Month: October 2004

Virgin Atlantic Asked to Stop Transportation of Hunting Rifles

A number of animal rights groups, including the UK’s League Against Cruel Sports and the US-based Kinship Circle are trying to convince Virgin Atlantic to ban the transportation of sports rifles.

In a press release on the campaign, LACS’ Annette Crosbie said

Given the steps Sir Richard Branson has taken to protect wildlife on Virgin Group properties in Britain and South Africa, allowing sports rifles to be carried by the airline he founded could be viewed as verging on the hypocritical.

Crosbie is alluding to a wildlife preserve that Branson owns where hunting is not allowed.

Kinship Circle distributed a sample letter to Branson which read, in part,

UK and EU hunters annually decimate thousands of endangered animals to import their body parts for ornamental use on walls of boardrooms and living rooms. Trophy hunters typically prefer to bag “prizes” with their own weapons.

These powerful rifles do not belong on airplanes — whether they will be used to gun down animals or commit some other form of violence. Please consider security issues, as well as your apparent concern for wildlife.

Both Kinship Circle and the League Against Cruel Sports make much of the fact that Ryanair and BMI Baby have both agreed not to transport hunting rifles. Of course the issue is practically moot for both airlines since they are small carriers who provide service only within western Europe.

Sources:

Ask UK airline to ban trophy hunt rifles. Kinship Circle, September 27, 2004.

Richard Branson urged to “take the thrill out of the kill”. Press Release, League Against Cruel Sports, August 2004.

PETA Launches "Turn In Your Tackle" Campaign

In September, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals launched a new “Turn In Your Tackle” campaign in an effort to convince people to abandon fishing.

In a press release announcing the new campaign, PETA said,

. . . Fish deserve compassion just as all animals do. They are intelligent and they experience pain and suffering every bit as much as any dog or cat. We’re calling on people to send us their old poles, tackle, and other fishing gear so that we can use it in our demonstrations and other Fish Empathy Project endeavors.

. . .

Donate Today!

You can make sure that Grandpa’s old fishing rod won’t cause any more pain and suffering. Donate your (and his) fishing rods and reels to PETA! Just like the fur coats that we collect, your donation of fishing gear will help with our educational displays and anti-fishing demonstrations around the world.

Source:

“Turn In Your Tackle!” People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, September 2004.

CITES Lifts Hunting Ban on Black Rhinos

As recently as the mid-1990s, there were only an estimated 2,400 black rhinos in the wild, down from a high of about 65,000 in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Conservation efforts over the past decade have increased the black rhinos numbers to an estimated 3,600 to 11,000 animals.

With the resurgence in numbers, South Africa and Namibia have been pushing to re-open very limited trophy hunting of the black rhinos, and in October the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species agreed to both country’s proposals to resume extremely limited hunting of black rhinos.

Both South African and Namibia requested annual quotas of five black rhinos. Both countries believe they will be able to sell the right to kill the small number of rhinos for tens of thousands of dollars per animal which they will be able to use to help fund their conservation efforts. Both countries say that they will restrict hunters to killing older, non-breeding males to avoid any long-term impact on the size of the black rhino herds.

Still, animal rights activists and environmentalists complained that even a very small hunt is likely to encourage potential poachers. Jason Bell-Leask of the International Fund for Animal Welfare told Reuters,

We know rhinos are still being poached for their horns and the poachers are indiscriminate, so we think this proposal sends out the wrong signal.

Sources:

Limited rhino hunt allowed in SA, Namibia. Afrol News, October 4, 2004.

African nations seek to end black rhino hunting ban. Stuff (New Zealand), September 20, 2004.

Global ban on black rhino hunt is eased. Reuters, October 4, 2004.

Animal Rights Groups Try to Stop Beef Bet

Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry and Texas Governor Rick Perry have been making friendly wagers over the outcome of the annual OU-Texas football game for the past few years. This year, however, Henry’s plan to bet a side of beef was met with complaints from animal rights activists who suggested that the governors should bet vegetarian fare rather than beef.

Vegetarians of Oklahoma and the Vegetarian Network of Austin, Texas, issued a joint statement asking the governors “to modify the annual wager between them regarding the outcome of OU-Texas football game so that the losing side of the wager provide to the victors a meal of State-grown organic produce and grains.”

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals could not resist getting in on the publicity, of course, and Bruce Friedrich told the Oklahoman, “Betting a side of beef is the wrong move in every way.”

Oklahoma ended up beating Texas 12-0, so Perry will be sending along a side of beef to Oklahoma for the second year in a row.

Sources:

Governors bet beef on OU-Texas game. Associated Press, October 6, 2004.

Governor to bet beef despite protests. Associated Press, October 6, 2004.

Governors urged not to bet beef. The Oklahoman, October 6, 2004.

Red River groundout. Sports Illustrated, October 9, 2004.

USDA Files Complaint Against University of California at San Francisco Over Treatment of Animals

U.S. Department of Agriculture filed a complaint against the University of California at San Francisco in late August, charging the university with at least 60 violations of the Animal Welfare Act between 2001 and 2003.

In its 18 page complaint, the USDA charges ranged from failing to provide post-operative anesthesia to failing to properly clean cages. A UCSF spokesman told the San Francisco Chronicle that the complaint appeared to be a compilation of citations the university had received during its biannual USDA inspections.

The UCSF filed a response to the complaint in October denying almost all of the charges made by the USDA. In a press release, the UCSF said,

The University questions the timing of the Complaint, which is a compilation of citations issued by a local USDA inspector during inspections at UCSF between May 2001 and February 2003 — nearly two, to three-and-a-half-years, ago. All of the allegations were addressed by UCSF at the time and, where appropriate, remedial measures were implemented. Corrective actions were reported back to the USDA or verified by the USDA at its subsequent inspection. The USDA has so far failed to explain why it has issued an aggregate Complaint at this time.

The University notes that the number of allegations contained in the USDA Complaint is misleading. The local inspector reported 26 citations for the May 2001-Feb. 2003 period. However, the Complaint, issued from Washington, DC, was structured in such a way that most of the citations were restated multiple times, under different categories, raising the total number of allegations to 61.

In its report on the legal action, The San Francisco Chronicle, repeated a false claim by In Defense of Animals that the USDA charged UCSF with performing a craniotomy on a primate without using anesthesia. In fact, the complaint alleges that the primates were not given post-operative analgesics. The UCSF responded to that particular complaint by claiming that post-operative analgesics were only withheld for clinical reasons.

The full complaint by the USDA can be read here (PDF).

Sources:

U.S. agency cites UCSF for abuses of animals. Julian Guthrie, San Francisco Chronicle, September 15, 2004.

USDA files animal welfare charges against leading research facility. Press Release, In Defense of Animals, September 15, 2004.

Ringling Bros. Vandalized; PETA's Requests Investigation of Circus After Death of Horse

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus’ appearance in Grand Rapids, Michigan in early October was marked by the unfortunate death of a horse and vandalism of the arena the circus appeared at as well as of circus property.

A 14-year-old palomino gelding died after it was charged by a stallion while the horses were being unloaded from a train. According to the Grand Rapids Press, an autopsy showed that the palomino suffered a ruptured vena cava blood vessel from the stallion’s charge.

That didn’t stop People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals from asking Kent County Animal Control to investigate the death and the circus further for possible animal welfare violations. The agency declined to pursue such an investigation. Sarah Houwerzyl, kennel supervisor for the Kent County Health Department animal shelter, told the Grand Rapid Press,

We can do one [an investigation] if we feel it’s necessary, but I don’t see any reason for it in this situation. It seems to be a very unusual thing and, by and large, circuses take good care of their animals because they know they’re intensely scrutinized and they know the stakes in it.

The Grand Rapids Press noted that Houwerzyl did perform a routine inspection of the animals and found no problems.

After the circus finished its run, Grand Rapids Police officials called in the FBI to investigate acts of vandalism directed at the circus and the Van Andel Arena where the circus performed. According to the Grand Rapids Press, a glass door and two parking booths at the arena were damaged and graffiti was painted on the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The Michigan Independent Media Center site contained a message purportedly from those who committed the vandalism which read,

Insane Asylum
Animals in their Cages
Sleep, Eat, Pace, Eat, Sleep

For a real circus
you look at the audience
Insane Asylum”
Lysandra

In Grand Rapids, MI Saturday October 2nd, a group of concerned humanimals acted instinctively, but not without premeditation, to expose the oppression of once wild beings who are now caged, starved, taunted, rode, beaten and otherwise forced into obedience by the slaveholders that are the circus and its trainers.

The tired old tactics of humanitarian pacifism has lost its bite, that is why we chose property destruction, because it hurts. You can’t argue naturalness, respect and compassion to those whose heart is a wallet and the depth of their conscience is synonymous with the depth of their bank accounts. Bite deep, lock your jaw and they might feel entrapped.

We backed up toilets with sponge, superglued locks, etched circus truck windows, and smashed windows in Van Andel, and painted circus traincars. All agents in animal imprisonment and torture are appropriate targets and Van Andel is no exception. Maybe they will think twice before hosting a violent circus of slaves.

Sources:

GRPD and FBI investigating circus vandalism case. Wood TV 8, October 2004.

Animal control officials see no abuse in circus horse’s death. Nate Reens and Sue Merrell, The Grand Rapids Press, October 2, 2004.