AR-NEWS Digest 491 Topics covered in this issue include: 1) Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. by Pat Fish 2) [UK] Big jams, sun-burned pigs . . . the heat goes on by David J Knowles 3) Fwd: Urgent RFI by David J Knowles 4) Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. by LMANHEIM@aol.com 5) Dog gets Employee of the Month by SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US 6) King Royal Circus by PAWS 7) request to have this message posted on ar-news by Hillary 8) Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. by civillib@cwnet.com 9) August 5th Family Circle Magazine by SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US 10) Boombox in Hawai'i repaired by Animal Rights Hawaii 11) Needs any animal rights publications dealing with LAW issues by SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US 12) SUPPORT NEEDED ! by Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com> 13) SUPPORT NEEDED ! by Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com> 14) Finland OKs grey seal hunting by LCartLng@gvn.net (Lawrence Carter-Long) 15) Mysterious BSE-Like Illness ? by Ty Savoy 16) King Royal by PAWS 17) State Hog Inventory Up 30% - Oklahoma (USA) by Snugglezzz@aol.com 18) LANGUR MONKEYS NEED YOUR HELP by "ida" 19) MTM Profile in August 1997 McCall's by "A. Hogan" 20) Health Canada Primates on CTV by Sean Thomas 21) (US) Lower Pocomoke River To Be Reopened by allen schubert Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 05:36:01 +0000 (GMT) From: Pat Fish To: LMANHEIM@aol.com Cc: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Sun, 10 Aug 1997 LMANHEIM@aol.com wrote about AOL Instant Messenger: Lynn, nothing personal here, OK? With that said I must state for all subscribers: Aaargh! Please no HTML. Please no commercial adverts for AOL. >Sorry, it's not directly animal related, but it can help a-r folks contact >each other FAST when they need to. AR activists should not be patronizing AOL, let alone promote them on AR-News. Most unix based ISPs support fast mail (unlike AOL) and a talk command. AOL is way behind as usual. You are only impressed by these things because AOL cons users into a twisted view of technology. Don't help AOL continue to RIP PEOPLE OFF. AR folks are luddite enough as it is, without being brainwashed by AOL and it's moron-speak. >This is FREE software that enables you to send and receive Instant (realtime) >messages to individuals on the Internet who have the same software. Only available for those who bought the Gillette and P&G of the computing world: IBM compatibles/Windows and Apple Macs. > (Everyone on America Online has it already.) It also lets you set up a >Buddy List. When someone on your Buddy List is online, you are made aware of >it and can IM (instant message) him or her to chat. Is this supposed to entice anybody? I hope not. You should be on a respectable ISP, not glorifying AOL. Besides this stuff is decades old. AOL, like Apple and IBM, Microsoft, etc., devise their own lingo to pull the wool over your eyes to keep you from knowing this is crap meant to cover a glaring deficiency. Only AOL types would be impressed. And presumably AOLers already know about this dungware. Therefore the rest of us have no use for it (unless I suppose we have to contact an AOLer, in whch case we're not AOL users and probably don't know what the hell a "Buddy List" is). Now if AOL wasn't a total waste of money, a bucket of hype, and supported the net convention of talk, fingering, etc., then these "features" wouldn't even be needed. But AOL is trash. They shovel this pablum at you, as a crude patch for their flaws. If AOL wasn't shit, they would simply support, at a minimum, TALK. >I would never give up AOL, even though it was a royal pain for quite a long >time, AOL is a hemmoroid on the internet. Do yourself and the animals a favor and try out a real ISP. AOL is unethical and a joke. They practice platform discrimination, and have reamed AR folks on several occasions. > because of this incredible feature (and other things too). Again, this is a crock. It's nothing new for real ISPs. Please don't hype AOL on AR-News. > Now it's >available to EVERYONE. Everyone whos unethical enough to buy a Intel box or Mac that is. > You're gonna love it! A letter from AOL follows my >Letters for Animals "commercial." :-) Please no HTML. Please no commercial adverts for AOL. AOL is about as bad as it gets. Get on a real ISP and you'll see how AOL has distorted your view of the net. Nothing personal, I just can't see AR activists supporting AOL (or CIS, or MSN) let alone advertising for them dungware. Pat Fish Computer Professionals for Earth & Animals Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 00:15:21 -0700 (PDT) From: David J Knowles To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: [UK] Big jams, sun-burned pigs . . . the heat goes on Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970811001617.09af957a@dowco.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" (After all those freezing penguin stories in winter, thought you might like the other extreme) >From The Electronic Telegraph - Monday, August 11th, 1997 Big jams, sun-burned pigs . . . the heat goes on By David Graves MOST of Britain basked in the hottest weekend of the year as temperatures in the south of the country passed 31C (88F). Seaside resorts and beauty spots were packed and long motorway jams built up as tens of thousands of people headed for the coast. Some areas recorded the third successive day of temperatures nudging 32C (90F). The London Weather Centre said last night that most of the country would be hot and humid again today with thunderstorms forecast for later in the day. Temperatures are expected to cool tomorrow, although it will continue to be warm. At Brighton yesterday, Brett Aldridge, 15, caught a 15in Triggerfish. The species is normally found in the warmer waters of the Caribbean. Along the south coast at Hove, Renato Marrocco, an Italian-born ice-cream seller, said he he had his first customer at 8am. It was so hot at Drusillas Zoo, near Eastbourne, that staff had to spray water over their emus to keep them cool. At Butterfly World, Stockton-on-Tees, cool air was pumped into a hothouse to save the butterflies. Near Carlisle, staff at the Cumbria rare breeds farm daubed factor 15 suntan cream on their Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs to stop them getting burned. At Worthing, Sussex, two elderly women were treated for heatstroke after they insisted on wearing their cardigans. [Snip] © Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997. Date: Sun, 10 Aug 1997 23:51:01 -0700 (PDT) From: David J Knowles To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Fwd: Urgent RFI Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970810235157.0da79446@dowco.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I just received the following RFI from Marguerite (bunny), who urgently needs to know whether there is any SCIENTIFIC evidence to show that rabbits poisoned with PINDONE suffer prior to death or at the time of death. Please repond with any answers directly to Marguerite at: rabbit@wantree.com.au Marguerite apologises for not being able to post this herself but has had to unsubscribe from ar-news and views for now. She is also busy in the rescue of feral rabbits and has become aware of another threat. TIA, David Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 04:02:42 -0400 (EDT) From: LMANHEIM@aol.com To: pfish@fang.cs.sunyit.edu Cc: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. Message-ID: <970811035720_280621387@emout20.mail.aol.com> Whoops...sorry everyone, especially Allen, about the HTML in my message. Also...didn't mean to unleash the hounds of hell...was simply trying to be helpful. :-) I am not profiting in any way by recommending the free software. If it helps ar people to communicate more quickly and efficiently with each other, it's a good thing. Period. Lynn Manheim Letters for Animals PO Box 7-AO La Plume, PA 18440 717-945-5312 Fax: -3471 Date: Mon, 11 Aug 97 07:21:26 UTC From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Dog gets Employee of the Month Message-ID: <199708111222.IAA03990@envirolink.org> (Effingham, Illinois, USA): The top dog in the Effingham, Ill., sheriff's office is really a dog. Fritz the German Shepherd was named employee of the month. Now the question is where he will get lunch. The employee of the month wins a lunch with the sheriff and chief deputy. But, says Sheriff Ron Meek, "We're looking for just the right restaurant." The monthly award just started. Fritz was the second winner. The first winner was a 25-year veteran of the dept. But Fritz was the clear choice for July. He caught two men who had stolen a car. They abandoned the car and ran from a state trooper. Fritz sniffed out one thief who was hiding in a construction shed. He found the second in a garage. His main job is sniffing out drugs. But he showed he can do more. "Fritz is well-respected at the sheriff's office," Meek said. -- Sherrill Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 09:01:53 -0400 (EDT) From: PAWS To: jrogers@aphis.usda.gov Cc: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: King Royal Circus Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII August 11, 1997 Mr. James Rogers Public Relations US Department of Agriculture Dear Mr. Rogers, PAWS is in receipt of a copy of an article from the Beloit, Wisconsin Daily News (8/5/97) regarding the King Royal Circus. In that article, you stated that "the only other incident on record for King Royal"--besides the beating of a baby elephant in Oregon in 1994--was "a ticket for a minor infraction in 1992." In fact, though, the King Royal Circus has a long history of violations of the Animal Welfare Act, for which that circus has been cited by your Department. These records are in your files. It is of great concern to PAWS that your agency does not seem to be able to manage its own records. How can you monitor chronic violators of the Animal Welfare Act when you can't even find documents concerning their past actions in your own files? PAWS is sending under separate cover copies of documents from USDA files about the King Royal Circus which we have received through the Freedom of Information Act so that you may read them and be aware of them. In 1993, for example, USDA inspectors of King Royal found a dead elephant in a truck; a dead giraffe in a trailer; and a group of animals abandoned in Alaska. These incidents generated several documents and several visits by Dr. Ridenour, Dr. McKelvey, investigator Greg Nelson, and others. These activities must have been at great cost to the Department and, therefore, to taxpayers. It is unthinkable that all of these documents could have been misplaced or ignored by your offie and that you could tell a journalist that, with the exception of the Oregon incident, King Royal's past record reflects only a "ticket" for a "minor infraction." I hope that the death of King Royal's young African elephant Heather last week in Albuquerque will not later be referred to as another "minor infraction." Documents from King Royal's USDA file are being sent to you under separate cover so that in the future--if you are asked to give information about this Circus--you will be able to give an accurate account. Sincerely, Pat Derby Director Performing Animal Welfare Society Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 10:34:02 -0700 From: Hillary To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: request to have this message posted on ar-news Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970811103400.006e96b4@pop01.ny.us.ibm.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >Date: 07 Aug 97 13:27:47 EDT >Reply-To: 74754.654@CompuServe.COM >Sender: owner-ar-news@envirolink.org >From: 0 <74754.654@CompuServe.COM> >To: Ian Lance Taylor >Subject: request to have this message posted on ar-news >X-Listprocessor-Version: 8.0 -- ListProcessor(tm) by CREN > >GOOD NEWS FROM ISRAEL - ANIMAL AMBULANCE FINALLY ALLOWED DUTY-FREE >ENTRY > >Concern for Helping Animals in Israel (CHAI) has won its battle >over the equal treatment of ambulances for people and animals. >CHAI had sought to donate an animal ambulance to the SPCA in >Tiberias, Israel to enable it to pick up sick, stray and injured >animals and transport them to medical help. However, while >ambulances for Israel's public hospitals were allowed to enter the >country duty-free, CHAI's identically equipped animal ambulance for >a public animal shelter was charged $40,000 customs duties (the >ambulance cost $26,000). > >Instead of allowing shelters to receive donated ambulances that >would have allowed them to fulfill their function of controlling >the animal overpopulation in humane ways, the government continued >to mass strychnine poison animals in the fields and streets, >claiming they had no humane alternative. > >Years ago, CHAI replaced the strychnine poisonings in the municipal >pounds with use of the humane euthanasia drug sodium pentobarbitol. > >To replace the poisonings in the fields and streets - which the >Veterinary Services claimed they carry out to control rabies - CHAI >urged the Veterinary Services to field test the oral rabies vaccine >that has wiped out rabies in Western Europe. The vaccine was >successfully field tested, but the Veterinary Services has not yet >purchased and distributed it, citing financial considerations and >concerns that rabid animals will just come across the border. > >While CHAI continues to work to end these poisonings, it sought to >make it possible for the animal shelters to pick up animals before >the municipal authorities would resort to poisoning them. The >imposition of exhorbitant customs duties prevented this humane >solution. > >Many organizations and individuals appealed to the Israeli >government to show compassion, including 25 U.S. Senators and >Congresspeople, Nobel Laureate and former CHAI Advisory Board >member Isaac Bashevis Singer before his death, the heads of many >Jewish organizations (including the one that sends human ambulances >to Israel) and many animal protection organizations. Even Israel's >two Chief Rabbis (Ashkenazi and Sephardic) wrote that the >government's action violated Jewish law by denying help to >suffering animals. All appeals were rejected. > >Many CHAI members who are contributors to Israel, including to the >United Jewish Appeal and Israel Bonds, withheld their contributions >in protest. Finally, with the help of Knesset members Avraham >Poraz (sponsor of Israel's first Animal Protection Law), Uzi >Landau, and Maxim Levy, a bill to change the government's policy on >the ambulances was finally introduced into the Knesset (Israel's >Parliament). CHAI Advisory Board member Rep. Tom Lantos wrote to >every member of both majority parties in Israel (Labor and Likud), >asking for their support of the Knesset bill. Many responded >favorably, including the Vice-Chairman of the Knesset. > >The bill has been referred to the Knesset Finance Committee and >CHAI will continue to press for its passage. To avoid further >delaying the ambulance getting to the Tiberias shelter while >awaiting passage of the legislation, however, Knesset member >Avraham Poraz shortcut the legislative process and succeeded in >convincing the Finance Ministry to take the customs duties for the >first donated vehicle from the Treasury. The ambulance will be >shipped to Israel August 24th and will arrive September 13th. > >The duty-free entry of Israel's first animal ambulance sets a >precedent. Once it arrives and begins its life-saving work at the >new Tiberias shelter, the other shelters in the country will demand >that they, also, be allowed to have this means of carrying out >their function. There can be no justification for granting the >privilege to one shelter while denying it to another. > >CHAI thanks everyone for your support in this long, drawn-out >struggle. It's a shame so much time and energy had to be expended >on establishing the obvious - that animals suffer no less >than humans and that their suffering matters no less than human >suffering - but the ambulance can now begin its important work >saving thousands of animal lives. We continue to urge anyone with >contacts with Knesset members to urge them to pass the bill that >will set this policy of compassion into stone forever. > >For further information, contact Nina Natelson, CHAI's Director, at >POB 3341, Alex., VA 22302, tel. (703) 658-9650, fax (703) 941-6132, >e-mail: 74754,654.compuserve.com > > > > > > Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 09:06:15 -0700 (PDT) From: civillib@cwnet.com To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Re: Talk: This could help the animals: AOL's Instant Messenger software. Message-ID: <199708111606.JAA00296@borg.cwnet.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Allen, List, This (below) is not news. cres At 05:36 AM 8/11/97 +0000, Pat Fish wrote: >On Sun, 10 Aug 1997 LMANHEIM@aol.com wrote about AOL Instant Messenger: > >Lynn, nothing personal here, OK? With that said I must state for all >subscribers: >Aaargh! Please no HTML. Please no commercial adverts for AOL. > >>Sorry, it's not directly animal related, but it can help a-r folks contact >>each other FAST when they need to. > >AR activists should not be patronizing AOL, let alone promote them on >AR-News. Most unix based ISPs support fast mail (unlike AOL) and a talk >command. AOL is way behind as usual. You are only impressed by these things >because AOL cons users into a twisted view of technology. Don't help AOL >continue to RIP PEOPLE OFF. AR folks are luddite enough as it is, without >being brainwashed by AOL and it's moron-speak. > >>This is FREE software that enables you to send and receive Instant (realtime) >>messages to individuals on the Internet who have the same software. > >Only available for those who bought the Gillette and P&G of the computing >world: IBM compatibles/Windows and Apple Macs. > > >> (Everyone on America Online has it already.) It also lets you set up a >>Buddy List. When someone on your Buddy List is online, you are made aware of >>it and can IM (instant message) him or her to chat. > >Is this supposed to entice anybody? I hope not. You should be on a >respectable ISP, not glorifying AOL. Besides this stuff is decades old. >AOL, like Apple and IBM, Microsoft, etc., devise their own lingo to pull the >wool over your eyes to keep you from knowing this is crap meant to cover a >glaring deficiency. Only AOL types would be impressed. And presumably >AOLers already know about this dungware. Therefore the rest of us have no >use for it (unless I suppose we have to contact an AOLer, in whch case >we're not AOL users and probably don't know what the hell a "Buddy List" >is). Now if AOL wasn't a total waste of money, a bucket of hype, and >supported the net convention of talk, fingering, etc., then these "features" >wouldn't even be needed. But AOL is trash. They shovel this pablum at you, >as a crude patch for their flaws. If AOL wasn't shit, they would simply >support, at a minimum, TALK. > >>I would never give up AOL, even though it was a royal pain for quite a long >>time, > >AOL is a hemmoroid on the internet. Do yourself and the animals a favor and >try out a real ISP. AOL is unethical and a joke. They practice platform >discrimination, and have reamed AR folks on several occasions. > >> because of this incredible feature (and other things too). > >Again, this is a crock. It's nothing new for real ISPs. Please don't hype >AOL on AR-News. > >> Now it's >>available to EVERYONE. > >Everyone whos unethical enough to buy a Intel box or Mac that is. > >> You're gonna love it! A letter from AOL follows my >>Letters for Animals "commercial." :-) > >Please no HTML. Please no commercial adverts for AOL. AOL is about as bad >as it gets. Get on a real ISP and you'll see how AOL has distorted your >view of the net. > >Nothing personal, I just can't see AR activists supporting AOL (or CIS, or >MSN) let alone advertising for them dungware. > >Pat Fish >Computer Professionals for Earth & Animals > > > Date: Mon, 11 Aug 97 11:07:37 UTC From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: August 5th Family Circle Magazine Message-ID: <199708111605.MAA02021@envirolink.org> The very last page has a full-page article by Mary Tyler Moore called, "I refuse to eat anything with a face."- Full Circle All Creatures Great and Small. -- Sherrill Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 07:04:59 -1000 (HST) From: Animal Rights Hawaii To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Boombox in Hawai'i repaired Message-ID: <199708111704.HAA10769@mail.pixi.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" The Honolulu Advertiser reported today that the transmitter, which had been lying on its side in 2300 feet of water, 8 miles north of Kaua'i, was repositioned on July 25, and appears to be finally working. It is expected to begin transmitting in October. The California transmitter had worked for about 15 months before breaking, but the Hawai'i unit never functioned. It was damaged while being positioned, and the US Navy finally assisted in repositioning the unit to get it to work. The California unit is still non-functional and bids are being sought for repairs. Humpback whales arrive in Hawai'i in December and remain here until spring. Environmental and Animal Rights organizations continue to have concerns about the effects of the noise from the boombox on the animals living in the oceans around Kaua'i . Date: Mon, 11 Aug 97 12:13:56 UTC From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Needs any animal rights publications dealing with LAW issues Message-ID: <199708111716.NAA11337@envirolink.org> This lady moved to OK and has gotten a crash course on how bad our animal abuse problems are. She's seeing animals being sacrificed in religious ceremonies, etc. If you have any advice/help for her on this, please call her: Ketra Bock, 918-825-6160. Her address: HCR 65, Box #107, Cherokee Heights, Pryor, OK USA. -- Sherrill Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 15:46:29 -0400 From: Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com> To: AR-NEWS Subject: SUPPORT NEEDED ! Message-ID: <199708111546_MC2-1CE8-24A1@compuserve.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Disposition: inline (Austria) FARMER SHOOTS ACTIVIST On Thursday the 24th of July, activists from RespekTiere were documenting the horrible conditions in a pig farm, in Puerstendorf, Austria, when suddenly the owner of the farm fired several times with a shotgun without any warning. One activist was injured in the leg. The activists left the farm as fast as possible and ran into the surrounding fields, while the shooter and another person were searching for them. Shocked the activists tried to protect their lifes in the fields and escaped later on. The activist was operated in a hospital and is doing quite well now. But not so the pigs. Kept under horrible conditions the pigs are facing death without really living before. RespekTiere campaigns against a project to build a new intensive pig farm in Puerstendorf and against the actual horrible conditions. The inhabitants of the village are already faced with health risks caused by the emissions of the existing pig farms. Please send protest faxes against the building of the new Pig farm in Puerstendorf to State Governor Proell: Landeshauptmann Dr. Erwin Proell Landhausplatz 1 3109 St. Pölten Fax-Nr.: +43 2742 200 3030 The farmer already has the permits and so public national and international pressure seems to be our and the pigs only hope. Please email copies of your protest faxes to RespekTiere e-mail: 106127.1133@compuserve.com, Fax. + 43 1 479 14 09 Thanks for your support. Niki Entrup RespekTiere e-mail: 106127.1133@compuserve.com Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 15:46:29 -0400 From: Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com> To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: SUPPORT NEEDED ! Message-ID: <199708111948.PAA28818@envirolink.org> (Austria) FARMER SHOOTS ACTIVIST On Thursday the 24th of July, activists from RespekTiere were documenting the horrible conditions in a pig farm, in Puerstendorf, Austria, when suddenly the owner of the farm fired several times with a shotgun without any warning. One activist was injured in the leg. The activists left the farm as fast as possible and ran into the surrounding fields, while the shooter and another person were searching for them. Shocked the activists tried to protect their lifes in the fields and escaped later on. The activist was operated in a hospital and is doing quite well now. But not so the pigs. Kept under horrible conditions the pigs are facing death without really living before. RespekTiere campaigns against a project to build a new intensive pig farm in Puerstendorf and against the actual horrible conditions. The inhabitants of the village are already faced with health risks caused by the emissions of the existing pig farms. Please send protest faxes against the building of the new Pig farm in Puerstendorf to State Governor Proell: Landeshauptmann Dr. Erwin Proell Landhausplatz 1 3109 St. P=F6lten Fax-Nr.: +43 2742 200 3030 The farmer already has the permits and so public national and international pressure seems to be our and the pigs only hope. Please email copies of your protest faxes to RespekTiere e-mail: 106127.1133@compuserve.com, Fax. + 43 1 479 14 09 Thanks for your support. Niki Entrup RespekTiere e-mail: 106127.1133@compuserve.com SUPPORT NEEDED ! Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 13:54:51 -0700 From: LCartLng@gvn.net (Lawrence Carter-Long) To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Finland OKs grey seal hunting Message-ID: <199708112049.QAA13954@envirolink.org> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >From the Environmetal News Network (http://www.enn.com/newswire/081197/08119705.htm): Finland OKs grey seal hunting Bowing to pressure from fishermen who say seals threaten their salmon catches, the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry will allow the killing of 30 grey seals in the Baltic Sea this fall. Hunted down to an estimated 1,500 and protected since 1980, the grey seal population has grown since then but has probably not recovered enough to allow hunting, say Hanna Kokko, Jan Lindstrom and Esa Ranta of the University of Helsinki in Finland in the August issue of Conservation Biology. One reason Kokko and her colleagues oppose hunting grey seals is that ringed seals may be shot by mistake, and the population of ringed seals in the Baltic has clearly not recovered enough to sustain hunting. Lawrence Carter-Long Coordinator, Science and Research Issues Animal Protection Institute phone: 916-731-5521 LCartLng@gvn.net "Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of too much life by doing so. Aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something." -- Henry David Thoreau Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 18:36:28 -0300 From: Ty Savoy To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: Mysterious BSE-Like Illness ? Message-ID: <1.5.4.32.19970811213628.0071a79c@north.nsis.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" List: Following is taken from my local paper in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Canada. A mysterious horse/livestock illness has taken many twists and turns over the past two years and is still unsolved. Of note, especially concerning many scientists' belief that Mad Cow Disease may currently be present in North America in a form different than that of the British Strain, perhaps manifesting itself with different symptoms and etiology. >From The New Glasgow Evening News (Aug 11/97) Second Horse Brain Goes Under Microscope The deaths of horses in this community continue and the cause still remains a mystery. by Jeff Fulton News Staff Writer FOUR MILE BROOK --The deaths of the sick horses here is still under investigation but officials are ruling out Mad Cow Disease, A Veterinarian with the Nova Scotia Dept of Agriculture says initial reports of Mad Cow Disease in one of the sick horses here is a mistake. Dr Lyn Ferns, based out of the Department's Truro office, says the autopsy of the most recent dead horse on Fran Bent's farm here in May, revealed lesions on the brain but should not be misconceived as those similar to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy commonly known as Mad Cow Disease. "It was a typo in the transcripts. There is no evidence of BSE," she said of the recently released report. She added however she could not release the real cause of death without the owner's permission. Owner Fran Bent said she is not sure what killed her horse in May, the fourth to die this year. Her stables and those of neighbors have been afflicted with a mysterious illness for more than two years. No common thread or causes of death have ever been discovered. "They say this last one of mine was death due to heart attack. But that's like cancer. It isn't the cancer that kills you....your heart stops." She says even the suspicion of BSE is curious regardless of the retraction. "We still don't know what this is. They tell us there is nothing in common." She said that in January everyone was quick to to say the horses had worms and that was the cause. "They are not saying that anymore." Sgt, Ken MacKinnon, head of the Pictou RCMP, has dismissed any allegation the horses were undernourished. He said feed samples reveal they were getting what they needed. He says he is interested in finding out the cause of the mystery as well. "They say the brain showed lesions similar to those found in BSE," he said. "So they have sent the brain (of yet another horse in the area which died in June) off to Ottawa for tests. They suspect something called TSE." TSE, Sgt, MacKinnon explained is the generic form of the Spongiform Encephalopathy called Transmital Spongiform Encephalopathy. They do not know the cause and experts say it has not previously been discovered in horses. Sgt. MacKinnon said the brain was sent 10 days ago and he is still awaiting results. The RCMP officer says he is still looking into the nature of the sick horses and has in the course of his inquiries spoken to half a dozen people accross the province whose animals are showing a variety of symptoms that may or may not be related. "There is nothing so far to suggest they all have the same thing or anything at this point," he said. At least 40 horses in the barns here have been showing signs of everything from lameness to blindness to weight loss and lethargy to genital malformation. Once the owners suspected mycotoxins in the feed as the cause for the problems but the feed has reportedly come out clean. Sgt. MacKinnon says he hopes the Ottawa lab tests will shed some light on a connection between TSE and Mycotoxins. He says the basic research he has done in the field, which he admits is way out of his league, indicated modern technology and agriculture production techniques may have some yet undiscovered byproducts of the food both anumals and humans injest. He does not rule out mutancies as casual to some yet unidentified illnesses possibly even the sick horse syndrome. Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 18:48:08 -0400 (EDT) From: PAWS To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: King Royal Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Please continue to write and call the USDA about the King Royal Circus' continuing violations of the Animal Welfare Act. The USDA has the authority to confiscate King Royal's animals. Please urge them to confiscate them and place them in a safe refuge. Write or call: Mr. Mike Dunn Asst Sec for Marketing and Regulatory Affairs AG Box 0109 Washington, DC 20250-0109 (202) 720-4256 phone (202) 720-5775 fax Dr. Ron DeHaven Acting Deputy Administrator-Animal Care 4700 River Road Unit 97 Riverdale, Md. 20737 (301) 734-4980 phone (301) 734-4993 fax The following article appeared in the Albuquerque Journal (8/9/97): Elephants, Llamas In City's Care: Judge Grants Albuquerque temporary custody of circus animals that were found in a trailer The city of Albuquerque is the guardian of eight llamas and a pair of circus elephants--at least for now. A state District Court judge on Friday granted temporary custody of the animals after a city attorney argued they were being neglected and were in "shocking condition." The llamas and elephants, Donna and Irene, were found Wednesday evening, along with the corpse of a thrid elephant named Heather, in what officials called a hot, poorly ventilated trailer. Police made the bizarre discovery while on bicycle patrol outside a hotel near Albuquerque International Sunport. A court document says Judge Robert Thompson will have another hearing Wednesday on the animals' fate. they belong to King Royal Circus based near San Antonio, Texas, and Assistant City Attorney Greg Wheeler said the circus can argue its case during that hearing. Wheeler said officials are awaiting health reports on the animals before they decide how to proceed, but he said the city will likely ask the judge to either impound the animals and place them up for adoption or give them to the city. "We don't want King Royal to have them--based on what we've seen so far," he said Friday afternoon. "The judge has the jurisdiction and the power to take them for good on a showing of cruelty." When asked if this was the first time the city has sought temporary custody of elephants, Wheeler said, "I can pretty much safely say, yes, it is." Ben Davenport, the animals' handler, has said the animals inside the trailer were not neglected. "You can accuse all you want, but that doesn't mean it's truth," Davenport said. "These animals have been around (us) for years. We are not just going to abandon them. One thing I will assure you--these animals are going with me." Local attorney Ron Koch is representing the circus and said Friday evening there is "no question" the circus can humanely care for its animals. Albuquerque Biological Park officals said Friday they were awaiting complete results of the exam of Heather's body to determine what killed her. But Kent Newton, assistant director of the Park, said it appears she might have died of a salmonella bacterial infection, which could have been complicated by stress. However, Koch said results of the exam also show Heather was in "good nutritional condition." He said the circus will "address the perceived problem that these animals have not been cared for properly." Biological Park officials were concerned about Donna's health but director Ray Darnell said Friday she seemed to be improving. "She's better than she was last night," he said. The US Department of Agriculture is investigating the circus animal incident, and Friday's custody announcement came a few hours after a protest outside the USDA office in Albuquerque. Animal Protection of New Mexico organized the protest, said Lisa Jennings, executive director. Her group is asking the USDA to revoke the circus's exhibitor's license. A USDA spokesman said Friday the case is still being investigated. Jennings said the circus is no place for elephants. "They spend almost their entire lives chained by two legs in tractor trailers, rail cars, and warehouses," Jennings alleged. Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 18:52:24 -0400 (EDT) From: Snugglezzz@aol.com To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: State Hog Inventory Up 30% - Oklahoma (USA) Message-ID: <970811185000_-1505523673@emout15.mail.aol.com> (Farm Report): In Oklahoma, the inventory of hogs and pigs on June 1 this year was estimated at 1.5 million head. That was up 30 percent from June 1, 1996, and 9 percent above March 1 of this year, the Oklahoma Agricultural Statistics Service said. The breeding inventory of 210,000 head was up 17 percent from last quarter. Market hog inventory was up 8 percent from the previous quarter and totaled 1.29 million head. The weight group breakdown consisted of 470,000 pigs in the under 60-pound group; 210,000 in the 120-179-pound group; and 410,000 pigs in the 180-pound and larger group. ___________________________________________________________________ (And, to think, they're actually bragging about this.) -- Sherrill Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 16:29:46 -0700 From: "ida" To: Subject: LANGUR MONKEYS NEED YOUR HELP Message-ID: <199708120030.RAA03147@proxy3.ba.best.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Seventeen langur monkeys formerly used in anthropoligical research at UC Berkeley are facing a potentially fatal future. The university has kept the langurs in cramped cages with cold cement bottoms, only to be gawked at by students, for more than twenty years. Over a year ago the grants for this research ran out and just now is UCB making a decision regarding the future of these beautiful primates. Supposedly the decision is to be made by next wednesday - a decision which may entail sending the langurs to a sanctuary, giving them to a zoo, using them in furher research, or euthanizing them. AR groups, including IDA, have attempted to work with UCB in placing the langurs in a sanctuary, yet the university has not been extremely receptive to the idea. However, certain members of the anthropology department have expressed dismay at the proposed euthanization, and have been advocating sending them to a sanctuary. Unfortunately the decision is ultimately in the hands of the Vice Chancellor of Research, and sadly there is nothing in writing which states that the langur monkeys will not be euthanized. So, we are asking everyone to call the Vice Chancellor of Research, Joseph Cerny, urging him to let the students have a say in the decision making process, urging him to meet with todd selby, a representative of the student & ar community - who was recently denied a meeting with the Vice Chancellor, and urging UCB to state, in writing, that the langur monkeys will not be euthanized. Please call! Joseph Cerny 119 California Hall UCB Berkeley, CA 94720-1500 Phone: (510) 642-7540 Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 21:47:53 -0400 (EDT) From: "A. Hogan" To: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US Cc: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: MTM Profile in August 1997 McCall's Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII McCall's August 1997 cover story/"Celebrity Close-Up" (pgs. 20-23) "Our Favorite Mary" by Gail Collins mentions diabetic actor Mary Tyler Moore's "healthy vegetarian diet," her non-designer dogs Dash and Dudley in her NYC apartment, the oasis she and her physician-husband's upstate NY country place provides amid NY's fox-hunting/fox-chasing territory, the "pond full of fish [there] that the actress, a fanatic wildlife lover, will not let any fisherman [SIC] get near," her "long since discarded" fur coats, her speaking out against "estrogen-replacement therapy that uses pregnant mares' urine" (though the article does not mention Premarin or its maker by name) and on other AR topics, etc. The caption on a Dana Fineman photo with the piece, showing Moore with one of her five horses (she also has two goats), reads: "An ardent animal-rights activist, Moore spends lots of time at her home in rural New York, practicing what she preaches." --ar hogan Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 22:39:06 -0700 From: Sean Thomas To: ar-news@envirolink.com Subject: Health Canada Primates on CTV Message-ID: <33EFF6FA.4EDE@sympatico.ca> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Well not really, Animal Action Co-Director Sean Thomas and Conrad Brunk, head of the Royal Society Expert Panel deliberating on the fate of Health Canada's monkeys were on Canada AM (a national morning news show)discussing the issue. The focus of the interview was the sanctuary option. Sean Thomas Co-Director, Animal Action Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 23:34:12 -0400 From: allen schubert To: ar-news@envirolink.org Subject: (US) Lower Pocomoke River To Be Reopened Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970811233409.006f7d38@clark.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" (the residents believe this was caused by runoff from farms) from AP Wire page: ----------------------------------- 08/11/1997 23:28 EST Lower Pocomoke River To Be Reopened By TODD SPANGLER Associated Press Writer POCOMOKE CITY, Md. (AP) -- Health officials said Monday they plan to reopen a five-mile stretch of the lower Pocomoke River that was closed last week after some 11,000 fish mysteriously died. ``We don't believe ... a toxin is remaining in the water,'' state Health Secretary Martin Wasserman said. Scientists suspect that the large kill detected last Wednesday near Shelltown is linked to pfiesteria piscicida, a microorganism deadly to fish and linked to minor human health problems. Last Thursday, the five-mile stretch was closed to swimming, fishing and boating after people ignored a warning to stay out of the water. Officials said Monday they plan to reopen the river Wednesday in the belief that pfiesteria becomes nontoxic a day or so after a fish kill ends. The kill officially ended Saturday. A public health advisory will be issued warning people to wash off after coming in contact with river water and to throw back any fish caught with lesions, Wasserman said. Studies are under way to determine if pfiesteria, which can cause sores and lesions in fish, was involved in the kill. A number of disfigured fish have been caught in the Pocomoke near Shelltown, where the river connects to the Chesapeake Bay. Wasserman reiterated that there is no firm medical proof pfiesteria causes health problems. But some watermen and other people who have come into contact with the river have complained of weight loss, flu-like symptoms and lesions. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and the National Institutes of Health will help the state study if the microorganism poses a threat to humans, U.S. Sens. Paul Sarbanes and Barbara Mikulski said Monday. But at a public meeting Monday night, several Eastern Shore residents said the river should remain closed until researchers solve the mystery plaguing the lower Pocomoke and determine if pfiesteria poses any health consequences. Many of the 100 people at the meeting voiced strong opinions about what they think caused the fish kill. Robert Brumley, 67, of Shelltown, believes runoff from farms has ruined the river quality. ``It's very obvious what's done it,'' he said.