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Earth Companions

I am here for Networking

About Me

Earth Companions is the coming together of a small group of friends with common concerns. We are dedicated to voicing issues that surround our silent friends... our animals, and also in serving all that supports the growing concerns of our planet, that has been abused through decades of exploitation and materialistic greed.

We stand for all that would help address and curb this ongoing injustice, and lead to the transformation of our planet Earth through regaining balance, and by promoting compassion for all beings thus enabling us to live in harmony within ourselves and with our environment.


Causes close to our heart


Commercial Seal Hunting in Canada
"The Canadian government insists that the seal hunt is an animal production industry like any other. They say that it might not be pretty, but basically it is just like any abattoir except on the ice. But we found obvious levels of suffering which would not be tolerated in any other animal industry in the world. " ~ Ian Robinson, British Veterinarian
Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals for their pelts, blubber, and meat. The hunt is practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, as well as Greenland, Namibia, Norway, and Russia.
Some Facts about this inhumane practice as revealed by a team of independent investigators:
79% of the sealers did not check to see if an animal was dead before skinning it.
In 40% of the kills a sealer had to strike the seal a second time, presumably because it was still conscious after the first blow or shot.
42% of killed seals examined were found to have minimal or no fractures, suggesting a high probability that these seals were conscious when skinned.
It is a slaughter done mainly for unessential, vanity, and luxury items, and therefore, is unnecessary It is unethical to slaughter newborn seal pups (About 95% of the seals to be slaughtered are babies less than four weeks old). Every time a mother is killed, the pup gradually dies out of starvation. So this means apart from the actual killings, there are indirect deaths occurring and those too new born pups.
Current issues:
Canadian government calls for the killing of 275,000 harp seal pups despite dwindling markets and international outcry.
The IFAW Report on the 2008 Seal Hunt
Get Sea Shepherd's Latest Updates for it's Seal Defense Campaign 2008:
Seal Defense 2008 Campaign Updates
Read IFAW's Blog for the latest news on the hunt
Read their blog
What You Can Do To Help!
Boycott Canadian Seafood
We urge you to boycott all Canadian seafood as well as nutritional supplements made from seal oil and seal pelts.
The following products, which are all omega-3 fatty acid capsules, are made from murdered baby seals:
Terra Nova
Canomega
Omegavite
These seal products are already ILLEGAL in the USA. International use, however, is possible, and if you're from outside the USA, you should be sure to AVOID them.
There are many excellent alternatives to baby seal oil as a nutritional supplement: for instance, Flax seed oil, which is sold in capsule form and a liquid that can be added directly to food (sold in natural food stores, major groceries, and Walmart, as well).
Write to Politicians
Send a letter, e-mail, or fax to your local politicians and the Canadian government to demand an end to this atrocious slaughter of seals.
To contact the Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, please send an e-mail message to: [email protected] (dont forget to include your postal and e-mail address in the email!)
You can also write to:
The Honourable Loyola Hearn
HOUSE OF COMMONS
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
Parliament Buildings, Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada, K1A 0A6
You can also choose to send your email online via this web page .
Write to Companies that sell seal fur products
Send a letter, e-mail, or fax to companies that sell products made from the fur and skin of seals slaughtered on the East coast of Canada and politely request that they make their fashion more compassionate by ending the use of seal fur.
Here are some companies that sell these products:
Birger Christensen
Ostergade 38
DK-1100 Copenhagen K Denmark
Phone: 45 33 11 55 55
Fax: 45 33 93 21 35
Email: [email protected]
Website:
http://www.birger-christensen.com/
Prada
Prada S.P.A.
Via Andrea Maffei, 2
20154 Milan, Italy
Phone: 39 02 54 67 01
Prada (U.S. office)
Katherine Ross,
V.P. of Communications
610 W. 52nd St.
New York, NY 10019
Phone: 212 307 9300
Official Website:
http://www.prada.com/
Dolce & Gabbana
Via Goldoni, 10,
20129 Milano, Italy.
Ph: +39 02 774271
Fax: +39 02 76020600.
Website:
http://www.dolcegabbana.it/
Gucci
685 Fifth Ave.
New York, NY 10022
Ph: 212-750-5220
Email: [email protected]
Website:
http://www.gucci.com/
Versace
Donatella Versace
Versace S.P.A. Headquarters
Via Manzoni, 38
Milan ITALY 20121
Phone: 39 02 76 09 31
Fax: 39 02 76 00 41 22
Website:
http://www.versace.com/
Vogue Furriers
Vogue Furriers Limited
167 Water Street St. John's, Newfoundland
Canada A1C 1B1
Tel: (709) 722-9432
Fax: (709) 722-9437
Email: [email protected]
Website:
http://www.voguefurriers.com
In addition to writing to these companies, please also boycott these companies / fashion houses altogether, and encourage your friends and relatives also to do so!
ACTION ALERTS
Take Action to End the Seal Hunt - StopTheSealHunt.com
Sponsored By: International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)
By participating in this campaign, you will be urging the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper and Canadian Ambassador, Michel Wilson to end the cruelty of the seal hunt.
A heart-felt appeal by a Canadian to end the seal hunt
Sponsored by: Kerry Bowman, a Canadian citizen; Hosted on iPetitons.com.
In his own words: I made this petition to call the world into action to save the seals. Please help them now! We can do it this time!
Participate in the Don't Buy While Seals Die: Boycott Canadian Seafood. campaign launched by HSUS
Sponsored by: Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)
If you sign this petition you take the pledge not to buy seafood products produced in Canada — such as snow crabs, cod, scallops, and shrimp — until Canada ends its commercial seal hunt for good.
Join the anti-seal hunt campaign at the PETA website
Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
For more action tips and advice:
Download the Boycott Canadian Seafood flyer from the Sea Shepherd's website with facts and action tips!
Share it with friends and family. Make copies and distribute widely!
Factory Farming and Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)
“The life spark in my eyes is in no way different than the life spark in the eyes of any other sentient being.” ~Michael Stepaniak, quoted in Joanne Stepaniak, The Vegan Sourcebook, 1998
Factory farming is the practice of raising farm animals in confinement at high stocking density; and also sometimes used more generally to refer to usage of farm animals as factory parts as is typical in industrial farming. It is an attitude that regards animals and the natural world merely as commodities to be exploited for profit. In animal agriculture, this attitude has led to institutionalized animal cruelty, massive environmental destruction and resource depletion, and animal and human health risks.
How Factory Farming Evolved:
Factory farming began in the 1920s soon after the discovery of vitamins A and D; when these vitamins are added to feed, animals no longer require exercise and sunlight for growth. This allowed large numbers of animals to be raised indoors year-round. The greatest problem that was faced in raising these animals indoors was the spread of disease, which was combated in the 1940s with the development of antibiotics. Farmers found they could increase productivity and reduce the operating costs by using mechanization and assembly-line techniques.
Unfortunately, this trend of mass production has resulted in incredible pain and suffering for the animals.
Learn More Here: http://www.idausa.org/facts/factoryfarmfacts.html
Some Facts about factory farming
Most commercial breeding facilities in the US and several other countries do not maintain even the most minimum humane standards proposed by animal welfare groups. For instance, Animals in factory farms are regularly pumped hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals and have their genes manipulated to encourage high productivity.
Animals are confined to small cages with metal bars, ammonia-filled air and artificial lighting or no lighting at all. They are subjected to horrible mutilations: beak searing, tail docking, ear cutting and castration.
Hundreds of millions of unwanted male chicks are killed by the commercial egg industry annually,shortly after hatching usually by gassing, crushing, or suffocation.
Australia produces 30 percent of all wool used worldwide. The most commonly raised sheep are Merinos, specifically bred to have wrinkly skin, which means more wool per animal. This unnatural overload of wool causes many sheep to collapse and even die of heat exhaustion during hot months, and the wrinkles collect urine and moisture. Attracted to the moisture, flies lay eggs in the folds of skin, and the hatched maggots can eat the sheep alive. To prevent this so-called "flystrike," Australian ranchers perform a barbaric operation-called "mulesing" - where they force live sheep onto their backs, restrain their legs between metal bars, and, without any painkillers whatsoever, slice chunks of flesh from around their tail area.
Read more about this here.
Pregnant pigs are stuffed in barren, restrictive gestation crates and are unable to turn around—or even move more than a step or two. For nearly four months, they are made to languish in these cruel enclosures.
One million calves are raised for veal annually in the United States—intensively confined in individual stalls so small they can’t turn around during their entire 16- to 18-week lives before slaughter. Widely known for their inherent cruelty, veal crates are being phased out in Europe—yet remain in use throughout the United States.
Turkeys are stuffed inside restrictive slaughter-bound transport crates, and are often denied food, water, rest, or protection from extreme weather.
Ducks and geese are often forced-fed unnaturally large quantities of food through a metal tube that is cruelly shoved down their throats and into their stomachs two or three times each day. The extensive overfeeding causes their livers to become diseased. The livers become enlarged up to ten times their normal size, making it difficult for the birds to move comfortably and, for some, even walk. The meat of course, eventually ends up in the stomachs of many human beings, who have no idea of how unhealthy this meat is! The so-called gourmet delicacy Paté de foie gras, translated from French, is simply "fatty liver", and is produced from such meat!!!
The High stocking density that is a feature of almost all CAFOs and factory farms is often known to destroy vegetation and produce unacceptable pollution from the animal waste in run-off and ground water.
Current issues:
Eggs: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/eggs/
Scientists and Experts on Battery Cages and Laying Hen Welfare - (HSUS website)
Poultry: Factory Poultry production in the US
Humane Society International's experience with the poultry industry in India
The effects of the Avian Influenza to the Indian Poultry Industry - Report by The Humane Society International
Sheep: Viva! Vegetarians International Voice for Animals' report on Sheep factory farming in the UK
Australia's factory-farmed wool exposed by the Swedish Press
The production practices of Australia's prized ultra-fine wool comes under fire from Animal welfare groups Animals in Australia and the RSPCA
Pork: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/pork/
Dairy: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/dairy/
Beef: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/beef/
Ducks: http://www.factoryfarming.org.uk/ducks.html
Duck factory Farming in the U.S. - coverage by Viva! USA
Fish: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/fish/
Environment: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/environme nt/
Human Health: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/health/
Economy: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/economy/
What YOU can do:
Don't contribute to animal suffering. Choosing a vegetarian diet low on the food chain. Eat healthful plant-based foods instead of animal products.
Educate others about cruel farming practices.
Encourage restaurants and grocery stores to provide vegetarian products.
ACTION ALERTS
Participate in Farm Sanctuary Campaigns
Sponsored by: Farm Sanctuary
These campaigns support Farm Sanctuary in their efforts to end cruel factory farming methods used in the United States. You can participate in the following campaigns:
No Downers Campaign which seeks to prevent the suffering of downed animals (animals too sick even to stand) through public education to prevent the marketing and slaughter of downed animals.
No Veal Campaign which seeks to end cruel veal industry practices such as: Taking baby calves from their mothers at birth, chaining them by the neck in crates, and feeding them a diet deficient in iron and fiber to produce the anemic white meat known as veal.
No Foie Gras Campaign which seeks to ban the inhumane practices of foie gras production whcih include very cruel force-feeding techniques.
Sentient Beings Campaign which challenges the common, though insane, belief that animals are mere commodities to be exploited for food and fiber.
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Campaign - Farm Sanctuary is encouraging the AVMA to change their positions and adopt policies that are in the best interest of animals.
Participate in campaigns organized by the Humane Society of United States (HSUS)
Sponsored by: Humane Society of United States (HSUS)
You can participate in the following campaigns:
No Battery Eggs campaign - Help HSUS Free egg-laying hens from the misery of battery cages.
Force-Fed Abuse Campaign - Help HSUS ban cruel force-feeding for foie gras.
Humane Eating Campaign - Learn how YOU can help reduce suffering for animals with every meal you eat.
Think Outside The Crate Campaign - Help End the use of abusive crates for pigs and calves. If you live in California, you can also visit http://www.humanecalifornia.org for more information about this campaign for Californian residents.
Petition for more humane treatment towards Chickens and Turkeys - Join thousands of Americans in urging the Congress to amend the laws that promote humane treatment towards poultry animals.
Support Viva!’s call to end factory farming
Sponsored By: TimeToGoVeggie.com
Campaign by: Viva! Vegetarians International Voice for Animals
Sign the petition to stop factory farming organics - Urge the US National Organic Standards Board to stop factory farming organics
Sponsored By: Organic Consumers Association of the US
By supporting this campaign, you will help Organic Consumers Association in it's demand for enacting strong rules requiring access to pasture for dairy cows, sheep, goats, and beef cattle, as well as enforcement of the requirement for access to the outdoors for other species such as poultry.

My Interests

Quote Of The Week

The habit of shedding blood, or even of seeing it shed, corrupts all sentiment of humanity.

Compte de Volney (1757-1820)

GET ACTIVE & SIGN THESE PETITIONS

The African wild dog is one of Africa's most endangered carnivores. It is Red Listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as an Endangered Species.

Urge the local governments to protect this extremely endangered species to be listed on CITES (Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species) to afford them a greater level of protection.

This is a petition to help the Indian dog breed "Mongrel" gain recognition as they live a terrible life on the streets and are often run over by vehicles or killed by people who poison them.

Urge the Indian Government to grant them recognition and help them live dignified lives.

The Amur Leopard, a very rare and critically endangered big cat, is on the verge of extinction!

With only a few left remaining in the wild, it has become vital to take action immediately.

Sign the petition and do your part to get the media attention they need so that more people may be educated on their critical endangerment.

Over the past four years, Alaska's aerial hunting program has claimed the lives of nearly 700 hundred wolves.

State permitted aerial hunters and pilots are preparing to take to the skies again.

Sign our petition to send a message to Alaska Governor Sarah Palin urging her to end the state's aerial hunting program immediately.

Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) is Europe’s largest contract animal testing laboratory.

They have about 70,000 animals on site, including rabbits, cats, hamsters, dogs, guinea-pigs, birds and monkeys.

These animals are destined to suffer and die in cruel, useless experiments. 500 of them die each day.

Take action to have this disgrace of a company closed down.

In the UK, 40,000 greyhounds are needlessly slaughtered every year. When Greyhound used in racing retire, the owners are free to do whatever they want with them.

Puppies that are not good enough to race are mindlessly slaughtered before their first birthday.

Join the fight to urge the greyhound industry to regulate its practices.

More than 30,000 whales have been killed since a global ban on commercial whaling came into effect in 1986.

Japan must not continue its whaling program!

The Japanese government attempts to defend its whaling program by calling it "scientific" whaling.

In reality, this deadly program is nothing more than unlawful commercial whaling in disguise.

Tell Japan to stand firm on its commitment to not target humpback whales, and immediately stop the senseless killing of whales!

Polar bears are starving and drowning as sea ice melts around them, and penguin populations are declining as their world literally breaks up under their not-so-happy feet.

Fortunately, the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a legislation to protect polar bears, penguins and other wildlife from the harmful effects of global warming.

Send a message to your Senators today and urge them to support the Global Warming Survival Act!

Coral reefs are some of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet - home and nursery for almost a million fish and other species. Unfortunately, about 70 percent of the world’s coral reefs are threatened or destroyed, and 20 percent of those are damaged beyond repair.

2008 has been designated as the International Year of the Reef. Wherever you live, you can help restore this amazing habitat. Pledge to:

Use ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent light bulbs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions threatening coral reef survival.

Use naturally-derived and biodegradable detergents and cleaning products.

Do not give coral as presents. Corals are already a gift, and it takes corals decades or longer to create reef structures.

Kerala has been BRUTALLY Killings, Dogs, Turtles, Rabbits, and all animals for a long time now.

The local Environment & Forest Department entrusted with PROTECTING the wild life and animals are themselves flouting the laws.
Urge the Indian Ministry of Tourism, the State Government of Kerala and the Central government of India to put a stop to this cruelty or face a boycott of tourism in Kerala, which would in turn adversely affect the whole state economy severely.

Thousands of animals in China are bred, kept, and transported in the most horrific conditions possible.

They are then killed for their meat and fur, and sometimes skinned alive.

In addition there is the farming of bears for bile, animals used for entertainment (such as horse fighting), and the feeding of live animals to other animals in wildlife parks (often for entertainment).

With the 'green' Olympic games in Beijing round the corner, it is the right time for all of us to demand an end to the atrocious treatment of animals in China and for the government to act without delay to provide legal protection though the introduction of animal welfare legislation.

Stop the Dangerous Privatization of Oceans!

It’s hard to imagine there is an entire industry out there dedicated to privatizing the vast, wild oceans, and threatens the livelihood of Gulf Coast fishing families.
This largely untested industry threatens the safety of our food, hurts the marine environment, and endangers the livelihood of fishing communities that depend on healthy wild fish to make a living.

The council has been operating under the radar. Let them know they are being watched and that you care about our oceans and our health.

Tell the Fishery Management Council that fishing communities and the public need more time to weigh in. Sign the petition and help stop the giveaway of our oceans!

After announcing six months ago that it would stop hunting whales due to lack of market for whale meat, Iceland has now confirmed it is "likely" to resume whaling this summer.

Iceland's whaling industry is pushing for permits to kill 100 minke whales as well as some fin whales, which are an endangered species.

Iceland's Minister of Fisheries will make a final decision soon and whaling could begin in May. Please sign our petition today and urge Iceland to stop whaling forever!

Known as the 'Polar Bear Seas,' the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas are essential habitat for polar bears and other important marine mammals such as beluga and bowhead whales and bearded and spotted seals.
The Chukchi Sea supports approximately one-tenth of the world's remaining polar bear population alone.

The planned oil and gas leasing and development in the Polar Bear Seas will do irrevocable damage to this fragile habitat. Spills are already an everyday occurrence in oil drilling.

In Alaska, the oil industry reported 4,534 spills across Alaska's North Slope and Beaufort Sea between 1996 and 2004 alone. There is currently no proven method for cleaning or controlling an oil spill in icy, Arctic waters, where difficult weather conditions are common.

Please sign the petition today to urge your Senators to put polar bear protection ahead of new oil development!

South Africa has announced it will reverse its 1995 ban on killing elephants and resume culling of elephants in May. Elephant family groups could be rounded up by helicopters and shot from the air by marksmen.

Culling has been reinstated due to fears of elephant overpopulation in protected areas and the habitat destruction that too many elephants can cause.

But this plan disregards the fact that elephants are extremely intelligent, social creatures with strong family bonds. It is well known that elephants mourn their dead, and killing large numbers of these sensitive creatures is cruel and unethical.

Please urge the South African government to continue exploring non-lethal options for dealing with growing elephant populations.

The Japanese government is allowing a few fishermen to slaughter thousands of dolphins and small whales in drive hunts.

During drive hunts, fishermen panic and confuse migrating pods of dolphins and other small whales with loud banging, then herd them, by the hundreds, into shallow coves, and then butcher them one by one.
Every year, some 20,000 small cetaceans of several species, some of which are endangered, including bottlenose dolphins, striped dolphins, spotted dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, short-finned pilot whales, white-sided dolphins, and false killer whales, are killed or taken in the drives, sometimes illegally.

The hunts have been universally condemned by marine experts around the world as brutal, inhumane, and unsustainable, but pleas to stop them have fallen on deaf ears.

I'd like to meet:



Animal Testing

"Ask the experimenters why they experiment on animals, and the answer is: Because the animals are like us. Ask the experimenters why it is morally okay to experiment on animals, and the answer is: Because the animals are not like us. Animal experimentation rests on a logical contradiction." - Professor Charles R. Magel

"The very idea that one species could serve as a model for a different species ignores the basic principles of biology." - British Medical Journal, 18th February 2002

Animal Testing is primarily used for testing cosmetics and pharmaceutical products, and studying the effect of using these products on animals to predict whether the said products would be beneficial for humans or not. It is also used in biomedical training centers and research institutes, where animals are used for the practice commonly refered to as "vivisection".

Pre-university students, not only in the United States, but also in countries such as India and Australia, also practice dissecting animals, often procured from dubious breeding houses that breed animals for the sole purpose of selling them off to these universities and colleges.

(Busting some) Myths and (exposing some) Facts about Animal Testing

The rationale behind animal experimentation rests on the belief that animals serve as good models for the human body.... an assumption that has been proven wrong time and again through modern research. Taking a healthy being from a completely different species, artificially inducing a condition, keeping him or her in an unnatural and stressed condition, and trying to apply the "results" to naturally occurring diseases in human beings is dubious at best, and dangerous at worst.

Americans have spent almost $200 billion on cancer research since 1971 (through taxes, donations, and private funding). However, more than 500,000 Americans die of cancer every year. Richard Klausner, former head of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), has observed, "The history of cancer research has been a history of curing cancer in the mouse. We have cured mice of cancer for decades and it simply didn't work in humans."

Conclusion: For cancer research, we cannot extrapolate research data across species, with any kind of reliability.

Dr. Gibbs, a renowned scientist writes: 'To the 2.6 million people around the world afflicted with multiple sclerosis, medicine has offered more frustration than comfort. Time after time, researchers have discovered new ways to cure laboratory rats of experimental induced encephalomyelitis, the murine model of MS, only to face obstacles in bringing the treatment to humans'. [Appeared in the scientific journal: Experimental and Molecular Medicine, 1999:31:115-121]

In February 2004, researchers from the Yale School of Medicine and several British universities published a paper in the British Medical Journal titled "Where Is the Evidence That Animal Research Benefits Humans?" The researchers systematically examined animal studies and concluded that little evidence exists to support the idea that animal experimentation has benefited humans.

This seminal research paper is available here, and is recommended reading

Some Researchers claim that they have no options but to conduct animal trials. The scientifically verified fact, however, is that Human clinical and epidemiological studies, cadavers, and computer simulators are more reliable, more precise, less expensive, and more humane than animal tests.

Creative scientists have used human brain cells to develop a model "microbrain" which can be used to study tumors, as well as artificial skin and bone marrow. We can now test irritancy on protein membranes, produce vaccines from human tissues, and perform pregnancy tests using blood samples instead of killing rabbits.

Gordon Baxter, cofounder of Pharmagene Laboratories, which uses only computers and human tissues to create and test drugs once said, “If you have information on human genes, what’s the point of going back to animals?”

For decades, and up to this day, animal experimenters have been testing cigarettes and their components on animals. They have forced primates, dogs, rabbits, and rats to breathe concentrated cigarette smoke to determine what its effects are. However, after all these decades of research, their results continue to be "inconclusive" because some species suffer negative effects while others do not experience any health problems. In the meantime, millions suffer all sorts of respiratory diseases caused directly or indirectly through smoking.

The fourth biggest killer was in the UK is not cancer, road accidents or disease, but in fact, side effects from the very drugs that are meant to be saving people in the first place. Hundreds of drugs are released onto the market and are then withdrawn after causing unforeseen effects in people - such as the recent examples of Opren and Seroxat (drugs that approved through animal testing, but killed thousands of humans). So, why then do we keep testing on animals ? In a word: money.

Researchers get grants to conduct research on animals, where the experiments are funded by big businesses (such as the notorious GlaxoSmithKline - the company that was behind Seroxat), research charities (such as Wellcome Trust) and taxpayers.

Physiological reactions to drugs vary enormously from species to species. Penicillin kills guinea pigs despite being inactive in rabbits; aspirin kills cats and causes birth defects in rats, mice, guinea pigs, dogs, and monkeys; and morphine, a depressant in humans, stimulates goats, cats, and horses. Sir Alexander Fleming, who discovered penicillin, remarked:

"How fortunate we didn't have these animal tests in the 1940s, for penicillin would probably have never been granted a license, and probably the whole field of antibiotics might never have been realized."

Every year, cosmetics companies kill millions of animals to test their products. These companies claim they test on animals to establish the safety of their products and ingredients for consumers. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the U.S. does not require animal testing for cosmetics. In 2003, the EU passed a ban on the use of animals in cosmetics testing starting in 2009, and a complete sales ban effective in 2013. So why do some American companies still insist on conducting these barbaric and obsolete tests?

Experimenters claim a "right" to inflict pain on animals based on animals' supposed lack of reason. But if lack of reason truly justified animal experimentation, experimenting on human beings with "inferior" mental capabilities, such as infants and the mentally retarded, would also be acceptable. So, this is also a moot point. The fact is that these researchers lack basic concern for non-humans, and are more bothered about their own name and fame in the scientific circles. It is this lack of empathy for animals that allows them to come up with ludicrous justifications for their cruel "scientific" practices.

Facts about the cruelty involved in animal testing - A look under the hood

Millions of animals used in dissection, tens of thousands of live mice, rabbits, rats, and turtles are tortured and killed in college- and university-level physiology and psychology demonstrations. Turtles have nails driven into their brains and holes drilled into their shells so that their hearts can be viewed and manipulated, and frogs are paralyzed so that their exposed muscles can be stimulated by electricity.

Mice, dogs, rabbits and rats are subjected to highly invasive procedures at the hands of students and professors who have absolutely no veterinary medical training whatsoever. Other live animals are subjected to electric shock, starvation, maternal deprivation, aggression, and more in debilitating experiments designed to "mimic" human disorders.

In U.S. laboratories every year, lab technicians put monkeys and chimpanzees (known for their socially active lifestyles) behind cold, hard steel bars with no families, no companions, no grooming, no nests, "inducing" loneliness that goes on for so many years that most chimpanzees sink into depression, eventually losing their minds.

Animals are infected with diseases that they would never normally contract–tiny mice grow tumors as large as their own bodies, kittens are purposely blinded, rats are made to suffer seizures. Experimenters force-feed chemicals to animals, conduct repeated surgeries on them, implant wires in their brains, crush their spines, and much more.

Some U.S. Universities, like the University of North Carolina have lab employees kill mice by cutting off their heads with scissors and amputating toes of animals.... You can read more about these cruel practices that PETA documented recently here , and see for yourself the insanity of some of the so-called well educated minds that are bred by some of the top universities in the US, today, in the name of furthering scientific research.

At Covance Laboratories, where a PETA undercover investigator worked for 11 months, thick tubes were forced up monkeys’ nostrils and down their throats in order to pump doses of deadly compounds into their stomachs. After being dosed once or twice, the monkeys began to clamp their mouths shut, refusing to allow the technicians to poison them. PETA’s investigator then documented the technicians’ behavior as they violently choked, punched, and shook the animals. Read more about it here:

http://www.covancecruelty.com/insideCovanceUS.asp

Current issues:

A PETA investigation revealed grotesque abuses to animals in laboratories at Columbia University, including subjecting baboons to invasive surgeries and leaving them to suffer and die in their cages without any painkillers. Monkeys with metal pipes surgically implanted in their skulls were traumatized for the sole purpose of inducing stress in order to study the connection between stress and women’s menstrual cycles.

Read More here: http://www.columbiacruelty.com/introduction.asp

There is hope that animal testing for determining toxic chemicals will be limited. U.S. government scientists proposed on 14th Feb. this year that tey are in favour of limiting the testing of potentially toxic chemicals on animals and replacing it with new high-tech testing methods. The new systems the agencies hope to use rely on human cells grown in test tubes and computer-driven testing machines. They allow the scientists to examine potentially toxic compounds in the lab rather than injecting them into animals. The agencies acknowledge that full implementation of the shift in toxicity testing could take years because it will require scientific validation of the new approaches. Read more here:

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=87 162

In Nepal, rhesus monkeys either co-habitat with humans as revered temple monkeys or live a tribal life deep in the high mountain forest. They are an integral part of the land's eco-system and culture and are worshipped by the Hindu population. However, commercial interests have led to the removal of monkeys from their natural environment. Instead of living a free life in temple compounds or in the jungle, some rhesus monkeys have been put behind bars. Here they undergo tests to benefit biomedical and possibly bio-terrorism research in the USA.

In 2003 Nepal allowed the breeding and export of rhesus monkeys for biomedical research. Two US primate centers with their Nepalese partners received a license.

Read more here: http://www.stopmonkeybusiness.org/

What YOU can do:

If you are student attending school in one of the following states in the US: California, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, New Mexico, New York, Oregon , Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia; then you can simply say NO to dissection. These states have dissection choice laws or policies in place. Make use of them, and encourage your classmates to do the same.

If you are a student residing in some other US state or outside the US, you should meet with the instructor right away and tell him or her that you cannot participate in the dissection because of your "sincerely held religious and moral beliefs about the sanctity of all life" and ask for a non-animal alternative. These words provide the basis for a possible legal case. If your instructors disagree, propose software alternatives. Here are some that you can suggest:

V-Frog is the world's first virtual-reality-based frog dissection software designed for biology education -- allowing not mere observation, but physically simulated dissection.

Using a standard computer mouse, the software can be used to simulate nearly unlimited manipulation of specimen tissue. Students can "pick up" a scalpel, cut open V-Frog's skin, and explore the internal organs -- with true real-time interaction and 3-D navigation that actually accommodates discovery and procedures not possible with a physical frog specimen.

Click here to learn more

Ventura Educational Systems offers humane CD-ROM alternatives for a frog, fetal pig, and earthworm.

Click here to learn more

The award-winning Digital Frog 2 allows students to perform an in-depth "dissection" of a computer-generated frog with a digital scalpel. The program also includes animations, quizzes, videos, and information about frog behavior, ecology, and environmental issues. A study conducted by researchers at George Mason University (US) found that Digital Frog taught students lessons of anatomy more effectively—and in less time—than traditional animal dissection.

Click here to learn more

ITG Catlab, a complete virtual dissection cat anatomy, includes simulated dissections of every system, quizzes, and supplemented with over 300 laboratory-quality images.

Click here to learn more

Operation Frog includes pre-lab information, frog dissection lab simulations, post-lab materials, and a comprehensive teacher’s guide with worksheets, puzzles, and other activities.

Click here to learn more

Tangent Scientific’s DryLab series features humane interactive programs for studying the frog, crayfish, perch, rat, fetal pig, or earthworm. The company also offers a variety of virtual human anatomy programs.

Click here to learn more

Please note that if your instructors argue about the cost of the above products, you can courteously remind them that purchasing a software is a one-time expense, as opposed to purchasing animals for testing year after year!

Alternative Databases for searching more products:

The Association for Veterinarians for Animal Rights (For US Residents)

http://www.avar.org/alted/

EURCA (For European Residents)

http://www.eurca.org/resources.asp

International Center for Alternatives in Research and Education: I-CARE (For Indian Residents)

http://www.icare-worldwide.org/education/training_india.html

You can also write to this organization at the following email address: [email protected] and ask them for more details on the non-animal testing alternatives they recommend, or even for getting them to mail you their brochures for showing your school/college staff. Their postal address:

I-CARE, 33, Atthivakam Village,
Red Hills, Chennai - 600052 - India

If you are a consumer of cosmetic products, you can boycott companies that test on animals. You can get a list of companies from here (PDF doc)

ACTION ALERTS
Urge the FDA (US) to replace primate experiments with humane alternatives

Every year in the United States, more than 50,000 nonhuman primates are used in experiments. Though it is well known that these animals are very similar to humans in their emotional traits and social organization, they are still subjected to abuse in laboratories, where they are used as "research tools" and treated as inanimate objects. Before being able to market a new drug, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that drug companies conduct all sorts of cruel, outdated experiments on animals.

By signing this petition, you will be urging FDA’s top official, Andrew C. von Eschenbach, M.D., to do his part in replacing primate experiments with humane alternatives. Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

Put your compassion to the test campaign

By participating in this campaign, you take the pledge to refuse to spend your money on companies that make animals suffer for their products or to support corporations that abuse animals.

Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

Oppose the use of US Bio-defence Funds for Senseless Experiments on Chimpanzees

Project Bioshield ( http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/bioshield/index.html ) is a multi-agency U.S. government initiative to identify potential bioterrorism threats and develop counter-measures. This project distributes millions of dollars to various agencies and private companies to create drugs from antibodies that neutralize potential bioterrorism threats, such as anthrax.

By signing this petition, you will help end these senseless experiments by sending a letter to the director of the NIH.

Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

Urge University of Texas to stop al lab research on dogs and other animals immediately

Sponsored by: AVAR (Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights)

Boycott Iams

The IAMS Company (part of Proctor & Gamble) have funded and participated in laboratory experiments on hundreds of animals that caused kidney failure, obesity, malnutrition, liver damage, severe allergic reactions, stomach inflammation, diarrhoea, severe skin disorders, lesions, skin wounds and other painful illnesses, and animals have been kept in barren dungeon-like conditions. Dogs have been force-fed vegetable oil, had chunks of muscle removed from their thighs, and been 'de-barked' by having their voice-boxes cut out in a painful and bloody procedure. Read more about this shame of a company here:

http://www.iamscruelty.com/introduction.asp

By signing this petition, you will help end these senseless experiments by sending a letter to the director of the NIH.

Sponsored by: Sahar Samadani

Support the drive to save the Rhesus Monkeys of Nepal

Rhesus monkeys of nepal are being exported to the US for undergoing tests to benefit biomedical and possibly bio-terrorism research in the USA. Oppose this insane actovity, and also urge the authorities to annul the Wildlife Farming Act which enables individuals and organisations to rear and breed wild animals under certain conditions, and allows the breeding of Nepalese monkeys and export to US research labs.

For more information, visit: http://www.stopmonkeybusiness.org

Sponsored by: AnimalNepal.org 1

Target: Minister of Forestry, Nepal

Fur Trading

"The question is not, "Can they reason?" nor, "Can they talk?" but rather, "Can they suffer?" ~Jeremy Bentham

Every person who buys or wears fur is contributing directly to this pain and suffering.
Some Facts about Fur Trading

Each year over 50 million animals, including millions of dogs, cats, foxes, mink, chinchillas and rabbits, are killed for their fur worldwide. Intense suffering is a very common ingredient in all methods of procuring fur, from fur factory farming to trapping.

These animals are violently killed in the name of "fashion", most of them having to spend the entirety of their lives in grim conditions in fur farms, being stuffed in tiny wire cages until they are killed by cruel methods such as neck-breaking and anal electrocution.

Kangaroos are slaughtered by the millions every year; their skins are considered prime material for soccer shoes. Although the Australian government requires that hunters shoot the animals, orphaned joeys and wounded adults are, according to government code, to be decapitated or hit sharply on the head “to destroy the brain.” Upon learning about these cruel methods, soccer star David Beckham switched to shoes made from synthetic materials in 2006.

Raccoon dog in China, which is a leading country in the number of animals killed for their fur, and in the amount of fur exported to other countries, are smashed to the ground, and are skinned alive with the fur exported to countries like the United States.

See these pics of a Raccoon dog undergoing extreme torture - stills were taken from a Chinese video!!

Tigers are killed for their body parts, with their skins prized for fashion reasons and bones used in medicines. Pelts are sold for more than £8,000 apiece in China.

Hundreds of millions of rabbits slaughtered for their fur and their flesh every year are kept in tiny, filthy cages, surrounded by their own waste. They spend their entire miserable lives standing on the thin cage wires, never having a chance to dig, jump, or play. Finally, they are killed by having their necks snapped or having their skulls beaten before being strung up by the legs and having their heads cut off.

Sea otters have been hunted extensively for their luxurious fur. The main market for otter furs is Tibet where it forms part of the traditional dress. In 2006, in Linxia, China, as many as 1833 illegally hunted otter skins were openly offered for sale. Traders say most skins come from India, where the otter is endangered and highly protected. But unlike the tiger and leopard it is regarded as “nobody’s child” and no-one seems to be concerned for its conservation and there is no programme for REAL protection.

Canadian hunters regularly sell bear pelts to fur auctioneers, whose clients include companies hired by Britain's Ministry of Defence to supply Britain's illustrious Guards regiments with bearskin hats for use in ceremonial duties such as the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony to mark the Queen's birthday.

Bear hunters in Canada employ an indefensible practice known as "baiting and shooting." Hunters place bait in a barrel to attract the bears, and when these intelligent, gentle, and curious animals come to eat, they are shot—often several times before they die. Many bears escape wounded and face a slow death from blood loss, gangrene, or other infections, dehydration, or starvation.

More Information on the Peta Campaign Page

Additional Facts about Fur:

http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=452&more=1

http://infurmation.com/facts.php

The Truth about Cats and Dogs: http://infurmation.com/detail.php?id=21

With so many attractive and sensible alternatives available, fur is simply unnecessary.
Current issues:

Investigation Results Find Raccoon Dog Most Misrepresented Fur Sold in America

http://www.respectforanimals.co.uk/home.php/press_release/

Canadian government sanctions killing of 275,000 seal pups

Weeks before the start of the Canadian seal hunt, the largest and most brutal marine mammal hunt in the world, the Canadian government has announced (10 March) that up to 275,000 seal pups can be clubbed and shot to death during this year’s hunt.

Design Against Fur 2008! :

http://infurmation.com/daf/2008/daf08.html

What YOU can do:

Spread the Message

Consumers who buy and wear fur are not always the callous individuals they appear to be. Most of them simply do not realise the tremendous suffering involved in creating a single fur coat or trim. Others cannot bring themselves to believe that "respectable" corporations could be involved in such barbarism. Some continue to be dazzled by the glamour of the fashion world and its multi-million dollar PR campaigns, which increasingly paint a compassionate, caring view of the industry's relationship with its animal victims. The right information can change all this and bring to light what has been hidden for reasons of profit or greed.

Help cut-off the supply of funds that continue to drive the fur trade:

When shopping, beware of clothes sporting a fur trim. Though reasonably priced or even cheap, these may be manufactured from real rather than fake fur. Check the label, or ask the sales assistant. If in doubt, take your business elsewhere.

Boycott shops that sell fur, and politely but firmly explain your actions to management.

ACTION ALERTS
Press for a ban on bear baiting - Urge the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to ban bear baiting in Canada.

Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

By participating in this campaign, you will be supporting PETA in their efforts to put an end to the abominable practice known as "baiting and shooting" adopted by Canadian hunters that causes terrible suffering to black bears often left wounded with the grim prospect of facing a slow death from blood loss - in front of their cubs, who are left orphaned.

Help stop the sale of fur from raccoon dogs that are sometimes skinned alive in China - Recent HSUS tests showed that animal fur is frequently mislabeled or marked as faux fur, to fool people into buying them believing that the fur they buy is synthetic.

Sponsored by: Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

By signing this petition, you will help enforce the Dog and Cat Fur Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2007, a bill to protect consumers and animals by requiring all fur products be correctly labeled.

Sign the fur-free pledge petition - Help save foxes, rabbits, and other furbearers from suffering in the name of "fashion".

Sponsored By: Humane Society of the Unites States (HSUS)

Call for a ban on the importing of fur into the UK

Sponsored By: Animal Aid

PUPPY MILLS

"The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for white, or women created for men." ~Alice Walker

Puppy mills are commercial mass dog-breeding facilities that put profit above the welfare of dogs.

Some Facts about Puppy Mills:

Most puppy mill dogs are housed in shockingly poor conditions, especially the ones kept in cages to be bred over and over for years, without human companionship and with little hope of ever joining a family. After they're no longer profitable, these dogs are simply discarded.

Puppy mills contribute to millions of unwanted dogs who are euthanized each year in the United States alone.

Mill puppies are more likely to have severe health problems, genetic defects and behavioral issues.

Dogs kept for breeding in puppy mills suffer for years and are bred as often as possible before they are killed, sold through auction like used cars or abandoned.

Unscrupulous breeders use attractive websites to hide the truth and to dupe the public into thinking that they are dealing with a reputable breeder. Reputable breeders never sell puppies over the Internet or through a pet store. They will insist on meeting the family who wants to buy the dog.

Fact sheet: http://www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=45

Have a look inside Puppy Mills:

http://stoppuppymills.org/inside_a_puppy_mill.html

Current issues:

Cruelty Caught in Hollywood Glare

Virginia Lawmaker Cracks Down on Puppy Mills

Ground-breaking class action lawsuit filed on behalf of members of The Humane Society of the United States against a notorious Florida puppy mill dog dealer.

This lawsuit is the latest step in a multi-year legal battle by The HSUS against a company called Wizard of Claws and its owners in response to widespread reports that this store routinely sells sick and dying puppy mill puppies to unsuspecting customers.

What YOU can do:

Report Cruelty to Animals:

http://www.helpinganimals.com/ga_reportCruelty.asp

Never Buy Animals From Pet Stores or Breeders :

http://www.helpinganimals.com/ga_petstore.asp

Check out this list of 10 things you can do to help stop puppy mills:

http://stoppuppymills.org/what_you_can_do.html

ACTION ALERTS
Take the pledge to stop puppy mills! - StopPuppyMills.org

Sponsored by: Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

If you sign this petition, you take the pledge to not buy your next pet from a pet store or Internet site, and to refuse to buy supplies from any pet store or Internet site that sells puppies.

Sign the Stop Puppy Mills petition at PetitionOnline

Sponsored by: Fighting For Animal Rights Organization (FFARO)

Join the campaign to help end the cruelty of Puppy Mills - ga4.org/campaign/puppy_mills

Sponsored by: North Shore Animal League America (NSALA)

Join Peta's campaign urging PetSmart and PETCO to stop obtaining animals from cruel breeding mills

Sponsored by: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

If you sign this petition you will help build pressure on PetSmart for discontinuing to obtain animals from a mass-breeding mill and broker called Rainbow World Exotics, and therefore stop supporting this cruel mass-breeding industry.

Music:


Our Animal Companions

Every month we cover interesting and little known facts about animals. This month we cover dolphins. Are you a dolphin lover ? Would you like to share something with us ? Write to us and we may feature your story on one of our blogs.

Interesting Facts About Dolphins

Dolphins are capable of performing complex tasks, and through training, to approximate the sounds of a few human words. Because of this, some investigators have suggested that the animals might be capable of learning a true language and communicating with humans.

Dolphins spend about 30% of their day in some form of touching, caressing, or mating.

Dolphins are conscious breathers. i.e., they have to remain awake in order to remember to breathe. In other words, dolphins must "remain in the present" (as yogis of the seas!), and perhaps it is this state of conscious awareness that humans find so magical and magnetic.

They sleep by shutting down one half of their brain at a time, with one eye open, the one connected to the side that remains awake.

Research suggests that dolphins are able to receive images telepathically and respond to them before verbal commands are given. Dolphins "see" holographically. They are able to scan an object or a person and see all states of being multi-dimensionally in an instant.

Dolphins are always connected to the dolphin pod as a whole entity itself, synchronized and unified. There is no separation between them and it. This also means they sense the world that way as well, so like a hologram they are a whole entity that is part of a larger whole = the pod awareness.

Most people who have a dolphin encounter have found that their brain wave patterns shift from the alpha state of consciousness to the theta state. The theta brain wave patterns induce states of expanded consciousness such as those found during meditation or transcendental states of being.

In dolphins, both hemispheres of the brain are synchronized unlike in most human beings. When both hemispheres are synchronized, meaning the electromagnetic frequencies put out are the same pulse rate, higher states of consciousness are accessed much easier.

A great article about dolphins

Another interesting article about dolphins

See an interesting video of a dolphin:

Sea Shepherd is the only organization with a ship in the ice floes of Canada to oppose the seal hunt. Support them by clicking on the banner below and making a donation.

Movies:

Recommended Videos

Sea Shepherd on Seal Hunting

Get Angry for the Right Reasons

Barbaric Chinese fur farms

My Blog

Dolphin slaughter in Japan - What really happens and how YOU can help!

Hello and welcome to our first blog. We assume some of you are already aware of the barbaric and senseless slaughter of dolphins and whales in Japan. This blog is dedicated to those who are not yet pr...
Posted by Earth Companions on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 03:47:00 PST