Dog Fights

When I was younger and my  dad would take me to visit my grandparents in Oklahoma we would always pass the same old abandoned wharehouse. One day my dad told me it sometimes substituted as a place for dog fights. Dog fights? I had no idea what this was and when it dawned upon me what the sport was I was horrified. Today I came across an article on a lady named Diane Jessup's site. She was writing about the more "noble" traits of dog fighting and criticizing groups like PETA and others for their actions against the fights. Her logic was that by making laws against the sport the good people who "took care" of their dogs were drawn away from it. By that logic, making marijuana illegal forced government officials to stop smoking and then the act gained its bad reputation. This makes no sense and is wrong. However, my point is that there is no noble act in training animals to maim each other and kill each other simply to make money or win a bet. It is wrong on so many levels. These animals become cruel and viscous and never know what it is to be loved. Pit bulls have a bad reputation and I have personally seen them kill and maim innocent animals, but centuries of being trained to act this way is why the animals sometimes do act out.  The continuation of dog fights would only further this problem. PETA and the other humane organizations that act against these animal abusers need support. That is the only way this horrible crime can one day come to an end.

A pit bull before shown that violence is a way of life.
Photo by: robswatski

http://www.workingpitbull.com/dogfighting.htm

Whaling Industry

Many see the whaling industry as something of the past. However, it is very much a present issue. Although not all countries partake in this act the innocent counties have an obligation to take a stand against them. Some of the small countries don't have enough support on their own to make a difference. Whaling has been outlawed in certain areas for years now but there are some places, in the Antarctic particularly where the whale populations have taken a big hit from all the whaling in that area. According to an article on Greenpeace International's website, some of the whale populations still haven't recovered. The blue whales are at less than one percent than their original population and one population, the East Pacific Grey whales, has recovered to their original capacity. However, others, like the West Pacific grey whale, are bordering on extinction. That particular group has just over one hundred of their kind left today. Today the Humpback whale population is approximately 20,000, but in the 19th century the IWC estimated the population should be at 100,000 today. That means that the whales are at eighty percent less capacity than they could have been at that time, and even then that was after whaling took its toll in the species. There are petitions any one can go on line and sign today to help end whaling completely around the world. This takes no toll on yourself and is simply a huge favor to a magnificent creature. It would be a tragedy to only be able to describe these beautiful creatures to todays generation's grandchildren.

Photo by: LonelyBob

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/oceans/whaling/

Down Comfort

Our beds are sacred to most of us. I love sleeping and I really love comfortable beds. Down comforters are some of the most popular bedding purchased today. Some people never stop to think about where those fluffy feathers are coming from. The down in your comfy blankets and comforters comes from geese and ducks. It is the feathers closest to their skin and it is ripped off them and processed and ends up in our beds. The ripping can be so harsh that the animals skin is ripped open. Now, I know that it's incredibly appealing to own a down comforter. They are so soft and you just want to lay in bed all day when you have them...and sometimes even when you don't. However, it is incredibly selfish to purchase these products simply to reward ourselves with material goods instead of buying a less extravagant product that is harmless to animals. There are plenty of other blankets and bedding out there to keep yourself as comfortable and cozy as you desire. So the next time you decide to purchase some bedding think about the poor animals who went through pain for it. Some animals were even plucked multiple times starting at  just ten weeks of age if they were being raised for meat. According to an article by PETA, The Down Industry, contributing to this problem also supports the foie gras industry. This is when  ducks are force fed with tubes shoved down their throats and being literally stuffed with so much food it causes them physical pain. Down is in more than just comforters and blankets though. Jackets, pillows, and many other products are made with down feathers. You can help end this problem and shut down the companies funding them by checking to make sure you don't buy more of their products. Help the birds because they can't help themselves.

Photo by: blmiers2

http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-Used-for-Clothing/down-industry.aspx

Dairy Farms Cruelty

I love my diary products as much as the next person, but I recently came across an article, Cruelty Behind Cheese: Cattle Burned for Maker of Cabot, revealing the dirty little secrets behind my delicious dairy foods. Not all diary farms commit acts of cruelty on their animals, but PETA investigators reported a dairy farm in Clinton County, New York, that is guilty of so much injustice it's hard to know where to start. The beginning will suffice for now. Cows carry their calves for nine full months before delivering. This is the same length as a human mother would carry her child. After nine long months of one of the closest bonds ever being formed, the calfs are taken away from their mothers, never to see them again. This causes severe emotional trauma for both the calf and mother. Later, when the calves are sill young, their horns are burned off without any form of pain killers. Others who have already grown their horns suffer having them chopped off, again with no medication. These are just some of the cruelty these animals go through. The workers at this farm were witnessed jabbing the animals in tender areas, including their utters, and the manager was spotted electrically shocking one cow in the face repeatedly and being verbally abusive as well. This happens daily to these innocent animals and can be stopped. All it would take is reporting their wrongdoings and going to the PETA website to sign a petition to help stop this issue. 

Photo by: mhall209

Animals's Used for Entertainment

Many of us saw the movie Water for Elephants that came out only a little over a year ago. If you did see this then you know how heart breaking and disturbing the animal cruelty scenes were, but if you didn't witness these atrocious sites I can promise you that it would make your stomach turn and you heart ache. We have all probably been subject to zoo visits with our families and many people enjoy seeing wild creatures and learning new things, but what if that picture was changed for you. Many circus and zoo goers don't have a clue about what's going on behind the scenes in these entertainment facilities. Circus's beat and torment their animals and force them to do ridiculous tricks and zoos keep animals in caged areas for their entire lives. That is until they are of no use. Then they're shipped off to be disposed of or slaughtered. Circus's are notorious for using bull hooks in elephants and chaining their animals up. But as if that wasn't horrible enough, the amount this happens is shocking. Before elephants are taken to perform their trainers and handlers hit them with the bull hooks for no apparent reason. The animals are kept in chains for hours. Not just a couple of hours wither, but anywhere from twenty-six to sixty hours at a time. Lions have died from heat stroke after being left in ridiculously small cages in extreme heat with no water.  Some seemingly harmless, even romantic sources of entertainment contribute to this injustice. Horse drawn carriages may seem like a grand gesture or an enjoyable way to pass the time, but they are cruel on the animals themselves. Horses have dropped dead from exhaustion, heat stroke, and have been fatally injured by loud noises from the city and drivers who weren't paying enough attention.

Photo by: rscottjones

 

There are a few steps you can take to help end these cruel acts. When circus's come to town, write to your town officials asking them to put a ban on animals being used for entertainment. According to an online PETA article many large cities have already taken this step. You can also contribute by not attending these places or events because they need customers money to continue on and without the money they would be forced to stop.

http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-In-Entertainment/default2.aspx

The process of making leather...

Leather is by far my favorite fashion accessory. It always has been...until now. I came across and article, Leather: Animals Abused And Killed for Their Skins, by PETA, where I learned how the leather that I loved so much and thought was so cool came from nightmares I couldn't have imagined. The horrors of farm factories are terrible enough as it is but the leather industry goes beyond even that level of mistreatment. Leather making contributes significantly to pollution, abuse, and poisoning of humans. Many, if not all of the animals used for their skin are killed while still alive and conscious with no form of pain killers. Not only are old animals killed, but very young and even unborn animals are processed for leather and food processing corporations. The younger, including unborn, and more alive the animal is at the time of the hiding the better. At least that's the way the people who make a living from this industry feel. The animals are vulnerable to over crowding which also includes unsanitary living conditions but also injuries caused from trampling. Alligators can be left alive and conscious after being skinned for up to two hours. Two hours of pain and torture shouldn't be an experience any creature endures. In fact, no creature should have to go through any level of torture of any kind for any amount of time, but because of the massive product corporations make from selling leather innocent animals die a horrendous death. Shoes, jackets, purses, wallets, belts, and other clothing items are the main items leather is used for and they are all widely produced by other, harm free materials. This issue is easily avoidable. Look into what you're wearing and put a stop to animal abuse around the world.


List of animals abused for their skin:
cattle, calves, horses, sheep, lambs, goats, pigs, zebras, bison, water buffaloes, boars, kangaroos, elephants, eels, sharks, dolphins, seals, walruses, frogs, turtles, crocodiles, lizards, snakes, alligators, kangaroos.

Photo by : 120% new

http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-Used-for-Clothing/leather-animals-abused-and-killed-for-their-skins.aspx

Animal Testing

Most of us have heard about animal testing and we see the labels on our beauty products occasionally saying that they have or have not been tested on animals. However, animal testing goes beyond the idea of washing a dog with shampoo to make sure they don't break out or lose all their hair. Thousands of animals are losing their eye sight, mobility, safety, and even lives due to animal testing through out the United States and it must end. These animals lie in cages their entire lives fearing the next experimentation they'll have to endure. When someone walks past their cage they become terrified and their blood pressure spikes according to a PETA article done on the injustice of these acts. "The stress, sterility and boredom causes some animals to develop neurotic behaviors such incessantly spinning in circles, rocking back and forth and even pulling out their own hair and biting their own skin." This quote says it all. These animals have the same reactions humans have so it isn't okay for them to suffer this way. Many people don't realize the products they're using contribute to the painful lives animals are living in these testing facilities. There skin,, eyes, mind, and spirits are killed through animal testing. Help end this tragedy by becoming aware of products that support animal testing and try and stop supporting those corporations. 




http://www.peta.org/living/beauty-and-personal-care/companies/default.aspx

Puppy Mills

"Puppy mills 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 legitimate-seeming websites. Puppy mills house dogs in shockingly poor conditions. After their fertility wanes, breeding animals are often killed, abandoned or sold cheaply to another mill to try and get "one more litter" out of the dog. The annual result of all this breeding is millions of puppies, many with behavior and/or health problems." - Humane Society Puppy Mills Article

Photo By: CameliaTWU

The quote above is talking about puppies just like the one shown here. The cute, precious, innocent puppies you see in pet stores are coming from horrible places where no one loves them or cares for them humanely. Many times if someone buys a puppy online or from a pet store they are helping fund puppy mills across the country. These animals are raised in horrendous conditions. They stay in cages their entire lives if they are being used as breeders and if they are to be sold they still stay in a cage with no exercise or walks or any outside time to be a happy dog. As stated by a rescuer above the animals kept to breed will breed non stop until they can no longer and then they are either killed or abandoned or sent somewhere else where they might be able to force one more litter out of them. This is so unbelievably cruel. The living conditions inside their cages are disgusting to say the least. Because they are never allowed to get out the animals are forced to live in their own feces and urine which is not only the main contributor to the smell that surrounds the mills making the air unbreathable, but also unsanitary so that it causes all kinds of infections and diseases. The puppies and breeders are not cleaned or groomed which only makes their skin more irritated and prone to wounds. Matted hair can be painful for dogs and I'm not sure people realize this. These poor animals can be spared this pain and mistreatment if people stop buying from online sites selling dogs or buying from pet stores with litters of puppies. These stores and sites are experts at convincing people that they don't contribute to puppy mills but more often than not they are lying. There are hundreds of animal shelters where abandoned animals are taken and are just as deserving as "pure-breds" of love and nurturing. This shouldn't be an issue at all. If you aren't the type of person who likes having pets around then you can at least spread the word about puppy mills and tell all the animal lovers out there what they can do to help.

Photo By: Life Lenses

http://video.humanesociety.org/video/629262638001/Channels/602022756001/Latest-Videos/1268618368001/Puppy-Mills-Supplying-NY-Pet-Stores/

Chicken Farms/Factories

" The chicken that you eat today will live for approximately 8 weeks. Any longer and it's hormone-induced weight, will have long since crushed its legs, forcing it to starve to death on the floor which, by then will be so thick with feces and urine as to almost drown a chicken or (because of the ammonia) burn its eyes and lungs out before it would have time to starve to death." Quote by:  _Loaf_

There are many vegetarians in society today. The majority of people who are meat eaters don't understand why some have chosen to give up this tasty food. PETA posted an article, Chickens Used for Food, about the mass production of chicken in the US. This article makes it clear why, at least when it comes to poultry, some people chose not to eat meat. I know what some of you are thinking. PETA, isn't that the group of people who throw red paint on people and are crazy and call everyone murderers, etc? Well, perhaps some of those people do those things, but that isn't the point of the organization. Animals are being abused every day by the thousands by corporations who could care less about the pain they are causing. According to this article, more than 7 billion chickens are killed each year for their meat and 452 million hens are used for their eggs. The ones used for their meat are taken immediately after being hatched to being stuffed chalk full of drugs that will enhance their growth and ensure a speedy gateway for cash to go into their owners pockets. These chicks never see their parents and live in a dark building for a few weeks under horrible conditions until they are ready to be slaughtered. The other hens are kept in minuscule cages where they are forced to live their lives and must relieve themselves on top of each other because the cages are stacked to save room. Out of the chicks hatched for laying eggs, the male chicks are either thrown into a bag where they will suffocate and be thrown out as trash or they will go into macerators or grinders...while still alive. This is a disgusting habit that is being allowed to continue because of the high demand for chicken, but is it really chicken? These animals are filled with so many growth enhancement drugs that their bodies often can't keep up and they die of organ failure. Or they become so heavy so quickly from being stuffed with food 24/7 that their legs don't develop quick enough to be able to support the weight. This isn't even taking into consideration the preservatives and other chemicals injected into the chicken after slaughter. I'm not saying give up eating chicken. Chicken is great for you of prepared properly. This, however, is not healthy for you and it's cruel to these animals. There are other ways of getting nutrition than eating chicken. At the bottom of this article that PETA provides there is a link to ways of being a healthy vegetarian/vegan. As I said before, I'm not pushing vegetarianism, but I do think it's something everyone should consider.

Photos by: _Loaf_

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-
food/chickens.aspx

The Cove

     Some have heard about the movie, The Cove, but many who haven’t don’t realize the problem the marine environment is facing today. My writing class has been assigned to research and blog about corporations and their effects on the environment and I will talk about the many morally corrupt ways corporations go about getting food and the quickest easiest ways to make a buck, starting off with the annual killing of dolphins for the Japanese food industry discussed in The Girl Who ‘Broke the Cove Story’, by Steve Casimiro.

Photo by: Fabulous Terrah 

   First people should know, if they don’t already, how unbelievably amazing these creatures are. Dolphins are far from just fish. They talk to each other just like we talk to each other each day. They teach their young how to do everything where most animals leave their young to fend for themselves. When females are pregnant the rest of the pod protects them and shields them from harm. They feel too. All the things we feel they are capable of feeling as well. They can be happy, or grieve, or be terrified. Their pods are their families and they love each other.

    So, The Cove, what is it all about? In a small town called Taiji, in Japan, there is a cove, and in this cove every year there is a killing spree of dolphins including some small whales. Approximately thirteen boats go out to sea and round up dolphin pods of about sixty or so and heard them back to the cove where they hold them until they’re weak from attempting to escape. As I mentioned before they’re very protective of their young and pregnant females and they are in the center being protected by the rest of the pod. Unfortunately, this isn’t enough to save them. They send out distress signals to each other just as humans would call out to one another if they feared for their lives. They watch each other be slaughtered and can do nothing but wait their own turn. After they’ve been worn down one by one they’re stabbed so that they eventually bleed to death from their wounds. We’re talking thousands of dolphins total. There is so much blood that the water turns a vivid red. The color is so unbelievably crimson that when a reporter, Brooke McDonald, released photos of the incident to the press they were believed to have been digitally altered.  However, tests done on the prints proved that there was nothing exaggerated about this nightmare. When all the dolphins are dead, men in scuba suits go in and bring them out. Some carry the baby dolphins under their arms because they’re obviously smaller and not as heavy so they don’t sink to the bottom as fast. This is the horror that takes place in this town each year.

     Why? These beautiful, brilliant, innocent creatures are being tortured and mass murdered for food that will be sold on the black market to people who don’t need this “delicacy.” Yes, food is vital for us to live and yes that means some animals must die, but not like this. This was not what mother nature intended. This is not the circle of life. It’s flat out slaughtering. The saying that there are plenty of fish in the sea is quite true and it should be applied here. Dolphins are not ignorant animals and they greatly contribute to the marine environment. There are millions of other fish that could be consumed so that even if one species must die at least they wouldn’t be targeted and then mass murders wouldn’t be necessary in the eyes of food corporations. Dolphins can’t keep going through this. It has to end, but nothing seems to be strong enough to over power the food industry and tell these corporations where to draw the line.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fabulousterrah/4561482607/

http://www.adventure-journal.com/2010/10/the-girl-who-broke-the-cove-story/