Talk Back: Stop Fighting

On the heels of last week's dogfighting sting, members of The HSUS's Emergency Services team are working with staff from the Humane Society of Missouri and other groups to care for more than 400 dogs at an emergency shelter in St. Louis. It was the largest one-day coordination of raids in U.S. history, and the perpetrators are likely to be charged under the upgraded federal animal fighting law that The HSUS steered to passage. The dogs will soon be evaluated to determine whether they are suitable candidates for placement with rescue groups or permanent adoption, in accordance with HSUS policy.

© The HSUS

In our efforts to keep the pressure on animal fighters, we also this week announced a national tip line for information about persons involved in illegal animal fighting: 877-TIP-HSUS. Our rewards program (up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in dogfighting or cockfighting) and state-based tip lines have already dealt a major blow against these criminals, and this week we rolled out yet another tool in our campaign.

You had much to say about this eight-state raid and today I share some of your enthusiastic comments:

The people behind dogfighting should be held to the highest degree of accountability for their cruelty and malice. Thank you, HSUS, for not only freeing and protecting the dogs left in this cruelty's wake, but also for working to make laws and penalties for dogfighting strong and severe. —Alia

I just wanted to thank you guys sooo much for all of your hard work. I own, love and cherish my American pit bull terrier, and could never imagine my baby in a place like that. It breaks my heart. God bless all of you, and all of your hard work. —Christy

Huge applause to you for the work that you have done and continue to do. I could not stomach the thought of having to witness something so barbaric and I hope you take some relief with the forward steps you have taken. It’s people like you and causes like yours that make people like me happy to donate. You do the work that we wish we could do—but cannot. Keep up the good work and we'll keep up the donations to assist you whenever we can. —SK

This story is heartbreaking and at the same time heartwarming… Please keep speaking for the voiceless. Thank you. —Myriam Giovannini

Thank you so much for your courageous and lifesaving work. The horror within the dogfighting world is something the public needs to be educated on. Thank you for bringing this out in the open and hopefully bringing justice to the perpetrators. Unfortunately, the punishment they will receive (if any) will be mild in comparison to the pain and suffering they have caused these innocent animals. —Laurie Mitchell

Thank you for all that is being done to save these helpless dogs. Just look at their eyes. So empty of hope, and so longing for love. How can humans have such cold, cold hearts? —Shelley

Scotlund, Chris and ALL of you involved in this raid—THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. This cannot go on any longer and these criminals need to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. Every time I see those poor dogs with those HUGE collars and chains on I get so upset. It is just heartbreaking. Each and every one of you involved are so brave and you have my utmost respect. Words cannot express my heartfelt gratitude. May God bless all of you, the animals and may he keep all of you safe! —Karen Wagner

Once Bitten, Not Shy to Save Sharks

One thing that strikes me about the fight to stop animal cruelty is that it’s so easy—that being humane simply means choosing another product in the marketplace or an alternate hobby or form of recreation. We don’t see a loss in quality of life, our health, or a tougher economic circumstance when we act in a humane way.

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It’s hardly a sacrifice to choose a cloth coat or fake fur coat over a real fur. You can shoot an elephant with a camera rather than a high-powered firearm. It’s really not that tough to avoid products from factory farms when we have so many alternatives in the marketplace.

That’s why today’s front-page story in The Washington Post about people and sharks resonated so powerfully for me. The Post reported on a group of nine people—all of whom had been the victims of shark attacks—who were lobbying on Capitol Hill to protect sharks from human cruelty. The group was organized by the Pew Environment Group, and even though some are amputees or others who suffered grievous injuries while in waters inhabited by sharks, they cannot stand aside and be silent as people kill sharks for trophies, for their fins for shark fin soup, or for other pointless or questionable purposes. There are an estimated “successful” 100 million human attacks on sharks every year, and these people want to see the massacre stop.

Normally, we don’t have to forgive animals—because they cause us no harm. All we have to do is restrain ourselves from misusing our power over animals. Think puppy mills, dogfighting, seal killing, and so many other horrid abuses of animals. And it’s really no different when it comes to our campaigns against shark finning and shark killing contests.

I wouldn’t quarrel with people who harbored ill will toward animals who attacked them. But to see these people today advocate for animals, in spite of their experiences, is the best expression of the human spirit of goodness, charity, and selflessness.

If these individuals can do good for sharks, shouldn’t the rest of us do what we can to help animals who don’t bother us at all and simply want to be left alone or properly cared for?

Endangered Species Watch: Vegetarian Power Hitters

© shgmom56/Creative Commons

Prince Fielder sounds like the name of a baseball player who’s pretty good with the glove. Indeed, the first baseman for the Milwaukee Brewers isn’t too bad at scooping up ground balls or pulling a throw out of the dirt. But he’s best known as a terror at the plate—hitting more than .300 with 22 home runs and knocking in 78 runs in the first half of the Major League Baseball season, earning him a place on the National League All-Star roster.

And last night, the 6-foot, 270-pound first baseman cleaned up at the Home Run Derby that is the warm-up act for tonight’s All-Star Game in St. Louis. He won the competition, besting hometown favorite Albert Pujols of the Cardinals, and hitting the longest drive of the night (estimated at more than 500 feet).

He’s also an ethical vegetarian—converted after his wife shared Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin's bestselling book "Skinny Bitch" with him, and he read about the mistreatment of animals in agriculture.

There was speculation that his conversion to vegetarianism would sap his strength—that his wife’s act of giving him "Skinny Bitch" was like Delilah’s cutting off of Samson’s hair. But the fear proved unfounded, and Fielder has quieted the critics with his towering drives.

A Book to Cleanse Your Life

Here’s a creed at The HSUS: When we treat animals with decency and respect, we create a better, more civil society. And here’s a corollary: When we make conscious food choices, there are a host of good outcomes: for animals, the environment, public health, and our personal health.

Author Kathy Freston touches on that corollary in this follow up to her best-selling "Quantum Wellness." In "The Quantum Wellness Cleanse"—a highly accessible, positive, practical, fast-moving read—she gives us a day-by-day approach to better living to achieve “a higher state of wellness.” In fact, it’s a 21-day dietary regimen that she all but promises will change the way you live and feel.

It sounds austere when you bunch together the proscriptions: a three-week period of abstaining from sugar, caffeine, gluten, alcohol, and animal products. But as she rolls out her plan chapter by chapter, she makes it all seem achievable, and a 100-page glossary of recipes from chefs Tal Ronnen and Lex Townes should help the newly conscious eater. She’s no drill sergeant, and tells us, “my whole approach to health and wellness is that it’s about leaning toward change and taking small steps to support growth: there is no need to force yourself into something that is terribly uncomfortable. Just lean.” And most importantly, by following Kathy's recommendations, you get something in return: a better mind and body.

That’s an approach I like. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Do your best, and do it in increments. The principle behind the 21 days is that it’s not a lifetime commitment, but a commitment that requires some sacrifice and some deprogramming. But in return, you’ll be able to see and feel results.

This is definitely a diet and lifestyle book. But Kathy is passionate about protecting animals, too, and she includes a couple of chapters on the environmental effects of meat-eating and our mistreatment of animals in industrial agriculture. The pull-out quotes from Gail Eisnitz’s "Slaughterhouse" are raw and shocking, and enough to make you explore vegetarian eating for at least 21 days.

In "In Defense of Food," Michael Pollan tells readers, “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Kathy Freston provides some different points of emphasis, but leads us in the same direction. The right food choices make for healthier individuals, and a healthier, better, and more humane society.

Second Quarter Blog Favorites

As I produce my daily postings, I'm always eager to gather your feedback and gauge the topics that resonate most with you, whether through the reaction each post receives, a surge in traffic, or the number of times the blog is shared (with the "Share or Email" button at the bottom of each of my blog posts you can easily share the blog on your social networking pages or send it by email).

Sometimes the biggest hits are predictable; other times you catch me by surprise. This quarter, the ten most popular blog posts are dominated by discussions about public figures who have an intersection with animal issues—whether President Obama’s dog selection process, Michael Vick’s interest in participating in our on-the-ground anti-dogfighting efforts, Rush Limbaugh’s public service announcements in favor of animal protection, or Ellen DeGeneres’ continuing efforts to raise awareness about animal protection. But you are also interested in our continuing achievements and progress—which tells me you are fully behind our results-oriented management approach at The HSUS. I thought you'd enjoy browsing the list:

1. What’s Next for Michael Vick?
2. Second Chances for President Obama, His Pup
3. More Thoughts on Michael Vick
4. Talk Back: Michael Vick As Messenger
5. Gentle Ben: Before and After
6. Pushing Forward for Primates in Research
7. Reaching Across the Aisle for Animals
8. The HSUS Strategy for Success
9. A Possible Connection: Swine Flu and Factory Farms
10. Supreme Court to Decide on Depictions of Animal Cruelty

Eight-State Dogfighting Raid Largest in U.S. History

When The HSUS decided a number of years ago to put major resources into a campaign to eradicate organized animal fighting, I wanted there to be no gaps or loopholes in the law, to encourage law enforcement to treat this conduct as a serious crime, and to establish a zero tolerance policy for the activity. And I also wanted dogfighters and cockfighters to be looking over their shoulders—wondering if they’d be next in line for arrest and prosecution.

© The HSUS/Sisneros
At a dogfighting raid in June.

After the law enforcement interventions that occurred yesterday in eight states throughout the nation, there can be no doubt that the criminals at the center of every organized dogfighting ring are now looking over their shoulders. Four United States Attorneys and a bevy of federal law enforcement agencies, along with The HSUS, The Humane Society of Missouri, and the ASPCA, raided multiple dogfighting operations, and seized at least 450 dogs, in what was the largest single day of actions against dogfighting in American history.

I have two reports below from our people who helped lead the action in the field. Due to confidentiality constraints we can’t include many details, but we’ll share more information as it becomes available.

From Scotlund Haisley, senior director of Emergency Services, who was stationed in Missouri:

When our crew woke up yesterday before day break I knew the task before us was unprecedented, and that the day’s work would change the face of dogfighting forever. Nothing in our 50-year campaign against animal fighting—or in any other organization’s fight against the cruel industry—has ever sent as strong a message as this record-breaking enforcement and rescue operation.

For many of us the operation began months ago, but early this week members of our animal fighting, emergency services, communications, and video and investigations departments gathered to provide support and equipment necessary to undertake this historic rescue. Because of the scope of this unique rescue, confidentiality was crucial to our success, and as recently as yesterday morning many staff and volunteers were still in the dark on the details of our impending mission.

After a morning briefing meeting four teams fanned out across Missouri, while we also acted as the lead animal welfare agency on rescues conducted in Texas and Oklahoma, and similar raids went down in Illinois, Iowa, Arkansas, Mississippi and Nebraska.

After months of coordination and preparation, the sweet release of relief is finally beginning to wash over our exhausted team. This feeling is ushered in by the comforting sight of dogs being settled in at the emergency shelter. Knowing that without our intervention these same animals would have faced a future of untold horrors is my ultimate reward. Tonight I can truly celebrate a belated Independence Day, as I contemplate the 450 lives that have been saved from the clutches of the dogfighting industry.

By shutting down these operations we have saved untold generations of fighting dogs the pain and misery of being bred only to quench the blood lust of those involved in this hideous industry.

From Chris Schindler, deputy manager of our Animal Cruelty & Fighting Campaign, who was stationed in Texas:

You’d never guess that in Texas, amid farm houses and well-kept estates, laid a hidden world of animal suffering. Yet behind the palatial exterior of an alleged dogfighter’s countryside home, my colleagues and I, along with federal agents, found the unmistakable horror of a dogfighting operation.

At every dogfighting raid, there’s always one dog whose face stays with me long after the day is done. Again yesterday, one dog broke my heart. Right now law enforcement authorities have asked us not to talk about details, but when we can I’ll share this story with you.

As we made our way from dog to dog, taking photographs, completing veterinary checks, and documenting scars and wounds—all evidence for the prosecution—it seemed the dogs wanted only a kind hand, freedom from pain, and, most of all, companionship.

It’s one thing to read about the horrors of dogfighting, but it’s another to witness the sheer disdain and antipathy of dogfighters towards man’s best friend, to put individual faces to the suffering. Those tormented faces continue to haunt me daily, reminding me of the worst parts of human nature.

At the same time, these faces urge me to forge ahead against what once felt like a problem with no solution. I know that the goal of eradicating organized dogfighting from the U.S. now lies well within our reach.

Thanks to the immense efforts of so many people, we have devastated the dogfighting network in the Midwest and beyond.

If you'd like to support our campaign against animal fighting with a special gift today, you can do so here.

Barking Orders: Your Dogs at Work Photo Captions

A few weeks ago I asked you to put words in the mouth of Soco, one of our office dogs, in celebration of Take Your Dog to Work Day. It’s always fun to read your photo captions as they come in and I had more than a few laughs narrowing it down to ten favorites. Thanks to all of you who shared suggestions.

10. I also double as a shredder... —Felix Titanius Lowry
9. You leave me home all day for this?! —Nik Mattingley
8. Letters to Congress: check. Letters to the editor: check. We'll get protection yet! —Barb Huning
7. I'm not signing anything until I get a treat. —Aurora Cooney
6. Do you think Bo Obama will answer my letter? —Barbara
5. No! I will not sign this petition to ban squirrel chasing! —Michelle Holdgreve
4. Just sign right here, Mr. Pacelle, to make my pay raise effective retroactively. —Eileen G.
3. Please don't tell me I hit "Reply to All" on that email. —Kathlene Henry-Gorman
2. I thought this was take your dog to work day, not make your dog work day... —Sarah Horan-Sedelmeier
1. And, the winner: One more task today and someone is going to have a surprise in their shoe. —Shonte Warhurst

They Shoot Endangered Animals, Don't They?

The recent decision by a federal court in the District of Columbia to overturn a controversial federal policy allowing the killing of captive and endangered exotic mammals at some of the nation’s estimated 1,000 “canned” shooting ranches was a particularly satisfying victory in our long-term campaign to end the unethical practices of Safari Club International, the world’s largest trophy hunting organization.

This is the group that has manufactured a set of awards programs to encourage competitive killing of rare animals—such as “Bears of the World” or “Cats of the World.” To secure all of SCI’s awards, including the “grand slams” and "inner circle," a trophy hunter would have to kill more than 320 different species and subspecies of mammals.

It’s a selfish, all-consuming passion to kill and display trophies and to occupy a higher place in the hunting pantheon—whether they are shot in the wild or dispatched in one of these drive-by shootings on a fenced preserve. Typically, those involved have the means to pursue any form of entertainment or pastime, yet they choose to spend their dollars and their limited time shooting the world’s rarest and most beautiful animals. How sad.

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The endangered addax is targeted by SCI.

Our lawsuit, filed jointly with several conservation groups, successfully challenged a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruling that permitted the shooting of three critically endangered species bred and raised on game ranches—scimitar-horned oryx, addax, and dama gazelle. These antelope have magnificent horns which trophy hunters prize.

SCI argued that charging high fees to kill endangered animals creates a market that encourages money to flow to overseas conservation programs that could benefit the beleaguered species. That bit of twisted logic—kill them to save them—didn’t stop the court from striking down the program.

Last year, The HSUS won another major victory over SCI, which had earlier persuaded Congress to allow U.S. sport hunters to kill Canadian polar bears and import their trophies. We helped persuade the USFWS to list the bears—imperiled by climate change—as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This prohibited the import of polar bear trophies, removing a major incentive to shoot them. But SCI and its trophy hunting cohorts are so bent on killing these imperiled animals, they have filed several lawsuits challenging the decision to list polar bears, and are even lobbying Congress to reopen the polar bear trophy trade. That's right, these groups would rather see the polar bear stripped of federal protection, and potentially go extinct, than temporarily refrain from shooting just one of the hundreds of species regularly sport-hunted around the globe. Yesterday, Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) introduced a bill to authorize the import of sport-hunted polar bear trophies.

John J. Jackson III, a former SCI president, once tried to explain what motivates the group's members: “A trophy of any species attests that its owner has been somewhere and done something, that he has exercised skilled persistence and discrimination in the agile feat of overcoming, outwitting, and reducing game to possession.”

This is a chilling rationale for participation in this so-called sport. Is it “skilled persistence” on display when the trophy collector is driven to a feeding station at one of these canned hunting operations to shoot semi-tame, captive animals with the kill all but guaranteed?

SCI thinks these kinds of captive shoots are fine and permits them to be counted in its record books. In fact, SCI has one hunting achievement award—"Introduced Trophy Animals of North America"—that can be claimed only by patronizing captive hunting ranches. It’s in effect a marketing effort that drives hunting participation at the ranches in Texas and elsewhere around the country. Yet even other hunting groups that encourage and maintain trophy records, such as the Boone and Crockett Club and the Pope and Young Club, do not permit the listing of trophies from fenced enclosures.

The fight to weaken Endangered Species Act protections and its Orwellian “killing is conservation” theme are woven throughout SCI’s 38-year history. The Tucson-based organization once sought to circumvent the federal law by seeking government approval to import an astonishing 1,125 trophies of 40 species on the endangered list. They included gorillas, cheetahs, tigers, orangutans, and snow leopards.

With a straight face and not a hint of irony, SCI claimed its goal was “scientific research and incentive for propagation and survival of the species.” There was one small problem. The animals they wanted as trophies weren't yet dead. Request denied by the USFWS.

Now a U.S. District Court judge, agreeing with The HSUS, once again held the line on animal protection. An organization that in reality operates as an enemy of the world’s endangered species while masquerading as a conservation organization has been stymied yet again.

There Oughta Be Laws Against Exotic Pets

Though it’s still hard to accept any hedging when cruelty is involved, you can understand the reluctance of politicians to take on some issues, such as confinement of animals on factory farms or animal testing.  There are monied interests on the other side, and they work hard to preserve the status quo. It often takes a big lift for us to get that sort of legislation moving, since many politicians want to avoid confronting tough issues.

But there’s no reasonable political explanation for dithering on the issue of keeping dangerous exotic animals as pets. It seems perfectly foolish on its face to keep a lion, a chimpanzee, or a Burmese python as a pet. These wild animals live by the unforgiving code of nature and they are fully capable of killing adults. A woman in Connecticut was severely disfigured earlier this year by a pet chimp. They can make especially quick work of children.

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Every state and the federal government should establish policies to crack down on keeping dangerous wild animals as pets, but some states continue to be outliers, including Missouri, Ohio, and other centers of the exotic pet trade. Oregon did just pass a tough, comprehensive law in 2009, and Congress did enact a law in 2003 restricting the trade in big cats. But Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) continues to block the Captive Primate Safety Act, which would ban the trade in chimps and other primates as pets. The House passed the bill earlier this year, as introduced by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), and Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and David Vitter (R-La.) are leading the issue in the Senate, but haven’t been able yet to overcome Coburn’s stalling tactics.

Yet, the human toll from wild animals kept as pets continues to mount. Last week, an eight-foot Burmese python escaped from an aquarium, slithered into a bedroom, and asphyxiated a 2-year-old toddler. She was the fourth person to be killed by a pet python in the United States since 2006. It follows an incident earlier this year in Las Vegas, when a 3-year-old boy was squeezed to the point of unconsciousness by an 18-foot reticulated python the father was keeping in their home.

These huge constrictors are not pets. In addition to the serious risks to people, Burmese pythons are upsetting the balance of Florida's ecosystems as they prey on endangered species and even challenge alligators for apex predator status. From a small population of escaped or abandoned pets, Burmese pythons have become established in the Everglades, numbering perhaps 25,000, according to some estimates.

The HSUS applauds Sen. Bill Nelson's proposed legislation (S. 373) and the companion bill introduced by Rep. Kendrick Meek (H.R. 2811) to add pythons to the federal injurious species list, prohibiting their import and interstate commerce for the pet trade. The Congress should not delay in enacting that bill, along with the Captive Primate Safety Act.

State laws are important, and we work aggressively on that front, but the Congress too needs to speak on this subject. These dangerous animals are sold through a national and international network of exotic animal dealers and even over the Internet, and effective policy action must include imports and interstate transport of exotic animals.

Reeling in Shark Tournaments

Some parents believe that spectacles involving animal cruelty are a family affair. To my astonishment, we see adults with children in tow time and again at some large cockfights, and it is hard to believe that witnessing the revelry and the gambling as animals are torn apart in staged fights would not leave emotional scars, as well as a drawing down of the natural reservoir of empathy that children have for animals.

Social opinion may not be as decidedly negative on shark hunting tournaments as on cockfights and dogfights, but the point still holds. There is something desensitizing in having children present as adults whoop it up as they hoist up sharks they’ve killed and put them on display. These are contests kills of wildlife, and when our ProtectSharks campaign staff documented the scene at the Star Island Yacht Club in Montauk, N.Y. recently, there were plenty of kids present.

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In one particularly unsettling scene, a blue shark was hoisted onto the dock, bloodied from being gaffed, his stomach hanging out of his gaping mouth, as children gawked. The message to the kids: killing animals for prizes is a cause for celebration.

It’s the wrong behavior, and the wrong message, and decent people should know better. Sharks are in trouble throughout the world, with perhaps 100 million sharks killed a year in commercial and sport fishing activities. Commercial fishermen kill the sharks for their fins—for soup. And the sport fisherman kill them for trophies. Both are wasteful and cruel. In fact, many of the sharks brought back to the dock at Star Island aren’t even heavy enough to qualify for the tournament and are ultimately killed in vain.

The good news is, we’re finally shining a spotlight on these spectacles and we are gaining allies. People like Jean-Michel Cousteau, Nigel Barker and Johnny Le Coq, cofounder of Fishpond USA, a major recreational fishing products company, are speaking out. And outrage from the community has turned the tide in some towns, like in Fort Myers, Fla., where a shark tournament recently became catch and release.

You too can get involved in helping to stop these cruel events, and we have more information at humanesociety.org/protectsharks.