Animal Rights and Animal Welfare

Animal rights and animal welfare cover many ideas and beliefs. The animal rights point of view is that humans do not have the right to use animals for their own gain at all, whether in the laboratory, on the farm, in entertainment or in the wild. The animal welfare's point of view advocates for limiting or preventing cruel treatment of animals.

According to the animal welfare perspective, human use of animals is acceptable if animal suffering is preventable. Some of the information and action ideas DoSomething.org are from the animal welfare perspective. Other information and action ideas are closer to animal rights. Read about the issues and figure out how you personally feel on this topic at http://www.dosomething.org/whatsyourthing/Animal+Welfare.

A few of the many topics under the umbrella of animal rights and welfare are animal cruelty, animal homelessness, animal testing, endangered species, factory farms, and puppy mills. Videos like the one below show just how wrong stereo types about animals are. Every animal has their own personality, just as we do.

The House of Representatives changed the world of viral videos yesterday. Senate approval pending, it will soon be a crime to sell or distribute videos that violate bans on animal cruelty. This mainly consists of content that shows animals being burned, drowned, suffocated or impaled. "Crush videos," which depict women, often barefoot or wearing high heels, stomping small animals to death, are the main target.

Every state has bans on animal cruelty, but it has been hard to apply those laws to crush videos because they often do not show faces, dates or locations. The legislation just approved makes exceptions for films depicting hunting, trapping and fishing. This is an important step in the effort to wipe out animal cruelty. Still, there is work to be done, from product testings on animals to poor conditions in captivity. Animals face abuse and neglect every day.

What can you do to help? Contact the ASPCA when you witness cruelty in your neighborhoods. Also, if you have an idea on how to help animals, money is available to help make it happen.

For more information, go to http://www.dosomething.org/whatsyourthing/Animal+Welfare.

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Animals Matter to Me!

Animal cruelty is a worldwide problem and we need a worldwide solution. Something that would inspire political leaders, organizations and individuals to treat animals better and will have a real, long-term impact on the welfare of billions of animals worldwide. Signing a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare, or a UDAW, is one way that this is possible.

A flooded cattle pen after heavy rainfall caused heavy flooding in Trinidad, Bolivia.

Poor animal welfare occurs everywhere and it affects many animals. There are nearly 1 billion stray cats and dogs in the world. Wild animals are illegally and inhumanly killed for their skin, fur, bones, and other body parts. They are also treated badly in an entertainment setting. There are hardly any laws that protect the well-being of horses and other working animals. Animals are also affected by natural and human-caused disasters, which most people don't consider.

Please go to www.animalsmatter.org and add your name to help STOP animal abuse!

If you want to print out a form for your friends and family to sign, go to Animals Matter To Me Declaration and then send to the address listed after it is full.

To learn more, go to Animals Matter To Me.

Categories of Animal Cruelty

The two categories of animal cruelty are active (comission) and passive (omission).

Active cruelty, or acts of comission, starts with malicious intent. Malicious intent is sometimes referred to as NAI, Non-Accidental Injury. It means that a person has intentionally caused harm to an animal. Acts of intentional cruelty are very disturbing and they should be considered as signs of very serious psychological problems. A person who partakes in acts of commission may often present sociopathic behavior. People that present this type of behavior should be taken very seriously.

Animal abuse is closely associated with child abuse. Both can take many forms and can occur for many reasons. That is the scary part about abuse. Many times, a parent or someone who is abusive, may kill, or threaten to kill, the household pets to intimidate family members. They may do this to scare someone, such as a child, into sexual abuse, to make them remain silent about previous or current abuse, or simply to psychologically torture the victims by holding their "power" over their victims head.

Passive cruelty are acts of omission. These are cases of neglect. Neglect is a lack of action rather than the action itself. Severe animal neglect on the other hand can cause incredible pain and suffering to an animal.
Neglect may be starvation, dehydration, parasite infestations, allowing a collar to grow into an animal's skin, inadequate shelter in extreme weather conditions, and failure to seek veterinary care when an animal needs medical attention.

 I believe that animal cruelty is a big issue, just like child abuse. They are both big issues and no one knows just how big of an issue it is. Both areas need help.

Read more: Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Cruelty http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/animal_cruelty.php#ixzz14EIwEiM9

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Animal Cruelty Statistics

According to Pet-Abuse.com and the AARDAS Project

 

The statistics represented here reflect animals connected to particular crime types, and in some cases the animal was not a victim of that particular cruelty type.
Read more: Pet-Abuse.Com - Animals by Cruelty Type http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/cruelty_database/statistics/animals_by_cruelty_type.php#ixzz13YNjAtAt

It amazes me the animals that get abused in this country daily. Cats and dogs, pit-bull and non pit-bull, get abused the most, with horses coming in third. If you go to the link above, you can select the type of cruelty to get a break down of the statistic above. Some of the types that surprised me were bestiality, burning, hanging, and throwing. Of course there are the usual types that we hear about such as beating, fighting, hoarding, kicking, and neglect. There is also a "unclassified" and "other" type and it makes me wonder what goes into those categories.

Nearly 65% of cruelty to chickens is due to chicken fighting and almost 50% of cruelty to pit-bulls is due to dog fighting. How can someone get pleasure from an animals pain? I can not grasp the concept of watching two animals fight to the death and enjoying it. If I see two animals fighting, my first instinct would be to get them away from each other. If someone likes watching two animals kill each other, what does that say about them? This is not a lifestyle that I approve of, let alone would put up with.

Animal hoarding is another big problem. About 35% of cruelty to cats comes from hoarding them. Dogs and cats are the animals that people usually hoard. Not only is this unsanitary, but it is also unhealthy for the animals. If animals are hoarded, they usually do not get their needs met and usually are living in their own fecal matter and are not getting the proper food and water amounts every day. It is very rare to find an animal hoarder that has better living conditions.

Neglect and abandonment has the biggest effect on dogs. Nearly 40% of cruelty to dogs that are non pit-bulls comes from abandonment and neglect. This to me is just heart breaking. I do not see how someone can just abandon or neglect an animal. If they are unable to raise the animal or do not want it, they should find someone who does. It is so sad to hear about animals dying because they are neglected or abandoned because you know that the animal could have had a chance with someone else.

Something I do not want to spend to much time on because it is something that is really disturbing to me but it really surprised me. Nearly 1% of cruelty to dogs, nearly 2% of cruelty to horses, goats, pigs, cows, and deer, and nearly 8% of cruelty to sheep comes from bestiality. Other animals that this effects are chickens, marine animals, and rodents/small mammals. That is both surprising and disturbing to me.

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Horse Roundup

I have always been an animal lover and I would have to say that horses are my favorite animal. Many people do not see them as pets because they are not your normal house pet. There are thousands of wild horses in the deserts on the border of California and Nevada. There are nearly 40,000 horses over a spread of 10 states.

One groups method of roundup involves using helicopters to drive mustangs into traps. More than 1,200 horses have been captured during the roundup. The Bureau of Land Management is overseeing the roundup. They state that the roundups are humane and that the wild horse population needs to be reduced.

In 1971, Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act was passed. This law protected the wild horse population and made it illegal for cowboys to roundup horses on their own for profit or sport. Horses that are captured are offered for adoption but right now the demand for horses are low and the cost of feed is high. Because of this, the government usually ends up quartering them on large private ranches mainly in Kansas and Oklahoma.

I have a special place in my heart for horses and feel that rounding them up the way they are is completely unacceptable. They should be able to live their life just as other animals are able to. Something should be done to stop these roundups!

Learn more at http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/06/us/06horses.html?_r=1&ref=cruelty_to_animals

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Animal Cruelty and Tradition

There are many practices that are used on animals that people believe heal their wounds, but actually make them worse or do not let them heal at all. Some of the examples I am going to talk about are pretty bad. I do not even see where someone can believe that it would heal a wound. It should be obvious that the practices would be harmful to the animals.

This is one example of a practice that is tradition that uses battery acid and is believed to dry a wound out and speed up the healing process.

How can we stop these practices?Free veterinary services across Africa and the Middle East are provided so working animals with injuries inflicted from curelty can be treated.

I believe that people with beliefs such as these need to be informed other wise. Acts such as these are not healing, they are damaging. Working animals need our help. Read more practices at the following link. Some may surprise you.

Animal Cruelty and Tradition

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

The Life of Rico

This is the story of Rico, a pit bull who was raised and trained by a man that wanted him to be a fighter. This man would do horrible things to Rico such as force him to run long distances with chains wrapped around his neck. I could not even imagine the pain that this would cause. One day during one of Rico's long runs, this man did something to Rico that would change his life forever.

On this day, Rico collapsed.in the middle of a public beach in Mexico. The man started yelling and shouting at Rico to continue the run but Rico was not able to do so. The man then used a knife to cut out Rico's tongue and proceeded to throw it into the ocean. Because there was many onlookers, the police were called immediately and a veterinarian was rushed to the scene.

Rico was rushed to surgery and hours later awoke with a wagging tail. He began training to learn how to be a companion instead of a fighter. He was taught to obey simple commands, walk on a leash, and to enjoy play without the fear.

Because of the Give Some Life Foundation ( http://givesomelife.com/gsl/ ), Rico quickly learned how to eat and drink. He even learned a new way to show affection. Rico is currently in the care of the Even Chance Pit Bull Advocacy, Resources, and Rescue ( http://evenchance.org/Even_Chance/Welcome_to_Even_Chance.html ).

It is hard to change the negative views the people have about pit bulls but it is people like this that make those views possible in the first place. People have to remember that any dog can be violent if they are raised to be that way. A dog doesn't become violent without the help of someone teaching it to be that way. And if a pit bull is violent, it is always possible for it to change its ways.

There is a petition called "Demand Justice for Dog Shot at D.C. Festival" on the same page as my article. The petition needs 25,000 signatures so if you read the article attached and would be interested in signing it, it would be greatly appreciated. There are also many other petitions on the page if you have some spare time and would like to go through them.

http://animals.change.org/blog/view/tongueless_pit_bull_teaches_resiliency_and_forgiveness#

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Teenage Cruella De Vil

Have you ever wondered what parents teach their children or what your children are really learning from their friends? After watching the video in this article I now am. Below is a picture of "Teenage Cruella De Vil".

A young teenage girl from Bosnia is now being referred to as "The Puppy Pitcher" and "Teenage Cruella De Vil" after putting a video on YouTube of her throwing crying puppies (at least 6) into a rapidly moving river. They even said in the article, and I quote ""It is a mirror of society and the fact that young people are doing such things shows how they have been raised," stated by Velimir Ivanisevic, the head of animal rights group SOS.

The fines for torchering or killing an animal in Bosnia can range from $19 to $6,400. The police are now starting an investigation and searching for the girl known as "The Puppy Pitcher". PETA is offering a $2,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the girl and anyone else involved in the drowning of the liter of helpless puppies.

The video itself is a horrible video. It was definitely hard for me to watch. At one point, one of the puppies barely even made it in the water. All the poor puppies were thrown to their death in only 44 seconds. While throwing one of the pups into the water, you can even hear her saying "whee". Her brother was the one filming while she threw the puppies into the river. These kids are seriously sick and demented and need to be found and dealt with.

See the video and read more at: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2010/09/01/2010-09-01_bosian_police_hunt_girl_throwing_puppies_in_river_in_disturbing_video_peta_offer.html#ixzz10vhlPEWQ

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.

Animals Rescued

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) assisted Ohio law enforcement with investigating a suspected large scale dog-fighting ring. More than 500 animals were found on the scene, 200 of which were American Pit Bull terriers. The other animals included chickens, roosters, turkeys, boars, and reptiles. The HSUS is working to place the animals. 10 dogs are being taken to Washington Animal Rescue League. Other animals are with rescue organizations or in homes.

This just goes to show how serious dog-fighting rings are and how popular they are. A lot of them go unknown and could be happening in your own backyard. Just how many dogs do you think this involves? How many of those dogs get injured or die during this so called "attraction"? Is this the way an animal should be treated?Answer all of these questions and then tell me if you are still able to sit back while all this goes on. 

The fact that it was in Ohio is another big factor. That's to close for comfort for me. I believe that animals should be treated with love and should not be taught to be aggressive. The Humane Society of the United States is a big help and as a pet owner, and a pet lover, I appreciate everything they do. I want to send out a big thank you to them and I believe that everyone else should to!

Suspected Dogfighting Operation Busted

This blog is prepared by a paralegal student as a class project, without compensation. The content of this blog contains my opinion, and is offered for personal interest without warranty of any kind. Comments posted by others on this blog are the responsibility of the posters of those messages. The reader is solely responsible for verifying the content of this blog and any linked information. Content, sources, information, and links will most likely change over time. The content of this blog may not be construed as legal, medical, business, or personal advice.