IDA - Bay Area Events

IDA EVENTS
1. Fur Protest at Chinese Consulate in San Francisco
2. Sign Petition to Save the Exotic Deer of Point Reyes National Seashore
3. Actors Urge Viewers to "Adopt and Save a Life" in IDA's PSA
OTHER BAY AREA EVENTS TO HELP ANIMALS
1. "LOVE Chickens, Don't-Eat-Them Day" Day at Animal Acres Sanctuary
2. Deadly Blood Sport Pits Dogs Against Rabbits
3. Serial Bunny Dumper Worsens Overpopulation Problems
4. Compassionate Cooks' February Cooking Class: "Demystifying Tofu and Tempeh"

IDA EVENTS

1. Fur Protest at Chinese Consulate in San Francisco

Please join IDA in San Francisco as we speak out against China's
unspeakable torment and live skinning of fur-bearing animals
such as dogs, cats, foxes, raccoon dogs, coyotes and minks. IDA
is hosting this demonstration in conjunction with protests being
held by other animal rights organizations at Chinese Consulates
and Embassies in more than 20 cities around the world as part of
an international campaign to end the Chinese cat and dog fur
trade. IDA's recent demonstration at the Chinese Consulate in
Los Angeles drew nearly 250 protestors. We hope that San
Francisco Bay Area animal advocates will match or even exceed
that number!

What: Demonstration against Chinese cat and dog fur trade
When: Monday, February 13th, 12:30 - 3:30 p.m.
Where: Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in
San Francisco, 1450 Laguna Street (at the corner of Geary &
Laguna - click http://www.chinaconsulatesf.org/eng/about/t50487.htm to
see a map)

The media will cover the protest if large numbers of people show
up, so please RSVP and bring as many friends as you can.
Banners, posters and leaflets will be provided. We are asking
everyone to wear black so that the number of people
participating in the protest is visible and apparent to passerby
and the media. The demonstration is scheduled to take place rain
or shine. For more information and to RSVP, please contact
Melissa Gonzalez at melissa [at] idausa.org or (415) 388-9641, ext.
228.

Please visit http://www.furkills.org for more information on the fur
trade.

2. Sign Petition to Save the Exotic Deer of Point Reyes National
Seashore

The National Park Service (NPS) plans to shoot and exterminate
the beautiful fallow and spotted axis deer living at the Point
Reyes National Seashore simply because they are non-native. All
impacts claimed by the park in their Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (DEIS), however, are minor or speculative. As there is
no crisis, the park has the time to implement a humane wildlife
contraception program, which has been used to manage deer
populations nationally and with elk living at the seashore.

A deadly hunt that will needlessly kill these unique animals who
have resided in Point Reyes since 1948, when they were placed
there by humans. Please help IDA remind the NPS of their ethical
obligation to exhaust all non-lethal methods before resorting to
violence.

What You Can Do:

1) Please sign IDA's petition ( http://ga0.org/campaign/pointreyespetition ) to stop the
slaughter of these beautiful deer.

2) Please click http://ga0.org/campaign/ptreyesdeer to urge NPS
Regional Director Jon Jarvis to implement a humane, non-lethal
method of controlling the exotic deer population at Point Reyes
National Seashore. To have a greater impact, also use the
information below to contact Mr. Jarvis by phone, fax, postal
mail and personal email.

Jon Jarvis
Regional Director
Pacific West Region
National Park Service
One Jackson Center
1111 Jackson Street, Suite 700
Oakland, CA 95607
(510) 817-1304
jon_jarvis [at] nps.gov

Please also send a copy of your letter to your member of
Congress. You can get contact information for your elected
officials by clicking
http://ga0.org/indefenseofanimals/home.html and entering your
zip code, or by calling the Government Information Hotline at
(916) 322-9900 and giving the operator your address.

California residents only: also contact U.S. Senator Barbara
Boxer:
1700 Montgomery Street, Suite 240
San Francisco, CA 94111
Tel: (415) 403-0100
Fax: (415) 956-6701

3) Read an article about the deer in the Marin Independent
Journal - http://www.marinij.com/marin/ci_3480884 .

For further information on what you can do to help the deer,
please visit http://www.saveptreyesdeer.org .

3. Actors Urge Viewers to "Adopt and Save a Life" in IDA's PSA

In IDA's 30-second public service announcement (PSA), Peter
Falk, his wife Shera Danese, Wendie Malick and Kristen Bell,
along with world-renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, urge
viewers to be animal "guardians," not "owners," and to "Adopt
and Save A Life" instead of buying animals from breeders or pet
stores. The PSA will air in the Bay Area on Animal Planet
throughout the month of February - "Responsible Animal Guardian
Month," and is the latest in a series of powerful IDA spots that
send a message of compassion to television audiences nationwide.
The PSA can also be viewed online at
http://www.onlinevideoservice.com/clients/ida/vid7.html .

IDA has declared February to be Responsible Animal Guardian
Month as a time for guardians to reflect on the important place
that animals hold in their lives. This is a great time to help
make the world a better place and give something back to the
animals by organizing a volunteer project in your community.
Here are some ideas for some ways to take action:

- Help your community become the next Guardian City. Visit
http://www.guardiancampaign.com to learn more about IDA's Guardian
Campaign and how you can get involved.

- If your family member, friend, neighbor or colleague is an
outstanding animal guardian, nominate them for IDA's Guardian of
the Month. To nominate someone, please write to
guardiannomination [at] idausa.org telling us about their efforts to
help animals.

- Click http://www.guardiancampaign.com/pdf/RAGM_flyer_1.pdf to
download IDA's Responsible Animal Guardian Month flyer and post
it at your workplace or in coffee shops, health food stores and
anyplace with a bulletin board.

- Request Guardian Campaign brochures from IDA and send them out
with a letter or note to those in the media who still use the
term "owner." E-mail Anne [at] idausa.org to request yours today.

OTHER BAY AREA EVENTS TO HELP ANIMALS

1. "LOVE Chickens, Don't-Eat-Them Day" Day at Animal Acres
Sanctuary

Next Sunday, just before Valentine's Day, Go Vegan Radio
( http://www.goveganradio.com ) will present a benefit event at
Animal Acres ( http://animalacres.org/home.html ), the new Los
Angeles-area sanctuary and compassionate living center in Acton.
The first-ever celebration of "LOVE Chickens, Don't-Eat-Them
Day" promises to be a fun and exciting occasion for anyone who
likes animals. This is your chance to say "hi" to the
sanctuary's animal residents, as well as vegan actor Ed Begley,
Jr. and IDA's Vegan Campaign Spokesperson and bodybuilder,
Kenneth Williams, who now co-hosts segments on Go Vegan Radio
with Bob Linden. Animal Acres' founder Lorri Bauston (co-founder
of Farm Sanctuary) will also speak about the new sanctuary and
their "Adopt-a-Chicken" program, which allows people to
financially sponsor animals rescued from factory farms and now
living safely and peacefully at Animal Acres.

Wonderful live music from harpist Stephanie Bennett (who played
on Paul McCartney's recent CD) and reggae from The People will
have everyone - two and four legged - happily dancing. No party
would be complete without food, and of course this one will
include a vegan menu featuring "Chicken-Free-Chicken" prepared
by special guest chef Cary Brown (author of "Cary's Spice of
Life Vegan Cook Book" -
http://www.spice-of-life.com/recipee.html ). Enjoy cruelty-free
chicken salad, chicken soup, barbequed chicken, chicken fajitas,
sesame chicken, chicken masala curry, chicken parmesiana. The
meal will also feature Lundberg organic rice, organic salad,
coconuts durian tasting (if available) and chocolate cake from
Madeleine Bistro for dessert.

What: "LOVE Chickens, Don't-Eat-Them Day"
When: Sunday, February 12th from 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Where: Animal Acres sanctuary and compassionate living center -
5200 Escondido Canyon Road, Acton (click
http://animalacres.org/visit.html for directions and a listing
of nearby accommodations)

To RSVP, call (818) 623-6477 or write to
MeatFreeAmerica [at] yahoo.com . Cash and checks will also be accepted
at the door. Admission is $35 for adults ($30 for meat eaters)
and $20 for children under 15.

Also read about chickens in Satya magazine's new Chicken Issue
( http://www.satyamag.com ).

2. Deadly Blood Sport Pits Dogs Against Rabbits

Right after last weekend's Super Bowl, ABC News Channel 7 aired
a special investigative report about open field coursing, a
blood sport in which packs of specially-trained dogs are set
loose in a field to chase and kill wild jackrabbits flushed out
by spectators. The dogs (mostly greyhounds dressed in colored
racing jackets) are scored by the agility and speed with which
they chase down their prey, and rewarded for tearing the rabbits
apart. Sometimes the rabbits escape through a hole in the fence
or a drainage pipe, but most of the time the exhausted animals
are caught and slowly torn apart in the dogs' jaws. The video
investigation, presented by anchorman Dan Noyes, focused on a
coursing event held in the Solano County city of Fairfield that
was approved by the California Department of Fish and Game.

People who have their dogs compete in this activity claim that
the rabbit's death is incidental - all that matters is the
chase. They think of their dogs as "athletes" and argue that
they have been "bred" for this activity, claiming that killing
rabbits is "natural" behavior for their canine companions. Scott
Sanders, Vice President of Greyhound Pets of America, disagrees.
"In essence, they're teaching these greyhounds to be aggressive,
they're teaching these greyhounds to kill, and that's not their
nature," he says, "and so it's leaving the public with a
misperception that greyhounds are aggressive when they are not."

Enthusiasts also claim that open field coursing is more humane
than hunting because rabbits die quicker from being bitten to
death than being shot, and that hunters or other animals would
surely kill the rabbits if their dogs did not. Like hunters and
others who kill and torture animals for their own pleasure,
people who participate in open field coursing exhibit an
overpowering need to think of and present themselves as actually
helping the animal victims that they hurt and kill. Proponents
even argue that being chased by vicious dogs doesn't hurt
jackrabbits because those who escape seem to immediately return
to whatever they were doing before they were flushed out and
forced to run for their lives - as though nature created rabbits
solely to be lures for trained dogs to chase. Yet Mary Pounder,
a biologist at a San Rafael wildlife rescue center who often
rehabilitates jackrabbits, says these chases take too long, and
even the rabbits who escape are permenently traumatized. "The
heart tissue is damaged," she says, "so that the next time that
animal undergoes any kind of exertion or stress, the heart, the
adrenaline that the body pumps in, will actually stop the
heart."

The National Open Field Coursing Association (NOFCA), founded in
1964, is an umbrella organization for 12 clubs from all over
California that pursue this activity. Interestingly, the NOFCA's
website went down within two hours of the news story on Sunday
night. A message on their homepage claims the site was hacked,
but given the timing, it seems likely that NOFCA officials
quickly realized after seeing the broadcast that they were in
for a firestorm of criticism and took it down themselves. It
just so happens that competitors from far and wide are now
preparing for The Grand Course, the "Super Bowl" of open field
coursing. In response to widespread disapproval from a suddenly
outraged public, the NOFCA announced today that they are already
considering rules to make it easier for rabbits to escape, and
may even postpone this year's Grand Course, which was scheduled
to take place on Sunday, February 19th near Lost Hills in Kern
County.

Open field coursing was popular in England, but was banned last
year along with fox hunting. California is one of the few states
in America where the sport remains legal, but after seeing
footage of open coursing, Assemblymember Loni Hancock vowed to
sponsor legislation to ban it, and has already drafted a bill
that she plans to introduce in two weeks. "It's barbaric," she
says. "It's a really horrifying thing and something that it's
clear from the outpouring of mail we've gotten, the people of
California don't think should be happening here." Supervisors
representing Solano County, where the coursing event in the
ABC-7 investigation took place, are also considering a local
ban. It is important to note that outlawing open field coursing
would not take the pleasure of racing away from dogs and their
guardians. Humane coursing tournaments are regularly held
throughout the state and the world in which guardians cheer on
their dogs as they vigorously chase artificial lures dragged
quickly along the ground by a string on a pulley system.

What You Can Do:

- See the ABC-7 News reports online. Sunday's report -
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=i_team&id=3874872 .
Thursday's follow up report -
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=i_team&id=3893413 .
Warning: the footage is graphic.

- Please write to Dan Noyes of ABC-7 News at Dan.Noyes [at] abc.com
and thank him for covering this story.

- Please write to Assemblymember Loni Hancock at
Assemblymember.Hancock [at] assembly.ca.gov and thank her for
sponsoring legislation to ban open field coursing. Be sure to
provide your mailing address.

- Solano County residents: please contact your Supervisors and
urge them to ban open field coursing in Solano County. Click
http://www.co.solano.ca.us/Contact/Contact.asp?NavID=468 for the
Supervisors' contact information.

3. Serial Bunny Dumper Worsens Overpopulation Problems

A serial bunny dumper is on the loose in Palo Alto, reports the
San Jose Mercury News
( http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/13802978.htm ).
Animal Control officers believe that one person is responsible
for dumping 65 rabbits in five separate incidents that have
occurred over the past six months. He or she is likely allowing
rabbits to breed freely, then releasing the litters in the
city's parks. Many of the bunnies were found malnourished with
open wounds on their bodies. All but one of the animals have
already been euthanized.

With Easter coming up, shelters are sure to be inundated with
bunnies who were purchased on a whim and given up once their
novelty wore off and people realize that they actually have to
provide care for them. Instead of dropping these unwanted animal
companions off at the local shelter, some people release them
into the outdoors so they don't have to face the guilt of
surrendering an animal that will probably be put to death for
lack of a home. However, domestic rabbits cannot survive on
their own in the wild. Often, they are run over by cars or
killed by predators like dogs and raccoons. This is the tragic
result of people thinking of animals as disposable.

What You Can Do:

1) If you have information about abandoned rabbits in Palo Alto,
please call Palo Alto Animal Services at (650) 496-5971. If
there are abandoned rabbits in your neighborhood, alert your
local Animal Care & Control agency.

2) Thank journalist Julie Patel at jpatel [at] mercurynews.com or
(408) 271-3679 for writing a balanced story about the Palo Alto
bunny dumper.

3) There are many rabbits waiting in Bay Area shelters for
loving homes. Rabbits generally get along well with most other
species (such as cats and dogs), and can be trained to use a
litterbox so you can let them roam around the house (after
rabbit-proofing). For more information about bunny care and
behavior, visit the House Rabbit Society website at
http://www.rabbit.org .

To adopt a rabbit, contact or visit these Bay Area animal
shelters:

- The San Francisco/Marin House Rabbit Society:
http://www.saveabunny.com
- San Francisco Animal Care & Control:
http://www.sfgov.org/site/acc_index.asp
- Oakland Animal Services: http://www.oaklandanimalservices.org
- The Marin Humane Society: http://www.marin-humane.org

4. Compassionate Cooks' February Cooking Class: "Demystifying
Tofu and Tempeh"

Join Compassionate Cooks for their next vegan cooking class,
"Demystifying Tofu and Tempeh," and learn to make five
delicious, nutritious dishes, including Tempeh Reuben Sandwich,
Tofu Filet with Spicy Cornmeal Crust, Better-Than-Chicken Salad,
Tofu & Vegetable Stir-Fry with Peanut Sauce, and Chocolate
Cheesecake. Using local, in-season, mostly organic ingredients,
Compassionate Cooks features easy-to-prepare recipes and debunks
myths about plant-based diets. Join the class in February for
yummy food samples, a soy milk taste test and a lot of fun!

What: Compassionate Cooks' February Cooking Class: "Demystifying
Tofu and Tempeh"
When: Saturday, February 25th, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Where: The First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th Street
(at Castro), Oakland (click http://www.uuoakland.org/directions.htm for
directions)

Be sure to register in advance by Thursday, February 23rd either
online at http://www.compassionatecooks.com/reg.htm or by calling (510)
531-COOK. You can also mail a check to Colleen Patrick-Goudreau,
P.O. Box 18512, Oakland, CA 94619. The $45 cost of the class
includes instruction, food samples, copies of recipes and much
more.