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AR-NEWS Digest 359
Topics covered in this issue include:
1) (TW) Taipei under pressure to open up pork market
by kuma@cyberway.com.sg
2) (CN) Ban on pork imports upsets weapons deal
by kuma@cyberway.com.sg
3) (HK) Drive to keep rare animals out of medicine targets
consumers
by kuma@cyberway.com.sg
4) More on human guinea pigs
by Andrew Gach
5) Glowing lambs
by Andrew Gach
6) [CA] McDonald's in the classroom
by David J Knowles
7) [UK] Zoo to hold inquiry into deaths of two gorillas
by David J Knowles
8) [UK] A bunny isn't just for Easter, parents told
by David J Knowles
9) [UK] Random tests for the pigeons that get too high
by David J Knowles
10) Are ANY Animal Tests "Required by Law"?
by marcia
11) Re: Are ANY Animal Tests "Required by Law"?
by allen schubert
12) FWD: Comments on Animal Care Petition
by Andrew Gach
13) [UK] The pig issue . . .
by David J Knowles
14) Poll @ 96 March
by Wyandotte Animal Group
15) (US) Legless chicken struts again
by allen schubert
16) (US) Protest Hosing Stirs Controversy
by allen schubert
17) (MX) Greenpeace gives Pemex dose of own medicine
by allen schubert
18) (MY) 12 Indons fined for illegal cock fights
by vadivu
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 13:11:13 +0800 (SST)
>From: kuma@cyberway.com.sg
To: ar-news@envirolink.org, veg-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (TW) Taipei under pressure to open up pork market
Message-ID: <199703290511.NAA14588@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>The Straits Times - 29 Mar 97
Taipei under pressure to open up pork market
By Lee San Chouy Taiwan Correspondent
TAIPEI -- The US has stepped up the pressure for Taiwan to
allow pork imports following a major outbreak of the fatal
foot-and-mouth disease among the island's pigs, according to a
local newspaper report.
The call is a reiteration of the Clinton administration's stand at
previous bilateral discussions over Taiwan's bid to enter the
World Trade Trade Organisation, the mass-circulation United
Evening News reported yesterday in a report filed from
Washington.
It added that US trade and agricultural officials consider the
opening of Taiwan's pork and innards market to foreign suppliers
to be one of the most important agricultural issues in WTO
discussions.
"We regret the losses that Taiwan has suffered as a result of the
foot-and-mouth disease outbreak," an unnamed US official was
quoted as saying.
"But Taipei should have long realised that protectionism leads to
the uneconomic use of land and water resources as well as
pollution problems," he said.
US congressmen representing those states with developed
hog-rearing industries have written to US Trade Representative
Charlene Barshefsky, asking that the Clinton administration not
agree to Taiwan's entry into the WTO until the island agrees to
allow pork imports.
They have already received a positive response from Ms
Barshefsky at a recent congressional hearing, yesterday's report
said.
In the meantime, Mr Jesse Helms, chairman of the US Senate
Foreign Relations Committee and Senator for North Carolina --
the second largest pork-producing state in the US -- has written
to Taiwan's US representative Jason Hu, urging that Taipei
adopt a standard tariff rate for pork imports. The epidemic has
spread to more than 1,000 breeding centres, up from just nine
when the outbreak was confirmed on March 20, officials said
yesterday.
A mass slaughter of all hogs -- healthy or otherwise -- at all
farms struck by the deadly contagion continued with experts
reporting that over 886,000 pigs would have to be destroyed, the
Cabinet's Council of Agriculture said.
As of yesterday, the virus had been detected at 1,008 of Taiwan's
25,000 hog farms, though only 160,315 pigs were reported to have
been slaughtered, official statistics showed. Some 46,500 pigs had
died of the disease, officials said.
The ruling Kuomintang party members have also been told by
the party's central standing committee to eat pork to allay
consumer fears.
President Lee Teng-hui, who is also KMT chairman, approved
the proposal on Wednesday that lunch boxes ordered by KMT
members must contain pork and that there is to be at least two
pork dishes in all banquets organised by KMT members over the
next six months.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 13:11:19 +0800 (SST)
>From: kuma@cyberway.com.sg
To: ar-news@envirolink.org, veg-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (CN) Ban on pork imports upsets weapons deal
Message-ID: <199703290511.NAA14572@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>South China Morning Post, Internet Edition, 29 Mar 97
Ban on pork imports upsets weapons deal
JASPER BECKER in Beijing
As President Jiang Zemin prepares to make a state visit to Moscow next
month, China's huge purchases of Russian military hardware have run into
unexpected difficulties, diplomatic sources say.
This week Russian negotiators have been in Beijing trying to calm their
angry Chinese counterparts after veterinary inspectors from the Russian
Ministry of Health imposed a ban on Chinese pork imports in December.
Russia was to buy thousands of tonnes of Chinese pork as part of a barter
deal which has allowed China to buy about 100 Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jets.
Although details of the arms deal have been kept secret, sources said China
agreed to pay for three-tenths of the cost in exports of consumer products
and the rest in hard currency.
With meat in high demand in Russia, Chinese pork deliveries were supposed
to account for a large share of the barter deal.
The meat is bought by Rosvoorujenie, the state arms export monopoly, which
then re-sells it to processing plants where it is cured or turned into sausages.
Last year, Russian veterinary inspectors arrived in Sichuan province to
examine Chinese slaughterhouses and subsequently banned Chinese pork exports
on undefined health grounds.
China has refused to open its abattoirs to the foreign inspectors, saying
this is interference in its internal affairs and is not authorised in any
international agreements.
"There has now been a deadlock for three months," a diplomatic source said.
Some sources suspect a gambit on the part of the Russian bureaucracy to
block Chinese imports in preference to pork from other countries such as
suppliers in western Europe.
Others claim the Russian move is justified because swine fever and
foot-and-mouth disease are far more widespread than the Chinese authorities
admit.
China has recently cited veterinary concerns to halt imports of numerous
American agricultural products including fruit and wheat.
However, this is the first time such a dispute has disrupted a major arms
deal, which some fear may help alter the balance of military power in
eastern Asia.
China claims that its purchases of Russian hardware and technology are not
aimed at any third country but many assume that Beijing needs better planes
and submarines to threaten Taiwan.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 13:11:26 +0800 (SST)
>From: kuma@cyberway.com.sg
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (HK) Drive to keep rare animals out of medicine targets
consumers
Message-ID: <199703290511.NAA13589@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>South China Morning Post, Internet Edition, 29 Mar 97
Drive to keep rare animals out of medicine targets consumers
FIONA HOLLAND
Consumers will be the target of a new campaign aimed at putting a stop to
the use of endangered species in traditional medicine.
The British-based Investigative Network, which has investigated underground
trafficking in bear parts, will launch its drive in Hong Kong in May.
The founder of the conservation agency, Peter Knights, said the aim of the
campaign was to work with the traditional Chinese medicine community rather
than criticise them.
"Essentially, the message is that when the buying stops the killing can
too. It is very much trying to put the responsibility on the consumer to
make them realise their actions are actually causing the problem," he said.
The network plans to team up with local animal welfare group EarthCare to
spread its message.
"What we are trying to do is make the consumption of endangered species
socially unacceptable in Asia - that is the goal," Mr Knights said.
Despite strict rules governing the trade, the territory remained a key
centre for illicit wildlife trade, he said.
Endangered animals listed in the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna, are banned from trade.
Mr Knights said the fact that trade in some species was banned, but
allowed, via a permit system, for others, had sparked confusion.
"There is a still a grey area about bears which in my experience has raised
a lot of problems and [it sends] a mixed message to the public," he said.
The network supports a global ban on trade in bear gall bladders because Mr
Knights said efforts to regulate their sale had failed.
"There is virtually no legal trade going on at the moment. Wherever there
is a permit system or any legalised trade it is just used as a laundering
process.
"We tried legal trade but no one wants to play ball because that is not the
nature of the traditional Chinese medicine industry," he said.
Mr Knights said enforcement in Hong Kong was compromised by a lack of
trained undercover investigators. A spokesman for the Agriculture and
Fisheries Department said illegal trade in endangered species had been
"contained" after enforcement was stepped up.
Last year the department seized 10 gall bladders, four bear paws and 22.6
grams of bile.
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997 21:58:44 -0800
>From: Andrew Gach
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: More on human guinea pigs
Message-ID: <333CAF94.B40@worldnet.att.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
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Safeguards increased for human guinea pigs in radiation experiments
Copyright © 1997 The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (Mar 28, 1997 1:13 p.m. EST) -- President Clinton Friday took
steps to protect those who participate in secret, government-sponsored
experiments from mistreatment and assure they are full informed of the
risks.
The administration also said it is settling -- for an undisclosed sum --
claims by four more families of victims of radiation experiments
conducted in the 1940s.
The plans for giving greater protection to research participants were
prompted by recommendations made more than a year ago by a presidential
commission that investigated the government's use of humans in radiation
research during the Cold War years.
The advisory panel warned that past excesses might be repeated unless
there are new safeguards.
The White House said Friday that Clinton had signed a memorandum
strengthening the rights and protections afforded individuals who agree
to be subjects of secret, government-supported research.
The White House said a review by an inter-agency task force uncovered no
government-supported classified human research at this time. But
officials acknowledged that formal accounting for such research needs to
be improved.
Meanwhile, the White House said it had settled claims with 16 families
of individuals who were given plutonium injections as part of
experiments in the 1940s. Two other victims have not been identified and
their families have not come forward. The government in November
announced a settlement with 12 families totaling $4.8 million.
The government has said it is prepared to provide compensation to the
families of 52 other individuals who the advisory commission had said
were believed to be subjected to improper radiation experiments. The
identity of those 52 are not known, and so far no families have come
forward, according to the White House.
Under the new presidential directive on human research, agencies must
develop new rules that clearly require scientists to obtain informed
consent form all potential subjects of secret experiments. Currently
such consent may be waived under some circumstances.
The president also ordered that any research subject be told the
identity of the sponsoring agency and whether the experimentation is
classified. The new rules also would require the head of the
agency to approve such research and develop a more independent review
process than currently provided.
Also in response to the October 1995 findings by the Advisory Committee
on Human Radiation Experiments, the president said he will:
--Ask Congress to broaden a 1990 law that allows compensation to
underground uranium miners who became ill because of exposure to
radiation. Under the current law, hundreds of miners are not eligible
for compensation.
--Will propose legislation to make veterans' health care benefits
available to airmen and sailors who were subjects of radioactive nasal
treatments more than 50 years ago. The treatments were to prevent broken
eardrums during flight or in submarines.
--Will seek broader epidemiological studies to determine the long-term
health impact of nuclear bomb testing during the Cold War to military
personnel and civilian populations near the test areas.
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997 22:00:39 -0800
>From: Andrew Gach
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Glowing lambs
Message-ID: <333CB007.FB9@worldnet.att.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Glow in the dark lambs keep foxes at bay
Reuter Information Service
LONDON (Mar 28, 1997 1:07 p.m. EST) - British farmers have found a novel
new way to outsmart hungry foxes -- with lambs that glow in the dark.
Researchers discovered that coating the lambs with phosphorescent paint
discourages hungry predators prowling the fields during the lambing
season.
The paint is laced with a foul-tasting substance which also puts off any
fox in search of a speedy meal.
"Foxes will quickly come to associate the light with a terrible taste.
It has a taste so horrible that even a hungry fox will never become
accustomed to it," said a spokesman for the manufacturers of the new
Repel spray.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 00:47:52 -0800 (PST)
>From: David J Knowles
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [CA] McDonald's in the classroom
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329004857.1ce7104c@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
CTV National News tonight reported that McD's, Burger King, Pepsi and other
multinational corporations are queing up to place advertising in the class room.
Parents at cash-strapped schools in Brampton, Ontario, have reluctantly
agreed to having the ads - in the form of screen savers on classroom
computers - on a trial basis.
If successful, the ads may be placed onto computers throughout Ontario.
The cash crisis has come about as a result of massive public spending cuts
by the provincial government and even schools in relatively well-off areas
are finding it hard to pick up the ever-growing expense of buying books and
other essential supplies.
Most of the parents interviewed had reservations about the trial, but
accepted that "something had to be done."
One also believed that children already heavily watching TV were able to
differentiate between the ads and other information they got from the computers.
As a condition of the trial, some of the advertising space is taken up by
informational material.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 00:48:59 -0800 (PST)
>From: David J Knowles
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] Zoo to hold inquiry into deaths of two gorillas
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329005003.1ce7253c@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>From The Electronic Telelgraph - Saturday, March 29th, 1997
Zoo to hold inquiry into deaths of two gorillas
VETERINARY experts are trying to identify a bug that
claimed the lives of two gorillas at Belfast Zoo.
Keke, a male silverback and Asali, a pregnant female, died
within two days of each other this week. Post mortem examinations are being
conducted and one body has been being flown to a laboratory in England. It
is thought that the animals died from a virus.
Staff at the zoo, which is well known for its primate
collection, said the loss of the two breeding animals was a blow to their
conservation efforts for the species. Three remaining gorillas are in
isolation being monitored for signs of illness.
Hugh Smyth, a member of the zoo committee and a former
Belfast Lord Mayor, called for an inquiry into the deaths, which bring to
six the number of animals to have died in the past year. Two camels died
while being moved under anaesthetic and two zebras also perished. "I am
amazed at the number of animals we have lost," he said.
A zoo spokesman said: "Since those deaths we have had
eight births as well." The zoo is preparing its own report which will be
published next month.
© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 00:49:24 -0800 (PST)
>From: David J Knowles
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] A bunny isn't just for Easter, parents told
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329005029.3657dc18@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>From The Electronic Telelgraph - Saturday, March 29th, 1997
A bunny isn't just for Easter, parents told
By David Brown, Agriculture Editor
THE cuddly image of the Easter bunny has a dark side, vets
warned yesterday, with thousands of pet rabbits being abandoned when owners
realise how expensive they are to keep.
Rabbits are now Britain's fourth most popular companion
animals, gaining steadily on dogs and cats. Many are house-trained, earning
promotion from garden hutch to living room. But about 15,000, many bought as
Easter presents, were handed to animal rescue centres in 1995 because their
owners could not cope with them.
Last year's abandonment figures, which are still being
compiled, are "much higher", the British Houserabbit Association said
yesterday. "The problem is more acute after Easter when hundreds are sold
as children's pets," it said.
Urging people to be careful before parting with a few
pounds to buy a rabbit, the association said: "Most people think of rabbits
as inexpensive, undemanding pets. They should think again."
Vaccinations against myxomatosis or viral haemorrhagic
disease cost between £10 to £20 each. Suitable hutches can cost from £80 and
castrating bucks to prevent them spraying can cost about £40. Spaying a doe
to prevent bad temper at sexual maturity costs around £60. This operation
is strongly advised to prevent uterine cancer which kills 80 per cent of
females. Rabbits also need regular dentistry to prevent their teeth becoming
overgrown.
Luci Wheeler, a 25-year-old project co-ordinator for a
promotions company in London, is typical of the modern rabbit owner - and,
despite the gloomy warnings of the experts, she would not be without her
pet. She and Puddle, an 11-week-old German dwarf lop, live in her
ground-floor flat in Hammersmith. The hutch is in the yard, but the rabbit
spends a lot of time indoors.
"He's so sweet and no trouble at all," she said yesterday.
"He likes to snuggle up to me. I kept rabbits at our family home so I'm used
to them. Puddle goes in the car when I visit my parents. He doesn't mind a bit."
© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 00:49:46 -0800 (PST)
>From: David J Knowles
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] Random tests for the pigeons that get too high
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329005051.1ce71372@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>From The Electronic Telelgraph - Saturday, March 29th, 1997
Random tests for the pigeons that get too high
By Maurice Weaver
DRUG tests for homing pigeons are to be introduced
following concern that unscrupulous fanciers are feeding anabolic steroids
to their birds.
The Royal Pigeon Racing Association said the checks were
needed because of the substantial prizes now offered in the sport. Large
cash sums and even cars are regularly given away. A new rule banning
steroids and beta-agonists has been approved by the RPRA
and owners caught doping their birds will face a three-year ban from
competition.
The tests, which start next month, will include sampling
pigeon droppings from members' lofts and random checks after major races.
Although the Queen has her own prize birds, the sport in Britain has a
mainly "cloth-cap" image and has always treasured its clean reputation.
There are about 80,000 British fanciers.
Having released their birds, the most successful of them
traditionally persuade the pigeons to speed home with the promise a good
meal or a pretty hen waiting in the loft. Corruption, when it has occurred,
has been fairly unsophisticated, mainly involving tampering with the
time-clocks that register the moment when homing birds are released
and when they come fluttering back to base.
The possibility of drug abuse did not arise until about
three years ago when a scandal broke among Belgian fanciers who were found
to have been administering steroids to the birds by eye drops. Drug tests
are now standard on the Continent. A spokesman for the Cheltenham-based
association said: "The steroids and beta-agonists build up muscles and make
the birds fly further and go through the pain barrier. Competition is
fierce. We have no evidence of drug-taking here but tests have not been
available until now.
"We hope the random tests will be a deterrent to anyone
thinking of using drugs. It is essential that honour and dignity be
maintained, just as with any human contest. The message is: if you are
doping your pigeons you had better stop."
© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 09:02:32 -0500
>From: marcia
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Are ANY Animal Tests "Required by Law"?
Message-ID: <333D20F8.2518@eci.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
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Hi All,
I see conflicting information on whether *any*
animal tests are required by law: (1) for
any type of cosmetics or household products
(which I need so my e-mail to Proctor & Gamble
is accurate), and (2) for any medical usages
(which I need for my own knowledge).
If anyone has a definitive answer, I'd appreciate
your posting it quickly so I can get an accurate
e-mail off to P&G today. If you have a cite to
an authoritative source, that would help.
Thanks!
Marcia
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 09:19:33 -0500
>From: allen schubert
To: marcia@eci.com, ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Re: Are ANY Animal Tests "Required by Law"?
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970330091930.006b88c4@clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from FDA page about cosmetics: http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/cos-205.html
U. S. Food and Drug Administration
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Office of Cosmetics Fact Sheet
February 3, 1995
ANIMAL TESTING
Although the Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act does not require animal testing for
cosmetic safety, FDA strongly
urges cosmetic manufacturers to conduct whatever tests are appropriate to
establish that their cosmetics are
safe.
Cosmetic products that have not been tested for safety must have a warning
statement on the front label which
reads,
"WARNING--The safety of this product has not been determined."
FDA is currently working with various government and private organizations
to develop alternatives to animal
testing in assessing cosmetic safety. Until such methods are proven to be
reliable and accepted by the
scientific community, FDA believes that the use of animals is necessary to
ensure the safety of cosmetic
products.
The 1992 position paper reprinted below provides additional information.
U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
Position Paper
October 1992
ANIMAL USE IN TESTING FDA-REGULATED PRODUCTS
Current laws administered by FDA--including the Federal Food, Drug and
Cosmetic (FD&C) Act--are intended
to ensure product safety and effectiveness, thereby protecting consumer's
health. These laws place
responsibility on FDA to ensure that human and animal drugs, biologics and
medical devices are safe and
effective and that food products are safe and wholesome.
Animal testing by manufacturers seeking to market new products is often
necessary to establish product
safety. FDA supports and adheres to the provisions of applicable laws,
regulations, and policies governing
animal testing, including the Animal Welfare Act and the Public Health
Service Policy on Humane Care and
Use of Laboratory Animals. Moreover, in all cases where animal testing is
used, FDA advocates that research
and testing derive the maximum amount of useful scientific information from
the minimum number of animals
and employ the most humane methods available within the limits of
scientific capability.
FDA advocates the use of validated non-whole animal techniques, which may
include such screens and
adjuncts as in vitro (e.g., tissue culture) methodologies and biochemical
assays. As an example, FDA
announced in the Federal Register of Feb. 19, 1988, the availability of
guidelines for the Limulus Amebocyte
Lysate (LAL) test as an end product endotoxin test for human injectable
drugs (including biological products),
animal injectable drugs and medical devices. The guidelines inform
manufacturers of acceptable methods of
validating the LAL test so that it can be used as an alternative to the
rabbit pyrogen test. At present many other
procedures intended to refine, reduce or replace animal testing are still
in the relatively early stages of
development. FDA encourages all efforts to develop and implement non-animal
models and believes that
these procedures will ultimately result in significant reductions and
refinements in animal testing.
With respect to cosmetic products, the FD&C Act does not specifically
require that cosmetic manufacturers test
their products for safety in the context of premarket approval by the
Agency. However, FDA, strongly urges
cosmetic manufacturers to conduct toxicological or other tests necessary to
substantiate the safety of a
particular cosmetic product. If the safety of a cosmetic product is not
adequately substantiated, the product is
considered misbranded and may be subject to regulatory action unless the
principal display panel bears the
statement,
"Warning--the safety of this product has not been determined."
Much of the attention given to animal testing has focused on the LD50
tests. FDA does not require LD50 test
data to establish levels of toxicity, and in 1988, published a policy
statement in the Federal Register to clarify
this position.
The Draize eye and skin irritancy tests continue to be considered among the
most reliable methods currently
available for evaluating the safety of a substance introduced into or
around the eye or placed on the skin.
Non-animal tests, such as in vitro tests, may be useful as screening tools
to indicate the relative toxicity or
safety of a substance that comes into contact with the eye or skin.
However, the responses and results of in
vitro tests alone do not necessarily demonstrate the safety of a substance.
The effects of a substance on a
biochemical reaction or on a specific cell or tissue in culture may differ
from its effect on a specific organ
system in the animal as a whole.
The precise nature of testing needed to determine the safety or
effectiveness of a specific product regulated by
FDA depends upon the characteristics and intended use of the product. More
specific guidance may be
obtained through consultation with FDA scientists on a case-by-case basis.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
October 1992
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 09:56:51 -0800
>From: Andrew Gach
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: FWD: Comments on Animal Care Petition
Message-ID: <333D57E3.1D42@worldnet.att.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
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>From: "Document Specialist"
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs.rescue
Subject: USDA Petition 97-018-1
Date: 27 Mar 1997 17:42:43 GMT
I urge all of you to read the following, go to the Web site and read the
proposal and send your comments in.
Chuck Petterson
Missouri Valley Gordon Setter Club Rescue
>Subject: APHIS Press Release USDA Seeks Comments on Animal
Care Petition
Jim Rogers (301) 734-8563
jrogers@aphis.usda.gov
Jamie Ambrosi (301) 734-5175
jambrosi@aphis.usda.gov
USDA SEEKS COMMENTS ON ANIMAL CARE PETITION
RIVERDALE, Md., March 25, 1997--The U.S. Department of Agriculture's
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service animal care program is
seeking public comment regarding a petition that sponsored by the Doris
Day Animal League.
The petition requests that APHIS amend Animal Welfare Act regulations by
redefining the term "retail pet store" and by including dealers of
hunting, security, and breeding dogs in the regulations.
"This is an important process in the evolution of our regulations,"
said W. Ron DeHaven, acting deputy administrator for APHIS' animal care,
a part of USDA's marketing and regulatory programs mission area.
"In order to better serve our customers and the public, we need their
input."
For more information, contact Bettye Walters, Veterinary Medical
Officer, Animal Care, APHIS, 4700 River Rd., Unit 84, Riverdale,
Md. 20737-1234, (301) 734-7833.
Consideration will be given to comments received on or before May 27.
To submit comments, send an original and three copies to Docket No.
97-018-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03,
4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, Md. 20737-1238.
A copy of the petition and any comments may be reviewed at USDA, Room
1141 South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, S.W.,
Washington, D.C., between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except holidays. Persons wishing access to this room are requested to
call in advance of visiting at (202) 690-2817.
NOTE: USDA news releases, program announcements, and media advisories
are available on the Internet. Access the APHIS Home Page by pointing
your Web browser to http://www.aphis.usda.gov and clicking on "APHIS
Press Releases." Also, anyone with an e-mail address can sign up to
receive APHIS press releases automatically. Send an e-mail message to
majordomo@info.aphis.usda.gov and leave the subject blank. In the
message, type subscribe press_releases
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 11:17:38 -0800 (PST)
>From: David J Knowles
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] The pig issue . . .
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329111844.0b17d7dc@dowco.com>
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[Good news if it's proven!]
>From The Electronic Telelgraph - Saturday, March 29th, 1997
The pig issue . . .
Pigs are being taught how to play computer games: it is the first step
towards communicating with them, finds Ross Clark
WHEN George Orwell wrote about resentful pigs plotting to overthrow the
oppressive regime of Animal Farm, he was presumably intending an allegory.
But it turns out that his world of angry young pigs may have been closer to
the truth than he realised. An intriguing research project in a Pennsylvania
laboratory is revealing that pigs really do have an imagination, and perhaps
are even capable of harbouring ill feelings about the way in which freedom
is denied them.
According to behavioural psychologist Professor Stanley Curtis of
Pennsylvania State University, the results could have implications for the
way in which farm animals are treated. He hopes his experiments will finally
provide the scientific justification for free-range farming
techniques. If we want to continue breeding farm animals, he says, in future
we may have to take their feelings into account.
"What we want to know is whether, if we keep a pig in a confined
environment, it is capable of wanting to be somewhere else," he says.
"Until now we've always assumed a pig cannot do that - it's a case of out of
sight, out of mind. But we may be wrong. We want to find out
whether a pig who has seen an animal wallowing in the mud begins to daydream
of wallowing in the mud himself when the weather gets hot. Or even if a pig
who has never experienced wallowing at first hand is capable of conceiving
of doing it."
To reach inside the mind of a pig is going to be a long process, Prof Curtis
concedes. The first stage, currently underway, is to probe the animals'
capacity for abstract ideas. To this end he is training a team of pigs to
play a series of basic computer games, of the kind long
employed to stimulate remedial children. The animals are sat in front of a
screen and have their snout attached to a joystick, which controls icons on
the screen.
The pigs are then let loose on the games, the prize for completing them
being a series of food rewards. In one game a number of icons appear on the
screen. One is controlled by the pig himself; the others move in pre-set
patterns. The question is whether the pig realises he
is controlling an icon, and whether he can get the hang of moving his icon
along with the others.
In another game the pig is shown a series of coloured dots following a
trajectory across the screen. At first the dots are visible; they then
disappear, only to reappear later along their trajectory. The point is to
see whether the pig's eyes follow the passage of the dots even
when they are not visible.
In this, the pigs are already showing some promise: they appear to retain
some memory of a computer icon, long after it has disappeared from the
screen. If they can remember that it is likely they can also remember people
and places they cannot see.
"Early results suggest that pigs are, in fact, capable of abstract
representation," says Prof Curtis. "We've made the connection with them that
the joystick means something, and found they are able to hold an icon in the
mind, and remember it at a later date. The pigs are progressing faster than
we imagined, and we're into uncharted territory now."
The next step is to introduce more complex images onto the screen, such as a
representation of a truffle, and to test whether they can hold that in their
mind too.
Many of the techniques used to investigate the pigs' minds were originally
developed for evaluating the intelligence of apes, and have been used to
establish an informal league table of animals' intellectual achievement. One
of the most surprising findings was that
chimpanzees can pick up certain video games faster than the average human being.
The imaginative side of animals has proved a more elusive matter. All we
have had is anecdotes: miners who have spoken of the sad eyes of a pit pony,
dreaming perhaps of the green pastures he has left behind; animals which
appear to pine; and, of course, the freaks of the animal world such as
Greyfriars Bobby, the dog who attended his master's grave in Edinburgh for
14 years. Many people take it for granted that their pets have an
imaginative life and are able to think about people and things in their
absence, even if the scientists are
more cautious in their conclusions.
The next big question for the Pennsylvania team is whether pigs can
recognise pictures of themselves, their families and their playmates, and
whether they react to those pictures emotionally. There is already some
evidence that chimps can do this, but the implications
for farm animals having such a capacity would be astounding: at present,
animals are farmed in the belief that they will not miss the lambs that are
taken away for slaughter.
Prof Curtis contends that not only are animals capable of such feelings,
they may also be capable of building up long-term resentments; not just the
cussedness which any farmer encounters from time to time when his charges
object to their physical handling, but deeply-held frustrations lasting a
lifetime. The bull glowering at you from behind the barbed wire could be
dreaming of the cows he is never allowed to meet, and the horse snorting
down his nostrils at you from his tiny paddock could be harbouring fond
memories of
open fields.
"Our ultimate goal is to communicate with the pigs," says Prof Curtis, "and
find out their secrets for good."
Then, perhaps, we shall know if real pigs, like George Orwell's Napoleon,
have pencilled in a revolution for some time in the future.
© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 14:49:45 -0500
>From: Wyandotte Animal Group
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Poll @ 96 March
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19970329194945.30574ee8@mail.heritage.com>
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I am trying to get the results from the poll that was being taken at last
year's March for the Animals. Does anyone know who was conducting it the
day of the March and/or have a copy of its findings? If the report is
faxable, I'd appreciate a copy.
Any leads appreciated.
Thanks.
Jason Alley
(313) 671-2274 FAX
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 19:26:06 -0500
>From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Legless chicken struts again
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970330192603.0069f208@clark.net>
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from CNN web page:
----------------------------------
Legless chicken struts again
March 29, 1997
Web posted at: 4:59 p.m. EST (2159 GMT)
JACKSON, Michigan (CNN) -- Dr. Timothy
England's patient lost part of his
legs to frostbite last winter, but the doctor
vowed that he would walk again. And he has.
England's patient, a scrappy 4-pound rooster named
Mr. Chicken, now wears two prosthetic legs,
created by physical therapist Gordon Allen of
Battle Creek.
"He does what a normal chicken should do, an he
can outrun any of us," England said.
Allen's prosthetics, constructed of the same
material used to make splints for humans, fit
snugly over the bird's stumps, and are removed at
night to prevent sores. Allen calls his creations
-- the fourth design he tried -- "Air Gordons."
Jackson resident Chris Gilzow captured Mr. Chicken
with a fishing net in her yard on a bitterly cold
day last December. She turned him over to England,
who went to work on his irreparable legs.
Mr. Chicken has become a worldwide celebrity since
a local newspaper article last February brought
the public eye to Jackson.
"We have letters from London, Paris, the West
Coast, East Coast, Texas, Florida, Washington,"
England said. "A woman from South Africa wrote a
little poem about Mr. Chicken, and a man from
California sent a check for $8 for his care."
No one claimed the once-homeless rooster, who now
lives at England's Crossroads Animal Hospital.
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 19:31:40 -0500
>From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Protest Hosing Stirs Controversy
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970330193137.0069f208@clark.net>
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AP story on NY Times web page:
-----------------------------------------------
March 29, 1997
Protest Hosing Stirs Controversy
Filed at 3:05 p.m. EST
By The Associated Press
BELLEVUE, Wash. (AP) -- The anti-fur demonstrators
carried their cause right to the home of a department
store executive. And that offended his wife, Gina
Pickell, so much that she turned a garden hose on them
-- even following them out to the middle of the street.
``Maybe I went too far, but everyone understands that I
was provoked,'' she said. ``If it happened again, my
reaction would be the same, maybe worse.''
The law appeared to be on the side of the protesters,
who pressed charges against Mrs. Pickell. Her first
trial on two counts of simple assault ended with a hung
jury March 20, and she faces a second trial in May. If
convicted, she would face a maximum of a $1,000 fine
and 90 days in jail on each count.
But in the arena of public opinion, Mrs. Pickell has
support. About 100 people rallied outside the courtroom
carrying placards -- ``Justice Fur Gina'' -- and garden
hoses. Many wore fur coats.
``It was just lovely,'' Mrs. Pickell said. ``It gave me
the confidence I needed to go into that courtroom.''
Even the jury forewoman, who refused to give her name,
later expressed sympathy for the defendant: ``It makes
me want to go out and buy a fur coat and a hose.''
For her part, Mrs. Pickell says the issue is not
ideology. In fact, she says she doesn't wear fur.
``I just disagree with their tactics. I think people
are getting kind of sick of this kind of thing,'' she
said. ``Harassing someone at their private home? That's
going too far.''
The demonstrators, from the group Vegan Frontline, say
they were within their rights in staging their protest
outside the Pickell home on Dec. 14.
``We were standing on a public sidewalk,'' said Jessica
Peters, a 19-year-old college student and one of two
protesters who pressed charges.
``She walked all the way to the middle of the street
and started blasting us on the street. We were dripping
wet in the middle of December,'' Peters said.
At issue in the Pickell case was the sale of
fur-trimmed coats at Bon Marche stores, owned by
Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores. Ira
Pickell is chairman of the Seattle-based chain.
``Her husband's store was selling fur and he was
telling people that he wasn't,'' Peters says. ``We
wanted to make sure people knew that.''
Mrs. Pickell concedes some fur-trimmed coats were
available. But she says her husband was instrumental in
a decision to close fur departments in the stores.
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 21:03:34 -0500
>From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (MX) Greenpeace gives Pemex dose of own medicine
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970330210329.006b504c@clark.net>
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from Mercury Center web page:
-------------------------------------------
Posted at 5:19 p.m. PST Saturday, March 29, 1997
Greenpeace gives Pemex dose of own medicine
MEXICO CITY (Reuter) - Members of the Greenpeace
environmental group threw buckets of oil,
contaminated water and dead animals at a building
owned by state oil giant Petroleos Mexicanos
(Pemex) to protest an oil spill in eastern Mexico,
local media reports said Saturday.
Radio and press reports said Greenpeace activists
Friday hurled gallons of the polluted water onto
the steps of Pemex's maritime headquarters in
Veracruz after scooping it up from the Tecolutla
River where the spill occurred.
``We are returning to Pemex the rubbish that it has
spilled into the river. This is nothing compared
with what has happened and all the dead fish,''
activist Alejandro Calvillo was quoted as saying by
Reforma newspaper.
On Wednesday, Pemex, a state-owned monopoly,
confirmed there had been a spill involving an
oil-and-water mixture of about 264.2 gallons. It
also said ``at no time was there environmental
damage nor any danger to the population.''
But Mexican environmental groups said the river was
polluted for up to 26 miles and they also charged
that Pemex had sought to conceal the mishap for two
days. Activists said the spill came from the San
Andres II plant, and damaged a river rich in fish,
freshwater crabs, oysters and shrimp.
The river runs into the Gulf of Mexico in northern
Veracruz state, about 120 miles east of Mexico
City.
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 11:50:38 +0800 (SST)
>From: vadivu
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (MY) 12 Indons fined for illegal cock fights
Message-ID: <199703300350.LAA31392@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
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>The Star (29-Mar-97)
12 Indons fined for illegal cock fights
MALACCA: Twelve Indonesians, who were caught at an illegal cock-fighting
match at a construction site in Jalan Tun Fatimah, Batu Berendam, last
Sunday, were each fined RM200 by a magistrate's court here yesterday when
they admitted being cruel to the fowls.
All of them paid the fine slapped by magistrate Azman Ahmad but three of
them who had no valid documents were detained by police for questioning.
Prosecuting officer Chief Insp Markhan Singh said the 12 were charged
under Section 44 (1) (g) of the Cruelty to Animals Act.
The fowls were brought to the courthouse but only one fowl was brought
into the courtroom which was identified by the Indonesians as theirs.
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