Pigs Genetically Engineered for Cystic Fibrosis Research
Sunday October 5, 2008
Researchers from the University of Iowa and the University of Missouri have genetically engineered pigs to have cystic fibrosis. They plan to use the pigs to study the progression of the disease because the symptoms appear to mimic the symptoms experienced by human patients with CF.
Vivisection is probably the most controversial animal rights topic. While proponents sometimes try to frame the issue as choosing between children and mice, this ignores the moral issue: whether we have the right to experiment on animals.
The Guide to Cystic Fibrosis currently has a poll asking whether pigs should be used for CF research.
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Pennsylvania Puppy Mill Raid
Saturday October 4, 2008
A raid on a puppy mill in Pennsylvania has turned up approximately 800 animals living in dirty, over-crowded conditions. Elaine Skypala of the Pennsylvania SPCA described the scene:
There are dogs that are just piled on top of each other, running loose in kennels that are not secured. They're wet. We saw no food and water in most of the kennels. It's hard to breathe in some of the rooms. The smell is so bad.
The quote from the puppy mill's neighbor is particularly insightful:
People keep coming to these places and buying these animals or going to pet stores and buying these animals. They're just as much to blame as this man and this woman in this house
Some argue that the solution is to avoid pet stores and to buy animals from "responsible" breeders. Squalor and neglect aside, whenever someone buys an animal from a breeder or a store, that's another animal who will die in a shelter. No matter how lovingly the breeder cares for the animals, it doesn't change the fact that millions of unwanted animals are being put to sleep in shelters every year.
Link: What is a Puppy Mill?
Support the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2008
Friday October 3, 2008
Rescued Horses at
Denkai Animal Sanctuary in Colorado. If these horses hadn't been rescued by the sanctuary, they may have gone to foreign slaughterhouses.
Photo by Chris Hondros / Getty Images.There are no more horse slaughterhouses operating in the United States, but that doesn't mean that American horses are safe from slaughter. Live horses are still being transported to Mexico and Canada to be slaughtered for meat, but the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2008 (H.R. 6598) will end this practice. The bill has already passed out of the House Judiciary Committee, and will hopefully be voted on soon.
You can call the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 to ask your U.S. Representative to support H.R. 6598, the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2008, and fill out a form online to send an email to your representative.
This is not to say that horse slaughter is any worse than cow slaughter or chicken slaughter, but if we can take steps to protect certain animals with whom the public feels a special connection, we owe it to those animals.
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Big, Black Dogs Hardest to Adopt Out
Thursday October 2, 2008
This big black dog won Best in Show at the Westminster Dog Show, but don't get me started on dog shows!
Photo by Stephen Chernin / Getty Images.Anyone who's involved with a shelter or a dog rescue group can tell you that big, black dogs are the most difficult to adopt out. A recent article in the Dallas News explores a variety of reasons behind the preference for smaller, lighter colored dogs, ranging from the trendiness of smaller dogs, to the challenges of photographing black dogs, to the media's negative portrayal of big black dogs in movies such as Harry Potter.
I'm saddened that pop culture has so much sway over people's companion animal decisions, especially when you think about the number of people who have decided to buy or breed tiny dogs in response to the latest celebrity dog trend. Smaller dogs can live to be 15 or 20 years old, and we all know what happens to animals who are acquired impulsively, after they are no longer trendy.
This preference for smaller non-black dogs also spells death for the many big black dogs in shelters around the country. I wish the dog overpopulation problem could be solved if there were no prejudice against big black dogs, but there are so many animals in shelters, the problem would be far from solved. The solution is, of course, is to spay and neuter your companion animals, always adopt, and never buy or breed.
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