Animal Lovers & Advocates

SOMEONE I LOVE IS CELEBRATING A BIRTHDAY TODAY

Terra — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 11:15:28 EDT

I hope you don't think I'm talking about THIS GUY...

How YOU can put an end to PUPPY MILLS

Terra — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 16:17:00 EDT

ADOPT!! DON'T BUY!! It's that simple. Avoid pet stores. Don't buy from breeders. Find your next pet from a local rescue or shelter by using www.petfinder.com.

YES, YOU CAN FIND PUREBREDS AT SHELTERS AND RESCUES.

HSUS MySpace Page | Stop Puppy Mills Website

Puppy mills are nothing new. These mass dog-breeding operations have been around for decades. They continue to thrive because they prey on unwitting consumers who are smitten by too-cute-for-words puppies in pet store windows and on fancy websites.

But behind the friendly facade of the local pet shop, the pastoral scenes on a "breeder's" website, or the neighborhood newspaper ad, there often lies a puppy mill. These canine breeding facilities house dogs in shockingly poor conditions.

I'm chaining myself to a dog house. Care to join me?

Terra — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 15:35:51 EDT

I'm chaining myself to a dog house on July 1 for 8 hours... Would you care to join me?

It's all a part of the Dogs Deserve Better CHAIN OFF 2007. The CHAIN OFF, held every July 4th for the past 5 years, has evolved from one woman chaining herself to a doghouse for 33 hours in Pennsylvania in 2004, to 11 contestants chaining themselves for as long as 13 days to win a new car in 2006.

Off topic: Looking for that perfect pet??

Terra — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:22:24 EDT

Don't buy while rescues die...

Visit the Petfinder website to find the right animal for your family. You can search by species, breed, age, size, zip code, etc. These animals have been pulled from puppy mills, rescued from animal shelters and given up by their owners.

These animals deserve better. (And, yes, you can find purebred animals in rescues/shelters.)

www.petfinder.com

Why hasn't the Bush administration stepped in?

Terra — Thu, 10 May 2007 12:04:29 EDT

Uninsured US patients gouged by hospitals

US hospitals charge uninsured, self-paying patients more than twice the amount they receive for insured patients, according to a new study on health policy.

Study author Gerard Anderson of the Center for Hospital Finance and management at Johns Hopkins University said that on average, patients that have to pay for their own care in the United States get charged 2.5 times what insurers are billed for their customers for the same care in hospitals.

"The markup on hospital care for these individuals, especially for those who can afford it least, is unjustifiable," Anderson said in a statement summarizing his research.

The hospitals also charged those patients an average of three times the allowed costs for the same services set by the government-run Medicare health insurance program available mainly to elderly people.

For-profit hospitals were the worst offenders, on average marking up a 100 dollar Medicare-set cost to 410 dollars for someone not using insurance to pay for the service.

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Anderson argues that the US needs to either provide health insurance to uninsured people to overcome the problem, or for hospitals to charge the same rate for everyone.

"Hospitals should do the right thing and lower the prices they charge the uninsured," he said.

LITTLE SHOPS OF SORROWS

Terra — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 12:04:11 EDT

From the Animal Protection Institute:

What's a better purchase than an adorable new friend from a pet store? Just about anything! In many people's minds, pet shops are fun places, full of adorable animals romping and playing while patiently awaiting their "forever home."

But the reality of life in a pet shop is far different. That "doggie in the window" likely came from a puppy mill, where dogs are often bred repeatedly; kept in small, barren cages; and treated solely as merchandise, not as feeling beings. Life for dogs …quot; and other animals …quot; in pet shops is no better. Serious welfare problems abound when animals are kept in retail environments.

For more information about buying from pet stores: Link AND LINK

From Prisoners of Greed (Puppymills Breed Misery):

Hundreds of thousands of dogs suffer in puppy mills in this country. The dogs are prisoners of greed. They are locked in small cages. They freeze in the winter and swelter in the summer. The dogs never get out of their prisons. They are bred over and over again until they die. The only way to free them from the misery of these horrid puppymills is to eliminate the demand for puppies by refusing to buy a puppy in a pet store and boycotting those pet stores that sell puppies. When people stop buying puppies in pet stores, the puppy mills will go out of business and the misery will end. The state and federal governments do not enforce the laws to protect the dogs. The commercial breeders and brokers have huge well-funded lobbying efforts.

Please join this fight to free the prisoners of greed. The only person who is going to make a difference for the dogs suffering in puppy mills is you. You, the people, can free them from their puppy mill prisons.

For more information about puppy mills and commercial kennels: Link

PLEASE DON’T BUY WHILE RESCUES DIE!

TAKE ACTION: Progress through legislation

Terra — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 11:37:39 EDT

One of the most effective ways to advocate on behalf of animals is to become involved in the political process.
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API participates in the public policy process at the local, state, national level, and international level - and we can show you how to do it too. We need everyone who cares about animals and their treatment to help by calling, writing, and visiting their public officials. You don't need to be a voter to express your concerns; anyone, no matter what your age, can do something. It can take as little as a minute and can make a big difference. If you're an Activist, or want to become one, we can help.

For more information, visit the Animal Protection Institute here: Link

Feral cats are not homeless cats

Terra — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 11:02:59 EDT

JUST BECAUSE THEY LIVE OUTSIDE DOESN'T MEAN THEY'RE HOMELESS

There are cats all around us. But just because a cat lives outside doesn't mean she is homeless. These alley cats, barn cats, or street cats - feral cats - are undomesticated and unsocialized, and call the outside their home, just as squirrels, raccoons, and birds do. Feral cats live together in colonies, and unless spayed or neutered, their numbers grow. Tomcats prowl for mates, females become pregnant, and the cycle of reproduction continues.
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We want everyone to know the truth about feral cats and Trap, Neuter, and Return or TNR. This sensible method of population control returns spayed and neutered cats to their outdoor homes, improves their lives and health, and brings their numbers down.

To learn more about feral cats and how you can help ferals in your neighborhood, visit the Alley Cat Allies website.

MAINE: Man's best friend deserves more

Terra — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 21:17:11 EDT

Man's best friend deserves more than being chained

Have you ever gone by a home where the same dog is chained outside all the time? It may be the most pervasive form of domestic animal cruelty we have in Maine today.
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But something has been done. In the last legislative session, Maine Friends of Animals sponsored the first state legislation addressing specific changes to dogs left continuously outside. With the momentum of this legislation, a statewide campaign is in place to continue to educate the public, the media and legislators that more has to be done to improve the miserable life of these dogs.

Click here for the full article.

Controversial PA Dog Rescue Case Goes to Motion Hearing

Terra — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 14:14:10 EDT

Press Release from Dogs Deserve Better*:

Controversial Pennsylvania Dog Rescue Case Goes to Motion Hearing April 17

Dogs Deserve Better to Hold Pre-Hearing Rally in Support of Grimes Actions to Save Dying Dog

April 6, 2007, Altoona, PA—Dogs Deserve Better founder Tammy Grimes will be back in court April 17th for a motion hearing to dismiss charges of theft and receiving stolen property. Grimes was arrested September 11, 2006 after taking a dog—unable to stand for three days—for veterinary care; then protecting him from being returned to the abusive situation.

Grimes and her attorneys maintain that there were clearly Pennsylvania cruelty laws being broken for at least three days by the time she arrived on the scene, and charges should instead be filed against the Arnolds for abuse and neglect.

On November 3, 2006 Grimes attorney requested a Bill of Particulars from the Blair County District Attorney's office. As of March 6, the District Attorney's office had either failed or refused to furnish a Bill of Particulars to Grimes' attorneys, thereby entitling Grimes to make a written motion to the court for dismissal.

Grimes states, "I believe we need to take a serious look at a justice system that favors animal abusers. What is this teaching our children? We have ample proof of abuse in this case: neighbor testimony, vet testimony, video and photo evidence. If you see an animal or human dying and in need of immediate help, it is a task given to us by God to help that being and protect him/her from further harm. A system that instead requires an abused child or animal to be returned to the situation in which they were abused is corrupt, and must be questioned and examined if we are to evolve as a society."

The dog, who Grimes dubbed Doogie, had been kept safe and lived inside as part of a family until March 1, 2007, when he passed away due to age and a lifetime of neglect. Doogie's body was returned to Altoona, Pennsylvania, where an autopsy was performed. The DA subsequently ordered the body to be held at the vet and to be returned to the Arnolds.

Grimes continues, "The mere fact that with medical care and a loving environment Doogie lived for another 5.5 months is further proof of abuse—the Arnolds failed to provide necessary veterinary care, clearly required under PA state law. The Arnolds have stated, on the witness stand, that they had planned to euthanize Doogie that very day...almost six months earlier than he went with proper care."

Dogs Deserve Better will hold a rally April 17th at 9:00 a.m. at the Hollidaysburg courthouse before the motion hearing, and asks all those who believe Doogie deserved better to come out in support. The case has made national headlines, and has been featured on Inside Edition, the National Enquirer, Animal People, animal magazines, and on blogs all over the internet.

* Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has 150 area reps in 38 states as well as in Canada and France. Grimes was a Top Ten Finalist for the 2006 Animal Planet Hero of the Year Contest.

Creating "no kill" shelters in your community

Terra — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 14:03:08 EDT

The No Kill Advocacy Center is proud to announce one of the most important pieces of shelter legislation in decades: The Companion Animal Protection Act of 2007. The legislation is part of its national strategy to end the unnecessary killing of millions of animals in U.S. shelters annually.

This law: 1) mandates the programs and services which have proven so successful at shelters which have implemented them 2) follows the only model that has actually created a No Kill community 3) focuses its effort on the very shelters that are doing the killing.

To download or print a copy of the law, click here.

The Companion Animal Protection Act mandates the provision of low-cost spay/neuter and medical care. Because many shelters have fees which are not "low cost" despite the claim, we also recommended a fee schedule for services at public sheltering agencies. For a copy of the recommended fee schedule, click here.

To read why mandatory spay/neuter and licensing laws do not work, click here.

To start the process of reforming animal control and private shelters in your community, click here.

Free spay/neuter program - Washington, DC metro

Terra — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 13:33:29 EDT

The Washington Animal Rescue League has expanded its low-cost spay and neuter program to provide free spay and neuter services for ALL individuals in the Washington, D.C. area (regardless of income)

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"Each year, millions of dogs and cats are euthanized in U.S. shelters, due to a lack of resources and space available to house them until new homes can be found. Millions more are abandoned in both rural and urban areas, left to starve and suffer. Most of these animals will die before they have the chance to find loving homes, but before they do, they will reproduce, further contributing to the already rampant animal overpopulation epidemic. Their offspring are doomed from the moment they are born, innocent victims of society's failure to require or provide accessible spay and neuter services."

"In response to this crisis, The Washington Animal Rescue League updated and expanded its low-cost spay and neuter program in 2004 to provide free spay and neuter services for not only income-qualifying individuals, but all individuals in the Washington, D.C. area (regardless of income) and all groups participating in the ShARE network. By spaying and neutering these animals, the League is working to reduce the number of unwanted litters born; the first step in lowering the number of animals unnecessarily destroyed each year."

Click here for Frequently Asked Questions and more information.