OUR PETS ARE NOT BAGGAGE. The airline lobby may be huge, but the American pet owners “lobby” is worth 45 billion dollars a year and we demand change. We can make change if we stand together with our family members who cannot stand up for themselves.
The airlines to be held liable for wrongful deaths of our pets as living creatures and not as “baggage.” An independent third-party, not the airline, be in charge of the autopsy and the investigation into cause of a pets death.
Nationwide ground transportation for your four-legged loved ones, reducing the number of animals mishandled (and worse!) by airline personnel.
Hi. We’re Pets For Life, a ground transportation company on a mission. We are a group of four people from Springfield, Missouri. We have performed many long distance trips transporting pets all over the lower 48 States to rave reviews! The funds raised will be used for two transport vehicles and related equipment necessary for the safe and comfortable movement of animals to their forever homes.
With combined commercial experience totalling over 200,000 accident and incident-free miles, we are confident in our unique ability to safely move your pets over great distances. We are passionate about the well-being of these animals as though they were our own. We are in constant contact with both the senders and receivers of these precious passengers, updating them as to our progress while en route, and advising them of any unforeseen delays. We also abide by any special instructions as they relate to the handling of and caring for our clients’ pets.
Your contributions will help us to achieve our goal of saving as many of these animals as possible, from mistreatment and neglect (and MUCH worse !), while in the hands of airline baggage handlers and others.
What we need & what you get.
Our goal is to raise $96,300. Funds will be used for two transport vehicles, and specially designed safety gear for the protection and safety of our animals. Items such as transport kennels in three sizes allowing the pets to stand up, turn completely around, stretch and recline while on the move. Additionally, these kennels will be held in place inside the vehicles with the use of “e-rails” anchored to the interior walls of the vehicles with ratchet straps connecting to and securing the kennels in place. And of course, food, water and frequent potty stops will be provided for additional comfort and well-being of our four-legged passengers. Our primary mission is to provide loving and caring handling of our clients’ pets while in transit.
In exchange for your contributions, we are offering unique items for your pets, ranging from monogrammed retractable leashes and stainless steel food and water bowls, up to whole doghouse warmers ! For our strongest contributors, we want to say “Thank You” in a very special way by providing free transportation* !
Here is a link that discusses some of the many perils of transporting your pet by air. If you cannot click the link, be sure to copy and paste it to your browser. It’s informative !
We understand that not all of our readers are able to contribute at this time. That doesn’t mean you can’t be a part of our campaign team! If you share our compassion for pets of all breeds, tell everyone you know about what we’re trying to accomplish with this mission! Be sure to use Indiegogo’s Share Tools to spread the word. We want everybody to take notice of what our mission represents in the form of animal cruelty and neglect. We can, after all, only provide safe transportation to a small fraction of the over 500,000 pets that are transported by air each year.
While providing safe rides for a small percentage of travelling animals, we hope that by doing so, we, along with all of our contributors and other vocal advocates, we can create a much larger ‘voice’…. one that says, “We are appalled by the treatment of pets by their airline handlers, and we seek to do something about it !”
“How can anyone think, shoving a gavage (pipe or tube) down the esophagus, of geese or ducks then force feeding them with, typically, corn boiled with fat (to facilitate ingestion) so the birds liver becomes over enlarged; so it can then be eaten as a delicacy… is totally beyond me! Of course it’s bloody cruel & barbaric, no other animal that I can think of is force fed via a tube to make any part of their body fatter for human consumption. Yes animals are given extra grain & even growth hormones but they are not force fed it via a bloody pipe…it’s savage & uncalled for; we kill enough animals to meet the demand for meat or other animal body parts! Do we really have to force feed a bird in constant chronic pain from the tube…just for a delicacy?? What will they come up with next, pickled eyeballs, coated in vinegar daily, to get that perfect crunch?? One could say, this is almost as bad as bear bile being taken from a bear!!
Goose being force-fed so humans can dine on their enlarged livers!!
“Look at the disgusting filthy gavage (pipe) & other equipment; there is no wonder so many birds die of disease. While force feeding is required to meet the French legal definition of “foie gras”, producers outside France do not always force feed birds in order to produce fattened livers that they consider to be foie gras, instead allowing them to eat freely, termed ad libitum. Interest in alternative production methods has grown recently due to ethical concerns in gavage-based foie gras production. Such livers are alternatively termed fatty goose liver, ethical foie gras, or humane foie gras.”Source-Wikipedia
“During feeding, efforts are made to avoid damaging the bird’s esophagus, which could cause injury or death, although researchers have found evidence of inflammation of the walls of the proventriculus after the first session of force-feeding. There is also indication of inflammation of the esophagus in the later stages of fattening. Several studies have also demonstrated that mortality rates can be significantly elevated during the gavage period.”Source Wikipedia
The ALDF (the same anti-foie group that sued Napa restaurant La Toque) had argued that foie gras is “a diseased product unfit for human consumption,” and asked the court to step in and order the USDA to “remove foie gras from the American food supply.”
In the ruling (warning: PDF), U.S. District JudgeOtis Wright explains his decision to dismiss the case: “Plaintiffs‘ voluminous submission of technical papers and data supports the Court’s view that Plaintiffs are challenging a scientific conclusion and not a legal one … this is an issue falling squarely under the USDA’s discretion by law.”
Although selling and producing foie gras is still illegal in California, the ALDF is not entitled to judicial review on this case so, for now, the rest of the country can rest easily knowing their foie is safe. “For those who partake in this delicacy…I hope it fxxxxg chokes you!”
“Someone knows this sick MF.. so do your conscience a favour & tell police where he is…it may a child that gets killed next time”
Police in San Francisco are looking for 35-year-old Laurice Barrett. He is suspected of mugging a woman and throwing her dog into oncoming traffic. A reward of nearly $5,000 has been raised for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Barrett.
Around 5 p.m. on December 28th a woman was getting out of her parked car when an assailant grabbed her and yelled at her to give him her money. Then the woman’s 12-year-old Pekingese mix, Roxy, started to bark at him. That’s when the attacker picked Roxy up held her above his head and threw her into oncoming traffic. He then took off running.
Roxy was rushed to a veterinary hospital where she had to be euthanized. Now police are looking for the man responsible for Roxy’s pain, suffering and death. A surveillance video was released on January 2nd which led to a tip a week later that named Barrettas the assailant.
A warrant is out forBarrett, who is facing felony charges of animal cruelty and robbery. Barretthas been previously arrested by the San Francisco police, though they have not stated for what crimes. The San Francisco Police Department has released Barrett’smug shot to the media.
The woman is glad that someone was able to step forward to give Barrett’sname and is hoping someone will be brave enough to step forward and turn him in. “At the end of the day I am fighting for Roxy,” she said. “I’m her voice, I’m her mom. I want justice.”
Anyone who has information on Barrett and his location is asked to call the Police Department’s anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or end a text message that includes “SFPD” to TIP411.
For the second time in just a few months a dog has died on a United Airlines flight.
Michael Jarboe was travelling from Miami to San Francisco with his two-year-old Neopolitan Mastiff Bam Bam. Jarboe says Bam Bam was in perfect health before the flight, but when he landed he was informed by United Airlines staff that Bam Bam had passed away during travel.
Jarboe & Bam Bam
United Airlines paid for an autopsy of Bam Bam, which found the cause of death to be a heart attack. The company maintains the death was not transit-related. Jarboe questioned several employees who informed him that Bam Bam was not in an air-conditionedroom during the 2 hour layover the flight had in Houston. Jarboe had paid $650 for the transport of Bam Bam, which he had been led to believe included temperature control.
Jarboe saw Bam Bam on the tarmac in Houston. ”It was right under the wing. We were right there, had a direct shot, he was so hot. His tongue was hanging down.” Jarboe had never seen Bam Bam look that hot.
The airline stated, “Given the size of Bam Bam and the fact that he is a brachycephalic, meaning short nosed breed, we made the decision to bring him to our holding facility for greater comfort during his connection.” They stated their holding facilities are USDA animal-welfare approved. The airline refunded Jarboe the $650 for transporting Bam Bam and offered him additional compensation, but Jarboe refuses to accept the compensation.
Supermodel Maggie Rizerlost her golden retriever Beatrice on a United Airlines flight from New York to San Francisco only 2 months ago. Rizer had her own veterinarian perform an autopsy on Beatrice, revealing the cause of death to be heatstroke. United Airlines stands firm in that case that they kept the dog in a temperature-controlled environment for the entirety of the journey as well.
Carson Harbor Village is a 50-acre mobile home park with about 2,700 residents, nearly half children, the activists said.
“The last thing we want is for the city to do trapping and cause injury, especially to a child,” said Richard Close, attorney for Carson Harbor Village.
The signatures were gathered through a worldwide online petition, as well as door-to-door canvassing. About 54 signatures were taken from mobile home park residents, said Randi Feilich, representative from Project Coyote.
Feilich, of Calabasas, got involved with Project Coyote when she saw her own city trap and kill coyotes. She attended a Calabasas City Council meeting to speak out against the practice.
Calabasas is one of three areas, including San Francisco, Arcadia and Marin County, that Project Coyote has worked with to adopt nonlethal programs focused on educating the public on keeping small pets and food out of reach of coyotes, Feilich said.“Coyote trapping is ineffective and does not work. You kill one, and another will take its place within weeks,” Feilich said.
Feilich attended previous Carson City Council meetings in February and December to advocate similar strategies.
“Despite our pleas for them to not trap, they went ahead and spent 10,000 taxpayer dollars to trap and inhumanely kill coyotes,” Feilich said.
Calls to city officials were not immediately returned.
July 1 marks the realization of a long-awaited, incredible victory for animals inCalifornia. In 2004, IDA helped pass a law that banned foie gras, the enlarged livers of force-fed ducks and geese. Force-feeding is the extremely cruel practice of inserting a long, wide tube down the throat to force in many times the amount of food that a bird would normally eat, until the liver is engorged with disease. Legislators sided with scientists, veterinarians and advocates who exposed this cruelty. The food industrywas given eight years to comply.
The ban finally takes effect on July 1, after which this cruel dish may no longer be produced or sold in California. Chefs who defy the ban are subject to a $1,000 citation. This is cause for celebration, though some chefs and restaurants are hinting that they will find creative ways to serve foie gras anyway, such as by charging a “corkage fee” to prepare foie gras that customers bring in themselves. There is also speculation that some will sell items such as toast at exhorbitant fees, and then tack on “free” foie gras to go with it. That’s still illegal.
You can help IDA monitor and ensure compliance with the law. If you live in (or visit) California and see any business selling foie gras, please tell us so we can contact the proper enforcement agency. Email hope@idausa.org with any information about violations.
The race to make fake meat just got interesting. Two scientists on opposite sides of the world both claim to be on the verge of serving up the first lab-grown hamburger – and saving the planet in the process. The new reality is so close, you can almost taste it.
As mission statements go, it takes some beating. Scrawled on a whiteboard are the words: “We will change how the Earth looks from space!” It surpasses “Don’t be evil” (the motto of Google, just down the road), and in terms of hubris it trumps even that of Facebook (also just round the corner): “Move fast and break things!”
In this anonymous laboratory on a low-rise industrial estate in Menlo Park, 40km south of San Francisco, there is a whiff of revolution in the air. There is a whiff of madness, too, but after a few hours in the company of the man leading this intriguing Silicon Valley startup, one begins to wonder if it is the rest of the world that is insane.
Professor Patrick Brown could easily be taken for a deranged visionary. He is intense, driven and unfazed by critics and rivals. This 57-year-old ultra-lean, sandal-wearing, marathon-running vegan wants to stop the world eating meat. Not through persuasion or coercion, but by offering us carnivores something better for the same price or less.
The fake meat business has been around for decades, of course, but it has never really taken off. That is because the products out there, usually based on some sort of reconstituted soy or fungal gloop, taste as disgusting as they look. They are usually expensive as well.
But the meat-fakers say they are on the verge of a breakthrough, that there is a real possibility that a new era of fake meat – nutritious, cheap and indistinguishable from the real thing, made either of synthesised animal tissue or derived from plant material – may be upon us.
Brown a specialist in the genetics of cancer, is a tenured Stanford University molecular biologist, a member of the National Academy and the founder of a non-profit academic publisher. For two years, he has been working on creating synthesised meat and dairy products. “I have zero interest in making a new food just for vegans,” Brown says. “I am making a food for people who are comfortable eating meat and who want to continue eating meat. I want to reduce the human footprint on this planet by 50%.”
What Brown is talking about is a revolution that will remake our relationship with our planet, and with our fellow animals.
Eating meat is bad for the environment, of that there is no doubt. And the moral arguments against killing animals are compelling. Humans currently slaughter about 1,600 mammals and birds every second for food – that is half a trillion lives a year, plus trillions more fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The total biomass of all the world’s livestock is almost exactly twice that of humanity itself. And while crops that feed people cover just 4% of the Earth’s usable surface (land that is not covered by ice or water, or is bare rock), animal pastureland accounts for a full 30%. Our meat, in other words, weighs twice as much as we do and takes seven times as much land to grow.
By July 1, restaurants throughout California will be removing foie gras — rich fattened duck or goose liver — from their menus.
With the deadline looming, Coachella Valley eateries such as Zin American Bistro and Le Vallauris, both in Palm Springs, are considering hosting farewell parties for the French delicacy.
“With all the other problems in the world, people are worrying about how a few ducks are fed? It’s crazy,” said Michel Despras, owner of Lavender Bistro in La Quinta, which offers a duck foie gras appetizer.
The California Legislature gave the state’s only producer, Sonoma Artisan Foie Gras, more than seven years to devise a “cruelty-free” way of fattening the duck’s liver when it voted on the foie gras ban in 2004.
Absent of that, a coalition of chefs in cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles have mounted a campaign to overturn the law, using foie gras dinners as fundraisers.
The primary objection to foie gras is the method of feeding, called gavage, which employs a tube and funnel to feed the fowl directly into the gullet, usually beginning four to five weeks before the animal is slaughtered.
“They don’t cut the beak anymore,” said Brent Pollock, executive chef at The Lakes Country Club in Palm Desert. “And truthfully, left alone, the ducks and geese would gorge themselves anyway if you leave enough food out. It’s in the nature. It’s not the only part of the duck that is used. The legs are sold and used in duck confit and breasts are also used.”
While the fowl may be force fed, Mindy Reed, owner of Zin American Bistro and Zini Mediterranean Cafe in Palm Springs, wonders how other animals used for food are treated.
“What about cattle that’s raised for $1 hamburger at McDonald’s or chickens?” she said. “The conditions that those animals are raised in are far worse, and yet no one is trying to ban them in restaurants.”
The 10 Billion Lives Tour Encourages Consumers to See How Livestock Is Treated
“That was brutal!” shouted UCSB student Alex Svedlow, tearing off the headphones connecting him to a TV screenmounted on the outside of a tour van. “Absolutely unsettling and visceral,” he continued, eyes wide with disbelief.
Lyz Hoffman 10 Billion Lives Tour van stops at UCSB last Thursday
Svedlow was one of the many awe-struck and disgusted Isla Vista pedestrians who stopped by the van parked in front of Woodstock’s Pizza Friday night to watch a video documenting the mistreatment offarm animals. Innocently thinking he was in for a boring, fact-stocked video, Svedlow was clearly taken aback by the film’s surprisingly graphic footage. “The squealing of the pigs really upset me to the point where I’m not going to eat meat for a while,” said another viewer, Evie Stevens. “I’m definitely going to take ham off my list.”
The custom-built vehicle, complete with eight integrated TVscreens to accommodate 32 simultaneous viewers, is part of the10 Billion Lives Tour, coordinated by the nonprofit organizationFarm Animal Rights Movement (FARM). The van has been stopping in busy public locations across America (so far Portland, Eugene, Sacramento, and San Francisco), offering people $1 to watch the disturbing footage. “According to USDA reports, 10 billion animals are raised and killed for food each year in the United States alone,” explained tour coordinator Jeni Haines. “We want consumers to have the opportunity to make informed choices. That’s our goal — to help people make more informed decisions about the food they eat.”
The video, made with hidden camera footage taken inside farm animal facilities, reveals horrific conditions and cruelty as well as standard, legal industry practices that are shocking to most viewers and out of step with most American values, said Haines. “These animals suffer tremendously,” explained Haines, “We all love our cats and dogs and would never want them to be harmed, and these animals are just as important. We want to encourage people to make choices that are in line with their values.”
FARM believes by offering an incentive of $1, the “pay-per-view” campaign succeeds in enticing Americans to voluntarily learn more about animal rights issues, rather than forcing information on them. Impressively, more than 80 percent of the video’s viewers commit to eating fewer animal products afterward, and in follow-up surveys, more than 60 percent of respondents maintain this pledge.
The van’s next stops are Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego before it joins the three-month Vans Warped Tour in Salk Lake City. Following the concerts, the van will continue to tour the country until November.
The video can be viewed at 10BillionLives.com, where one in 25 watchers will win a pair of movie tickets.
“Just found this Brilliant new video about whales & fish, which puts things into perspective”. It’s very educational, so a good one for older kids to watch, after all, they are the next generation of fishermen & the other’s (who hopefully in the future won’t be able to kill anymore whales under the guise of experiments etc.!”
DUE TO THE NATURE OF THIS BLOG - SOME PICTURES & VIDEOS CAN & WILL BE VERY GRAPHIC - SO PLEASE, VIEW THIS BLOG AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION.
You can find out more about me & this blog by reading "ABOUT THIS BLOG" on the menu (when i finish it) lol
PLEASE NOTE.....
Not all of my posts will be current news, or even about animal abuse! I do like to share other animal news, uplifting stories or videos; some that are funny or just touch the heart!
If I have anything to say on any post, you will see it in bold blue writing. I try to remain a lady, but it's hard to contain my anger & emotions at the some of the stories I post; I don’t have a heart of stone, tears stain many articles I write!
Lastly, my apologies for any errors; I am learning whilst posting, so if you find anything that doesn't work or a broken link, sorry, I'm only human!!!!
ABOUT THESE POSTS
I would just like to make readers aware, that I search for stories on the internet; regards animal abuse etc. I copy stories etc. from the internet; assuming these stories are correct at time of publishing. Having said that, sometimes the press get it wrong! So I just want to add that at the time of me posting a news story, I presume all the facts seem present & correct.
Please note....all people mentioned in this blog, are presumed innocent, until proven otherwise, in a court of law.
Error: Please make sure the Twitter account is public.
Flag Counter Added May 2012
Face Book – Please Take Notice
For anyone wishing to connect to me via my Facebook page...PLEASE NOTE, ONLY PEOPLE I ADD AS ANIMAL ADVOCATES CAN SEE MY WHOLE PAGE...I do this out of respect for those friends I have who do not wish to see graphic images, videos or links of animal abuse!
As 99% of my page is animal related; anyone not in the above group of friends; will only see a limited amount of posts!!
DUE TO ANIMAL HATERS...I WILL ONLY ADD PEOPLE WHO CAN PROVE WHO THEY ARE via Facebook, Wordpress, Twitter etc. & WHO HAVE A GENUINE INTEREST IN ANIMAL WELFARE... i.e. if your Facebook page has absolutely nothing to do with animals, I see no point in joining my page. My Facebook is solely for animal welfare, I am not interested in playing games etc. I don't mean to sound rude but I am not interested in the amount of friends I have, its the quality of those friends that count.
PLEASE DO NOT SEND REQUESTS FOR YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN. I do not want anyone to be upset by graphic images etc.
My aim is to educate & raise awareness to the horrors animals face, at the hands of humans, every day, around the world!!
We can not hope to achieve better laws, to protect animals, unless we unite as one, to speak up for those who are voiceless!!
.
was given eight years to comply.
DUE TO THE NATURE OF THIS BLOG - SOME PICTURES & VIDEOS CAN & WILL BE VERY GRAPHIC - SO PLEASE, VIEW THIS BLOG AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION.
STOP ANIMAL ABUSE 
You must be logged in to post a comment.