Animals 24-7

News on dogs, cats, horses, wildlife, zoonoses, & nature

Will anti-show horse soring bill pull up lame through last-hurdle compromise?

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What would Marty Irby,  Wayne Pacelle & Lamar Alexander think if weighted shoes were on their feet? UPDATE received on December 18,  2020,  from Bernard Unti,  senior policy advisor,  Humane Society of the U.S.:   “I’m pleased to share the news that the reckless attempt by an embittered faction within animal protection to swap in a […]

David Wills, ex-Humane Society of the U.S. vice president, gets life in prison

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Life sentence rendered after case was before the courts for five years             CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas––David Keith Wills,  68,  former Michigan Humane Society executive director and vice president for investigations at the Humane Society of the U.S.,  was on September 22,  2020 formally sentenced to serve life in federal prison. Wills was convicted on October 8,  […]

Kamala Harris: long record on animal issues, including pit bull attacks

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Prosecuted two dog attack fatalities, enforced pit bull sterilization ordinance, but favors adoptions of fighting dogs             SAN FRANCISCO––U.S. Senator Kamala Harris,  named vice presidential running mate to Democratic Party presidential nominee Joe Biden on August 11,  2020,  brings to the election campaign both a strong record on animal protection and a mixed record in […]

Birds in the mail: U.S. Postal Service changes kill thousands

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Trump appointee DeJoy puts animal advocates, factory farmers, cockfighters, & captive bird-shooters all on the same side of the fence WASHINGTON D.C.––Changes to U.S. Postal Service policy and practice implemented by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy,  appointed in May 2020 by U.S. President Donald Trump,  on August 21,  2020 improbably aligned animal advocates,  factory-style poultry farmers,  […]

“End human breeding of animals,” says Ed Duvin; ANIMALS 24-7 responds

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Home-grown speciesism by Ed Duvin I have not written for publication on animal rights and animal sheltering since 1993, as I had largely achieved what I set out to accomplish and it was time for new voices to be heard. Having joined the animal rights movement in 1979, after working in the civil rights and […]

Amazon et al may sell foie gras to Californians despite state ban, rules judge

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2004 law prohibits sale but not purchase of product from tortured waterfowl LOS ANGELES, California––Foie gras,  an oily spread made from the diseased livers of force-fed ducks and geese,  may be legally purchased by Californians,  but a 2004 state law prohibits selling it within California,  Los Angeles U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson ruled on […]

Kentucky state cops let 33 cars leave alleged cockfight before investigating

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Showing Animals Respect & Kindness caught the “great escape” on video             PINE KNOT, Kentucky––Duane Pohlman, chief investigative reporter for the Cincinnati television station WKRC,  aired quite a scoop about cockfighting continuing in Kentucky on Monday,  July 6, 2020,  using undercover video collected by Showing Animals Respect & Kindness (SHARK) with Humane Farming Association Funding. […]

Horse racing fails to win, place, or show in Georgia, despite HSUS support

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Why is the Humane Society of the U.S. helping horse racing to expand into new territory? ATLANTA, Georgia––Again the perennial horse racing industry attempt to legalize pari-mutuel betting and introduce thoroughbred racing to Georgia failed during the 2020 state legislative session,  closed on July 3. Opposition to legalizing pari-mutuel betting came chiefly from religious groups […]

Wild horse problem needs 15 years, $5 billion, says acting BLM chief

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“I’m not going to speculate on what Congress is going to do about money,”  Pendley adds.             FORT COLLINS,   Colorado;  CALGARY,  Alberta––Returning the U.S. wild horse population to the officially estimated sustainable level of about 27,000,  without mass roundups for  slaughter,  will take 15 years and $5 billion of investment,  acting Bureau of Land Management […]

David Wills, ex-humane exec, convicted; may get life in child sex case

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17-count conviction follows two-week trial; sentence pending             ROCKPORT,  Texas––David Keith Wills,  a former executive of four humane  organizations including the Humane  Society of the United States,  faces a potential sentence of life in prison,  following his conviction on October 8,  2019  by a U.S. federal court jury in Rockport,  Texas on 17 counts pertaining […]