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Each year, the Iditarod race drives sled dogs to… Help reform Alaska’s animal cruelty laws.

Goal: 35,000 • Progress: 11,978
Sponsored by:The Animal Rescue Site

The graceful beauty and power of a husky barreling through snow shouldn’t invoke feelings of suffering and torture. But every year since 1973, during Alaska’s 1,000-mile Iditarod race in early March, hundreds are forced into a state-sanctioned nightmare.

The Iditarod has long been controversial for its treatment of sled dogs. They’re whipped and driven to run more than 100 miles a day in sub-zero temperatures. And while the power to keep those dogs safe lies with the State of Alaska, exemptions are actually in place precluding the dogs from protection under animal cruelty laws.

Hardly an Iditarod has been held in which a dog did not die.

In almost all of the Iditarod races, at least one dog death has occurred. According to the Sled Dog Action Commission, at least 147 dogs have died in the history of the race, with 15 to 19 falling dead from overwork in the very first, 43 years ago. At least 107 dogs were dead after the 1997 race, as reported by the Anchorage Daily News at the time. In 2009, five dogs died, leaving local veterinarians and animal rights workers helpless to do anything but watch.

“Last year, three dogs died. That is near the average for the Iditarod, and the causes of two of the 2008 deaths were quickly obvious,” the Alaska Dispatch News reported the gruesome state of the race in 2009. “One dog was struck and killed by a snowmachine. The other had at some point during the race spit up intestinal fluids and then inhaled them. It was dropped at a checkpoint along the trail and flown back to Anchorage only to die here of what is called ‘aspiration induced pneumonia.'”

The dogs that aren’t killed by machines are killed by the effects of hyperexhaustion as they burn over 12,000 calories a day, for 9 straight days or longer. Their bodies are later tossed into the dump.

“That first race (1973), from Anchorage to McGrath, all you could see along the trail was dog blood and dead dogs,” McGrath, AK resident Ted Almasy told the Wasilla Frontiersman 1986. “That’s when I got into it with them. After each Iditarod, we used to see dead dogs at the dump. You’d see them poor dogs, blood coming out of both ends.’”

This is not how these dogs deserve to live.

Sign below and tell Bill Walker, Governor of Alaska, to remove the clause exempting competition sled dogs from its animal cruelty laws.

click to sign governor petition

This article is shared from: http://theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/clickToGive/ars/home

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Company Stops Live Exports of Animals & Share Price Rises

Exporting of live animals – it’s misery and suffering for animals, and it turns out it’s bad for business.  A major international exporter of live animals—agribusiness giant Elders, an Australian-based company—just announced that it will stop shipping live animals from Australia.  Stock prices rose immediately.

cows-1029077_1280Elders, which was a pioneer in the live export industry, will immediately cease shipping cattle to China.  Perhaps other industry giants will take note, if for no other reason than economic gain, and follow suit.

For more information: http://bit.ly/2ddL8wE

 

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A Bill to Reduce Pet Overpopulation on Puerto Rico is under Consideration….please sign this letter urging support of the legislation

A  bill to improve the lives of animals is currently under consideration in Puerto Rico’s legislature. P de la C 2950 / P del S 1631 is designed to reduce pet overpopulation on the island, which could save millions of dollars and improve the welfare of animals.

This legislation would enact an effective spay/neuter policy and facilitate the participation of mainland veterinarians to perform high volume spay/neuter clinics in Puerto Rico. In addition, this legislation would encourage adoption, place a temporary moratorium on the sale of cats and dogs for five years, and create a coalition to help citizens stop overpopulation in their communities.

Pet overpopulation in Puerto Rico is severe. P de la C 2950 / P del S 1631 will protect animals from cruelty and neglect while simultaneously saving Puerto Rico’s government millions of dollars and empowering its citizens.

TAKE ACTION
Please write to your senator and representative today and urge them to vote yes on P de la C 2950 / P del S 1631:

https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=7213&autologin=true&s_src=sh_tw

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Armchair Animal Activism (it works)- Part I

From the comfort of your living room, you can have an impact on humane treatment of animals.  This is part I in a series that provides ideas on how to do so.  Today’s topic is the hundreds of thousands of homeless, unspayed/unneutered dogs and cats in the South.

Several thousand rescue dogs are transported yearly from the South to the Northeast for adoption.  Why?  The cultural norm in many places of the South is not to spay and neuter, and in many places, not to inoculate pets against disease. There are millions of homeless dogs wandering around—and starving—in the South.  There are several thousands in high-kill shelters, because adoption is not a common practice either.

You can do something about it. Cultural norms are shifted over time through the steady application of change. For example, remember how we used to call humane organizations “pounds” and homeless pets “strays”? That gradual shift away from “pound” has had an impact on how people perceive humane organizations, and the introduction of the word “rescue” to adopted animals positions the rescuers to have the added benefit of feeling good about themselves.

But back to the Southern dogs. I was told by owner of Main Line Animal Rescue that the way to make an impact on treatment of dogs from the south is to write letters to the editors of the papers there. Below is a sample letter you can use or adjust as you see fit. Search this link ( http://www.50states.com/news/ ) to identify newspapers. Copy/tailor and email the letter to the editor—be sure to include your contact info, or the editors will not publish the letters.   Thank you!

your name
address
phone
email

date

Dear Editor,

I have a friend who had good fortune to adopt a sweet dog from Alabama via a Pennsylvania animal rescue. “Finn” is a hound mix and is doing well despite a rough beginning: unneutered, homeless, and unvaccinated, Finn contracted distemper, from which he has recovered, despite lingering gait issues.

I’ve learned that in areas, spaying/neutering, and vaccinating pets are not always common practice.  Yet pet overpopulation is rampant, and in many states hundreds of thousands of dogs and cats are homeless and die slowly from starvation, disease, and injury. You can help prevent pet overpopulation and suffering.

Please consider the benefits of spaying and neutering—this prevents unwanted animals from being born, improves the animals’ disposition, and is not perceived as loss by the animals.  Here is a link: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/general-pet-care/low-cost-spayneuter-programs where you can find low-cost clinics in your area.  Alternatively, please consider asking your local vets to provide this community service, for the good of the animals and the community (and good PR for the vet).

Respectfully,

[your name]

 

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A Day in the Life of a Dog Tied in the Backyard

yard dog 13118850_10154265457483729_1631893973372953599_n Source: http://www.spca.bc.ca/assets/documents/welfare/Tethered-Dogs/left-alone-to-watch.pdf

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10 Reasons to Adopt a Cat

Cats make up approximately 70% of shelter population. It’s sort of obvious what you should do…ADOPT! Don’t Shop! There are many advantages when it comes to adopting cats from shelters. Many are already spayed or neutered. They are also current on their shots. Shelter volunteers are there for one reason: the good of the animal. They aren’t interested in a profit and any donation you make goes right back into helping more animals in need. I love cats, how about you?

by Julie E.H., Animal Rescue Site blog
theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com

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What Are Animals Thinking and Feeling?

a short but powerful TED talk…

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Easy Way to Help Adoption of Meat Trade Dogs into Loving Homes Worldwide

A gift idea for the holidays?

One of the lucky adoptees

One of the lucky adoptees

Countless dogs ‐ pets as well as street dogs ‐ are stolen and cruelly killed for the dog meat trade in Southeast Asia. Soi Dog Foundation has rescued thousands of dogs from this fate, and now these animals desperately need new homes. $20 covers all costs associated with getting one dog adopted. Your donation helps provides medical care and food, behavioral assessment, promotion of the animals online for adoption, and transportation  to Bangkok to fly to forever homes around the world. For this small amount you can play a huge part in giving these animals a second shot at life.

The mission of Soi Dog Foundation is to improve the welfare of dogs and cats in Thailand, resulting in better lives for both the animal and human communities, to end animal cruelty, and to ultimately create a society without homeless animals.

Click here – $20 provides ALL adoption expenses for 1 dog

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Part V – I Came from the Deep South

continued from part IV  –

Mr. Bean, the cat, and I arrived at an armed truce, but I had the upper edge.  I know that in skirmishes between dogs and cats, the cats often lose.  I didn’t wish Mr. Bean harm, but I have thousands of years of instinct in me, and as much as I want to please my person, instinct is powerful.

The woman began supervising the cat and me at all times.  This seemed unnecessary to me.  Why, there were many times when Mr. Bean and I slept near each other, when he wound between my legs, when we walked by each other without comment.  To be fair, there were some times when I’d stalk him, when I hunkered low and keened on him, my eyes glittering black.  I knew I wouldn’t do anything actually, but the woman didn’t know this and she did not approve of my behavior.  She was irritated with me far too often.  I did not deserve this.

The trainer suggested that we adopt a second dog; she said that would likely get my focus off of Mr. Bean.  The woman said no–one dog was enough.  So that was that.

We went to the family reunion of adopted pets and their people at Main Line Animal Rescue.  I recognized the scent of the place before we turned down the lane and I sat up tall in the back seat to look.  When I jumped out of the car, I saw Jenny, a pit bull who was still there.   I overheard someone say that people have the wrong idea about pits and that they are actually one of the most devoted dogs.

Jenny and I greeted each other and I see other dogs I’d peripherally known who were now romping happily with their families.  There were new dogs there, many brought up from the South like me, and others rescued from inner city Philadelphia.

The shelter director saw me, walked over, and stooped down to pet me.  She asked us to walk through the kennels together; she wanted to show the woman something.

We passed the dogs, some with pleading eyes, some turned in on themselves and sad, some barking.  I was so happy not to still be there.  The shelter director stopped before the kennel I had been in, and there was Kentucky, who came up from Alabama with me.  He was the only one who had not been adopted, and he’d been at the rescue for a year.   Pointing to him, the director said, “Kentucky is a sweet fellow and has some remaining neurological defects from having contracted distemper in Alabama and survived it.”  Apparently the rural south is not big on vaccinating, spaying and neutering, and there are millions of homeless dogs, and a lot with preventable diseases.  Main Line Animal Rescue had had Kentucky checked out by University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School, and his neurological defects would not affect his ability to learn but his gait would remain odd, and he had a rounded back.  On occasion he fell over.Screen Shot 2015-06-26 at 4.50.25 PM

Kentucky and I sniffed at each other through the chain link door and he did a little jig, hopping on three legs and spinning in a circle.   The director said, “If you would consider adopting him.  He’s a good dog and he needs a home.  He’s very shy and the shelter is not a good place for him.  The likelihood of him getting adopting is slim.  People don’t typically want a special needs dog.

My person looked at him and grew very still. I watched her and knew what she was thinking.

to be continued

Part I

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Borneo: Orangutans Are Dying as Indonesia Burns.

Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)'s avatarSerbian Animals Voice (SAV)

orangutans-fire-MAINOrangutans in the haze shrouding the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation camp on Oct. 5. (Photo: Antara Foto/Reuters)

John R. Platt covers the environment, technology, philanthropy, and more for Scientific American, Conservation, Lion, and other publications.

http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/10/22/orangutans-are-dying-indonesia-burns?cmpid=tpanimals-eml-2015-10-24-orangutans

Orangutans Are Dying as Indonesia Burns

Thousands of forest fires set by palm oil companies across Sumatra and Borneo threaten not just endangered apes but the global climate.

Indonesia is on fire.

Right now, tens of thousands of small forest fires are burning across the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, the only habitats for orangutans and other rare species.

Many of the fires appear to have been intentionally set by palm oil companies, which employ slash-and-burn agriculture to clear land of native trees to plant their cash crop, which is used as an ingredient in everything from food to cosmetics.

Richard Zimmerman, executive director of Orangutan Outreach, calls…

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