AR-NEWS Digest 487

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Nobel laureate blasts 'extremist   environmentalists'
     
     by L Grayson 
  2) Austrian Publication
     by Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com>
  3) (US) 26 Convicted of Wild Horse Abuse
     by allen schubert 
  4) (US) Polluted Water Means Unsafe Fish
     by allen schubert 
  5) (US) Use of Sludge on Crops Defended
     by allen schubert 
  6) (US) Oklahoma Weekly Hunting News
     by JanaWilson@aol.com
  7) request to have this message posted on ar-news
     by 0  <74754.654@CompuServe.COM>
  8) Another baby monkey nightmare
     by Shirley McGreal 
  9) ANIMAL ACTION SHUTS DOWN HEALTH CANADA'S OFFICES
     by Sean Thomas 
 10) Speaking of Women
     by Anvilmike@aol.com
 11) King Royal Elephant Dies
     by PAWS 
 12) Cloned bull (US)
     by Alex Press 
Date: Wed, 06 Aug 1997 21:51:46 -0500
From: L Grayson 
To: ar-news 
Subject: Nobel laureate blasts 'extremist   environmentalists'
     
Message-ID: <33E9383E.64F5@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1


Nobel laureate blasts
                                          'extremist
                                          environmentalists'

                                          August 5, 1997
                                          Web posted at: 4:15 p.m. EDT
(2015 GMT) 

                                          WASHINGTON (AP) --
                                          Norman Borlaug, Nobel
                                          laureate and early leader of
                                          the "Green Revolution" in the
                                          underdeveloped world, says
                                          opposition to chemical
                                          fertilizers from "extremist
                                          environmentalists" threatens
prospects for growing
                                          more food in Africa and other
poor regions. 

                                          "Realistic soil fertility
restoration and maintenance ... in
                                          Africa will be the key to
achieving needed agricultural
                                          growth rates," the renowned
U.S. plant scientist told a
                                          U.S. Senate committee last
week. 

                                          But the debate with
environmentalists "has confused --
                                          if not paralyzed --
policy-makers," he added. "Afraid of
                                          antagonizing powerful lobbying
groups, many
                                          international agencies have
turned away from
                                          supporting the science-based
agricultural
                                          intensification programs so
urgently needed" in
                                          countries south of Africa's
Sahara Desert. 

                                          The result, he said, has been
"declining food security"
                                          and greater, rather than less,
damage to the
                                          environment as forests and
slopes get turned into
                                          marginal cropland to feed
swelling populations. 

                                          The annual growth rate in food
productivity of 5
                                          percent or 6 percent that many
economists feel
                                          necessary to significantly
reduce poverty in Africa will
                                          require using the best
technology available, Borlaug
                                          told the Senate Agriculture
Committee. 

                                          After learning from
devastating famines of 1959-60
                                          that manure and other organic
fertilizers were not
                                          enough to support needed
increases, China turned
                                          successfully to chemical
fertilizer, Borlaug said. "This
                                          lesson must not be lost on
Africa. ... We cannot turn back
                                          the clock," he said,
criticizing "extremist
                                          environmentalists" who oppose
even sparing use of
                                          fertilizers. 

                                          During the 1960s, through
traditional plant breeding,
                                          the "Green Revolution"
produced higher-yielding
                                          varieties of grains that
helped feed a fast-growing
                                          world. 

                                          Borlaug's work in that effort
won him the 1970 Nobel
                                          Peace Prize and world acclaim.
Now 83, the Iowa-born
                                          scientist is working on
African crop projects in
                                          association with Japan's
Sasakawa Foundation and
                                          former President Carter, a
fellow advocate of
                                          harnessing technology against
famine. 

                                          Borlaug criticized many modern
research managers
                                          and scientists as "detached
from the realities in farmers'
                                          fields, preferring to measure
their achievements by the
                                          genetic and information
products they generate ... (and)
                                          the learned papers they
publish," instead of their
                                          impact on crops. 

                                          Government and private
cooperation will be needed,
                                          Borlaug said, to make
affordable for small planters in
                                          Africa the new crop breeding
advances of biotechnology
                                          already used in more
prosperous regions. 

                                          Copyright 1997   The
Associated Press. All rights
                                          reserved. This material may
not be published,
                                          broadcast, rewritten, or
redistributed.

                                           

Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 04:13:39 -0400
From: Nicolas Entrup <106127.1133@compuserve.com>
To: AR-NEWS 
Subject: Austrian Publication
Message-ID: <199708070413_MC2-1C8E-B417@compuserve.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Disposition: inline

Hi all,

I think no austrian group has already sent this out. The results are not
the latest ones, but might give you an overview about the situation in
Austria (publication from the Viennese University for Agriculture, 1995 -
data based from about 1991). Hope it is useful.
Cheers

Niki Entrup
RespekTiere
P.O.Box 97
A - 1172 Vienna
email: 106127.1133@compuserve.com


Cattle, pig and laying hen husbandry in Austria; a behavioural perspective

The effects of intensive livestock husbandry systems - on ecosystems,
product quality, public and animal health, social welfare, farm business
performance and man´s attitude toward his fellow animals - provide
sufficient justification for the rapid and widespread implementation of
more natural, and ecologically appropriate, domestic animal husbandry
methods.

A husbandry concept orientated toward the needs of the animal is based on
the natural, inherited behaviour patterns of domestic livestock, and on
those critical environment aspects of natural habitats which are
responsible for stimulating and controlling behaviour.

The natural behaviour of cattle, pigs and chickens, and those aspects of a
husbandry environment which are decisive in initiating and controlling
natural behaviour are discussed in order to define a basis for such a
husbandry concept.

The dominant husbandry methods used on cattle, pig and laying hen
enterprises in Austria are examined in the context of the requirements of a
welfare-orientated husbandry environment. Data on existing conditions are
derived from a research survey carried out on 720 randomly-chosen
agricultural enterprises. Only the most important results relevant to
ethological questions are presented. Special emphasis is given to those
husbandry conditions which are not
considered to be appropriate to the needs of the animals. Emphasis is also
given to the use of straw, because of its particular ethological and
ecological importance.

Cattle husbandry:

Data for calf husbandry are based on surveys of 337 enterprises (2179
calves).
Calves for breeding are kept tethered on 56.3 % of enterprises. Individual
stalls are used on 26.9 % of the enterprises. Average available stall space
per animal is 2.4 m2. Straw is provided on 94.7 % of the enterprises. Beef
calves are kept tethered on 62.4 % of enterprises, with individual stalls
used on 20.9 % of enterprises. Average available stall space per animal is
1.9 m2. 27.1 % of the breeding calves and 18.7 % of the beef calves drink
from buckets without nipple drinkers.

Data on young cattle husbandry are based on surveys of 349 enterprises
(3244 cattle).
Tethering is used on 80.5 % of enterprises. The cattle are kept in open pen
stalls with fully slatted floors in 7.9 % of the enterprises and on straw
in 91.7 of all enterprises.

Data on dairy cow husbandry are based on surveys of 373 enterprises (4485
cows).
The cows are tethered on 98.6 % of the enterprises. 37.7 % of the
enterprises keep the cows indoors all year round. Cows are provided with a
strawed lying area in 77.3 % of the enterprises. 15.2 % of the animals are
dehorned.

Data on beef finishing are based on surveys of 216 enterprises (2150
cattle).
Tethering is used on 74.1 % of the enterprises. Stalls with fully slatted
floors occur on 19.9 % of the enterprises. Straw is provided on 83.9 % of
the enterprises.

Pig husbandry:

Data on sow husbandry are based on surveys of 239 enterprises (3880 sows).
Dry and in-pig sows are kept in individual stalls in 85.8 % of the
enterprises. Tethers are used in 40.8 % and crates in 32.3 % of the
enterprises. 89.5 % of the enterprises provide them with straw. 61.6 % of
the enterprises restrain lactating sows when they are in the farrowing pen.
A separate piglet chamber is provided on 34.9 % of the enterprises. The
farrowing pens are strawed on 98.6 % of the enterprises. 7.4 % of the
enterprises keep the weaners in flatdecks.

Data of finishing pig husbandry are based on surveys of 236 enterprises
(23653 finishers).
Finishers are kept in open pens on fully slatted floors on 10.4 % of the
enterprises (which keep 26.4 % of the animals). No straw is provided on
43.8 % of the enterprises (67.8 % of the animals).

Laying hen husbandry:

Data on laying hen husbandry are based on surveys of 329 enterprises
(281303 hens).
According to a survey by ÖSTAT (1989), 4 % of all laying hen enterprises
were based on a cage system. This accounted for 65 % of all laying hens. In
19.9 % of enterprises (with 87.7 % of the laying hens), stalls are lit
artificially. Feed is provided as a meal on 33.8 % of the
enterprises (93.4 % of the birds).


The discussion adresses the diverse impacts of a poor husbandry environment
in terms of behavioural and health problems, and also animal performance.
Possible alternatives are also presented which would see future livestock
husbandry based on more ethological and
ecological criteria.

For a comprehensive and rapid conversion to more natural and ecologically
appropriate husbandry methods, the following legislative measures would
need to be passed immediately by Government: national animal protection
legislation which genuinely addresses prevailing ethical, ethological and
ecological issues. 
legislation that guarantees that the farmer receives compensation from the
taxpayer for all extra investment costs incurred when converting to a more
natural animal husbandry system.
legislation that demands that animal products be labelled according to
origin (conventional, ecological and/or welfare-friendly), and which
establishes the basis for the reliable regulation and control of such
declarations.

University for agriculture Vienna, 1995
Date: Thu, 07 Aug 1997 07:54:01 -0400
From: allen schubert 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) 26 Convicted of Wild Horse Abuse
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970807075359.00696c88@clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from AP Wire page:
----------------------------------
 08/07/1997 01:18 EST

 26 Convicted of Wild Horse Abuse

 By The Associated Press

 A computer check of all federal prosecutions in 1985-95 found 26
 convictions for abuse of federally protected wild horses and burros. The
 Bureau of Land Management, which oversees the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and
 Burro Act, had claimed 125 convictions under the act. Just three
 convictions on this list, in 1989, 1993 and 1995, were won under the act.

 ------

 1985 -- Texas man pleads guilty to selling three untitled wild horses;
 sentenced to two years unsupervised probation.

 1985 -- Texas man pleads guilty to forging veterinarian's name on
 application for title to adopted horse; was fined $20.

 1986 -- Wyoming man convicted of abusing adopted horse and fined.

 1987 -- Wyoming man pleads guilty to harassing five wild burros in
 Nevada; fined $250, sentenced to one year probation.

 1987 -- Nevada man convicted of illegally capturing wild horse; fined
 $250, sentenced to one year probation.

 1989 -- Three Arizona men plead guilty to killing two wild burros; fined
 $100 and sentenced to six months probation.

 1989 -- Ten Utah men plead guilty under Wild Horse and Burro Act to
 illegally capturing 10 burros in the Gold Butte area of Nevada; each
 fined $1,000, sentenced to six months probation.

 1989 -- California man convicted of abandoning, abusing two horses that
 starved to death; fined $1,000 and given three-year suspended sentence.

 1991 -- U.S. attorney defers violation of Wild Horse and Burro Act to
 state of Nevada, where prosecutors obtain conviction for animal cruelty.

 1992 -- Two Utah men plead guilty to federal misdemeanor charges for
 theft of wild horses from BLM property in southeastern Nevada. While on
 probation, one man continues to receive contracts from the BLM to round
 up wild horses.

 1993 -- Three Kentucky men plead guilty under Wild Horse and Burro Act to
 falsifying power of attorney forms to adopt 72 wild horses, then selling
 animals; sentences ranged from 15 months in prison to six months
 probation.

 1995 -- Nevada man pleads guilty under Wild Horse and Burro Act to taking
 nine horses from public land, converting wild horses to private use;
 sentenced to six months in prison.

Date: Thu, 07 Aug 1997 07:55:56 -0400
From: allen schubert 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Polluted Water Means Unsafe Fish
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970807075553.0068a6b4@clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from AP Wire page:
-----------------------------------
 08/06/1997 23:47 EST

 Polluted Water Means Unsafe Fish

 By MICHAEL TIGHE
 Associated Press Writer

 BOSTON (AP) -- Residents of 47 states are being warned not to eat certain
 types of freshwater fish as states find pollution in more lakes and
 rivers.

 The Environmental Protection Agency said there are nearly 2,200 fish
 consumption advisories in effect in the United States -- an all-time
 high. And those advisories increase by more than 20 percent a year.

 Fifteen percent of the nation's lakes -- including all of the Great Lakes
 -- and 5 percent of its rivers were covered by an advisory at the end of
 1996, the EPA said.

 The advisories list a total of 45 contaminants in lakes and rivers, but
 virtually all of them are due to the presence of mercury, PCBs,
 chlordane, dioxin and DDT in the water bodies. Contaminants enter waters
 through dumping, runoff and underground seepage and take decades to break
 down into less harmful forms.

 But the rising tide of advisories -- another 453 were issued last year,
 raising the total to 2,193 nationwide -- does not necessarily mean that
 more contamination is seeping into America's inland waters, the EPA said.

 ``The increase in advisories issued by the states generally reflects an
 increase in the number of assessments of the levels of chemical
 contaminants in fish and wildlife tissues,'' the agency said in a fact
 sheet released last week.

 Only Alaska, South Dakota and Wyoming, along with Guam, Puerto Rico and
 the Virgin Islands, had not issued any advisories by Dec. 31.

 Under the Clean Water Act, the EPA has determined how much of a chemical
 can be present in a freshwater body before it is considered contaminated.
 Using that data, states conduct the sampling and issue advisories if
 necessary.

 The advisories pertain only to non-commercial fishing.

 Water sampling is intended to prevent a situation similar to that of
 Japan's Minimata Bay, where for decades, hundreds of people have died
 after eating fish contaminated by mercury dumped by chemical companies.

 But some fishing industry representatives said the high number of
 advisories results from the EPA's overzealous regulations concerning
 contaminants in the environment.

 ``The numbers get inflated but it really has to be taken with a grain of
 salt as to what it means,'' said Lee Weddig, executive vice president of
 the National Fisheries Institute, a trade association. ``Many of them are
 based on too conservative a risk assessment for many of these
 chemicals.''

 American Sportfishing Association president Mike Hayden applauded the
 EPA's concern for public health, but questioned the sampling techniques
 and the language of the advisories. For example, contaminants are
 measured in the entire fish -- including scales, eyeballs and entrails --
 but most people only eat a fillet.

 Also, an advisory can be specific for a species, a location and a
 consumer such as pregnant women, nursing mothers or children. Too often,
 those finer points are lost on the general population.

 ``Oftentimes these advisories are stated in a way that the public doesn't
 understand it,'' Hayden said.

 The EPA did not return several phone calls seeking comment on the
 advisories.

Date: Thu, 07 Aug 1997 08:03:26 -0400
From: allen schubert 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Use of Sludge on Crops Defended
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970807080324.006d1b5c@clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from AP Wire page:
----------------------------------
 08/07/1997 01:25 EST

 Use of Sludge on Crops Defended

 By PAUL TOLME
 Associated Press Writer

 PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- Sewage sludge spread on farmlands in many parts
 of the country poses no health threat despite containing small amounts of
 heavy metals, a federal environmental official says.

 Federal rules governing the use of sludge as fertilizer are overly
 stringent, Alan Rubin of the Environmental Protection Agency told a
 seminar Wednesday.

 ``It's the most evaluated material ever regulated by the EPA,'' Rubin, an
 EPA expert on sewage sludge, said during a conference of the Association
 of American Plant Food Control Officials.

 Some environmentalists worry the misuse of sludge, which comes from
 sewage treatment plants, could contaminate water, ruin the nutrient
 balance of soil or result in higher levels of heavy metals, such as lead,
 in vegetables or farm animals.

 Consumers who buy the produce, or citizens living near farms using sludge
 as fertilizer, could face health problems, they fear.

 The issue has gained attention in Washington state, where
 environmentalists and concerned citizens have encouraged state officials
 to outlaw sludge's use as fertilizer.

 But Rubin said such criticism is based on a lack of understanding.

 Sewage sludge is used on a small percentage of farmlands, making it
 unlikely consumers would even eat such produce, Rubin said.

 ``The chances of you picking up a head of lettuce (fertilized with
 sludge) is one in a thousand,'' he said.

 States are free to impose stricter guidelines, he noted, and many,
 including Massachusetts and Rhode Island, have.

 Supporters say the practice is preferable to incinerating sludge or
 dumping it in landfills. If done correctly, soil is improved and landfill
 space is saved, pathogens die and heavy metals bind with the soil, they
 say.

 Nonetheless, some at the seminar cautioned that federal rules work only
 if state and federal officials closely monitor the amounts of toxins in
 sludge.

 --------

 TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -- President Clinton's choice for a top Agriculture
 Department financial job managed an investment program as Kansas state
 treasurer that lost more than $20 million in securities trades.

 Clinton announced Wednesday his intention to nominate Kansas State
 Treasurer Sally Thompson as Agriculture's chief financial officer. The
 appointment would require Senate confirmation.

 The White House cited Thompson's work to reform laws on investing
 government money and on improving efforts to find owners of unclaimed
 property. Thompson also was a Democratic Senate candidate in 1996.

 But in 1995 and 1996, Thompson was criticized for her management of the
 Municipal Investment Pool, and the Legislature later stripped her office
 of its authority to make day-to-day investment decisions.

 Legislators created the investment pool in 1992, at Thompson's urging. It
 allowed cities, counties, school districts and townships to combine their
 money to receive better investment returns.

 In 1996, the Legislature combined the pool's assets with the state's for
 investment purposes.

 The state never required the pool's investors to assume the losses from
 the trading. Instead, it kept the losses on the books and bought them
 down by shaving ongoing interest earnings.

 Thompson, 57, has served as state treasurer for seven years. She won
 office in 1990 by touting her experience as an accountant and financial
 manager for banks and savings and loans in Colorado and Kansas.

 Asked whether the controversy might become an issue in confirmation
 hearings, Thompson said: ``Our answer will be the same. Nobody lost
 money.''

Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 10:36:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: JanaWilson@aol.com
To: Ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Weekly Hunting News
Message-ID: <970807103637_-1939991530@emout10.mail.aol.com>


The Oklahoma Bowhunters's Council will be offering a bowhunter
education course on Aug 9th at the Oklahoma Wildlife Dept.
headquarters in Oklahoma City.  The cost of the course is $5
and students are required to take a state certification test upon
completion of the course.  The course is taught by certified
instructors from the International Bowhunters Education Program.
It includes such items as the bowhunter's responsibilities, safety,
game laws, survival, first aid and available sources of proper 
equipment and shooting instruction.  It also covers bowhunting
techniques such as stalking, blood trailing, field dressing, care of
meat, scouting and practice.
The course is divided into two segments which consist of a classroom
portion and field exercise.  During the field portion, students are given 
an opportunity to shoot their bows and discuss with instructors
the procedures to follow in selecting and matching equipment.
The students may also participate in a simulated blood trailing
exercise.  Students should also bring their own bow and arrows 
tipped with field points.
The students will receive the course material and when successfully
completing the course will receive a patch and certification card.
Pre-registration is required.

Oklahoma big game hunters, or any Oklahoman planning a
late summer vacation, may be interested to know that Oklahoma
City businessman Mr. Tony Elison has bought the Horseshoe
Mountain Guest Ranch near Del Norte, Colo.  His cabins and
property are now open for fishing and other warm weather activities.
Elison said he would have the lodge open for elk and deer hunters
this fall.  The ranch on Pinos Creek which is 30 minutes from 
Wolf Creek Ski  Resort is bordered on two sides by national
forest land where public hunting is permitted.  Horseshoe Mountain,
a 12,000 ft peak, adjoins the ranch.  For more info call
1-405-691-4404.

                                                     For the Animals,

                                                     Jana, OKC
Date: 07 Aug 97 13:27:47 EDT
From: 0  <74754.654@CompuServe.COM>
To: Ian Lance Taylor 
Subject: request to have this message posted on ar-news
Message-ID: <970807172746_74754.654_EHL42-1@CompuServe.COM>

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: Thu, 07 Aug 1997 14:27:27 -0400
From: Shirley McGreal 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Another baby monkey nightmare
Message-ID: <1.5.4.32.19970807182727.00713778@awod.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

This morning IPPL in the mail received documents related to the shipment of
monkeys from Inquatex, Indonesia to LABS, South Carolina which reached
Chicago on Air France on 30 May 1997. We had requested these documents using
the US Freedom of Information Act. 

Previously we had posted information about a shipment which reached Chicago
on 10 April 1997. A USFWS inspector claimed on the Form 3-177 that 100% of
the shipment was inspected, but it turned out that he had inspected neither
the animals nor the documents.

So the inspector was clueless about the presence of 20 babies in the
shipment, which was in apparent violation of the Lacey Act regulation (CFR,
Sec. CITE 50 CFR Sec. 14.105 Title 50, Subchapter B, Part 14, Subpart J)
which states in part:

>(2) A nursing mother with young, an unweaned mammal unaccompanied by its
>mother, or an unweaned bird shall be transported only if the primary purpose
>is for needed medical treatment and upon certification in writing by the
>examining veterinarian that the treatment is necessary and the animal is
>able to withstand the normal rigors of transport. Such an unweaned mammal or
>bird shall not be transported to the US for medical treatment unless it is
>accompanied at all times by and completely accessible to a veterinary
>attendant. 

The 10 April shipment was accompanied by a certificate that all the animals
were healthy. So they were NOT being shipped for "needed medical treatment."

The shipment that arrived on 30 May consisted on 253 crab-eating macaques
shipped in 48 crates. The shipper was Inquatex and the importer was LABS.
The Form 3-177 showed that "0% of wildlife [was] inspected" by the same
inspector who had claimed to have inspected 100% of the April shipment. The
shipment originally consisted of 255 animals. However one mother was dead on
arrival at Paris and her tiny baby was killed so the Form 3-177 registered
just 153 monkeys.
 
Some monkeys had escaped at Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris. They had been
recaptured and the crates reinforced, according to CDC. The shipment had
been delayed for two days in Paris.

A roster of animals accompanied the 30 May shipment. Again, there were
babies in the shipment, this time there were 19 of them. One baby was born
on 5 May (this little fellow started his international trip at just THREE
weeks old). 13 of the 19 babies were born in April, some were FOUR weeks
old. IPPL considers it cruel and inhumane to ship a baby monkey just three
weeks old on a gruelling international trip. This is why it is progibited by
Lacey Act regulations. 

The May shipment was accompanied by a health certificate signed on 27 May
which stated that all the monkeys were healthy. So the exemption does not
apply. Again, monkeys were shipped in apparent (some might say "clear")
violation of a US regulation. 

Six monkeys shipped in May were between 2-3 months pregnant (17 shipped in
April were pregant). Shipment of baby and pregnant monkeys is expressly
recommended against in the International Air Transport Association rules,
yet Air France accepted both these shipments.    

Among the adult animals were:

9 monkeys sixteen years old
9 monkeys fifteen years old
19 monkeys fourteen years old

Indonesia bans export of wild-caught monkeys. The CITES export permit for
the May shipments stated that the monkeys were II(C) - CITES Appendix II,
captive-born (as was said of the April shipment). IPPL was told by an
Indonesian source that the exporter is getting rid of his entire stock,
including breeding animals. A US trade source suggests that it is unlikely
that every single animal is captive born, as claimed on the Indonesian
export permit and health certificate. 

This shipment left Indonesia on 27 May. It did not reach Chicago till late
30 May. Here is what the monkeys endured: 17 hours plus ground time flying
from Jakarta to Paris, a 2-day delay at Paris, 9 hours flying time from
Paris to Chicago, and a 900 mile trip by truck from Chicago to South
Carolina. The FOIA documents show that the monkeys' ground transportation
was arranged through "Kritter Krates, 4907 Topway Drive, Spring, Texas 77373
- attn. Mr. Spencer Ellis."
   

Dr. Shirley McGreal, Chairwoman
International Primate Protection League, POB 766 Summerville SC 29484 USA
Phone: 803-871-2280 Fax: 803-871-7988 E-mail: ippl@awod.com
Note new web page address: http://www.ippl.org/
PLEASE DIRECT ALL E-MAIL TO IPPL@AWOD.COM

Date: Thu, 07 Aug 1997 14:38:58 -0700
From: Sean Thomas 
To: ar-news@envirolink.com
Subject: ANIMAL ACTION SHUTS DOWN HEALTH CANADA'S OFFICES
Message-ID: <33EA4072.673C@sympatico.ca>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

On Thursday morning at 10 a.m. 8 activists from Animal Action blockaded
the entrance to Health Canada's head office in Ottawa.  The group was
there with their "monkey prisoner" mascot who was confined to a small
cage, representative of the conditions at Health Canada's primate
breeding facility. 

The building houses the office of Allan Rock, Canada's Minister of
Health.  The Minister was presented with the option of retiring the
monkeys to a sanctuary in Texas but has failed to give proper
consideration to the issue.  

Media coverage was extensive, print, radio and television were all
represented.  

Activists maintained the blockade for almost 4 hours and remained in
place under threat of arrest from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. 
Health Canada backed down in the end however and dropped any threat of
charges in order to minimize the importance of the issue.  

All people entering and exiting the building were forced to use a single
back entrance for the duration of the action.  

Animal Action will now be focusing on public awareness and will be
touring the region with the monkey mascot.

For more information contact:
Sean Thomas
Co-Director, Animal Action
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 14:46:28 -0400 (EDT)
From: Anvilmike@aol.com
To: Arrobat@aol.com
Cc: ADACSS@aol.com, Paxton32@aol.com, SueKensing@aol.com, ThnderDrmr@aol.com,
        Tawanda92@aol.com, groomesd@pilot.msu.edu, communications@hrcusa.org,
        DrDebster@aol.com, HonCan@aol.com, RTolman@umich.edu,
        SisterSpir@aol.com, ssdoyle@oakland.edu, hayse@pilot.msu.edu,
        kipjac@mailgw.anes.med.umich.edu, Kinda7@aol.com,
        72607.2671@compuserve.com, MJAWHITE@aol.com, WCouncilon@aol.com,
        Gaylepass@aol.com, JBrooksh@aol.com, wise@ncats.newaygo.mi.us,
        User104822@aol.com, Cyberknee@aol.com, TandJCape@aol.com,
        Loisplant@aol.com, lansing.mjilan.mccartyd@state.mi.us,
        mcadv@pilot.msu.edu, Schlobin@aol.com, KHowe@aol.com, LoreJD@aol.com,
        DRRWMS@msn.com, femmaj@smtp.feminist.org, Savos@aol.com,
        cachrisi@concentric.net, Anvilmike@aol.com, onissues@echonyc.com,
        cybergrrl@cgim.com, moonshadow@persephone.org, sarahg@netcom.com,
        korenman@umbc.edu, snowbird@sns-access.com, twebb@iaw.com,
Subject: Speaking of Women
Message-ID: <970807144625_1847850524@emout11.mail.aol.com>

Today is Thursday, August 7, 1997.

Only two people have asked to be taken off the "mailing list" for Speaking of
Women.  Both were white, hetersexual male researchers who work in the
"domestic violence field."  Anyone care to offer a diagnosis??

Speaking of Women - Today's Cogitation:

Feminism Defined

"Feminism is a transformational force, an individual and social force.  It is
a way of looking at the world - a questioning of power/domination issues, an
affirmation of women's energy."
- Charlotte Bunch

"Feminism simply means supporting womrn's rights and choices."
-Susan Faludi

"Feminist is understood to include a recognition of the unequal status of
women economically, socially, culturally, and politically, and a commitment
to redress this condition."
- The Women's Foundation, San Francisco

"I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is:  I
only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that
differentiate me from a doormat..."
- Rebecca West


Oh oh:  "When I was therteen, my father took me aside and told me that all a
girl needed to know to get by in life was written on the top of a mayonnaise
jar.  I puzzled for days about the meaning of the phrase, 'Refrigerate After
Opening: - until my father remarked that in his day mayo jars always said
"Keep Cool, Don't Freeze."     - Cathy Crimmins
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 18:24:31 -0400 (EDT)
From: PAWS 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: King Royal Elephant Dies
Message-ID: 
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico were investigating a suspicious-looking 
trailer parked in a motel parking lot yesterday when they discovered 
nearly a dozen exotic animals locked inside.  One young African elephant 
was dead, apparently from heat prostration.  The animals were traveling 
with the King Royal Circus, a company that has a long history of animal 
neglect.  In fact, the deplorable conditions of this circus have been the 
subject of innumerable complaints, media stories and public letters to 
the US Department of Agriculture. 

Says PAWS' Director Pat Derby,  "I have been tracking this circus since 
the appalling stabbing and beating of a baby elephant in Lebanon, Oregon 
in 1994.  I have taken the plight of these elephants to the media and 
to the Secretary of Agriculture.  I am dismayed that yet another elephant 
has suffered and died."

Derby and PAWS have filed a formal complaint with the USDA against King 
Royal Circus, demanding that the elephants remaining in King Royal's 
custody be confiscated and placed in a safe refuge.  Says Derby, "Our 
organization will be happy to assist in the placement of these elephants, 
if necessary."

The King Royal Circus has a long history of disregard for the well-being 
of its animals and for the safety of the general public.  Indeed, King 
Royal is responsible for a long list of animal deaths/injuries to 
visitors and spectators.  (PAWS publication "License to Kill" delineates 
these incidents.)  PAWS has made the King Royal Circus the subject of 
several "Crusaders" and "20/20" television programs and the target of 
please and petitions to the USDA about King Royal's egregious violations 
of the Animal Welfare Act.

The incident that brought the cavalier and callous attitude of King Royal 
Circus into the public eye more than any other was the case of the baby 
elephant Mickey.  On September 17, 1994, this young Asian elephant was 
beaten by his trainer when he refused to perform a trick and tried to 
crawl out of the arena.  This incident was exposed on several consecutive 
episodes of the "Crusaders" television show and tens of thousands of 
calls were made to PAWS and the USDA.  But it was not until the spring of 
1996 that the Circus agreed to pay an $8,000 civil penalty in order to 
stay a 30-day license suspension.  Because of the persistence of PAWS, 
the trainer's license was revoked.  Nevertheless, nothing has changed for 
Mickey and the other King Royal animals. 

Says Derby, "According to information we have received from local humane 
societies, King Royal's latest violation of the Animal Welfare Act was 
'appalling.' How much more will it take before the USDA will revoke their 
license to kill."  



To protest the death of Heather, the King Royal elephant, please contact:

Mr. Mike Dunn
Asst. Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Affairs
AG-Box 0109
Washington, DC  20250-0109
(202) 720-4256 phone
(202) 720-5775 fax



Copies of PAWS' publications "Everything You Should Know About Elephants" 
and "License to Kill" are available by calling the PAWS" office at (209) 
745-2606 or send your request via e.mail.
 

Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 20:47:36 -0400 (EDT)
From: Alex Press 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Cloned bull (US)
Message-ID: 
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

     
>From the New York Times's Late-News Update, Thurs., August 7

     Wisconsin Company Introduces Cloned Bull That Could Lead to
Beefier Steers

     A biotechnology company unveiled a 6-month-old cloned calf
     Thursday, saying its new way of cloning could lead to beefier steer
     and cows that produce more milk.

     ABS Global Inc. said the black bull calf named Gene was the result
     of cloning a stem cell from a 30-day old calf fetus. Stem cells are
     ``blank slate'' cells that haven't yet specialized their function,
     such as a liver or muscle cell, and thus their genes are relatively
     easy to manipulate. But company officials said they had refined the
     process so that any kind of cell could be used.

     ``We can make an unlimited number of cells, freeze them for any
     amount of time, then thaw them and make identical animals
     possessing a desired trait,'' said Michael D. Bishop, vice
     president of research. The company's president and CEO, Marc van't
     Noordende, said it would be several years before the first products
     resulting from the process would be introduced.

     Company officials said adult animal cells were not used to clone
     Gene, which makes him significantly different from Dolly, the sheep
cloned last year by Scottish researchers. Dolly was produced from
     the udder cell of a 6-year-old ewe.
    


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