If your local government officials were inspired by National Dog Bite Prevention Week to pass an ordinance that would help prevent dog bites, would you support it? As it turns out, they can do just that by banning chaining. 

 
Dogs have a strong fight-or-flight response, and chaining takes away the less dangerous option. In addition to being denied adequate food, water, shelter, and veterinary care, dogs who spend their lives at the end of a chain often are not socialized, and even a small child who runs toward them can seem threatening, leading them to bite in self-defense. Chained dogs are three times more likely to attack than are dogs with the freedom to escape perceived threats, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the American Veterinary Medical Association advises guardians, "Never tether or chain your dog because this can contribute to aggressive behavior."

Communities across America are acknowledging the danger (and cruelty) of chaining and are implementing chaining restrictions. For easy ways to encourage your local legislators to consider a lifesaving chaining ordinance, see PETA's "Breaking the Chain" webpage. 
 

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Gilles Gonthier/CC by 2.0

Back in June, appalled Tennessee residents alerted PETA to the fact that the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) was advising people to cruelly and illegally drown or starve trapped wildlife or to asphyxiate the animals using car exhaust. PETA pressured both TWRA Director Ed Carter and Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen to intervene. In response, TWRA agreed to PETA's request to develop humane guidelines for handling wildlife and to train staff members to advise residents who call about trapped wildlife only to use methods that are approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association!

This is a major breakthrough for wild animals who might otherwise be killed in torturous ways because property owners choose not to coexist peacefully with them.

Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post

fideliodogs / CC

If Rover's running with a little more spring in his step today, it may be because he heard the good news. Banfield—the largest network of animal hospitals in the U.S.—has announced that it will stop performing three painful and needless cosmetic procedures: tail-docking, ear-cropping, and debarking.

Banfield's decision follows that of the American Veterinary Medical Association, which, while getting a lot of things wrong during its recent convention in Seattle, got this one right: It upheld its opposition to these vile procedures.

Dr. Karen Faunt, Banfield's vice president for medical quality advancement, notes, "It is our hope that this new medical protocol will help reduce, and eventually eliminate, these cosmetic procedures altogether."

Amen to that! Here's hoping that next on the list is banning the declawing of cats.

Written by Jeff Mackey

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) held its annual convention in Seattle this weekend and—despite public outcry—allowed attendees to participate in a dead-fish toss.

I don't know about y'all, but when I'm looking for an "outrageously fun" time, I go dancing. I don't throw around corpses. So to remind the AVMA that sea kittens feel pain just as dogs and cats do—and to provide a memorable image of the suffering that the AVMA willingly supports—we held a stunning demonstration in front of the conference for all attendees and Seattleites to see:

Our eye-catching display reminded people that the AVMA was responsible for suffocating sea kittens.

Is it just me, or did the guy in the middle kind of luck out with the seating arrangement?

Weekend shoppers and media personnel spent much of their time admiring these "dead fish."

In the words of PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman, "The AVMA is a trade group that often sides with animal abusers, not with animals. People expect more from the very people who are charged with helping and protecting animals."

Hopefully the attention-grabbing demonstration armed people with some future lifesaving knowledge.

Written by Christine Doré

agrip / CC

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)—the same group that refuses to denounce the cruel force-feeding of ducks and geese for foie gras or the confinement of mother pigs to metal crates barely larger than their own bodies—have yet again proven that their hearts are as cold as their stethoscopes.

The AVMA plans to team up veterinarians and employees of Pike Place Fish Market for a dead fish sea kitten toss at its upcoming convention in Seattle. The event organizers promise that the event will be "outrageously fun."

Come again?

My gut tells me that the AVMA wouldn't dare try to organize a dead cat toss—so why not show the same consideration for sea kittens? The AVMA is turning a blind eye to the deaths of billions of sea kittens who suffocate on boat decks or are cut open while they are still conscious—all thanks to the cruel fishing industry. And those sea kittens feel pain, just like land kittens do.

Conventiongoers could get a uniquely Seattle experience by spending a few hours at the Experience Music Project and then visiting the Space Needle—a fun and cruelty-free afternoon.

Written by Karin Bennett