Written by PETA
Back in March, we told you about the USDA's investigation at Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC). The investigation came about as a result of a PETA complaint exposing that a monkey had been operated on by mistake; that a sick, pregnant monkey had been denied veterinary care; and that other abuses had taken place. The USDA backed up our findings, citing ONPRC for violations of the Animal Welfare Act and issuing the facility a warning. And let's not forget what we found during our undercover investigation.
Well, it's been barely seven months, and ONPRC is in hot water again. According to a lawsuit filed by InVivo Therapeutics—one of the companies that hired ONPRC to torture experiment on monkeys—ONPRC so severely neglected seven monkeys whose spinal cords it had surgically severed that four of the monkeys had to be euthanized.
Of course, the lawsuit is a lose-lose for the monkeys. InVivo had paid ONPRC to paralyze the animals so that researchers could implant them with a device developed by InVivo in order to see if they would regain any movement. In the lawsuit, InVivo alleges that early in the research period, more than one third of the monkeys provided by ONPRC suffered illnesses or injuries such as bladder problems because ONPRC failed to provide the proper post-surgery care or a medical device necessary to keep their bodily systems functioning. InVivo also alleges that at least one monkey developed "a debilitating staph infection" as a result of bacteria at ONPRC.
The publicity surrounding the case has shined another spotlight on abuses at ONPRC as well as the inadequacy of the federal law that is supposed to protect animals in laboratories.
If you have a strong stomach, go to StopAnimalTests.com to find out more about the cruel, redundant, and archaic experiments conducted on primates at ONPRC, and then dash off a letter to the National Institutes of Health, urging it to stop funneling your tax dollars to ONPRC.
Written by Alisa Mullins
In a new ad for PETA Europe, Britain's top-notch squash player James Willstrop is out to unite vegetable fans and sports fans around the world.
Once he kicked animal flesh out of his diet, James noticed a surge in his energy levels and his speed. He's used these newfound super-vegetarian powers to squash not only obesity but also the competition at several major world tournaments.
Willstrop joins other athletes—including Prince Fielder, Georges Laraque, NBA stars Raja Bell and John Salley, MMA fighters Mac Danzig and Dale Hart, and Olympic great Carl Lewis—who have risen to the top of their games on a vegetarian diet. Taking PETA's "Pledge to Be Veg" can help you do the same.
Written by Shawna Flavell
All right, I tried to resist, but it's just too easy: In honor of James, check out this delicious squash recipe.
After a healthy amount of prodding from PETA, Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph, Missouri, has announced that it is planning to stop jamming hard plastic tubes down cats' windpipes for intubation training in its Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) course. They are making the switch to state-of-the-art manikins by the end of this month.
Back in June, PETA contacted hospital administrators and urged them to replace the cruel use of cats for intubation training. We wanted them to start using the more effective, humane humanlike simulators that are endorsed by the PALS course's sponsor organization and that are used at nearly every PALS facility in the country. Heartland resisted. But after two months, a USDA complaint from PETA, a letter, a phone call from one of the original developers of the PALS course, and thousands of e-mails from caring PETA supporters, Heartland administrators have had a change of heart.
Switching to manikins is purrfect—cats are spared, and nurses, EMTs, and other emergency caregivers get more accurate and effective training.
What's the holdup, St. Louis Children's Hospital?
PETA Europe members were at The O2 arena in London yesterday to protest Ben Hur Live's use of real horses, camels, donkeys, chickens, falcons, and eagles forced to "perform" in the show's rock concert–like chaos of bright lights, loud noise, and commotion.
Animals forced to perform never find it entertaining. And for the more than 100 animals used in the European production of Ben Hur Live, "stage fright" has certainly taken on a very literal meaning.
We've all heard that animals used for circuses are beaten, chained for up to 100 hours at a time, and carted around the country in tiny boxcars without a semblance of a natural life, but being on stage is just as terrifying and unnatural, and as I'm sure you've probably learned, it often ends in tragedy for the animals and the audience.
Please tell everyone you know in Europe that Ben Hur Live is hell for animals before someone gets hurt, and urge your friends and family never to patronize shows that use live animals.
Written by Heather Drennan
As Agent 007, Sir Roger Moore battled the bad guys—but as a real-life Knight of the British Empire, Moore has spent the past several years battling the cruel foie gras industry.
When Moore heard about PETA Europe's campaign to urge Selfridges to stop selling foie gras—he sent a private letter to Selfridges' owner, Galen Weston, offering to buy up the company's entire remaining stock of the cruelly produced food if Weston agreed never to restock it again.
Always the classy gentleman, Moore gave Weston the chance to make this deal behind the scenes—but Selfridges has not responded to Moore's generous offer, so he has taken it to the airwaves. Check out his recent interview on the topic.
Written by Liz Graffeo
The agency that oversees the largest animal testing program of all time has just announced new guidelines that mean that the number of animals who could fall victim to toxicity testing during the course of the program has dropped—by 4.5 million!
This news from the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) comes in response to a detailed letter PETA initiated in cooperation with other animal protection groups. That letter was written after we learned from a chemical manufacturer that under the E.U.'s new Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical Substances (REACH) Regulation, a number of duplicative tests were going to be conducted.
PETA, along with PETA Europe, the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments, Eurogroup for Animals, HSI Europe, and the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, voiced concerns about the likelihood that companies would conduct duplicative animal tests for some types of toxicity when registering their chemicals under REACH. The letter explained how the redundant testing could be avoided.
ECHA was quick to issue a news release and a factsheet instructing chemical companies not to conduct initial toxicity screenings if they are planning to conduct more comprehensive tests during the later stages of REACH. Based on ECHA's own figures, 6,000 chemicals may fall under the relevant information requirements, and because up to 735 animals may be used for the initial toxicity screening for each chemical tested, ECHA's response has the potential to save the lives of 4.5 million animals.
There's still much work to be done, as REACH will still cause massive animal suffering. But you can bet your (vegan) boots that our next step will be to do everything possible to make sure that companies follow ECHA's new guidelines so that as many animals as possible will be spared.
Two years ago in Bangalore, a man named Vijay took a shine to one of India's numerous needy, homeless dogs. Vijay named the dog Johny and started feeding and caring for him. Johny quickly became a popular member of the neighborhood.
Little did Vijay know that his good deed was destined to lead to another.
When a thief snatched jewelry from a woman who was walking down Johny's street, it was Johny to the rescue! Johny chased the man down, caught him by the pants, and refused to the let the man go until police arrived and arrested the bandit.
With the perp in custody and the jewelry returned to its rightful owner, Johny has been promoted from favorite neighborhood dog to local hero, which just goes to show how a simple act of kindness keeps on giving.
Written by Jeff Mackey
When I first became involved with PETA, it was on an "issue-by-issue" basis—they interviewed me in my old apartment about animal abuse in the circus as I sat on a leather sofa. At that time I was a meat-eater and told them I believe that if anyone is going to wear the flesh or fur of an animal, they should at least have the decency to eat the meat of that animal. That comment led to my involvement in PETA's "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign. The following year, I chose to stop eating meat (and stop wearing or purchasing anything made out of leather); however, citing reports that Jesus Christ fed lots of people with fish, I continued to eat fish. Most recently, for just over a month now, I've kept to a strictly vegan diet and I've not felt "hard-done-by" at all. I have been really enjoying making a project out of seeking out an extremely healthy diet of raw, organic, vegan foods—and I plan on continuing to do so. —Steve-O
Visit his Web site to continue reading about why Steve-O chooses to work with PETA and the impact he's making in the lives of animals.
I can't believe that anyone would waste precious time or money on a memoir about a bullfighter's lifelong abuse and slaughter of bulls.
That said, 67-year-old British matador Frank Evans somehow managed to find a publisher for his book, The Last British Bullfighter,* but he just lost out on a big promotion by U.K. bookstore chain Waterstone's.
Waterstone's scrapped its plans to promote Evans' book, thanks to a flood of complaints from PETA Europe and other animal protection groups.
I also can't believe that this elderly man, who's had a quadruple bypass and knee replacement, has come out of retirement to torment bulls again (sad news, which Blog Guy at "Oddly Enough" managed to make amusing).
Frank, if you're out there: Enough bull already! Lay down the damn sword, pick up a metal detector, and stroll off into the sunset.
Now.
Written by Karin Bennett
*I hope this title is true.
My mom, my sister, and I always used to play "spot the celebrity" in airports. Not real celebrities, necessarily—just people who look like the rich and famous. So, for me, it's only fitting that PETA's new public service announcement—which we had hoped to run in New York City airports during fashion week but was rejected by the CNN Airport Network—is full of real celebrities to spot:
Just in case you need some help, we'll give you a few hints:
So, can you spot all the celebrities?
Written by Amanda Schinke
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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