Ecogear Wear

quotes

Never wear anything that panics the cat.

— P.J. O'Rourke

animals as companions

Animal Auctions

Submitted by v4aeditor on April 27, 2008 - 11:02am. animals as companions

Devon McDonald and Tove Reece recently went to the “Exotic Animal and Bird Consignment Auction” in Innisfail. On the auction block were all manner of sad little creatures, waiting for their fate at the hands of whoever bought them for a cheap price.

The animals there were rolled past the audience on a conveyor belt coming up for bidding one by one. Sometimes they were bundled in groups of similar animals if they weren’t expected to be hot sellers. The stream of animals being auctioned seemed endless – rabbits, ducks, peacocks, chinchillas, chickens to name a few. Later it was migratory birds such as several species of swans and then the caged birds, parakeets, cockateels, parrots and more. The previous day it was hedge hogs, guinea pigs, flying squirrels, wallabys and a bewildering variety of other animals.

It is obvious that these animals are bred, and auctioned off for a quick buck. They come bundled in all manners of cheap containers from rickety wire cubes to cardboard boxes and laundry baskets. Water and food, when supplied, was usually in paper cups that had long since been knocked over. The pick-up area was a jumble of stressed and frightened looking animals.

We later drove to a similar auction in Olds where we met up with R.J., an activist, and Lucy, who runs a farm animal sanctuary, from Calgary. The only thing that made the day bearable was that R.J. and Lucy had rescued a number of animals that otherwise would not have been sold. From what we’ve heard unsold animals usually meet a gruesome end.

It appears that there is no end to the ways people will exploit animals.

Camrose Cat Killing

Submitted by v4aeditor on January 10, 2008 - 8:49pm. animals as companions

Members of Voice for Animals Society will be travelling to Camrose to support stiff punishment and psychiatric treatment for the perpetrators of animal cruelty in the recent home invasion case.

It’s vital that there be many people present to voice their outrage at this senseless act of cruelty towards an animal and to demand changes in legislation, plus psychiatric treatment for the perpetrators.

Click here to read more about what you can do.

Read more about this incident.

UPDATE:

January 17th, 2008:

This is what happened at the January 17th protest...

There were nine v4a members protesting outside the court house.
There were no locals there. Several locals told us they didn't know about the court date.
Both the prosecutor and the defense lawyers asked that the public be banned from the court room. Their reasons were the safety of the accused and the fact that their names had already been illegally published on Facebook and they had received threats.
The judge asked if there were any objections. So after a recess I petitioned the court for the public to be allowed to stay.
The judge agreed that the public should be allowed to stay.
The Young Offender did no get bail.
The young Offender will be back in court on January 28 for a bail hearing and to enter a plea.

January 28, 2008

Unfortunately, due to the spell of terrible weather occurring across the province, V4A was not able to make an appearance outside of the courtroom for the first of the boys. It is unclear whether or not the trial took place as there has not been news on the event. It may be the case that the trial was canceled due to the poor weather.

February 7, 2008

There was a reasonably good turnout of protesters for the hearing of the other three accused young offenders in the microwaving of a cat. There were few if any locals at the court which is unfortunate and puzzling since thousands of people have signed onto Facebook sites condemning this horrible act. Another teenager has been charged (for a total of 5) in this case. The lawyers for the young offenders appeared in court and asked that proceedings be put over until March 6th, primarily because of the large volume of information they have to go through. It is expected that the young offenders will enter a plea at this time. Voice for Animals is planning to attend this hearing as well.

June 4, 2008

It was a difficult day in court in Camrose on June 4th. It's hard to look at the kids who microwaved a cat to death while Princess screamed in pain for 10 min. until she died. Crown Prosecutor Laluk read the statement of facts to the court. Many people in court gasped and I think everyone felt deeply sickened. It is hard to understand how someone can stand by and listen to these screams of agony and not have the empathy to stop it. Nobody did and Princess died in agony. The judge asked for a pre-sentence report to be ready for sentencing on July 17th.

Voice for Animals feels these young offenders have serious psychological problems and if not given help they will likely go on to commit more violent crimes. So although they are not likely to receive jail time for these acts of violence, we hope the judge will recognize the seriousness of their actions and order psychological treatment as well as giving them as tough a sentence as he can. The young offenders had pleaded not guilty but changed their pleas to guilty shortly before the start of court. The Crown Prosecutor felt that the kids were remorseful and changing their pleas to guilty was an indication of that. We're not so sure, there is much chatter on line to indicate that they are not remorseful and their change of plea, described as a deal, was more likely an attempt to get a lighter sentence. V4A will be back in Camrose for the sentencing, we will make our voices heard so that this kind of incomprehensible, sadistic cruelty does not go unnoticed and we hope, unpunished.

Reserve Dogs

Submitted by v4aeditor on January 19, 2007 - 11:46pm. animals as companions

Special thanks goes to Di at Reserve Dog Liberation for her hard work in putting this issue paper together. Also, make sure you check out her blog for her thoughts and feelings on the plight of reserve dogs in this country.

Reserve dogs: Education, Spay and Neuter desperately Needed

Dogs, like their ancestor the wolf, are pack animals. When abandoned or neglected they will form loose associations or packs. If threatened or hungry and desperate enough they will attack humans. Recently, there have been several such attacks on various reserves and young children have been mauled and killed.

The reasons behind these attacks need to be examined:

Dogs are often brought onto some reserves when they are puppies, as toys for the children, then eventually discarded when they are no longer cute. These beautiful pups/dogs are then left to fend for themselves and to survive as best they can on some reserves. The competition for scraps is, of course, fierce. Dogs will fight other dogs and have even been seen fighting crows over scraps of food. They also scrounge through garbage or steal lunches from children in a desperate attempt to get food. Some will eat carrion or feces - whatever they can find. These dogs are slowly starving to death, most do not make it past their first or second year. The freezing weather, injuries and lack of food takes its toll on their undernourished, battered bodies - unless they are shot first.
Besides the fierce competition for food, many reserve dogs are abused and attacked by their former owners, other people on the reserve, including some children, or by other dogs. Many children misinterpret a dog's 'body language' and run in fear. A dog may naturally pursue a running and fearful child and it is also an invitation for some dogs to attack.
The humans that these dogs initially trusted as their caregivers when they were puppies have now become someone to be feared by the dogs. 'Dog shooting days' or 'cull' days take place to supposedly rid some reserves of the many unwanted dogs. If this method really worked, why must it be repeated year after year? Also, maulings are still happening.

Are there alternatives to dog shooting? Is there a way to stop the maulings?

Yes. Education on some reserves would definitely teach children (and adults) how to approach dogs, how to avoid being bitten, the importance of spay and neuter, and humane animal care. Educational resources, consisting of videos and worksheets, are free; many are downloadable and ready for the classroom. Some examples of what is available are:

SPCA - has videos for the classroom on avoiding dog bites as well as worksheets dealing with humane treatment of animals.

The Humane Society of the United States - has a wealth of information as well as a program called "First Strike" that has been successful in helping communities deal with violence towards animals, which they recognize as a highly visible form of family and community violence.

Dogs who are treated kindly and who receive food on a regular basis, seldom, if ever, resort to attacking and mauling people. Spaying or neutering would reduce populations humanely. Individuals on some reserves could possibly receive a refund after showing proof of spay or neuter, rather than 'bounty' money for shooting dogs.

For the children's sake, as well as the innocent dogs, please make your voice heard and stop the cycle of violence.