Hunting
Dead Animal Lamps: Add This to the List of the Offensive and Tasteless
Published April 10, 2009 @ 06:37AM PT
From TreeHugger today (commentary to follow the extract, after the jump):
Taxidermy, the Victorian art and tradition of stuffing animals, is becoming fashionable again. Only this time round with young artists who see it as an ethical design choice. If the animal is already dead, why not preserve it in a new and cutting edge way.
Alex Randall has made chandeliers from pigeons in flight and lights with squirrels climbing the wall. She uses dead animals that have been shot as vermin and left to die which she sources from British farmers. As she says "What I love is the character already installed in objects. They hold a memory of their own."
Hey, Obama, Don't Be Another Bush for the Wolves
Published April 03, 2009 @ 07:57AM PT
Defenders of Wildlife is still pushing hard against Secretary of the Interior Salazar's decision to delist wolves in Idaho and Montana (as well as in the western Great Lakes and parts of Oregon, Washington, and Utah).
When it was the Bush administration disregarding the interests of the wolves in favor of pleasing ranchers and hunters, I called out Bush himself in addition to his hand-selected appointees (e.g., Bush and Bangs vs. the Wolves--Again; Bush Administration and the Wolves: The Battle Continues), and so President Obama now gets the same treatment: You hand-picked Salazar, Mr. President, and you're his boss. Step up. Do the right thing. Prevent the killing.
-More, including Defenders of Wildlife video, after the jump-
Where Do the "Surplus" Zoo Animals Go?
Published March 30, 2009 @ 07:10AM PT
A couple days ago, while engaged in an interesting conversation about zoos and conservation in a comment thread at the Global Warming blog, I realized that I've not written much about zoos on this blog yet. And there's much to discuss, so I'll be more mindful of that now. For today, I'll touch briefly on just one of the myriad problems associated with zoos: the "surplus" animals.
In the world of zoos, animals are treated like pieces of art in a museum; they are inventory in a "collection." They get traded. They are sold. They get stored away where no one can see them when there's not enough space for all the inventory to be displayed for the public. This is true at even the AZAs' "best" zoos.
-Read on after the jump-
Canadian Seal Hunt Has Begun
Published March 23, 2009 @ 02:44PM PT
Update, 3/24: Reports via Twitter indicate "9,500 seals slaughtered in one day." Follow this link for another article on the start of the seal hunt and the continuing effort to stop it and for images from the first day of the hunt--but be aware that the images are graphic.
Although Russia effectively ended seal hunting there this past week, with its ban on the hunting of seals under 1 year old, Canada isn't budging; it even raised the quota by 55,000--bringing the total quota up to 338,200 and the harp seal quota up to 280,000. And the seal hunt has begun. An observing Humane Society representative has documented the start of the killing:
Aerial Wolf Hunt in Alaska Underway; Defenders of Wildlife Taking Action
Published March 18, 2009 @ 11:35PM PT
Photo: Defenders of Wildlife
Alex at Planetsave has been reporting today and tonight about the latest aerial hunting of wolves in Alaska. From "Alaska to Kill Over 75% of Wolf Population in New Aerial Hunt":
Alaska abruptly resumed shooting wolves from helicopters this weekend in hopes that shooting the wolves will increase the population of caribou for hunters to kill. The state plans to kill up to 328 wolves, sparing under 100 in the Yukon area. . . .
The state hopes to increase the caribou population from 40,000 to 100,000. Dudgeon [of the National Park Service] said the goal is outrageous because the animals haven’t been that populous since the early 20th century.
And from "UPDATE: Defenders of Wildlife Looks to Halt Wolf Slaughter":
While 58 wolves have already been killed since Saturday, there’s hope that Alaska’s Department of Fish & Game will not reach their enormous quota. Defenders of Wildlife has taken legal action that could stop the hunt immediately.
“The Board of Game did not authorize the use of helicopters by state agency personnel as part of the Upper Yukon/Tanana wolf killing program,” said Wade Willis, Alaska Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. “What they are doing in that region right now is illegal.”
See the original posts at Planetsave and the Defenders of Wildlife press release for more. I'll post updates when they're available.
International Day of Action for Seals, March 15
Published March 14, 2009 @ 11:47AM PT
Tomorrow, Sunday, is the International Day of Action for Seals. Visit this page at Harpseals.org to learn about the horrifying annual "hunt" of baby seals, if you're not familiar already.
Check this list at the same site to see if one of the dozens of rallies across North America and beyond (there are rallies scheduled in Dublin and London as well) is located near you, and attend tomorrow if you can.
And then make your voice heard with the Canadian politicians (tomorrow or any day) who are in a position to end Canada's commercial seal hunt. The European Parliament is in a real position to affect the hunt as well; as In Defense of Animals (IDA) explains, "the European Parliament will vote on April 1, 2009 to ban products derived from seals from being imported into the European Union (EU), exported from it, or even being transported through EU territory."
See the Change.org action on ending the seal hunt for contact information for the parties with whom you should register your opposition to the seal hunt and for a seal-hunt video from the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
Photos: HSUS/Brian Skerry (above); SF Bay / Indymedia (top right)
Animals in the Blogs: B12, Bullhooks, Sled Dogs, and Sex & Violence
Published March 05, 2009 @ 01:13PM PT
Striking Doesn't Hurt? from Philosophia and Animal Liberation. My reaction to news that the Ringling Bros. folks, still in the middle of the trial against them, are claiming that hitting elephants with bullhooks doesn't hurt them was a big, fat "Are you serious?" too.
Hunting "Tail" on Dollhouse from easyVegan.info. Kelly always does a great job of analyzing how animals, animal activists, and animal-human interactions are portrayed in popular media. This post is no exception.
Win a Copy of Vegan Soul Kitchen from Vegans of Color. Who among us couldn't use another excellent (and free!) cookbook?
On Veganism as Vegetarianism from Animal Person. Like Mary, I was pretty confused by the PCRM wording that indicated that vegans and vegetarians (i.e., people who eat dairy) could, umm, "avoid the unhealthy hormones and environmental toxins found in dairy products." Wha?
B12 and Reality from Vegan Soapbox. There have been lots of articles and blog posts on the B12 issue lately (and on some misrepresentation of it). Here's some basic, no-frills, nothin'-but-the facts info. See also Liberation BC & PCRM: Vegan Diet Doesn't Cause Birth Defects from easyVegan.info.
The Iditarod's Trail of Dog Deaths from Support Animal Welfare. Need I really explain what this post is about? Just read it.
Bacon Freak Bacon Club from Suicide Food. Ugh. That's all I have to say.
