‘TRUE BLOOD’ STAR LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT CAPTIVE CHIMPANZEES

Kristin Bauer and Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine launch campaign on Change.org asking U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to extend endangered species protections to captive chimpanzees.

WASHINGTON, DC – Actress Kristin Bauer, who plays Pam on HBO's True Blood, has launched a campaign on Change.org with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect captive chimpanzees.
Bauer’s online campaign asks the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to extend the endangered species protections currently given to wild chimpanzees to captive chimpanzees used in experiments and the entertainment industry and kept as pets in United States.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the incredible intelligence and rich, complex social lives of chimpanzees,” said Bauer. “It would be shameful to see them go extinct in the wild as we continue to exploit them here in the U.S. in invasive experiments, entertainment and as pets.”
Bauer cites studies demonstrating that when people see chimpanzees used in commercials and interacting with humans in the media, they are more likely to believe that chimpanzees not only make good pets, but that they are not endangered in the wild.
“The Endangered Species Act should protect all chimpanzees, including those being used in laboratory experiments,” said John Pippin, M.D., F.A.C.C., of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. “No other developed countries allow invasive research on chimpanzees because of ethical and scientific problems with such experiments. The U.S. must do more to protect humankind’s closest genetic relatives.”
Bauer’s campaign is likely to draw national attention to the lack of protections for captive chimpanzees. The actress is encouraging True Blood fans to sign her online petition campaign on Change.org, the world’s fastest-growing platform for social change.
“It’s really impressive to see Kristin Bauer rally her fans around giving chimpanzees a voice,” said Change.org Director of Organizing Stephanie Feldstein. “Through her campaign on Change.org, Kristin’s fans can take action on a cause that’s important to them. Change.org empowers anyone, anywhere to start a campaign on issues that matter to them, and it’s been incredible to watch this campaign take off.”
A proposal to extend protections to captive chimpanzees is currently under consideration by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The public comment period for the proposal ends October 31.
Live signature totals from Kristin Bauer’s campaign:
http://www.change.org/petitions/us-fish-wildlife-service-protect-all-chimpanzees
Journalists interested in contacting U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service should try:

For more information on Kristin Bauer’s group, please visit:
http://www.pcrm.org/
Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a nonprofit organization that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in research.
For more information on Change.org, please visit:
http://www.change.org/about
Change.org is the world’s fastest-growing platform for social change — growing by more than 400,000 new members a month, and empowering millions of people to start, join, and win campaigns for social change in their community, city and country.

The Bag Kittens

This story is horrifying yet the outcome was amazing.  Their story needs to be told!  This is from the Raccoon Valley Animal Sanctuary and Rescue here in central Iowa.

Someone put 4 healthy, 3 week old kittens in an empty Meow Mix bag and threw them onto a Madison County road to be crushed by oncoming traffic. But for the nurturing instinct of a family dog, the horrific plan almost succeeded!

As a woman came home from work and pulled into her driveway, she noticed that her dog wasn’t acting normally, but was visibly upset and focused on what appeared to be a tattered bag of trash lying in the yard. No real surprise to her since the dog brings home "treasures" to her on a regular basis, welcome or not. But on this day, the dog’s refusal to move and an unfamiliar sound coming from what now could be identified as a discarded cat food bag triggered her to check out Reagan’s new "treasured" item. She soon discovered that the sound was the faint cries of a kitten. Without hesitation she reached down to look inside the bag, but was totally unprepared for what she was about to see.

The bag the kittens were placed in and tossed into the road!

Two tiny kittens, screaming and covered in the blood and gore of their crushed and maimed siblings, were thrashing about trying to get free from the viscera and out of the bag. Kelly quickly swooped up the two survivors and took them directly into her home to do what she could to provide some kind of care. As she bathed them, fed them and snuggled with them offering them comfort and reassurance that they were now safe, her empathy quickly turned to anger. Through her tears of rage, she struggled to find sense out of it all. 

What was painfully obvious to her was that these kittens were intentionally put in a bag and dumped on the road. It was also apparent that the bag had been run over and that at least two kittens, maybe more, had been crushed; and that her dog had retrieved the bag from the road and brought it up to the house for Kelly to find.  How two survived was the real mystery, but solving it was secondary to her natural nurturing instinct to feed, care for and love these two tiny remarkable survivors.

Over the next 12 hours, she maintained a constant vigil that included hourly examinations looking for any signs of internal injuries or complications and bottle feedings every 3-4 hours. Little did she know that while she was encouraged over the kittens’ progress, just how frustrated and disappointed she would become over what was about to occur.

 

Day Two...What kind of person...?

After an unsettled night with frequent feedings and worry, she faced the new day with little sleep and a yearning to understand how anyone could possibly do this to such innocent lives that were so precious and fragile. She also realized that her daily job was going to prevent her from feeding and caring for these babies on a frequent basis and so, she immediately began contacting shelters and rescues for assistance.

Would you believe that that woman’s pleas for help were unanswered or ignored by no less than five local animal rescue organizations? About to lose faith in humanity and wondering if, after all the trauma these surviving kittens had endured was it even possible to find the help they needed to live a full life, She come across one organization that actually listened to her story and offered to help.

 

Why Rescuing an Animal is More Than just taking them … somewhere else.

At Raccoon Valley Animal Sanctuary and Rescue, (RVAS), her call for help was one of 18 we had already received that day. Obviously, her needs were immediate and lives were at stake. We know that the first 10-12 weeks of a kitten’s life is extremely precarious and their fragile life systems can go from apparently healthy and eating well to sudden death within a very short period of time. Anyone experienced in kitten care knows how heartbreaking it is to lose one of these precious lives...and many rescuers refuse to take on these cases because they can't deal with the heartbreak of losing a life.

However, we didn’t take the time to debate the issue. Moving into emergency mode, our director made a few phone calls that quickly produced a foster and back up experienced in neo-natal and infant kitten care. Unfortunately, many people, including those who think of themselves as rescuers would have the story end with the kittens just being transferred to a foster home and eventually, hopefully, adopted. We have a different outlook on animal rescue, and as they say on TV…’but wait, there’s more’…we believe there is more to rescue than moving animals from one place to another.

We asked her if she would help us help her and the kittens by taking them to our Veterinary Health providers for their assessment and any treatment they may deem necessary.  She readily agreed and told us how University West Pet Hospital's staff greeted her and assessed the kittens’ condition immediately. She complimented both the staff and Dr. Martz, DVM for the gentle and kind care to such precious cargo. She felt secure leaving them in their hands, and knew that RVAS personnel would be picking them up, and that these little guys (we believe) will start a new life!

That is just the beginning of their story.  Follow their progress here.

Look at them now!

 

All pictures are ©Racoon Valley Animal Shelter & Rescue

Aren’t they cute?  Mom wants to adopt both of them but she has some serious talking into to do with dad first.

Their siblings weren’t saved, but they were.  Through the cruelness of one human being, the word is getting out about these 2. 

Raccoon Valley Animal Sanctuary and Rescue is a no kill shelter – our favorite kind!  Please think about donating to them to help out with the costs of these 2 beautiful kittens and to allow them to save other animals who need them.

You can also follow them on Facebook to keep up to date on these 2 little guys’ story.

See a list of all of their adoptable pets here.

Thank you Raccoon Valley Animal Sanctuary and Rescue for all you do for those animals that need saved!

African Lions Are Disappearing

(Reposted from an email mom received from IFAW - International Fund for Animal Welfare)

African lions are disappearing.

Since 1980, the population of African lions has dropped by nearly 50%. They've been eliminated from 78% of their historic range. And they face extinction throughout much of their habitat.
There are several causes of their disappearance, including loss of habitat, loss of prey, and the impact of disease -- but one particular cause is one you can help us reverse.
The Lion as Trophy
Trophy hunting of lions has more than doubled in the past decade.
The United States is, by far, the largest importer of lions and lion parts. A staggering 64% of lion and lion parts are imported to the US - lion skulls that sit on mantles, lion skins that hang from walls, and lion rugs spread out across floors - all with no consideration of the cruelty and unsustainability of these "trophies."
Clearly, the disappearance of the African lion has reached crisis status. But there is hope - one simple and significant act that can immediately reverse this march towards extinction.
Help Lions Make the List
Listing the African lion as Endangered under the US Endangered Species Act would generally ban the import of lions and lion parts into the US, and be crucial in helping reverse their steep and alarming decline.
IFAW has joined with several other leading non-profits to petition the US government to list the African lion as Endangered.
And now we need your help.
IFAW is collecting messages of support for this listing to be submitted to Secretary of the Interior, Kenneth Salazar.
Please send your message now (I have suggested some wording for you, but please feel free to add your personal and respectful comments).
Together we can end this disappearing act and restore this majestic species to savannas across Africa.

A Special Offer from Disney.
Save $8 when you buy African Cats, and any other Disneynature Blu-ray Combo Pack.
This offer is good through November 14, 2011. Valid only in the U.S. & Canada. Void where prohibited, and cannot be combined with any other offer.

SIGN THE PETITION

Fred O'Regan
IFAW President

p.s. You might think such a regal and charismatic species would be protected, but on the contrary, lions are only protected in 5% of their current range. Please act now to help us save Lions from cruel and unsustainable trophy hunting.

Animal News 10/5/12

Best Of Friends – Junie, Suki, and Damon

Let’s get going on some important stuff!  Animals that need saved, have been saved, or animals whose stories we can learn from!

• 4 Face Animal Cruelty Charges In Upstate NY – 68 cats and dogs taken from the home
• Farm Owner Faces 133 Charges Of Animal Cruelty – 1 horse had to be put down, the others are recouping at rescues, thank God!
• Utah Rat Eater Has Animal Cruelty Charge Dismissed – It’s one thing if the rat was wild and eaten by an animal, no? Humans are disgusting sometimes.
• Animal Cruelty – Right on lady!
• Buckeye man accused in animal cruelty; 2 horses seized – They were saved!
• Stiffest sentence yet for animal cruelty – Put the boxer in a bag and dumped him in a skip.  You know, there are shelters and rescues for unwanted animals.  There is no need for that EVER.
• 39 counts of cruelty to animals filed against city man – Molested children AND abused animals.  Lock him up forever please.  We don’t need him loose on the streets.
• Puppy kennel owner pleads guilty to 104 counts of animal cruelty – Sane people would call this a puppy mill, not a kennel.
• Harsh penalties needed in animal cruelty – Harsher penalties EVERYWHERE needed for animal cruelty.
• Misdemeanor charge filed in parrot death case – Yes, we totally understand why stomping on a parrot and killing it is a misdemeanor.
• Woman charged with cat cruelty – Spay and neuter your pets people.
• Animal centre's owner hits out over internet abuse campaign – Opinions?
• Animal Abuse Leaves Horses Needing Good Homes – If you have room, there are lots of horses all over the place that need rescued.  I wish we could, but we aren’t zoned for horses.  Not to mention, our yard is just big enough for us.
• Shelter seeks ban on selling mill-bred pets – I wish every city would ban the sale of pets in pet stores.  Pet stores should just be for pet supplies.  Do not buy your pet from a store, you are supporting animal mills!
• Puppy Mills Petition Surpasses 10,000 Signatures – Just 10,000?  We can do better than that!!!!
• Puppy Mill Dogs Taken In by Local Humane Society – Here in Iowa.  Brings back memories of my life before my family let me adopt them.
• Calls for adoption flood in after puppy mill seizure – They were saved!
• Woofstock sheds light on puppy mills – Mom wishes she would have known about this!  She totally would have driven all of us to Woofstock!
• Dogs Rescued From Puppy Mills Finding New Home in Minn. – YAY!  more saved!
• Fighting for pets in Texas pays off – Good!

Junie says to check out: Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy