Back Alley Vet Care
Published February 08, 2010 @ 07:00PM PT
A Rhode Island man was charged with animal cruelty for performing surgery to remove a cyst from his 14-year-old dog. Although Alan MacQuittie pleaded no contest to the charges of cruelty to animals and unauthorized practice of veterinary medicine, he defended what he did, saying that he'd performed similar operations in the military and was only trying to help his dog. He simply couldn't afford to take Nakita to a vet.
While Nakita is expected to make a full recovery, she had to go in for a second surgery after she was rescued because the wound had become infected. MacQuittie had tried to numb the dog's pain with the over-the-counter human medications Orajel, for teething and other minor oral pain, and Lanacane, a topical anti-bacterial/anti-itch product, which MacQuittie apparently decided to inject as a local anesthetic.
Even with the growing pet insurance industry, the cost of vet care poses a problem for many well-intentioned pet owners. But do-it-yourself vet care doesn't pay off.
Fur Council Gets Gold Medal for Spin
Published February 08, 2010 @ 05:45PM PT
With the Winter Olympics kicking off this week, the Fur Council of Canada wants you to believe that Fur is Green.
We can find plenty of examples of shameless industry spin in the "Fur is Eco-logical" and "People & Cultures" sections of the web site, too, but since this is the Animals blog, we'll focus on a few of the "animal welfare" gems:
Ohio's Issue 2, Round 2
Published February 08, 2010 @ 10:10AM PT
The passage of Issue 2 in Ohio last November was a setback for animal welfare advocates, not to mention agricultural animals themselves.
Issue 2 created a Livestock Care Standards Board composed of political appointees, with sweeping powers to control how livestock is treated on Ohio farms. Political appointments often lead to political patronage, raising the concern that seats on the Livestock Board would likely go to whichever factory farming shills ponied up the most campaign dollars.
Legal Rights for Animals: Will Switzerland Remain Neutral?
Published February 07, 2010 @ 12:00PM PT
Next month, Swiss voters will decide whether domesticated animals should get lawyers. If a referendum passes, each district will appoint a public defender for animals. And not just companion animals; farm animals would have a right to legal representation, too.
Predictably, farmers and government officials are against the proposal, but animal activists collected enough signatures to get it on the ballot. The "No to the Useless Animal Lawyers' Initiative" (yes, that's actually the name of group) said, "Animal rights advocates are useless to animals. They can't prevent animal abuse because they only get involved after it has been perpetrated."
Legal Rights for Animals: The Debate
Published February 06, 2010 @ 12:00PM PT
To some people, the question of "owner" vs. "guardian" is one of how much they love their pets. You don't say you "own" your children, so if you consider your pets as members of the family, it doesn't feel right to "own" them either, right?
Except it's more than a matter of choosing words that reflect how you feel about animals. These words are loaded with legal implications. When you "own" something, you have a lot more leeway to treat it however you like. Although that's not quite true with animals because there are animal welfare laws that provide certain protections for the living creatures we "own."
Sea Otters in Danger of Foreclosure
Published February 05, 2010 @ 06:15PM PT
It's not an easy time to be a marine mammal off the coast of California. First, a sea lion was robbed at gunpoint; shot in the face for allegedly stealing fish from a fisherman (the man was charged with felony animal cruelty, and the sea lion is currently recovering at the Mammal Marine Center.) Now, shellfish and urchin industries want to take away the home — and food — of endangered sea otters.
The complaint is that sea otters are eating into the supply for these multi-million dollar industries. One of the reasons these industries exist is because sea otters were nearly driven to extinction by the fur trade in the 18th and 19th centuries. Now that the marine mammal population has rebounded a little bit (to around 2,800 off the California coast, which is far more stable than the estimated 20 less than a century ago, but not even close to the original 18,000), the fisherman want their heyday back.
Puppy Bowl VI
Published February 05, 2010 @ 02:00PM PT
Animal Planet's answer to the Super Bowl is hours of gratuitous footage of puppy playtime. The Puppy Bowl, along with the Kitty Half-time Show, takes place in a football field playpen filled with toys and cameras — including one that gives a water-bowl's-eye-view. It's hosted by veteran broadcaster Jeff Bordner who lends his voice to the instant replays and penalty calls. You may even catch a glimpse of bunny cheerleaders or hamsters.
It's ridiculous ... and ridiculously adorable.
I can hear the alarms ringing throughout the animal community. Animals being used for entertainment, this can't be good!
