by Farm Crisis Network.

As you are aware, the Government has committed that as part of a package of measures, it will introduce a carefully-managed and science-led policy of badger control in areas with high and persistent levels of bovine TB.

Please be assured that I am considering all the issues carefully, including the scientific evidence, to work out the detail of the package to ensure we get it right and we are looking at vaccine options as part of that package. I want to see healthy wildlife alongside healthy cattle.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Spelman"

50p for Two Clicks!

Are you on Facebook? If so then you can raise 50p for the Pedigree "We're For Dogs" campaign. Simply follow this link and click "Like". That's just two clicks! Each person that "Likes" the page will earn them 50p towards the campaign so if you share with your friends as well even better.

Today is the last day so please hurry!

Thank you.

Fluffy Friday #4

The Owl and the Pussycat.

This baby Tawny Owl accidentally fell into the lion enclosure at Paignton Zoo where Indu, the Asiatic Lion, lived. It was too dangerous for anyone to enter the enclosure to rescue the little owl but not to worry Indu wasn't the slightest bit interested in the owl and the little fellow later flew to safety.

Can you sign this petition please? #2

Please can you sign this petition forwarded to me on behalf of the Avaaz Foundation asking the International Whaling Commission to keep protecting whales? The IWC’s final vote on the proposal to legalise commercial whaling will be held in just one week so please take a minute to sign and forward to your friends!

Thank you.

Lush Anti Fox Hunting Adverts Banned.

Have you ever heard of Lush? If you haven't spotted one of their stores then I bet you will have wondered "What is that delicious smell?" as you inhale some of the delicious scents wafting out of their store in which unique fresh organic handmade cosmetics that are not tested on animals are sold. I will tell you more about the glorious Lush another time but I have been shocked to read that Lush's recent anti hunting campaign adverts have been banned by the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) due to a grand total of 129 complaints.

A leaflet by the Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) was distributed in Lush stores alongside a postcard by Lush inviting people to forward the postcard to their local police chiefs informing them that despite the hunting ban, people are still hunting.

Lush also held a sales promotion on their website for a Mrs Fox Bubble Bar in which 100% of the proceeds were given to the HSA. (Wow, why didn't I know about this?)

The ASA commented that the complainants raised a range of issued within the campaign including that it unfairly defamed hunts and hunters as well as implying that hunts were intentionally and regularly breaking the law. Also it was argued that the campaign inferred the Hunting Act was not properly enforced and people took particular offence to a claim that "hunting hounds usually lead short lives and are often killed and fed back to the pack" as allegedly this could not be substantiated. Three specific complaints were upheld by the ASA who said there was not enough robust evidence to support the claims that hunts were intentionally and frequently breaking the law, the Hunting Act was not being properly enforced and that hunting hounds were fed back to the pack.

(Fox hunting with dogs is banned so surely if you continue to hunt you are intentionally breaking the law?)

Lush said it regularly undertook animal welfare campaigns and aimed to raise awareness of the 2004 Hunting Act and highlight alleged breaches of the act and its perceived limitations. Also the campaign did not use any graphic or shocking images, bad language or demeaning or abusive names, and believed that customers were unlikely to find the advertising offensive. For Lush's full response to the ASA please take a look here.

I know whose side I'm on. Have a look at some of Lush's gorgeous products which, I repeat, are NOT tested on animals.

Original Article.

Related Article.

Whale poo helps combat Global Warming!

According to an article on the BBC News website, sperm whale faeces help oceans absorb CO2.

The article in short...

Researchers from Australia have calculated that Southern Ocean sperm whales release approximately 50 tonnes of iron each year in their fecal matter. The iron stimulates the growth of phytoplankton (tiny plants and the basis of the marine food web) which absorbs CO2 during photosynthesis. This process results in the absorption of around 400,000 tonnes of carbon which is over twice as much carbon as whales release when breathing.

The process also provides more food for the whales as the growth of phytoplankton is limited by the amount of nutrients available which includes iron.

Read the whole article here.

Help the Loggerhead Sea Turtle

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico continues to cause serious damage to animals such as sea turtles, sperm whales, dolphins, brown pelicans, Atlantic bluefin tuna to name a few and has damaged entire ecosystems.

I had a message from Jamie Rappaport Clark, the Executive Vice President of the Defenders of Wildlife informing me that imperiled loggerhead sea turtles are the most visible victims of the disaster as they were in trouble before the incident occured. The number of females nesting on beaches in Florida has declined by 50% in the past year. Both scientists and government officials have flagged this up asking what could this mean for the future of the loggerhead. The National Marine Fisheries Service is proposing to upgrade protection from threatened to endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

The oil spill has happened at a crucial time for the loggerhead turtle as they are currently at the peak of their nesting season. This is also the case for other sea turtles and shore birds. As you can imagine, oil is extremely toxic and dangerous to animals. Exposure to this can cause skin loss, poisoning, drowning and ultimately death. The worlds second largest nesting area of the loggerhead is on the beaches of south east USA and this area is expected to be threatened by the oil slick depending on how much of the slick is picked up by the Loop Current. The Loop Current is a powerful current which may bring the oil slick around the south and through the coral reef and mangrove areas then into the Gulf Stream and up to the East Coast of Florida.

How to Help?

Click on this link in order to contact the National Marine Fisheries Service to ensure that loggerheads are protected under the Endangered Species Act. When you come to enter your postcode the website won't recognise anything non-American or Canadian so enter 10242 instead (The New York zip code) and then the message will send.

Back off Badgers!

I had a message from the RSPCA this morning about a potential badger cull in England. The cull is an attempt from the government to control bovine TB. The cull is mentioned in the government coalition document where it states that "the government will undertake action against bovine TB on a science based approach".

What is Bovine TB (bTB)?

There are several reasons why a cull of badgers is not the way forward.

Following a ten year study, the latest science shows that a badger cull would have to exist over a very large area and virtually wipe out the badger population over a number of years in order to achieve ANY reduction in bovine TB.

The study also shows that a cull in a local area increases bovine TB in the cattle based in the surrounding areas and actually achieves a limited reduction in the targeted area. Basically science has shown that culling badgers has only a limited benefit in small areas or in areas where there is not a complete cull. Therefore the benefit is outweighed by the increase in bovine TB elsewhere.

How to Help
Contact your MP by following this link which will direct you to the RSPCA Campaign site and enter your details. If you have time please make a few additions to the e-mail they have already prepared and let your MP know what you think about this issue. The website also allows you to share the campaign on Facebook and Twitter as well as forwarding to a friend.

The badger cull was last under discussion back in 2006. Over 47,000 people responded to the governments proposal and stated that they did not want the cull to go ahead. The government then looked into other ways of combating bovine TB and one of the suggested alternatives, badger vaccination, was due to begin in June. If the badger cull does go ahead it would be difficult to measure which method, badger vaccination or a badger cull affected changes in the disease patterns.

Fluffy Friday #3

Pigs might swim!My boyfriend showed me a website featuring the most unusual holidays and guess what we came across :-)

Action Alert: Whaling

It's been a while since I posted some campaigns and action alerts so here is a call for help from the Humane Society of the US asking for people to assist them in contacting President Obama and asking him to make the moratorium on commercial whaling stronger as the current plan being considered by the International Whaling Commission which would give approval to Japan, Norway and Iceland participating in commercial whaling.

If you follow this link it will take you to a ready prepared e-mail but you may need to spend a bit of extra time on this one as the HSUS ask you to add your own comments.

Here are some suggested additions:

The proposal will not save whales--it will kill them.

It will allow whaling in the Antarctic Southern Ocean Sanctuary.

It will stimulate new whaling markets rather than close out struggling subsidized industries.

The proposal is not based on sound science. The quota numbers used are based on politics.

The proposal does not address animal welfare issues.

The proposal was developed using a process that prevented civil society from having any input or role in the negotiations.

I had a bit of trouble with the link so if it doesn't work please e-mail me at the.animal.news@googlemail.com and let me know and I'll direct you to the page another way.

Spotlight on Leona Lewis

Last night I went to see Leona Lewis, the 2006 winner of X Factor and a long time heroine of mine. Not only has she got a beautiful voice and masses of talent but she is a shy yet strong, unassuming, modest woman with a fierce love for animals. The show was fantastic and at the beginning it featured a video of her on a beautiful white horse which was just stunning.

An example of Leona's conscience and love of animals was highlighted perfectly back in October 2008 when Mohamed Al Fayed offered her $1 million to open the Harrods sale. Leona turned down this offer because Harrods stocks clothes made from real animal fur. She later told The Big Issue magazine "I got a lot of flak for that. There were people who said I should have done it and given the money to charity, but that would have been such a contradiction."

Leona was PETA's Person of the Year in 2008 and also a supporter of World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA).

[Leona in her own words]

Don't mention the F word

There is currently a very disturbing story in the news about an alleged fox attack on two nine month old twins in Hackney. It is a very unfortunate and upsetting incident for all concerned. Obviously I sincerely hope the little girls make a full and speedy recovery and the family as a whole can move on from this awful occurrence.

As I suspected when I first heard the story there is now something of a backlash against foxes. I have read various statements from experts and concluded that shocking incidents like this are incredibly rare and that actually foxes are shy animals. I hate to say this but I suspect the media have wildly exaggerated the story for sensationalism, the screaming headlines are now even mentioning a cull which in my opinion is not at all necessary.

Here are some of the more interesting articles:

Telegraph

Would fox hunting have stopped such an attack?

League Against Cruel Sports Blog

What do the wildlife experts say?

What do the general public think

Countryfile: Dairy Farming

I watched an episode of Countryfile on BBC One on Sunday evening, I've watched a few episodes before but this particularly sparked my interest. Not only was the Devon scenery beautiful, there was an investigation into the dairy industry by John Craven who in particular looks at the practice of killing male calves and goats at birth and asks if there is an alternative. I found it difficult to watch, especially as the report was illustrated by images of newborn goats looking absolutely adorable. However, I am glad I did see it through to the end as it was so informative and has made me think.

Each year thousands of male calves, lambs and goat kids are killed because they are male and they can't be used for their milk and their meat is not seen as a high enough quality. Some sectors are making efforts to stop calves being killed shortly after birth but unfortunately it is still a real problem for goats and sheep.

Watch it here. (Limited time only)

For more information I suggest you visit Compassion in World Farming which highlights many important issues.

Within the episode there is also an interesting report on micro pigs. They are undoubtedly adorable but I haven't made my mind up about whether or no it is cruel to breed them so small.

Animals in the News.

Clever dolphin uses iPad to communicate.



"Worlds Ugliest Dog" has died. (I think she was adorable)



How do animals cross the road?

Fluffy Friday #2

Me and my sister had a lovely surprise on Wednesday when we walked through the bluebell woods and up to the lake...

Ducklings! I took lots of pictures and just had to make them this weeks Fluffy Friday.

Isn't it lovely how they line up behind Mum!

My New Friend.

I have a new friend. A tiny blue tit has been sitting on my window sill at work each day and peering in at me. The window sill is very narrow but big enough for this little fellow. It's such a privilege to see him each day. My Nan gave me some raisins for him and he was back briefly this morning to help himself to the few I had scattered.

More about Blue Tit.

(Image from Google, at some point I hope to be able to get a picture of him for you)

Can you sign this petition please?

Do you have a minute to sign this petition against the Conservatives repealing the Fox Hunting Ban? It is important that we show the Prime Minister just how many of us are against this cruel sport. If you do sign, please then click the button underneath to share the petition with your friends on Facebook and/or Twitter.

Talking of foxes, do any of you in the UK watch Springwatch on BBC 2? If you watched it last night you would have seen the images and videos of the rare black fox. It was fascinating. Springwatch are asking people to keep a look out for any black foxes they happen to see and try to take a picture or video and send it to them here.