– – A Wilkes-Barre dog groomer who pierced the ears and necks of kittens to market them on eBay as “Gothic kittens” for hundreds of dollars will soon be facing trial on animal cruelty charges…
Prosecutors say she inflicted pain on the felines to make money, while attorneys for the woman said she didn’t act maliciously. The woman contends that she used sterilized needles, made sure the kittens were healing properly, and didn’t intend to hurt them…
…I hope they throw the book at her!
– – Controversial animal testing for cosmetics manufacturers could soon be replaced by a new technology which uses laboratory-grown human skin cells to simulate the body’s allergic response to foreign chemicals.
The standard method for testing allergic reactions involves applying chemicals to the ears of mice or guinea pigs, which are later killed and dissected for study.- – Kinda a “no-win” situation for rodents…
The new method would use a glass chip with human skin cells and chemicals which simulate the body’s immune system. When a foreign substance is dropped onto the chip, the cells and chemicals interact to mimic the human’s body’s natural allergic response. A working prototype by Hurel Corp. funded by L’Oreal is in the works, and could be in use by next year…
– – U.S. TV hostess Ellen Degeneres has been named Woman of the Year by PETA (People for The Ethical Treatment of Animals) for her work in raising awareness of their campaigns promoting a lifestyle friendly to nature. Tim Gunn was named Man of the Year. PETA said that it gave Ellen its award for being vegan and championing a meat and dairy-free lifestyle, as well as for some of the guests featured on her show.
“The message that animals must be treated kindly and respectfully has reached scores of people, and many of them have changed their buying habits, all because Gunn and DeGeneres spoke up for the voiceless,” said PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk.
…and that’s a good thing!
– – Animal rights activists and Japanese whalers have had a not always cold war raging for some time. Last year there was a collision between an activist vessel and a whaler, as well as incidents when activists hurled rancid butter and stink bombs!–Whoa!
More recently this month, anti-whaling activists have accused Japanese harpooners of using water cannons, loudspeakers, and military-grade acoustic weapons as part of skirmishes in the Antarctic. The Sea Shepherd animal rights group said a Japanese vessel closed in on their boat, the Steve Irwin, and deployed water cannons and long-range acoustical devices (LRADs) against them. Acoustical devices have been used for crowd control, to repel pirates, and have also been used by U.S. forces in Iraq. The Japanese whaling vessel, the Shonan Maru No. 2, also is reported to have chased and circled the Steve Irwin for two hours in a campaign of harrassment, setting off that vessel’s collision alert alarm fourteen times. In what must have been an awesome water war, the Irwin also deployed its water cannon against the Japanese vessel, resulting in two very wet crews but no injuries!
Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands have called for restraint on both sides before the rancid butter hurling gets totally out of hand…
(…rancid butter hurling and water cannons!–I’d have given anything to have been in on that!- -Then again, I smell funny when my fur gets wet…)
– – As those who share life with them can testify, a dog’s love (and that of cats or other animal companions) is priceless. But to date, such companions have legally been considered property.–Well, the state Supreme Court of Vermont is being asked to consider what a dog’s love is worth…a mixed- breed dog named Shadow.
That court is hearing a case that began in July of 2003 when two people visiting relatives let their dog wander onto a neighbor’s property. The neighbor fired an air gun pellet at the dog in the hopes of scaring it off his property, claiming that he intended to hit the dog in the rear end. The pellet instead penetrated the dog’s chest and severed his aorta, and he died soon thereafter on route to the vet.
The shooter pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges, a misdemeanor. He was given a year of probation, ordered to perform 100 hours of community service, and pay a $4,000 fine in restitution to the dog’s owners. The owners of the dog, however, have pressed a civil case against the shooter, claiming that their dog was more than a piece of property, and that the compensation awarded was inadequate and did not incorporate emotional loss.
Historically, laws across the country have sharply limited the ability of plaintiffs to collect damages for emotional loss. The same court earlier this year ruled against a plaintiff seeking to collect for emotional distress when a cat’s death resulted from a veterinarian’s medication error. That case, however, involved negligence whereas in this case the defendant is alleged to have acted with malice and intent when he shot Shadow.
The case accordingly is potentially precedent-setting, and could result in an expansion of animal rights and protection…
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– –Happy Avatar Opening Day! 
(Foxsylvania thanks our valued readers for enabling us to reach the 70,000 hits mark!) 😉
– -The 11th International Animal Rights Day (IARD) is coming December 10th! The observance aims to remember the animal victims of human tyranny, and calls for the recognition of the Universal Declaration of Animal Rights. Building on the recognition of human rights, the campaign seeks to persuade humanity that respect and kindness are due to all sentient creatures.
Protests on December 10th are most likely to be focused on vivisection animal suppliers, inhumane laboratory experiments, and fur and intensive method farms…
– – Note: This is a potentially upsetting topic not for young viewers. Animal sacrifice is sadly not just an Old Testament thing…it continues to exist in the 21st century.
–Where?–In places like Nepal, where over 200,000 buffalo, goats, chickens, and pigeons were to be sacrificed earlier this week in a ritual to honor Gadhimai, a Hindu goddess of power. The festival is held every five years, and while criticized by animal rights groups, the festival is defended as a centuries-old tradition. Animal rights groups carry little power in Nepal…
Animal sacrifice, in contrast, has a long history in Nepal and parts of neighboring India…
– – “Their bones and muscles waste away and they go insane.” So says a spokesman for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals about chickens raised in the so-called “battery cages” which measure 24 inches wide by 25-1/2 inches deep, and are shared by up to nine hens from the day that they are born to the day that their egg-laying days end 18 to 24 months later. About 96% of the eggs sold in the United States come from chickens raised in such conditions.
Although the chickens can’t fully extend their wings in such cages, producers claim caged hens are healthier and satisfied with the only lives that they’ve ever known. Producers contend that the chickens are not stuffed in so tightly that they can’t move around the cage, and that accordingly these conditions don’t constitute animal cruelty.
Public opinion appears to side with those who oppose the cages, and voters in California approved a proposition that bans cramped cages for hens. Michigan’s governor signed legislation last month requiring confined animals to have enough room to turn around and fully extend their limbs.
A three-year study is being funded by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture on the issue. I know what Foghorn Leghorn thinks about the matter, but can’t quote what he said in a blog not rated for mature content… 😉
– – Warning: Some Adult Topic Matter. The Supreme Court has been asked to rule on a law with furry implications which involves video depictions of animal cruelty. The disputed statute was used to prosecute a Virginia man who sold videos of pit bull fights.
The law originally was created in 1999 due to rightful congressional worries over “crush” videos, which, I’m horrified to say, depict women pounding high heels into small animals to appeal to an extremely sick and sadistic sexual kink. Civil liberty groups say that the statute is overly broad and could leave to prosecutors’ discretion whether to go after films that show hunting and bullfighting; I’ve found such videos objectionable as well, but it boils down to what is considered animal cruelty, and how broadly one defines it.
The justices have indicated that Congress went too far in its attempt to protect animals from abuse…note that Justice Scalia is an avid hunter. I regret that civil liberties and animal rights groups have found themselves at odds over this one, a case which may have unfortunate and far-reaching implications, and may be construed as a step backwards…
— Now this is just plain wrong! A cat dubbed “Sticky” was wrapped in duct tape head to tail and dumped in a paper bag in a neighbor’s yard for 12 hours. The 19-year-old Philadelphia man who did this was described as having, “a lot of issues.” He faces animal cruelty charges, a fine, and jail time.
Other that being dehydrated, Sticky the cat survived his ordeal. He was sedated to have the duct tape removed.
‘Scuse me now, but I’ve got a human to wrap in duct tape…for if there are no human laws to fit the crime, there is always a higher law which can (holds up a large roll of gray duct tape, laughs darkly, and exits…)
FOXSYLVANIA 
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