| Newsletter: April - June 2000 |  |
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ARFF Newsletter: April - June 2000
News:Landmark Ballot Measure Launched to Ban Abusive Factory Farming PracticeMeasured just in sheer numbers, the abuse of animals on "factory farms" dwarfs the exploitation of animals used in other animal industries. Every year, billions of animals are reared and confined on factory farms and then sent to slaughterhouses. Small family farms have been supplanted by corporate animal factories, which treat animals as nothing more than as unfeeling commodities.It is well known that the veal crate is among the most cruel and deplorable animal husbandry techniques, in which young veal calves are kept in tiny stalls for their short 16 week lives so that they can't move. The lack of exercise prevents muscle development and assures that the meat from the animals is soft and tender to appeal to the tastes of upscale consumers. Perhaps less known, but equally cruel and inhumane, is the way female pigs are treated on factory farms. Breeding sows are confined in barren metal enclosuresmeasuring just two feet wide- for almost their entire lives. The enclosures are called "gestation crates." The pigs cannot exercise or even turn around, and they are prevented from engaging in natural behaviors and from satisfying basic psychological needs. After she produces a litter of piglets, the mother pig is impregnated again and returned to the miserable life of a gestation crate. Pigs in gestation crates suffer from an array of physical ailments such as joint disorders and lameness, and psychological maladies including chronic stress and depression. Confined pigs routinely exhibit neurotic coping behaviors, which include repetitive bar biting and head waving. Studies reveal that the pigs in gestation crates release pain-killing endorphins, which help the animals cope with their deprivation- a biological indicator that the animals are stressed and experiencing severe discomfort. Gestation crates are so cruel that they have been outlawed in other countries, but, tragically, they remain common in the United States, including in Florida. Like all animals, pigs experience pain and suffering, and they deserve at the very least to be treated with basic humane consideration. Tragically, animals exploited for food in the U.S. have been excluded from the federal Animal Welfare Act, and also most state anti-cruelty laws. It is cruel to keep a female pig in a constant state of pregnancy and confined in a tiny crate for her entire life, and the practice should be illegal. Together, we can do something about the use of the gestation crate. The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida and several national animal protection organizations are launching a statewide ballot initiative to ban the gestation crate. We are aiming to have the measure appear on the November 2002 statewide ballot. In order to qualify this landmark initiative for the ballot (the first ever ballot initiative to address a particular type of factory farming technique) we need your participation. We will need hundreds of petitioners to collect the signatures of registered voters, and we are now signing up volunteers to kick off this major effort on election day this November. Please plan to take election day, November 7, 2000, off from work, so that we can amass most of the required signatures on a single day. If you would like to volunteer to collect signatures- and we desperately need your participation to make this a successplease call the ARFF office at (954) 917-2733 or email: ARFFmain@aol.com. We will conduct training sessions throughout the state to make signature gathering both fun and efficient. Contact us today!
Problems at the University of FloridaLast month, The Gainesville Sun published an expose on serious problems at the University of Florida's animal research laboratories. The report documented numerous cases of sick animals not receiving medical care, unsafe conditions that resulted in animals injuring themselves, problems with regular feeding and watering of animals, filthy cages and pens, and failure to give sheep and other animals painkillers following major surgery.For the past several years, Dr. Jerry Davis has been the director of Animal Resources, the office that oversees the care of animals used in research at the university. Following the Sun feature, Jerry was fired from his position. Some of his colleagues unwittingly further indicted the institution by claiming things were even worse before Davis arrived, referring to a report in 1993 that listed 10 pages of deficiencies and characterized UF's animal research program as "marginally acceptable." Remarkably, Davis has returned to his job as professor in the College of Veterinary Science, where he continues his own animal research (involving mice, rats and monkeys)! The University of Florida in Gainesville is the largest animal research institution in the state. In 1998- the most recent year for which records are available- 27,971 animals suffered in UF labs in a variety of experiments (see page 4 for photos from ARFF's demonstration at UF for World Week for Animals in Laboratories). Write to the university and demand that Jerry Davis be removed from his current position as well, and not permitted to be anywhere near animals at the University of Florida. Also, please contact the U.S. Department of Agriculture and demand an immediate investigation of the animal care problems at the University of Florida. Many of the conditions described in the newspaper report are in violation of the Animal Welfare Act.
Upcoming Demonstrations:Speak Out on Behalf of Carriage Horses on the First Day of SummerThe beginning of summer is not a time to look forward to for the working horses in Florida's oldest city. For them, summer means long months pulling heavy carriages for hours in blistering heat and humidity, and the ever-present threat of accidents. There have been at least 15 accidents involving horse-carriages in St. Augustine since 1996, many resulting in serious injuries to drivers, passengers and horses. Please join ARFF's demonstration on behalf of St. Augustine's carriage horses.Tuesday, June 20, 2000 12:00 noon in St. Augustine
Grand Opening of Discovery CovePlease join ARFF to Demonstrate Against the Exploitation of Marine Mammals Hoping to jump-start attendance that has been flat for years, SeaWorld Orlando will open a new theme park in Orlando, July 1st. The theme park, Discovery Cove, is billed as a "unique swim-with-dolphins vacation experience." For a fee of $179 per person, visitors will be able to "hang onto a dorsal fin for a high-speed ride or cradle a dolphin in their arms. Younger children can touch, hug or swim with dolphins in the shallower waters." Sadly, when it opens, Discovery Cove will be neither unique nor humane. Several swim-with-dolphins programs already in exist in Florida. Dolphin-human interaction programs have long been criticized as dangerous for humans (the potential for aggressive behavior toward human swimmers is an ever-present risk) and dolphins alike. Discovery Cove will continue the tradition of exploiting marine mammals for commercial purposes. At Discovery Cove, dolphins will become little more than the latest amusement park ride. Sea World has made a bid to purchase 19 dolphins from the financially-troubled Marineland aquarium (see October-December 1999 ARFF News). If the deal goes through, these dolphins will most likely be headed to Discovery Cove. Saturday, July 1, 9:00 a.m. in Orlando, Florida Directions: The entrance to Discovery Cove is located across the street from Sea World, on Central Florida Parkway. From Orlando: Take exit 28 off of Interstate 4. >From Tampa: Take exit 27A off of Interstate 4.
Saturday, July 1, 9:00 a.m. in Orlando, Florida
Updates:2000 Legislative SessionAlthough several bills were introduced that would have helped animals in Florida, in the end, the 2000 legislative session was again disappointing for animal advocates.Senate Bill 1700, introduced by Senator Ron Klein, would make it illegal to breed, train, purchase or sell any animal for the purpose of fighting. In Florida, it is a felony to fight animals, but it remains legal to raise "gamecocks" and pitbulls to fight. The bill received a lot of support, including an editorial by the Sun-Sentinel newspaper. ARFF also generated letters of support from Dade County Animal Services, Palm Beach County Sheriff Robert Neumann and Pinellas County Sheriff Everett Rice. In April, the Senate Committee on Criminal Justice unanimously voted in support of the bill. Unfortunately, Representative Adam Putnam, Chair of the Agriculture Committee, refused to allow the companion bill in the House (H.B. 941, introduced by Rep. Eleanor Sobel) to even be discussed. The legislation will be reintroduced in 2001. Another bill, H.B. 989, would have prohibited several cruel practices common in circuses. The bill was introduced in the House by Rep. Curt Levine and in the Senate by Sen. Daryl Jones soon after an elephant near Tampa stomped and killed a circus performer (at least the sixth time an elephant has killed a human in Florida since 1990). H.B. 989 received a lot of attention in newspapers statewide, and Rep. Levine appeared on the NBC Nightly News. Sadly, this bill also died in the Agriculture committee. Thanks to Representative John Rayson for introducing H.B. 1029, that would have prohibited tethering or confinement of pregnant pigs, and calves raised for veal. The bill was referred to the Agriculture Committee and was never discussed. Thanks also to Representative Lois Frankel and Senator Howard Foreman for their efforts to strengthen trapping regulations (H.B. 1421 and S. 1386), which failed to get a hearing. In Florida, whenever a pro-animal, anti-cruelty bill is introduced in the state legislature, the first committee it's usually referred to is the agriculture committees in the House or the Senate, which are dominated by legislators who are not friendly to animals. The difficulty of getting animal-friendly bills passed in Florida underscores the need to have legislators that care about animals on those committees.
Contact your state Senator and Representative and ask them to
request an appointment to the agriculture committee. Explain that the
animals need progressive, compassionate people on this committee (please
contact their district office). Please contact ARFF if you don't know who
your legislators are, or go to:
Victories:Fair Expansion Plans Put on HoldIn January, the South Florida Fair in West Palm Beach announced that it would be asking Palm Beach County and the state for help in funding an expansion that would include an "agriplex" showcasing genetically-engineered plants and animals, and cloned animals, as well as a new events center for circuses and rodeos.This year's Fair included a circus, performing sea lion show, racing pigs, camel and elephant rides, a tiger show, and agricultural barns where you could buy chicks for $5 and see pregnant cows give birth in the "Mooternity" ward. ARFF members attended a March 28 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners and spoke against the expansion plans and the exploitive and abusive acts at the Fair. Offering a first-hand account of the cruelty and danger of animal acts was Palm Bay, Florida police officer Blayne Doyle. Doyle was the policeman forced to shoot to death a rampaging circus elephant named Janet in the streets of Palm Bay in 1992. At the meeting, the county steadfastly refused to help fund the expansion with county dollars. The Fair president also promised not to include genetically-engineered plants and animals in any future expansion.
King the GorillaOn May 4, the Florida House of Representatives adopted a resolution urging the owners of Miami's Monkey Jungle to send their lonely gorilla King to the 4-acre, naturalized gorilla exhibit at Zoo Atlanta. The resolution marks the latest salvo in ARFF's 5-year campaign to transfer the 30-year-old silverback from the hideous concrete-and-bars cage where he has lived alone for the past 20 years.The resolution was introduced by Representative Chris Smith of Fort Lauderdale who expressed a heartfelt concern for the mistreatment of animals, and primates in particular. The non-binding resolution now aligns the Florida House of Representatives with the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, the Gorilla Species Survival Plan, world-renowned primate expert Dr. Jane Goodall, a list of national celebrities, three United States Congressmen, and countless animal protection organizations worldwide in the call for King to live out his final years with family, companionship and dignity. For the history of ARFF's campaign visit our website, www.SaveKing.com.
Bert Wahl in Trouble AgainOne of ARFF's long-standing adversaries has again found himself in trouble. In 1999, animal exhibitor Bert Wahl's license to exhibit animals expired. Never one to abide by rules, Bert and his cougar (and other animals) continued to make appearances around the state. ARFF documented each of these violations and was diligent in informing the U.S. Department of Agriculture of each of Wahl's appearances. In January, the USDA brought charges against Bert Wahl, doing business as Wildlife Rescue Inc. in Tampa, with violations of the Animal Welfare Act.In addition to charging Wahl with operating without a license, the USDA also found that Wahl kept animals in cages that were too small, filthy, unsafe and in disrepair; failed to provide adequate shelter to animals kept outside; allowed standing water to collect in cages; improperly stored food; failed to provide adequate veterinary care and other problems. Hopefully, these most recent charges will once-and-for-all end Wahl's career as an animal exhibitor. Since the early 1990s, Bert Wahl has been the subject of numerous Action Alerts, protests, and articles in ARFF News. He has been found guilty in the past of violating federal regulations, state guidelines, and Florida's animal cruelty statute.
Help Helen the ElephantWhen the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus arrived in West Palm Beach in March for a series of shows, a 46-year-old elephant named Helen was pictured in the Palm Beach Post working to raise the circus tent. Helen has been the focus of activists' concerns due to a painful, chronic knee injury that is aggravated by her persistent use in performances, for rides, and in raising the circus tent. In addition to her leg injury, USDA inspectors have also noted scars near Helen's eye and ear (possibly a result of cruel handling), and an injury to her tail that occured when the truck she was riding in stopped suddenly, sending Helen into a wall inside the trailer. Helen represents an average American circus elephant- aging, in poor health, and continuing to be dragged across the country and forced to perform. Please send polite letters urging the USDA to convene an independent panel of experts to review Helen's situation (and that of Beatty-Cole's other elderly elephants) and determine if she should be retired from service.
Michael Dunn U.S. Department of Agriculture 12th & Jefferson Drive, SW Washington, D.C. 20250 email: Michael.Dunn@usda.gov
City of Pompano BeachIn February, a bull-riding event was held behind a restaurant in Pompano Beach. ARFF staff attended the event and videotaped bulls being repeatedly shocked with electric cattle prods, and one bull who had blood dripping down his face from a broken horn. The video and photographs appeared in local media.In March, the city was again approached by a rodeo promoter. This time, the city denied the request for a permit. Mayor Bill Griffin said, "I really think the bull-riding episode diminished the image of Pompano Beach." This follows the compassionate decision in November by the city commission in denying an animal exhibitor a permit to offer elephant rides (see the January-March issue of ARFF News). The City of Pompano Beach is currently considering adopting an animal display ban that would prohibit rodeos, circuses and other exotic animals acts. Thanks to everyone who wrote to the city in support of an animal display ban.
Congressman Hastings Joins Advisory BoardU.S. Congressman Alcee Hastings recently accepted an invitation to join ARFF's Board of Advisors. Congressman Hastings is a vegetarian and received a perfect rating on a scorecard published by the Humane Society of the U.S. and the Fund for Animals, by voting in favor of every pro-animal bill in the 106th Congress. (The other two members of Congress from Florida who have perfect scores- Peter Deutsch and Robert Wexler- are also on ARFF's Board of Advisors.)Congressman Hastings was first elected to Congress in 1992 and has been re-elected 3 times since, representing District 23, which includes parts of Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Hendry, Martin, St. Lucie and Okeechobee Counties. Alcee Hastings was born in Altamonte Springs, and is the father of two daughters and one son.
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