Heart 4 Animals

Many people who know pigs compare them to dogs because they are friendly, loyal, and intelligent. Pigs are naturally very clean and avoid, if at all possible, soiling their living areas. When given the chance to live away from factory farms, pigs will spend hours playing, lying in the sun, and exploring their surroundings with their powerful sense of smell. Considered smarter than 3-year-old human children, pigs are very clever animals.¹ Learn more about the intelligence of pigs.

Most people rarely have the opportunity to interact with these outgoing, sensitive animals because 97 percent of pigs in United States today are raised on factory farms.² These pigs spend their entire lives in cramped, filthy warehouses, under constant stress from the intense confinement and denied everything that is natural to them.

Piglets’ tails are cut off and their teeth are pulled out without the use of painkillers.

As piglets, they are taken away from their mothers when they are less than 1 month old; their tails are cut off, some of their teeth are cut off, and the males have their testicles ripped out of their scrotums (castration), all without any pain relief. They spend their entire lives in overcrowded pens on a tiny slab of filthy concrete.

Breeding sows spend their entire miserable lives in tiny metal crates where they can’t even turn around. Shortly after giving birth, they are once again forcibly impregnated. This cycle continues for years until their bodies finally give out and they are sent to be killed. When the time comes for slaughter, these smart and sensitive animals are forced onto transport trucks that travel for many miles through all weather extremes—many die of heat exhaustion in the summer and arrive frozen to the inside of the truck in the winter.

According to industry reports, more than 1 million pigs die in transport each year, and an additional 420,000 are crippled by the time they arrive at the slaughterhouse.^{3, 4} Many are still fully conscious when they are immersed in scalding water for hair removal.

Learn more.

Source: http://www.goveg.com/factoryFarming_pigs.asp

Watch Video below :

Guide to recognizing fur - A new Liberation BC publication!

If you or someone you know owns an item with real fur on it, please snap a pic and send it to info@liberationbc.com. We are working on a guide to recognizing fur for the fall shopping season, and your photos can help to provide necessary visuals. If you would like to help in any way with this project, or would just like more information, please send an email. It’s important to get information out there so that people can distinguish real fur from fake fur, before they buy it, and you can help.

If you are willing to part with any fur or fur-trimmed items (either on a permanent or temporary basis) they would be invaluable as visual aids when tabling.

If you have an item that you’re unsure of, contact us and we may be able to help. Tips can also be found here.

Pappas Furs Campaign

Every Saturday
1-3pm
Aberdeen Centre (4400 Hazelbridge Way, Richmond, located conveniently on the 98 B-Line bus (Cambie Road stop))

These protests at Aberdeen Centre are continuing until Pappas Furs is shut down.  Pappas Furs is a Canadian furrier that specializes in clothing of the cruelest kind — enormous fur coats, wraps, and muffs made from the skins of suffering animals.

How many animals are there in a standard full-length fur coat? Anywhere from 10 to 20 foxes, 18 to 20 lambs, or 130 to 200 chinchillas!

How can you help?

Come out to one of these Saturday events and join other compassionate people in speaking out against this cruelty. These events are friendly outreach events. All you need to bring is hope and a smile!

If you can’t make it out to Richmond, you can still help by contacting Aberdeen Centre and politely telling them that you don’t want Pappas Furs in the mall!

Telephone: 604.270.1234  or  604.273.1234 ext 12
Email:  info@aberdeencentre.com, leasing@aberdeencentre.com, promotion@aberdeencentre.com
Address:  Fairchild Developments Ltd., Suite 130,
4400 Hazelbridge Way, Richmond, BC, V6X 3R8

Foie Gras Outreach Event

Friday, May 30th,
7-9 pm,
Café de Paris Bistro, 751 Denman St.

The ducks and geese need your help! The campaign has been really successful so far, and many people have stopped to sign the petition. Best of all, more and more people are becoming aware of this issue.

Can’t make it out?  Please give Café de Paris a call at 604-687-1418 and let them know that there’s no excuse for foie gras!

If you haven’t contacted the other restaurants on the list of foie gras offenders, now is the perfect time! All it takes is a few minutes and an email account or a phone! The list is constantly being updated, so check back often!

If you learn of a restaurant or store that is carrying foie gras, please send an email to info@liberationbc.com so that they can be added to the list. Thanks!

Respect for Chickens

International Respect for Chickens Day may have been celebrated a few weeks ago, but we know that any day is a good one when it comes to celebrating chickens.  Did you know that chickens are intelligent birds with cognitive abilities rivaling those of small children? It’s true! Did you know that they are very social birds who recognize each other by their facial features and have 24 distinct cries, including separate alarm calls depending on whether a predator is approaching by land or by sea? They are also good at problem-solving!

“As a trick at conferences I sometimes list  attributes, without mentioning chickens, and people think I’m talking about monkeys,” says Dr. Chris Evans, Professor of Psychology at Macquarie University.

Learn more about the remarkable chicken at GoVeg.com and CompassionOverKilling.

Eat Less Meat!

The Vancouver Humane Society has issued a challenge on the newest page of their website:

Stop animal suffering.
Protect the environment.
Stay healthy.
Save vital resources.

Eat less meat.

We couldn’t agree more! Rising meat consumption is the driving force behind the growth in factory farming that’s ruining our environment, harming our health and condemning billions of animals to misery.  Learn what you can do to stop it!

You can help put a stop to the suffering by speaking flickout against it. Please consider joining other activists at any of the friendly outreach events listed below.

If you can’t make it to an event, there are many other ways to help. You can write letters, send emails, or make phone calls. If you would like to start your own leafletting or outreach event, or if there’s some other way that you feel you can help, send an email to info@liberationbc.com.

Also, consider making a donation to Liberation BC. Your donations help to cover the costs of printing leaflets and signs and purchase important equipment like the tent, the television, and the portable battery. Liberation BC is an all-volunteer organization with no funding, except from donations. Your support is vital to continue to spread this message of compassion and concern for the millions of voiceless animals who are suffering right now.

The animals need you.

Please, donate now.

Source: Liberation BC at http://www.liberationbc.com/ .

by doing so, you are most likely supporting the cruel animal trade known as puppy mills.

What are puppy mills? Puppy mills are places where hundreds of thousands of dogs suffer 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. ( Source : Let’s END Puppy Mills at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14826765967&ref=share )

Please join this group here or at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14826765967&ref=share

For more info, please visit End Puppy Mills , Stop Puppy Mills , No Puppy Mills Canada

We are in a race against time to help the people and animal survivors of the massive China earthquake.

The numbers are staggering: over 65,000 people have perished, over 12.5 million livestock have been lost, and countless dogs and cats are homeless, injured, and starving to death. They desperately need your help.

Please give what you can today.

The assessment by IFAW’s Emergency Relief team in the earthquake’s epicentre reports dire conditions for people and animals:

* Drinking water is polluted and there is a critical need for water purification tablets.
* In one county alone, one thousand water pumps are needed immediately for providing water to animals.
* There is a desperate need for tents, fencing for animals, food for companion animals, and livestock feed.

We have authorized an initial animal relief fund of US$200,000.
Can you please help us reach this goal?

Helping animals and people

IFAW’s Emergency Relief Teams are providing food, water, vaccinations and other supplies to animals and their owners in need. Our first shipment includes 10 generators, 100 water pumps, 10,000 square metres of fencing, 150 tents, medical and surgical supplies, and water purification systems. This is a good start, but much, much more is needed.

Our biggest task now is to prevent the spread of epidemic diseases between humans and animals … and over 300,000 livestock are still waiting for help.

Please help China’s earthquake victims.

Agencies in the epicentre are in desperate need of more supplies: 100,000 tonnes of livestock feed are needed. There is an urgent need of rabies vaccine for both animals and people in mobile hospitals set up in the quake-affected areas.

The animals are counting on us

Relief workers cannot do it all — they must help sick, elderly and injured people. It is up to us to help the animals. For people who have lost everything, their pets are all they have left.

There is no time to lose. The animal and people victims of China’s massive earthquake simply can’t afford to wait. Please make your donation today.

Thank you, from the suffering animals who wait,

Olivier Bonnet
Director, IFAW Canada

When you buy from a pet shop, you kill a pound pup. Save a life instead. Adopt from an animal shelter if you have the time and resources to care for a dog. You see, many of the puppies and kittens come from animal mills , where dogs and cats are abused for the dog trade. (Source: PETA)

> Watch Charlize Theron Investigates Puppy Mills > Learn more here

> Oprah Winfrey on Puppy Mills

> Watch Trent Reznor cover Fur Farms > More ways to help .

Horrified visitors to the Island of Carriacou—off the coast of Grenada in the Caribbean—contacted PETA after witnessing the horrific manner in which locals torture sea turtles to death. Witnesses report seeing these beautiful animals pulled from their ocean home, flipped over onto their backs on dry land, and left to bake to death in the hot sun. A heartbreaking video provided by tourists shows a group of overturned and helpless turtles that flail their flippers in a futile attempt to save themselves.

Upon receiving these calls, PETA sent an urgent letter to Carriacou’s minister, Elvin Nimrod, urging him to put a stop to this barbaric and sadistic practice. We have not received a response.

Many countries have outlawed the killing of sea turtles as a result of their dwindling numbers and because of their importance to the ocean’s ecosystem. International trade in sea turtle parts or products is also illegal under the Convention for International Trade of Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora. In addition to considering the criminal and environmental significance of this practice, it should also be noted that the method in which these islanders are killing turtles is extremely cruel.

Please politely urge Mr. Nimrod to do anything and everything in his power to end this practice immediately. Inform him that compassionate travelers like you will not visit Carriacou and that you will spread the word about this horrific abuse until it has ceased once and for all.

Please send polite comments to:

The Honorable Elvin Nimrod, Minister
Ministry of Carriacou and Petite Martinique Affairs
Beausejour
Carriacou
Grenada, W.I.
473-443-6026
473-443-6040 (fax)

Source: PETA at http://www.peta.org/actioncenter/ActionAlerts-item.asp?id=2517&c=weekly_enews

Be Like Oprah and Try a Vegetarian Diet Today!
Oprah Winfrey is trying a vegetarian diet, and we are challenging you to do the same for at least seven days! After signing our Pledge to Be Veg for 7 Days, you’ll receive all the resources you need to get started. Sign the pledge now!

Vote for 2008’s Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity!
It’s time once again to pick the hottest vegetarian celebrity in PETA’s 2008 Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity poll. Check out who’s on this year’s list, and vote for your favorite today!

Kentucky Fried Cruelty: The Movie
It plays out like the most frightening of horror films, yet it’s based on true events. Watch the Kentucky Fried Cruelty trailers—described as “gut-wrenching,” “profoundly disturbing,” and “almost unbearable to watch”—for a sneak peak at the sinister world of KFC.

Battlestar Galactica’s Tricia Helfer PSA and Contest
One of TV’s hottest stars, Tricia Helfer, posed for PETA’s sexy new “Angel for Animals” ad. See Tricia’s ad, watch the behind-the-scenes footage of her PETA photo shoot, and enter to win seasons one through three of Battlestar Galactica—and the movie Razor—on DVD.

Alyssa Milano’s Sexy Veggie Ad
An animal lover, Alyssa Milano believes that anything you can do to alleviate suffering matters. She’s letting everyone know about the vegetarian diet by appearing in an ad for PETA with the message “Let Vegetarianism Grow on You.” Check out the ad and sign PETA’s pledge today!

Pick PETA’s Best Anti-Circus Video
We need your help! Please take a moment to watch PETA’s videos that expose circus cruelty and take our poll to tell us which video you think is the most compelling and would work best in our campaign to get circuses to stop using animals. Take our poll now!

Source : PETA

Sign up for your weekly news on animal issues here .

Popular mainland TV star Sun Li of Jet Li’s “Fearless” movie fame shoots an anti-fur advertisement for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an international animal right organization, in Beijing.

Popular TV star Sun Li is set to appear in an anti-fur advertisement for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, an international animal right organization.

The actress shot the ad, which is titled “Don’t be cold-hearted. No fur.” on Wednesday in Beijing.

She even didn’t mind when her “co-star”—a cute white rabbit—that she was holding in her arms, scratched her. “Rabbits are timid. I know it didn’t do that on purpose. I have been communicating with it.”

“It is an honor for me to join this PETA campaign,” said Sun Li, who is also an ambassador for the Shanghai Small Animal Protection Association.

“Lives are all equal, including animals. It’s horrific that animals are tortured and killed for their fur,” Sun Li appealed, “it is not beautiful at all to be dressed in a dead animal.”

For more info, please visit PETA Asia Pacific (http://www.petaasiapacific.com/)

PETA Asia & PETA International Needs People To Speak Up for helpless animals ! If you, or if you know of anyone or any celebrity who has the compassion and commitment to speak out for voice-less animals, please let us know. Thank you for your kind actions.

Credit: crienglish.com Source: asianfanatics.net

This is a question I ache over for celebrities , girls, women , and men who choose to wear fur , or fur-lined sweaters, outer coats , wraps.

I mean, if there are clothes that can keep a person warm, why wear fur ?  It only shows a lack of compassion for the animals that suffer extreme pain having their fur and flesh skinned off alive in order to protect the quality of the fur .

Please please learn the truth about how fur is obtained and how animals suffer in order to produce the fur. If you don’t want your skin stolen from your body, then….please don’t encourage the fur traders to steal the fur from the animals which it belongs , and in the process suffer a painful slow death.

Learn more by double - clicking the links below :

a) How is fur obtained ?

b) Fur Farms in China

c) How fur is obtained from dogs and cats

PS You can help these  animals through telling others about it by creating a blog, putting it on myspace, facebook account, you tube, on your own website or by supporting the animal protection agencies on the right panel of this website….and urge people NOT to buy fur or fur-lined sweaters. Click HERE to find out about what you CAN do to stop fur.

Here are some things you can do to help put an end to the global trade in dog and cat fur.

1. Avoid all fur products. Without extensive testing, it is impossible to be sure whether a fur product is made from dog or cat fur. Furthermore, the trade in fur—whether it be cat, dog, or any animal—is cruel.
2. Tell everyone you know about the trade in dog and cat fur. Once people understand that these garments, trims, and figurines are the product of the brutal slaughtering of dogs and cats, they won’t want to buy them. If the market disappears, manufacturers will stop making the products. Distribute Betrayal of Trust brochures—contact Humane Society of United States for copies.
3. Raise awareness at department stores and gift shops. Store managers may not know that some of their merchandise may be made of dog or cat fur. Tell store managers about the global trade in dog and cat fur and about the ban on dog and cat fur products in the United States. Ask them to discontinue the sale of all fur items in their stores. Provide the store with some background on the issue: The HSUS’s Betrayal of Trust brochure and a copy of the Dog and Cat Protection Act of 2000.
4. Bring attention to the sale of these products in your community. Write letters to the editor of the local paper. Contact your local television news stations and ask them to do an investigative report.
5. Contact the embassies of countries where dogs and cats are slaughtered for their fur and skin. Urge them to bring an end to this atrocity.
6. Return any item that you suspect contains dog or cat fur to the store. Explain to store managers why you are returning the item, provide them with information on the trade in cat and dog fur, and ask them to stop selling products that contain fur. You can also report suspect items to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection at 1-800-BE-ALERT (232-5378).
7. Ask your representative to support and co-sponsor H.R. 4904, the Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006, so you can keep dog, cat, and other fur out the closets of unsuspecting consumers. The Truth in Fur Labeling Act of 2006, introduced by U.S. Representatives Mike Ferguson (R-N.J.) and Jim Moran (D-Va.), will amend the original Fur Products Labeling Act to eliminate the loophole that allows items featuring fur that are valued at less than $150 to be sold without identifying them as animal fur or specifying the species of animal or country of origin.

(Source: Humane Society of United States here or at URL: http://www.hsus.org/furfree/dogs_cats/betrayal/dog_and_cat_fur_action_guide.html)