Heart 4 Animals

Foie gras

Paté de foie gras, translated from French, means “fatty liver.” This so-called gourmet delicacy is anything but delicate. Indeed, it is undeniably the product of extreme animal cruelty.

Force-fed cruelty

Factory foie gras farms intensively raise ducks and geese in large, enclosed barns. For the last few weeks of their lives the birds are forced into tiny wire cages, barely larger than their bodies, where they cannot even turn around or spread their wings. As social animals, they suffer greatly when confined to individual cages. Their suffering is further compounded by the fact that they are denied access to enough water to swim and preen, which they do naturally in the wild. This confinement can also lead to lesions of the sternum and bone fractures, as well as foot injuries from the cage floors. Two to three times a day, farm workers grab the immobilized birds and cram metal pipes down their throats, forcing huge amounts of food into them in seconds. The birds suffer tremendously during and after the force-feeding process. The excessive overfeeding (equaling one third the bird’s body weight - each day) causes their livers to become diseased and to quickly swell up to ten times their normal size. Soon they can barely stand, walk, or even breathe. This force-feeding can also cause painful bruising, lacerations and sores. They often die when the metal feeding tubes puncture their necks, when their stomachs literally “burst”, or when force-feeding overfills them to the point of suffocation.

In Canada, half a million birds are killed for foie gras each year.

International response

Due to animal welfare concerns, more than a dozen countries—including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Israel (formerly the world’s fourth-largest foie gras producing nation), Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland—have prohibited the production of foie gras. In 2004, California became the first U.S. state to ban the cruel force-feeding of birds and the sale of foie gras produced from force-fed birds, effective 2012.

Take action

• Contact your Minister of Agriculture and demand a national ban on foie gras production.
• Next time you go into a store or restaurant or supermarket that sells foie gras, please let the manager know that a product that comes from force-feeding ducks and geese is more than you can stomach and that you will not shop or dine there as long as they sell it. Then, let us know about it by emailing info@hsi.org.

Video Credit : People For Ethical Treatment of Animals . Source: Humane Society International. Video Credit : People For Ethical Treatment of Animals .

Here are several animals that need your help. The letters of appeal have already been drafted for your slight modification and ready to be sent via email:

> Appeal against farm practice of Smashing Heads of Pigs With Hammer

> Speak up for cows that are left to die slow & painful death

> Help stop cruel Dog & Cat Fur trade

> Ask Edmonton to Let elephant Lucy Pack Her Trunk

> here are more animal issues . > Home page .

With the health risks like salmonella, bird flu, e coli, mad cow disease, H1N1 (or swine flu) virus, it is all the more important that you be informed about the food that you and your family eat. Find out more :

> Factory Farming > McDonalds > Wendy’s > Veal & Foie Gras

In the similar vein as “An Inconvenient Truth”, this movie documentary provides an insight into the food industry and how consumers are putting themselves at risk. Check this out > http://www.foodincmovie.com/

> 10 Simple Things You Can Do

1. Did you know that sport hunting of grizzly bears is allowed in BC’s Great Bear Rainforest?  Now First Nations people, conservationists and animal protection organizations are joining forces to speak out against this travesty.

It is appalling to think that even grizzly bears—who are protected from hunting in the U.S.—are routinely killed in the Great Bear Rainforest. Notably, of the 430 grizzly bears killed in BC in 2007, 87 percent were killed by trophy hunters. Black bears are also at risk. The BC Coast has one of greatest diversity of black bears subspecies in North America, ranging from the spirit bear…to the Haida black bear, the largest on the BC Coast.

Join up and speak out against the bear hunt: Send a message to the BC government to show your opposition to the hunt!

2. Vegan at heart but not quite in practice?  Check out the great new site, Vegan at Heart:

[Vegan at Heart] is for idealists and animal-lovers and treehuggers and health nuts and everybody in-between who wants to incorporate more compassionate, healthy, sustainable habits into their daily lives but who need a little more info, a little moral support, or just a little friendly kick in the pants…Non-vegans have a positive impact on the world every single time they make a healthy vegan choice. Learn more here.

3. Watch this report from ABC on a nine-month undercover investigation by the HSUS into the horrible abuse of chimpanzees in a research laboratory.  Learn more about the study at the HSUS page here... and send it to your friends.

Remember, it’s easy to get almost everything without relying on products derived from animal testing!  Local stores like Capers and Whole Foods only sell cruelty-free cosmetics and cleaning supplies, and even the Safeway name-brand doesn’t utilize animal testing!  Check out a partial list of cruelty-free products here: http://search.caringconsumer.com/

4. Master of Shark’s Fin? If you’re anything like us,  you know that the only one who should have shark fins are the sharks themselves.  And yet, the Jade Seafood Restaurant touts their head chef as the “Master of Shark’s Fin” and has a massive section of their menu devoted to it!  Contact the Jade Seafood Restaurant today and let them know that you and your friends will not be customers as long as they continue to support the cruel shark-finning industry!

Telephone: (604) 249-0082
Email: info@jaderestaurant.ca

5. Read this heartwarming story about rescued foie gras ducks at Farm Sanctuary!

Source: Liberation BC .

Dear Friends,

Please email or write a letter to restaurants and caterers that use cruel meats such as veal and foie gras. Feel free to use the following as a draft to customise your letter. (For those living in British Columbia BC, of Canada, you can find a list of restaurants that serve such cruel cuisine here . URL : http://www.liberationbc.com/campaigns/foie_gras )

——-draft letter as follows—-

TO: [Name of Restaurant]

AGAINST CRUEL CUISINE : VEAL & FOIE GRAS

I am writing on behalf of my friends, relatives and fellow volunteers to state our stand against the use of veal and foie gras in restaurants and caterers. We are also requesting that your restaurant stop serving these meats which are seen by many as cruel cuisine. Until then, we, our friends and their friends will not be visiting your restaurant for dining, or to celebrate special occasions.

The following are the reasons why we advocate against serving veal and foie gras :

VEAL

Male calves are taken from their mothers shortly after birth. Some are slaughtered soon after birth for “bob veal.” Others are raised in “open pens,” a kind of minimum security prison, and even then they are sometimes chained. Most are destined for the veal crate.

Solitary Confinement

The veal crate is a wooden restraining device that is the veal calf’s permanent home. It is so small (22″ x 54″) that the calves cannot turn around or even lie down and stretch and is the ultimate in high-profit, confinement animal agriculture.(1) Designed to prevent movement (exercise), the crate does its job of atrophying the calves’ muscles, thus producing tender “gourmet” veal.

“Feeding” Time

The calves are generally fed a milk substitute intentionally lacking in iron and other essential nutrients. This diet keeps the animals anemic and creates the pale pink or white color desired in the finished product. Craving iron, the calves lick urine-saturated slats and any metallic parts of their stalls. Farmers also withhold water from the animals, who, always thirsty, are driven to drink a large quantity of the high-fat liquid feed.

A Fate Worse Than Death

During their brief lives, these claves never see the sun or touch the Earth. They never see or taste the grass. Their anemic bodies crave proper sustenance. Their muscles ache for freedom and exercise. They long for maternal care. They are kept in darkness except to be fed two to three times a day for 20 minutes. The calves have committed no crime, yet have been sentenced to a fate comparable to any Nazi concentration camp.

(Source: www.britishmeat.com)

For videos to see how veal is produced, go to www.youtube.com, type “veal cruel” in the search box to watch any of the videos.

FOIE GRAS

is produced by cruel and inhumane farming practices. At just a few months old, ducks are confined inside dark sheds and force-fed enormous amounts of food several times a day. A farm worker grabs each duck and, one by one, thrusts a metal pipe down their throats so that a mixture of corn can be forced directly into their gullets. In just a matter of weeks, the ducks become grossly overweight and their livers expand up to 10 times their normal size.

(Source : www.nofoiegras.org)

For videos to see how veal is produced, go to www.youtube.com, type “foie gras force feeding” in the search box to watch any of the videos.

CONCLUSION

We applaud and celebrate the few Vancouver restaurants that have removed foie gras from their menus:

Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill, Pearl Drops Tea House.

Even Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, has banned foie gras from his restaurants after learning the immense suffering that ducks, geese, cows and calves go through. We ask for you to have some compassion and kindness. Put yourself in the shoes of these defenceless animals. If you are them, you wouldn’t want your entire life to be such a misery.

Please remove cruel cuisine from your restaurant.

Yours sincerely

[Your full name]

Each week, I set aside time to do my bit for abused animals. Sometimes, these actions may not seem much, but collectively actions from everyone snowball into positive change. A couple of examples of what I do are listed below.  You CAN help voiceless and defenceless animals by fighting injustice. Please do your bit for abused animals now.

EXAMPLES:

a) Appeals for help on worldwide message boards e.g. > New York > Beijing > Vancouver
If you live in another country, or know another foreign language, you will boost these efforts by translating the similar message into another language, using mass media (internet message boards, discussion forums, electronic bulletins etc unique to your locale) that will be effective in reaching the masses in a particular country.

b) Letters to media
i) NBC : My message below-
Irresponsible program segment on The Today Show

To:  Today@NBCUNI.com, today@nbc.com, today@msnbc.com
My friends and I were deeply disappointed that  Matt Lauer, of NBC’s The Today Show, performed as a rodeo clown as part of his “scariest jobs” segment. Rodeo animals are continuously abused (check out more info and some videos), and it is irresponsible of NBC to glamourize the rodeo.

We think that it is only right that NBC, in the name of journalistic integrity, showcase the cruelty involved in rodeo, circuses and Spanish bullfights as well.  These information can be easily obtained from the Humane Society of The United States and PETA, who can name  celebrities who actually oppose  rodeo, circuses and other forms of cruel “entertainment”.

We believe that NBC will honor its good name before this slip in its moral standards, take our constructive criticism in its stride and feature the other truthful side of rodeo, circuses and Spanish bullfights to highlight the cruelty involved in so called animal-based “entertainment” .

Yours sincerely,

<end of message>

ii) The Province : my message sent this week:

To:  provletters@theprovince.com
TO: The Editor and Kathy Guillermo

GREAT WORK ! (Editor, Kathy Guillermo and team)

I would like to commend you and your team on publishing  an excellent opinion piece called “End These Useless Experiments” and for highlighting this enlightening fact:

“…researchers and the underpinning industries of animal breeders and transporters, cage and equipment builders and food manufacturers have a financial interest in convincing you that all this cash goes only to research aimed at saving human lives. It does not.”

This article served an important purpose in educating your readers about the cruelty involved in truly useless experiments on animals.

My family and I hope The Province will continue to educate the public on the various forms of animal abuse happening around the world that remain hidden from the public.  Example: The grotesque practice of fur-farming and skinning of “live” dogs, cats, rabbits, foxes and minks in Asia and Eastern Europe, and how the purchase of fur and fur-lined coats and sweaters actually promote the cruel fur trade.  I understand that there will be an anti-fur event organised by Liberation BC sometime in February 2009.  Please do feature this event and write up about it.

Yours sincerely,

<end of message>

It only takes a few minutes each day. Abused animals need you. Your help is a selfless gift of love and compassion. Please act now.

Other issues > Factory Farms > Baby Seal Hunt > The Meat Trade .

National Day of Protest Against Fur

Why Protest Against Fur ? >>>  See why
How you can help >>>  Get Active
When: Wednesday, February 11th, 12-1 PM
Where: The Bay at Granville St. & Georgia St. (map)

February 11th is the National Day of Protest against fur in Canada, and Liberation BC will be celebrating with a big media event!

Haven’t come out to any events this year? Make this one your first! It’s super important and we really need your help!

Come on out at noon on Wednesday, February 11th. Do you wear clothes? That’s great! Feel like going naked? That’s even better! We need lots of folks willing to do both! (If you can make it—clothed or not—please contact Joanne at joanne@liberationbc.org for more info.)

Walk for Farm Animals: The Results!

Way back on September 20th, 50 of you fine people came out in the pouring rain to walk and raise money for Farm Sanctuary.

This week, we finally received the results of all your hard work! The Vancouver Walk for Farm Animals raised:

$5,608.50!

Great job, everyone!

If you raised enough money to become a member of Farm Sanctuary, you should be receiving your membership information in the mail soon!

Check out how all the other cities did, and look at all the great pictures here!

Valentine’s Day Demonstration at Cru

When: Saturday, February 14th, 6:30-8:30
Where: Cru, 1459 West Broadway (map)

Cru took foie gras off their regular menu, but for this special holiday, they’ve added it back on. Nothing says “romantic” to us like the burst stomachs, anal hemmorrhaging, and lacerated esophagi of foie gras production. (Not only that, but foie gras appears to be almost as bad for humans as it is for ducks! Seriously–check out the article!)

We’re going to be at Cru with signs and flyers to politely remind people that there’s nothing romantic about torturing innocent ducks! Come on out and make your Valentine’s Day a meaningful one!

Here are 5 easy five-minute actions to help animals!

1. If you already know what’s wrong with rodeo, you’ll understand why we were upset to discover that Matt Lauer, of NBC’s The Today Show, performed as a rodeo clown as part of his “scariest jobs” segment. Rodeo animals are continuously abused (check out more info and some videos), and it is irresponsible of NBC to glamourize the rodeo.

Learn more about the responses to the segment, or contact NBC:

Email: Today@NBCUNI.com, today@nbc.com, today@msnbc.com
Petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/PLZNBC-expose-Rodeo-Abuse

2. Top French chef, Albert Roux, seeks end to ‘cruel’ foie gras

“Frenchman Albert Roux, who has trained high-profile chefs including Gordon Ramsay, Martin Wishart and Andrew Fairlie, said the traditional method of producing foie gras, by force-feeding ducks and geese, should stop. More humane methods should be used that allow the animal to gorge themselves naturally, he said.”

Read more here.

3. Cheese–it’s grosser than you thought! (From MSNBC.com)

“Cheese makes some foodies jump up and down like little kids, but behind that heavenly taste and texture lies bacteria, mammal stomach lining and pure fat.

To ripen cheese and add flavor, bacterial strains are freely injected and smeared into the substance. But not all have been accounted for, a new study finds.”

Read the rest at MSNBC.com!

4. The Province has published a great opinion piece called End These Useless Experiments:

“…researchers and the underpinning industries of animal breeders and transporters, cage and equipment builders and food manufacturers have a financial interest in convincing you that all this cash goes only to research aimed at saving human lives. It does not.”

Read the rest here and let the Province know that you liked it at provletters@theprovince.com!

(And learn more about animal experimentation at our page!

5. This week, we’re asking you to speak out against the horrors of shark-finning again by calling a third establishment in the lower mainland: the Sun Sui Wah Seafood Restaurant! Shark fin products are incredibly cruel and we owe it to the sharks to speak out against the industry!

Sun Sui Wah Seafood Restaurant
3888 Main Street
Telephone: (604) 872-8822

Don’t know what to say? Try:

I am calling because I’ve heard that you sell shark fin. I oppose shark fin, and want to say that as long as you sell it, my friends and family and I will not patronize your establishment. Thank you.

Source: Liberation BC .

Check it out:
an article about LBC’s foie gras campaign, written by our very own Becci, in the Straight.com politics blog!

http://www.straight.com/article-194107/foie-gras-cruel-dish-better-left-unserved

Please take a few minutes to visit the page and leave a comment. The more people who view the page and leave comments, the more likely it will be that they’ll ask us to write more articles. So, don’t delay, read it now!

Also, you can use the “Share” button at the bottom of the article to post it to facebook, myspace, digg, etc. Help get the word out and post the article everywhere you can. Or just send it to your friends.

Check this out too:

You may not know it, but there is now a Liberation BC blog:
http://liberationbc.wordpress.com.

I’ve only been posting for a few weeks, but there’s a recipe for vegan chocolate rosemary cupcakes that you’ll love, plus some other good reads. Check it out and leave a comment. Otherwise I’ll feel lonely…

—Glenn

Source: Liberation BC.

Factory farming is an attitude that regards animals merely as commodities to be exploited for profit. In animal agriculture, this attitude has led to institutionalized animal cruelty, massive environmental destruction and resource depletion, and animal and human health risks. Are your meats, eggs and dairy products (milk, cheese etc) supporting the inhumane practice of Factory Farms ? What are the issues about Factory Farms and how do these farms promote animal cruelty ? > Learn More .