The use of performing animals is on the wane in American circuses, but it hasn’t vanished from the landscape altogether. What’s it going to take to get animals out of the ring?
Barnum and Bailey got rid of elephants: What’s next?
Tag: animal welfare
Animals aren’t toys to discard when they’re broken
One reason we have so many homeless animals is the belief that it’s acceptable to treat animals like garbage, paired with lack of information about options for treating sick animals and finding social supports. We can do better than this.
Farm reform matters for people too
The United States is having a big discussion about farm reform right now in spite of the ag-gag laws that are working double time to silence exposés of the reality of conditions on farms and the resistance to conversations about factory farming and animal abuse. Animal welfare has become a concern for a growing percentage […]
Put an End to Class B Dealers and the Use of Pets in Animal Experiments
I have always had strong feelings about the use of animals in unnecessary, brutal, horrific experiments in the United States, whether in cosmetics labs, medical research facilities, or veterinary schools. The harm inflicted on animals without clear reason or purpose in this country is horrific, and the number of animals who die in pain and […]
Little Movement on Carriage Horse Reform
Last year, I wrote about the plight of carriage horses in New York, highlighting the fact that horses are being abused to provide people with quaint, romantic, nostalgic rides in and around Central Park. Cities across the US have similar carriage horse programmes, but New York’s horses have become iconic, not just in pop culture […]
Industrial Agriculture: Now Creating Superviruses With Excessive Vaccination!
If there’s one thing I’m a huge fan of, it’s vaccines. I love cost effective methods of preventing disease through the development of herd immunity, particularly in the case of extremely dangerous diseases like whooping cough and polio. The thought that these conditions were once fatal and much more common and now are not because […]
Legislating Compassion
California’s foie gras ban has attracted considerable news coverage and generated reams of discussion, both pro and con, across the state. Chefs and foie gras fans act like victims of those horrible animal welfare activists, complaining that their lives will be ruined now. Animal welfare activists are excited about what the ban means and the […]
Animal Welfare Is About More Than Potty Softies With Too Many Cats
One of the most enduring stereotypes about people interested in animal welfare is that they are giant softies who may have gone a bit batty, living in houses filled with cats and rescued guinea pigs and other unwanted and discarded animals. There’s a certain level of vicious contempt in the way society views people who […]
Who Watches the Watchers? Livestock Self-Inspection Is A Bad Idea
In April, the United States Department of Agriculture announced that it would be turning some poultry inspection responsibilities over to poultry processing plants. This was spun as an improvement for food safety, as well as a cost-cutting and streamlining measure. The USDA pushed hard on the modernisation rhetoric, arguing that the change in inspection policies […]
Animal Welfare, Farmer to Farmer
Rancher Kevin Fulton might seem like your standard Nebraska farmer at first glance; he runs almost 3,000 acres, producing a variety of crops and animal products. He’s a rugged guy who drives a truck and gets stuff done. Did I mention he’s a former strongman? He’s also a total softie, or so it would appear; […]