While we're on the subject of elephants...

As I mentioned in my last post, the elephants in the Okavango Delta of Botswana have a hope of protecting their new little pink addition because there is ample shade and plenty of mud. However, in the dry season between April and October, water becomes scarcer as the area dries up, and the elephants have to migrate to permenant water sources, such as the Moremi Games Reserve. This will be a trying time for the albino baby elephant, as for the rest of the herd. If you have seen the documentary Earth, I'm sure you can't forget the heart-wrenching story of the elephants that became separated from the rest of the migrating herd in the arid dustbowl of the Sub-Sahara, and ended up trekking back in the opposite direction, headed towards certain death. These were also elephants in Botswana's Okavango Delta.

I have just been informed by a reader who came across my last post that further to the northwest, in Mali, the elephants face an annual migration route that covers an area of 24,000 square kilometers called the Gourma region. The herds follow a route of approximately 450 to 600 staggering kilometers (280 - 375 miles) in their trek from one water source to the next- the longest of migration of any elephant herd on earth. You can see a fascinating map here of the migration trail of three separate herds, tracked by tagging a member of the herd and tracking the elephant via satellite by the Save the Elephants Foundation.

Compounding the already difficult migration is the fact that several formerly nomadic tribes of Mali have been encouraged by government subsidies to settle permenantly and begin raising crops. Obviously the best places for this would be around the available water sources in the area. Furthermore, to raise crops you need water, which also has to be sourced from these same lakes and marshes. So the demand of these precious resources is now much greater, leaving less to go around for the migrating elephant herds, as well as more obstacles (ie, human settlements) in their path to their dwindling water supply.

And that's not all: because of this great migration, tourism to view the elephants is on the rise, yet there is no eco-tourism policy as yet initiated.

It's a classic case of human versus wildlife conflict. This issue is broad and complex, and sounds like a dire situation, but luckily several organisations have copped on and have begun a massive effort to solve the problem before it gets any worse. The WILD Foundation has joined up with the Save the Elephants Foundation, the Environment and Development Group (UK), the Africa Parks Foundation (Netherlands) and Mali’s Direction Nationale de la Conservation de la Nature with funding from the US State Department and Agency for International Development to help protect and sustain this amazing herd.

Phase I (research, field data, tracking the elephants' routes as well as seeing how human settlements have affected the herds) was completed in 2006, and in 2007 they started Phase II: using the information of the herd composition and migration routes to avoid human/wildlife conflict and to form a strategy for herd conservation. Another important part of Phase II, which should be completed by the end of this year, is outreach to local communities- always a crucial factor if any animal rights campaign is to succeed.

Normally conservation campaigns are a matter of looking back at what has gone wrong in human/wildlife conflicts and then trying to make the best of a bad situation. The amazing thing about this project is that someone had the foresight to see a potential problem on the horizon, and began the steps necessary to solve the issue before the issue really became a problem. This project must be lauded as The Right Way to handle a situation with positive outcomes for both animals and people. If only more disasters were averted this way.

You can donate to the WILD Foundation's Mali Elephant Project here.

And read more (and see more photos) about the Mali Elephants here:
Africa Geographic article about the Mali elephants
Diary of Conservation Photographer Carlton Ward while on Mali elephant project in Phase I (2004)

Rare Animals in the Wild

An albino pink baby elephant has been caught on film in Botswana, an exciting event for those who witnessed it, as albino elephants are very rare. Questions arise now about the little elephant's survival rate under the intense African sun, but according to the article his chance is better there in the Okavango Delta than many other places due to the shade he can find, and the mud that he can use to coat his body for protection.

Good luck little elephant!

One of the larger concerns should also be poachers, as we know from experience that rare and magnificent animals in the wild (such as the poor white stag in the UK in 2007) are often prime targets for hunting trophies. In a positive turn of events, apparently that white stag sired a baby white stag and those who have seen it are more keen than ever to protect its location and therefore prevent a similar hunting tragedy that claimed its father.

Endangered and rare animals have a hard enough time surviving human encroachment without the more deliberate threat of hunting to worry about.

Good luck to all of the endangered animal species.

Delays & Guilt

I know many of you have experienced the same thing, but sometimes the whole plight of animals and the horrors that they go through becomes just too much. I want to post about the latest news article involving animals, but I can't bring myself to read it, or watch a video, or see the photos. What can I do to get past this? Now more than ever the word needs to be spread. If I feel bad just looking at a photo, I can't ignore how that animal in the photo must feel. The pain, the confusion, the outrage. So I delay, and work on other things, and ignore this blog, and the guilt consumes me. Any advice?

Is it Vegan? (UK website)

Every country should have a site like the Is It Vegan site in the UK. This site is an extremely useful database that lets you search for UK products to find out whether or not they are vegan. Although it doesn't seem to be a comprehensive list of all products available in the UK, in the very least it is a list of all products that you can count on to be vegan, so you have some useful brand names to look out for, such as Yaoh shampoo, which is safe. It is useful to note that ASDA household cleaning products are not vegan, and anything marked 'McBride' probably isn't either.

On a similar note, the ProefDierVrij website in the Netherlands also has a search function for cosmetics so you can see what brands test on animals or don't test on animals. It's useful for visitors to the Netherlands and residents alike to know that the Etos products as well as the ingredients in their products from alternate suppliers have all NOT been tested on animals. However, there may be some animal-derived ingredients, such as milk products in lotion, so still check the bottles!

That time of year...

With Thanksgiving fast approaching in the United States, the time has rolled around to spread the word about the Sponsor-a-Turkey program over at Farm Sanctuary in New York State.


The money from your sponsorship goes to the care of the turkeys at Farm Sanctuary, as well as to helping them care for all of the other animals living out happy lives on the property there. I have never had the chance to visit, but I only hear good things about Farm Sanctuary and the message they are spreading. So, if you are so inclined, pop on over there and donate to a really good cause. Around this time of year, the number of turkeys that will be slaughtered is beyond ridiculous.

Another option, if you have the space and the inclination, is to actually adopt one of these beautiful birds! As it says on their adoption page, "Home adopters must be vegetarian and committed to providing lifelong care for their turkey friends." If I was in the States and had the room, I would so have a turkey on its way to me right now, safe from hungry Thanksgivers.

While other countries, such as the UK, don't celebrate Thanksgiving, they still have a very Turkey-heavy holiday season at Christmas time. I was thinking that animal rescue organisations could probably benefit from a similar program there, but there appear to be some people working on saving the turkeys in an entirely different way.

We do what we have to.

Adidas and Kangaroo Leather

I stumbled across this article recently while on Google, but before I clicked on the link all I could see was 'Stella McCartney, militant vegan, joins forces with Adidas...' and I was excited, because I know that Adidas carries some vegan gym and sports shoes, which are pretty hard to find. This could only be a good thing.

Imagine my surprise when I followed the link and saw the rest of the title: '...company that profits from bloody slaughter of kangaroos'.

I had absolutely no idea that Adidas used kangaroo leather, and no idea how kangaroos were 'harvested' for this leather. I'm shocked and pretty sickened.

This article is over a year old, so I checked the Adidas website to see if Stella McCartney was still partnered with Adidas, and sure enough she is. It appears that she is designing a line of clothing and shoes for Adidas, and I am 100% sure that she will use entirely synthetic fabrics within her line, but the questions that the Daily Mail article raised are still valid (as much as I hate to agree with the Daily Mail on anything).

As such a staunch supporter of animal rights, how can she align with a company that supports such a horrific slaughter?

Or, on the other hand, should we be happy that she is bringing at least a measure of compassion to such a company? You have to start somewhere right?

The original point of this post was going to point out that Adidas carries a line of vegan training shoes, and on their website these shoes are clearly marked as 'vegan', which I thought was cool. Delving further into the website, I found many shoes that were also marked as 'K-leather'. After reading the Daily Mail article, I just can't get the images out of my head of baby kangaroos stomped to death or left for dead in the Australian outback.

Anyway, here is a head's up from PETA about where to find cruelty-free shoes in the meantime. And on ths ShoeBuy site, they have their vegan shoes specifically categorized for easy searching. They also ship internationally.

California Proposition 2

Two days ago history was made in the United States, for better and for worse. America elected its first black president, but also took away the rights of homosexuals to marry in California (Prop 8). Another Proposition that was up on the chopping board in California that had people waiting the outcome with bated breath was Proposition 2.

Proposition 2 was specifically to do with veal crates, battery cages, and sow gestation crates. If passed, it would prohibit these crates/cages that did not allow the animal inside to turn around, lay down, stretch their legs, or stand up freely.

By now, most people are beginning to understand that the days of happy farms with wandering chickens in the yard, cows mooing out in the pasture, and happy pigs in mud puddles are a figment of the past. Factory farming is the name of the game now, and animals are mere commodities, not unlike boxes on a shelf in that they have no rights, no personal space, and no semblance of a natural life (from birth to subsequent death). This proposition was working to reverse that, was trying to take that first step in the opposite direction. That first step was that the animals being confined should at least be able to stand, sit, turn and lay down in their confinement.

This proposition had the animal rights world in a frenzy, but not exactly how you would imagine. Not only was there the expected pro/con debate going on, with supporters of the proposition citing animal rights and the health of the animals and our food (close confinement breeds disease among the animals, for example) and opponents (mostly those working in the animal husbandry industry or directly related) resisting the proposition mostly due to the increased cost of food production in the absence of these cages.

However, there was also a pretty divided split among the animal rights world as to whether anyone should even support such a proposition. In the animal rights world, there were people crying 'No' to Proposition 2, and it all boils down to animal welfarism versus animal abolitionism.

Animal Abolitionists say that those pigs, chickens and calves shouldn't even be eaten, and therefore whether they are comfortable before their death is neither here nor there, because they will be slaughtered, they will be eaten, and we shouldn't support the abusers by paving an animal's journey to the carnivore's plate.

Animal Welfarists, on the other hand, say that in today's world it is asking too much to close down all factory farms and animal farms in general, because the world is not yet ready to forego eating meat. So if it must be, then at the very least what we can do is make the animal's short life as comfortable as possible with laws dictating their humane treatment, and make their death as compassionate as can be.

Up until a few months ago I had no idea that there existed such a debate. Now I see both sides of the fence and wonder where I stand. I think it depends on how far you are going to reach into realism or idealism in your stance of animal rights.

Proposition 2 was passed two days ago with a 63% majority, so in the next couple of years there will be changes taking place in California.

While similar propositions have been enacted in various other states, they never included chicken battery cages in their amendments, focusing instead only on pigs or calves (or bot), so this is a landmark decision which will hopefully spurn similar decisions across the States.

I'll probably write more about abolitionism versus welfarism at another time, but right now I will say this.

The animal rights world at this very moment is shaky, at best. Our members are spread far and wide, with no centralised core, which makes for a weak foundation. Added to that is the fact that our topics are so incredibly diverse- rodeos, circuses, zoos, animals in food production, domestic animal abuse, hunting, the fur trade, the seal slaughter, fishing, whaling, vivisection, the list goes on and on and on. In short, we have so much to do and so little people to support us. The movement is still young.

Therefore, in regards to Proposition 2, we need both the abolitionists and the welfarists. We need people who are there fighting for an end to all animal food production, and the welfarists there looking out for the animals in the factory farms until everything is closed down. No battle was ever won by just idealists, nor was it won by realists alone.

Abolitionists and welfarists should stop bickering with eachother and just focus on what they are respectively fighting for, and together, little by little and maybe without intending to, they will help eachother get to their common goal.

Whale Wars, this Friday on Animal Planet

I was 7 years old when the realm of animal rights first opened up for me. I can't remember exactly how it fell into my hands, but I received a pamphlet about the 'Save the Whales' campaign. It listed about 20 humpback whales that you could 'adopt', with photos,and statistics such as size and weight.

At that age, I don't think I understood why the whales had to be saved, I just knew that I was the girl for the job. At seven years old, if you had asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, listed among the 'artist' and 'bartender' I would have also mentioned 'whale saver'. I hung the poster of the whales on my corkboard and thought that I really had adopted one of them (not sure if I ever sent away the adoption form). I thought that I was personally responsible for one of those whales, and that one day I would probably meet it and it would love me and let me pet it over the side of the boat. In it's own whale-like way, it would thank me for saving it and a lifelong bond would ensue.

So it was actually the whales that first introduced me to the animal rights world, and my compassion for needy animals grew from there. However, as far as actually getting involved in animal rights, I have been late coming to the game, I'll admit. For awhile I thought that my vegetarianism was enough, but in the grand scheme of things it wasn't, and I'm now trying to make up for lost time.

Fastforward 20 years to last summer, when I went to the Running of the Nudes protest in Pamplona and met a ton of like-minded people that were active in the animal rights world, as well as plenty that were also active in the human rights world.

One of these people was Laurens.

Laurens was a Dutch police investigator working on organized environmental crime, but when I met him he was just quitting his job and was waiting to move to Australia to be with his girlfriend. He was a volunteer for Sea Shepherd, an organization that up to that point I had not heard of, but have run into many times since then at conferences, fairs, etc.

Sea Shepherd lives by the creed 'Less Talk, More Action'. The founder, Paul Watson, originally co-founded Greenpeace, but then split to start Sea Shepherd so that he could be a little more active in the fight against animal abuse on the high seas. You may remember the organization from the news last winter during the squirmishes with Japanese whaling ships in the Antarctic which gained international media coverage. This organization is dead serious about saving the ocean's wildlife and will do everything in it's power to prevent oceanlife abuse, travelling to literally every end of this earth to meet abusers face to face. They are not afraid of confrontation, to put it mildly.

Had it not been for Laurens I'm not sure if I would have paid as much attention to Sea Shepherd and what it is they are doing. As it is, he made me aware of what they stand for and the campaigns they are working on, and for that I am grateful.

So the other week when he sent me this link, my heart swelled five times its normal size. I was so happy for him and everything that he is doing. It's crazy, but I feel really PROUD of them!

This series, Whale Wars, starts on Animal Planet this Friday 7 November at 9 pm eastern time. It looks so good! Please try and watch it! A big up to Animal Planet, as well, for taking on such a controversial topic! It's not all fluffy cuddly stuff, people!

Whale Wars Trailer on the Animal Planet Discovery Channel

Laurens is seen throughout this whole trailer. He's the guy who says 'That ship stands for everything I hate'. In fact, they made a promo ad with just him.

Sea Shepherd starts another mission next month, Operation Musashi, so here's wishing the crew a HUGE GOOD LUCK!

If anyone is interested in supporting Sea Shepherd or reading more about what they stand for (many campaigns involving ocean wildlife), here is the link to the organisation: http://www.seashepherd.org/

Also, a Save the Whales Again! campaign, spurned from the original Save the Whales campaign that got my little heart interested.

And don't forget to watch 'Whale Wars' this week!

Kangaroo Beat Up in Australia

I was hoping to start this blog on a calmer post, with maybe an introduction or the reasons why I am starting it to begin with, but I have just been sent a news report from a friend in Australia, and need to vent about it.

It seems to be happening more often that a story pops up in the news about animal abuse that is so horrific that you can't help but stop and cry. Apparently a video was uploaded recently to a website showing a kid in Australia beating up a defenseless kangaroo.

For the full story, please see here. There is also a video that shows small clips from the film, but it is really hard to watch, so be warned.

I will never, ever understand how someone could do this. Or how others (this kid's friend) can stand around and video the event. Because the kangaroo is not just running away, but staying to defend itself, they suspect that it may have been injured before this kid started punching it. What really freaks me out is that I have a sinking feeling that these kids first hit it with their car (you can see the headlight lights of the car in the video), and then got out to torture it and film its abuse.

I can't even begin to describe how this makes me feel. The confusion that the poor animal must have felt at this sudden attack. The forethought that must have gone on for these kids to get out of the car, grab a camera, and begin. It really disturbs and upsets me, and that is such an understatement. I have a feeling in the pit of my stomach of anger, despair, rage, and fear. I feel choked up.

In trying to see a silver lining to this whole ordeal, I will say this: That this and other animal abuse stories are being widely published and reported on is a good sign for the animal rights movement. It is sad that hardly a week goes by without another horrific report of animal abuse/torture/neglect surfacing, but perhaps this media coverage shows a growing interest in what is happening to animals all over the world.

I can only hope that by this attention being drawn to these issues, slowly more and more people will come to see how wrong it all is, and with this groundwork laid then maybe some real changes can be made.

To anyone in Australia who may come across this, now or in the future: Please let me know if they catch the kid who did this, and good luck finding the bastard.

About Me, and About This Blog

I'm an animal rights activist not working directly in the AR world, but doing what I can. I wanted this blog to be an opinion blog about issues and events in the animal rights world, so what you find here is my opinion on the matters at hand.

I currently live in the Netherlands, but my passion for animal rights knows no borders.

I welcome any mail to opencagesemptyfields at gmail dot com.

Todd, you asked for it.

Recently, in response to one of my bulletins, or probably the slew of bulletins, a friend from high school wrote to me with his counter arguments and opinions. Here they are, along with my response. I welcomed this, by the way, so if it seems like I'm angry, I'm not! I only wish that he and I could have met and discussed things in person, because I know him and I know me, and that would have been one hell of a debate!

I also welcome any points from anyone else wishing to raise them, so bring it!

Here goes.....

What is up with veggie sausages??? If vegetarians are truly vegetarians then why would they want to eat something that resembles a meat product? It means that all you folks are at the very least thinking about eating meat.

First of all, I for one do not like the veggie sausages or faux-meat that is on the market. In my opinion, there are too many other good things to eat without pretending that something is dead flesh. However, many people DO miss eating meat. For instance, I made a faux-meat meal for my meat-eating boyfriend, and he said that the fake meat actually helped him to accept the meal more- it was the mental idea of the texture and taste. So if it helps people switch to vegetarian options, then why not?

The choice to become a vegetarian comes not from what feels nice on the taste buds, but from higher concerns. Every vegetarian that I have met is doing it for the animals, the environment, or the world population. Many, including myself, do agree that meat tastes good, but the implication behind that meat just isn't worth it. Its just food, after all. It's not worth the torture in my mind. If it is worth the torture in your mind, then that's your opinion.

Also, there are certain vitamins that meat provides that veggies don't have. Every vegan person I have ever seen says how healthy they are, but they look like they have just spent the last 10 years in a concentration camp.

And, agreed, there is ONE vitamin that you can't get from a vegan diet, and that is B12. Which is why there are such things as vitamins in the world today. Wow, technology! Other great technological inventions that have put an end to animal abuse are: the car and the tractor. Its absolutely crazy what we can do these days because our technology has brought us far beyond using animals as food sources, beasts of burden or entertainment.

By the way, where are those concentration-camp vegetarians? I've been a vegetarian for 12 years and I don't look like I am on my last legs of life. Neither do the vegans or vegetarians I know. Send me some photos of this proof, otherwise I'll just say that you're talking through your ass.

Humans are animals and have eaten meat for thousands of years and that won't change. If eating meat was bad, then the human race would not be where it is today. Humans would not have evolved out of Africa and humans would have become extinct long ago. How else would you propose Inuits in Alaska survive? Should they eat all those plants and vegatables that seem to thrive in Arctic conditions?

Another agreement: humans have eaten meat for thousands of years. You're on the ball today, Todd! Perhaps we would not be where we are today without meat, but why do we need it now? Are we not 'evolved out of Africa' already? And before the invention of ways to seperate and combine vitamins, the microwave, the oven, pots, pans, etc, then granted, we NEEDED meat, as that was our source of food. But today, with the options available to us, its not necessary. Again, as I said above, we have moved past the age where we need animals to survive. Today, it's not like you go out, hunt what you need, use it wisely with little waste, and feed your family. A disgustingly large amount of the meat slaughtered for human consumption goes to waste. Its awful.

If you think that humans should just do what they've been doing for thousands of years, then bring back slavery, public executions, and trial by torture.

And I hardly think that the Inuits are on my shit list. Not are the Africans or Latin American indians, before you pull that card. They hunt for their food, use what they hunt, and don't hunt more than they need. Their situation has not brought them out of the need for animals, and I can respect that. It's fast food culture in both the United States, UK, and other developed nations that is the problem, this is where a large portion of the waste comes from, and also the demand.

If we ate meat like the Inuits, or the Latin American indians, then I wouldn't have a problem, because the world wouldn't have the problems it does now. But we don't. We raise, slaughter, and eat far more than is necessary because we have live in a disposable society that doesn't think about where it comes from, where its going, or the impact, and that has to change.

And who says its not BAD? What about heart attacks, cholesterol, or increased risk for prostate cancer and breast cancer, just to name a few.

By the way, if "humans are animals", then should we eat eachother?

Animal torture is awful and they should find more humane ways to kill animals for consumption but I will say that I have no problem with people choosing not to eat meat. Why can't non-meat eaters reciprocate the feeling?

Yes, animal torture is awful, and yes, they should find more humane ways to kill animals for consumption. I respect that you supposedly respect my decision not to eat meat (although you come at me with this healthy debate), but why would you have a problem with me not eating meat? What would be the point in a campaign to get me to eat meat, exactly? How would that better the world?

By not eating meat, you can not only save animals, but cut down on carbon emissions from the livestock in the world which is accellerating global warming (that is a fact, the global warming point is not from deforestation- at least thats not the main problem). You can increase your own health, help to better feed the world's starving population (also fact), and better use whats left of our natural resources (water for people and raise grain rather than water to feed cattle).

So whats the 'Eat Meat' campaign for? Because it tastes good? Because we always have? Come on, Todd, thats weak.

So sorry if I think people should realise what they are eating and what impact it has on the world. I generally will not sit and watch you eat meat and cause a fuss, but in fairness- you clicked on my bulletins, read what I had to say, and watch the videos. I'm not forcing it here, I'm putting the information out there for you, and you can choose to listen or not.

Perhaps we should focus on the way that humans are mistreated in the world. Ask your fellow Amsterdamers how many humans die every day in Latin America as a result of the cocaine trade? I realize that pot is grown there so no one is hurt. However, cocaine and other drugs that are so widely used arrive in people's hands with human blood attached to it. Chickens, I am not passionate about because I have never had a moment of comfort with one unless eating the number 17 at the chinese restaurant counts. Humans on the other hand I do care about.

And yes, there are also people suffering in the world. I find it very important and great that there are organizations in the world that are fighting for human rights, as well as animal rights, as well as for earth conservation. I will not wear diamonds because of the blood diamond trade (and not since the Leonardo Dicaprio movie, either, since way before that), and if I hear of some other misabuse to humans, then I will do what I can to not take part in that industry.

Unfortunately, I have been given a brain that cannot get images of animal abuse and torture out of my mind. I go to bed with them, I wake up with them, and so I do something about it. This is my battle. But like I said, I appreciate that human rights is YOUR stance, so tell me what organisations you belong to to fight for human rights, and what you're doing about it?

.....right.

Speaking of Latin America, intensification in animal farming has displaced 1,000,000's of people from their traditional lands there. Yes, the search for timber and oil is also a part of the problem, but you can't deny that animal farming is too (actually, it's 25% of the problem in Central America).

Deforestation and climate change are not the result of meat eaters but rather a result of human beings endless need for timber and oil. They do not cut trees down to chase chickens or spider monkeys out of the forest. Sorry to disppoint and be a pain with this comment but we meat eaters have opinions to.

As for the environmental reasons, it would take too much time, but read some of these:

http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Become_a_Vegetarian

http://www.britishmeat.com/49.htm

http://www.flex.com/~jai/articles/101.htmlEfficiency

http://vegetarian.about.com/od/meatandtheenvironment/Meat_and_the_Environment.htm

Long live Colonel Sanders. I hope all is well and we can form some healthy debate on this topic and find a middle ground.

Counter arguments are welcome, but please don't come at me with 'But plants are living too!', because we both know you're smarter than that. Like I said, I do appreciate a healthy debate, and this was all written in good humor, so I hope it was taken that way as well. I just wish we could have had this discussion in person, because I could talk all night on this subject.

As for the common middle ground?

Mmmmmm, I doubt it.

PS- Let me know if you want my sources.

*Another*¨Inconvenient Truth...Please watch.

I have no idea who this asshole is (quite a prick if you ask me), but he has raised a very important issue.

Take a look. (Thanks Dominique!)


Also, have a read for more details (Thanks, Jasper!):

http://www.vegsource.com/articles2/brook_inconvenient.htm

"The human appetite for animal flesh is a driving force behind virtually every major category of environmental damage now threatening the human future - deforestation, erosion, fresh water scarcity, air and water pollution, climate change, biodiversity loss, social injustice, the destabilization of communities, and the spread of disease."


Veganism.
If not for the animals...how about for us?