The Pigs Directive

Source: HSI

Back in 2001 a Directive was adopted in the EU to ban individual sow stalls in order to improve the welfare of pigs by moving all breeding pigs into group housing systems.  The ban on individual sow stalls is due to come into force on 1st January 2013.  This is under a year away and many pig producers have much to do before the ban begins.

Individual sow stalls restricts the movement of sows in such a way that they are unable to turn around for their entire pregnancy (four months).  HSI tells us; 

"These intelligent, inquisitive animals are practically immobilised, unable to express their natural range of complex social, foraging, and exploratory behaviour. The barren stalls also lead to behavioural and health problems such as bar biting, foot and leg disorders, and infections."

If this legislation is properly implemented the lives of thousands of pigs can be improved enormously, please sign this petition addressing Commissioner Dalli urging him to ensure this Directive is fully implemented throughout the EU in good time BEFORE the deadline.

Please tell your friends on Facebook and Twitter and encourage them to sign the petition as well.

Thank you!

Oscar's Law

Oscar, image from Oscar's Law.

I love Twitter.  It is such a wealth of information, it was through a contact on Twitter that I found out about Oscar's Law.

Oscar's Law is a campaign in glorious Australia, looking to change the way that animals are kept, bred and sold.  Oscar's Law is clearly telling the Australian Government "we do not want companion animals factory farmed anymore" and "we no longer want the pet industry to mislead us about what is acceptable for our animals."

Oscar is one of the dogs rescued from a puppy factory in Central Victoria, the puppies were severely neglected and required urgent veterinary care.  They were treated for severe matting, ear infections, gum disease, rotten teeth, abscesses and malnourishment.  Sadly, after recovering from surgery Oscar was returned to the puppy farm and the farm was never charged with cruelty despite neglecting all their dogs.  

Thankfully, thanks to 18 months of tireless work by dedicated people Oscar was liberated and is now receiving the love and care he previously lacked and is learning to live a full life as a dog, not a machine.

This campaign is in memory of all the "Oscars" hidden away on puppy farms and treated as machines to supply the pet industry.

Please sign the petition, and tell the Australian Government that factory farming of companion animals will not be tolerated and that we no longer want the pet industry to mislead us about what is acceptable for our pets.

Check out the website and see what else you can do to help the cause, if you are an Australian resident you will also be able to contact Government representatives in your local area.

Don't forget to tell your friends about Oscar's Law on Facebook and Twitter!

Thank you from all the Oscar's out there.

Puppy Farming Petition: Deadline 10th January (Tomorrow!)

{Source: Dog's Trust}

A Twitter friend posted a link to this petition asking Camarthenshire County Council to reject planning permission for a puppy farm in Wales.  The deadline for the petition to have over 1,000 signatures in tomorrow 10th January.  Please sign the petition and ask your friends to do the same.

Puppy farming is a serious issue that needs to be addressed.  

In puppy farms dogs are often kept in cramped, disgusting conditions without adequate exercise or social stimulation (this means no cuddles or even a friendly pat on the head) they are forced to repeatedly become pregnant and give birth which causes numerous physical problems as well as mental anguish.  The physical problems and mental anguish are often ignored as the sole focus for the owner is more puppies = more profit.

The breeding bitches lack adequate veterinary care due to the cost and most puppy farm owners feel they have the knowledge to recognise and subsequently deal with problems, even though this is not the case. 

Puppy farm puppies in most cases develop physical problems due to the conditions they are kept in as well as behavioural problems due to them being removed from their mother too early.  Research shows that puppies develop better if they remain with their mother until at least 8 weeks of age.  The puppies often end up in a pet shop or are offered for sale at around 6 weeks of age, this ultimately results in them developing behavioural problems due to poor socialisation such as lack of social skills with humans and other animals and fear aggression.  Many are eventually euthanised as a result of these problems.

We have enough unwanted dogs in the UK desperately needing homes, without selfish, money grabbing individuals using and abusing dogs and subjecting them to a life time of misery, for the sole purpose of making money.

Fantastic post by Marc Abraham on puppy farms and other dog matters.

Also check out my blog post back in November about the puppy trade in Ireland.

Please sign the petition and do tell your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

Thank you.

BUAV calls for Parliamentary debate on animal experiments

{Image Source}

After working with MPs over the last few months BUAV has reported that animal testing is an issue that concerns both politicians and the public.  Because of this BUAV has launched a Government e-petition calling for a Parliamentary debate on animal experiments in order for the views of MPs and their constituents can be heard.  

In 2010 the UK reached a 25 year high by using over 3.6 million animals in experiments.

(Figure taken from BUAV)

The Government are currently considering its approach to three important aspects of animal testing:

• Adopting a new EU Directive on animal experiments into the UK law.
• A plan to accomplish the Governments pledge to reduce the use of animals in scientific research
• The Government’s position on a possible delay to the 2013 deadline for the EU marketing ban on new animal tested cosmetics.

If you are a UK resident, please spare a moment to sign this petition calling on the Government to hold a Parliamentary debate.  Once you have signed the petition, please share this with your friends and family.

If you are not a UK resident then you can still help by letting any of your friends or family in the UK know about this by sharing this on Facebook and Twitter.

Thank you.

Please help stray dogs in Romania

Not long ago I posted about dogs in Ukraine being poisoned in order to combat the overpopulation of stray dogs on the streets.  Ukraine isn’t the only country with a large number of stray animals, according to Care2, Romania also shares this concern.  

Luckily, there are some organisations in Romania that are attempting to help the stray animals but unfortunately their funding is limited which means they are also limited as to what they can do.

This means that change needs to come for the law.  Please spare a small amount of time to click on this link and sign the petition urging the Romanian government to update and enforce modern animal welfare laws in their country.

Please also share this action with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

Thank you.

Nothing Super about ITVs Tiny Animal show

{Source}

I am glad that I stopped by the coldwetnose blog to see this post about an ITV show entitled Super Tiny Animals.  

Super Tiny Animals was billed as being about the trend for micro pets throughout the UK and US in recent years.  The time ITV chose to air the show (Wednesday, 30th November from 7.30pm - 8.30pm) was a cause for concern due to its close proximity to Christmas and early broadcast time meaning children would more than likely watch the show.  The concern was mainly that the show would glorify "handbag dogs" and had the potential to encourage viewers into want to buy a "handbag dog" or perhaps a micro pig for Christmas, without considering the responsibility and commitment of pet ownership.  This could lead to the animal ending up in a rescue centre in the New Year.  

The Blue Cross said in a statement that they had seen the number of so-called "handbag dogs" coming into the charity TRIPLE in the past five years.

Despite the concerned e-mails from organisations such as the Kennel Club, the Blue Cross, the Dogs Trust and the BVA sent to ITV they chosen not to respond and to air the show regardless.  In addition, ITV also chose to edit out TV vet Marc Abraham's segment on puppy farming which would have provided some much needed balance to the show.

As shown here on coldwetnose ITV did respond to one complaint from a concerned dog lover, with a vague message not really addressing the questions asked.  


Back in October there was an interesting article on "handbag dogs" in the Telegraph newspaper which you may want to check out.

In order for ITV to take our concerns seriously more of us need to make complaints.  If you want to watch Super Tiny Animals before sending a complaint you can do so for a short amount of time here at ITV Player.

Please direct your complaint to viewerservices@itv.com and make a complaint on the Ofcom website too.  Please remember to be polite and to the point and please let myself or the coldwetnose blog know if you receive a response!  (I will add the wording of my e-mail here at some point should you wish to refer to it as a guide).


Don't forget to tell your friends, the more the merrier!

Joining forces for people and dogs

The

Happy December!

The RSPCA have joined forces with 19 organisations all in agreement that the UK government must do something about the irresponsible owners of dogs who are considered dangerous.  This 20-strong partnership including organisations such as the Dogs Trust, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, the Police Federation and the Royal Mail Group are urging the government to consider the following laws:

·   Ensure dog owners take responsibility for their pet’s behaviour

·   Improve both public safety and animal welfare

·   Require micro-chipping for all dogs

·   Increase education and engagement to prevent problems.

The measures listed about are aiming to protect people and dogs and could save the country around £75 million a year in health costs.

Please sign this petition on Prime Minister David Cameron’s official website which could ignite a debate in the House of Commons.  

The RSPCA are aiming for 100,000 signatures so please share this with your friends on Facebook and Twitter as much as you can.

Thank you.

Dogs being killed in Ukraine for the sake of football

{Image from HSI}

Humane Society International report that dogs who live on the streets of Ukraine are unfortunately being poisoned in a misguided effort to remove them from the streets in time for the Euro 2012 football tournament. Meat laced with poison is left out for the dogs resulting in a prolonged and painful death for thousands of dogs.

For over 20 years HSI has helped provide successful and life saving solutions to end the overpopulation of dogs throughout the world.  Although HIS has contacted Ukranian officials suggesting they work together in a humane approach to controlling the street dog population, no response has been received.

The overpopulation of dogs around the world can be humanely managed through spay & neuter campaigns, as well as the provision of rabies vaccinations, veterinary training and the education of communities in order to help change attitudes and behaviour towards vulnerable animals.

Please spare a moment of your time to click on this link and contact the President of Ukraine what poisoning the dogs is not the answer and this suffering must stop now.  

It is more likely that your message will be read if you amend it slightly as if they keep receiving the same message that HSI has prepared it is likely they will ignore or delete it.  If you don’t have time to change the message then amending the subject title works too.  In my message I have added, quite truthfully, that during Euro 2012 I shall be thinking of the dogs instead of football.

One Way Ticket, or 8 Hours Mark II

Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) is running a movement echoing that of the 8 Hours campaign conveying dismay at the immense suffering millions of animals endure whilst being transported across Europe, they have entitled the campaign One Way Ticket.

The CIWF website provides a link to the European Commission’s new report on the protection of live animals during transport and notes that it does not recommend any changes to the current legislation.  Read the report here.

The current legislation (Regulation 1/2005 on the protection of animals during transport) points out that “Long journeys are likely to have more detrimental effects on the welfare of animals than short ones” and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) released a scientific opinion this year which said transport of live animals, where possible should be avoided. (Taken from the CIWF website)

CIWF points out that although the report recognises parts of legislation are “not in line with current scientific knowledge” and that making sure the regulations are followed by members of the EU is a “major challenge” it does not propose any amendments to the legislation.

Read more…

Write to your MEP urging them to ask Commissioner John Dalli to recognise that a limit must be placed on the journey times animals are enduring and that the law is strongly enforced in every member state. (The link will take you to a readily prepared message)

Write to your MP asking for UK Parliament to update the law to allow British ports to ban cruel trades on the grounds of animal welfare and to amend the existing legislation in order to bring it up to date. (The link will take you to a readily prepared message)

Please note:  Like the 8 Hours campaign, the actions involving writing to MP’s and MEP’s are only for UK residents but the CIWF website has some advice for how you can help too and please do follow the actions below.

Sign the petition calling for the Government to take action to end live exports. (You can sign this no matter where you live)

Sign the 8 hours petition if you haven’t already.

Sign up for e-mail updates from CIWF

Join CIWF on Facebook

Join the Facebook page run by Ian Driver a local councillor who is trying to end live exports through the port of Ramsgate.

Only buy organic milk and dairy products and encourage your family and friends to do the same.

Support Kent Action Against Live Exports (KAALE) and their monthly demos on transport.

That's enough for you to be getting on with but if you have any more time to spare please remember to share this with your friends!

Thank you.

Stop the puppy trade in Ireland

Four Paws reports that due to a loophole in the Irish legal system, traders are able to breed alleged pedigree puppies in appalling conditions without being punished.  

The conditions they are kept in involve dogs and puppies being crammed into secluded outbuildings so that neighbours don’t hear their barks or smell the filthy surroundings they are forced to endure.  Shockingly, female dogs are forced to breed continuously with only the minimum amount of food and water necessary to keep them alive.  This results in a life of sleeping, eating, defecating, urinating, mating and giving birth in the same filthy conditions.

If dogs can no longer breed they are disposed of.

Life is grim for the puppies once they are born, although they should remain with their mothers for the first eight weeks of their lives they are removed at the earliest opportunity and kept in equally disgusting conditions.  The puppies may eventually find loving homes but due to the neglect suffered after birth most will have long term health and behavioural problems.

Four Paws estimates that at least 50,000 farmed puppies are trafficked from Ireland to England each year.

Please spare a moment to sign the online petition which will be delivered to the UK government calling for the compulsory micro chipping of puppies and tightening of dog breeding legislation. 

Please tell your friends, the more signatures we can get the more difference this will make.

Thank you.

8 Hours Campaign

The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) reports that millions of farm animals suffer from heat stress, disease and overcrowding whilst enduring transportation across long distances in Europe in hot, cramped and soiled cages with little food, water or rest.  Once they reach the end of their journey they are slaughtered.

WSPA states that live animals for slaughter should never be transported for more than 8 hours.

Please sign this petition to support the 8 Hours campaign and ask the European Commission to enforce legalisation preventing any farm animal from enduring more than 8 hours of transportation. 

WSPA hopes to reach 1 Million signatures by 5th January 2012.

Once you have signed the petition, please continue to make a difference by sharing the news on Facebook and Twitter encouraging your friends to do the same.

Thank you

Animals in Japan need our help.

Source.

The coldwetnose blog brought Mayhew International’s campaign to my attention.  

Taken from Mayhew International’s website:  Mayhew International works to promote companion animal welfare and the humane management of homeless cats and dogs through a network of community animal care initiatives. Our work with vets interested in this area of animal welfare has a special significance for international development, benefiting communities in developing countries, many of whom rely on their animals for support.

In March this year Japan suffered the most powerful earthquake since records began, this subsequently triggering an huge tsunami.  The earthquake reached a magnitude of 8.9 on the Richter scale and has caused mass death and destruction.  A state of emergency was declared at the Fukushima nuclear power plant after the disaster caused pressure to exceed normal levels.  

Eight months on from the disaster Mayhew International reports that the situation in Japan is still chaotic especially for the animals in the region.  Months ago when people were ordered to vacate the area 20km around the Fukushima nuclear power plant they were told they could not take their animals with them and would only be absent for a few days, which wasn’t the case as people have been absent for a lot longer.  Animals were left inside houses and yards and livestock were left in small pens with only a few days worth of food and water.  Some animal groups managed to get around the barriers and reach some animals, although sadly many animals have died due to starvation and dehydration.  Now there is a threat that the evacuation zone will be extended to 30km and authorities have again informed people they will not be able to take pets with them when they are evacuated.

Mayhew International is urging us to join them in pressuring the Japanese government to set aside housing which allows pets to stay with their owners. 

This action is slightly more taxing and will involve time and a slight expense however I am sure you will agree of the worthy cause.  

Please print off several copies of this petition (PDF) and get as many people as you can to sign and post them all together to the following people and addresses:

Mr. Ryu Matsumoto, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, 1-6-1 Nagata-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8914

Mr. Yorihisa Matsuno, The Democratic Party of Japan, #240 House of Representatives, 2-1-2 Nagata-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8982

Mr. Kouriki Jojima, The Democratic Party of Japan, 2-27 Miyamoto-cho, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa 210-0004

Due to the chaos in Japan it will be a good idea to send the post by express mail to ensure it reaches there safely.  People have been sending these petitions for quite sometime already and it has made a slight difference with the government allowing people back to collect their pets, although an update back in May states there is still a problem with animals being allowed into the evacuation centres and as yet there seems to be no news on the facilities available for animals so it is still well worth reminding the government that they do need to make provisions.

Please join Mayhew International’s Facebook page for all further news and updates. 

Working together with Mayhew is the Animal Rescue Kansai (ARK) organisation, so check out how you can help at their website.

Thank you.

Lunch Time Links #2

RELAX - it’s lunch time!  

How about checking out these links and making a difference whilst you eat your sandwiches?

Save the Mekong Dolphin from Extinction

Stop the devious import of cat and dog fur into Canada

Come on, we're almost there!

The Pedigree Adoption Drive has now raised nearly £90,000 and are so close to their goal of £100,000.  Every time you get a space moment please take Ripley for a walk around the web, this raises £1 for the cause - and you can walk him as many times as you like.  

Lunch Time Links #1

How do you spend your lunch time?  

I work in an office and like to get some fresh air at lunch time.  If I’m not nipping back home to pay a visit to Suki, I usually take my book and go outside into the park and eat my lunch under a tree (surrounded by hungry squirrels and pigeons).  If I’m back a bit early I’ll have a quick look online. 

Some of my colleagues stay in the office and browse the net throughout lunch, this gave me an idea.  If you can spare just 5 minutes at lunch time to make a few useful clicks it would really make a difference.  By useful clicks, I mean click on some provided links directing you to petitions, enter your name and e-mail address, possibly a comment and hit submit.  After you have confirmed your signature you’re all done!  

If you can then spare an extra minute to share the action you have taken on Facebook and/or Twitter it will make even more of a difference!

The more actions you take, the less time it will take you as your computer will remember the information you enter and save you even more time.

So, here are your first Lunch Time Links:

Ask President Obama for a National Adopt a Shelter Pet day

Save Sumatran Tigers from Extinction

Rhinos in South Africa Under Threat ~ Please Act Now.

Source.

Rhinos in South Africa are under threat and needing our help due to a rise in demand for rhino horn in the illegal Chinese medicine trade.  Earlier in October HSI delivered a petition containing 31,000 signatures to the South African authorities.  The government has now launched an official consultation prompting HSI to ask for our help in convincing them that the protection of the declining population of rhinos is vital.

 

HSI reports that in South Africa alone (home to 70% of the world's remaining rhinos) 333 rhinos were killed in 2010 by poachers, this number is expected to exceed to over 400 by the end of this year and South Africa continues to issue permits to trophy hunters allowing rhinos to be shot legally.  Almost 150 permits have been issued this year, so far.

Even though it was suggested by the government that a suspension on hunting be considered, no action has been taken as yet and the public consultation just published neglects to mention introducing this measure.

The deadline for our comments is Sunday 30th October which leaves us very little time, we need to act immediately.  Please follow this link to be taken to the HSI site where you can enter a few details to the readily prepared correspondence to the South African Government.

Thank you.