IDA e-news: 1/11/06

IDA ACTION ALERTS
1. Urgent Alert: U.S. Horse Slaughter Ban at Risk
2. Hawaii and Washington to Consider Foie Gras Bans
3. FOX News Reports on IDA's Campaign to Save Exotic Point Reyes Deer
CAMPAIGN NEWS & UPDATES
1. Northwest IDA Anti-Fur Demonstrations Heating Up
2. IDA Releases 2005 Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants List
3. Time to Gear Up for Meatout 2006!


IDA ACTION ALERTS

1. Urgent Alert: U.S. Horse Slaughter Ban at Risk
Foreign-Owned Slaughterhouses Seek to Sidestep U.S. Law

In September 2005, we reported in our e-newsletter passage of the Ensign/Byrd Amendment, which was intended to end the slaughter of American horses for human consumption in France, Belgium, Japan and other countries by making the use of federal tax money in horse slaughterhouses illegal for one year. The new law would essentially shut down the horse slaughter industry in America because U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspections must be completed in order for horsemeat to be sold or to allow horses bound for slaughter abroad to cross the U.S. border. The ban on public funding of horse slaughter officially became law when President Bush signed the 2006 Agriculture Appropriations Bill in November. But now the USDA is trying to take the law into its own hands by seriously considering a scheme that would allow horse slaughterhouses to pay for inspections themselves.

Last year, American leaders in both houses overwhelmingly voted in favor of prohibiting the USDA from paying employees to inspect horses to be slaughtered for human food. Following this defeat, three European-owned slaughterhouses surreptitiously filed a petition for emergency rulemaking that would allow them to continue butchering tens of thousands of horses for meat exports each year through the establishment of a "fee-for-service" inspection system in place of federally funded inspections. The plants have advised the USDA to implement this change without notifying the American public or following normal rulemaking process, claiming that it is in the "public's interest" to keep this maneuver secret.

"It is beyond our imagination in the U.S. Congress that the USDA would flout its mandate and spend tax dollars in the coming months working on ways to circumvent this law," said U.S. Rep. John Sweeney (R-NY). "Even our most hardened opponents knew that the purpose of the amendment was to stop horse slaughter - there was never any confusion about that. It's disturbing that an agency like USDA feels it is appropriate to obstruct a law passed by an overwhelming, bipartisan majority in Congress when their sole mission is to implement the law."

A Washington, DC-based public interest law firm representing several national animal welfare organizations recently submitted a 17-page letter to Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns demanding that the USDA throw out the industry's underhanded petition. As the letter points out, approving a fee-for-service proposal "would not only thwart an unequivocally expressed Congressional directive, it would also violate the Federal Meat Inspection Act's requirement that the United States Department of Agriculture, not private facilities, fund horse slaughter inspection." One reason that self-funded inspections are not allowed is that such a system would give the horse slaughter industry a financial influence over the inspection process, possibly enabling them to violate animal welfare laws in pursuit of increased profit.

As this controversy rages on, animal protection groups continue to lobby for a permanent ban in the U.S. on the slaughter of horses for food. Representatives John Sweeney (R-NY), John Spratt (D-SC) and Ed Whitfield (R-KY) have already introduced H.R. 503 in the House, and U.S. Senators John Ensign (R-NV) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have introduced S. 1915 in the Senate.

What You Can Do:

Please contact Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns as soon as possible and urge him to respect the will of the American public and its leaders by denying the horsemeat industry's petition for self-funded inspections of horses destined to be slaughtered for human consumption. Click http://ga0.org/campaign/HorseSlaughterBan to send him an automatic email, and use the information below to contact him by phone and postal mail to have even more impact.

Secretary Mike Johanns
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20250
Tel: (202) 720-3631
Email: Mike.Johanns [at] usda.gov


2. Hawaii and Washington to Consider Foie Gras Bans
State Lawmakers Help Ducks and Geese by Putting Compassion Ahead of Profit

Efforts to outlaw foie gras are off to a rousing start in the New Year with two more states introducing bills to ban the force-feeding of birds for this deplorable "delicacy." Last week, Democratic Representative Brendan Williams introduced to the Washington State legislature HB 2421, a bill to ban the force-feeding of birds for the purpose of enlarging the liver beyond normal size (except when it is done to improve the bird's health). The bill also proposes to ban the sale of foie gras, the fattened liver of ducks and geese, under most circumstances, effective in 2012. Meanwhile, Senator Suzanne Chun Oakland and Representative Chris Halford will soon be introducing bills in Hawaii to ban the force-feeding of ducks and geese for foie gras and the sale of any product manufactured by such means.

"The idea of torturing ducks and geese in order to make them tastier is really an indefensible proposition as far as I'm concerned," Representative Williams said. He doesn't believe legislators or even the food industry will offer much opposition to the bill, but owners of restaurants that serve foie gras are already up in arms. Protesters from IDA and the Animal Protection and Rescue League (APRL) ( http://www.aprl.org ) - our tenacious partner in the crusade against force-feeding - have sent information packs that include videos of undercover investigations to restaurants in Washington that serve foie gras, including one called Campagne in Seattle. Campagne's general manager, Gordon Kushnick, claims that HB 2421 is an example of "People are putting limits on other people's rights." While foie gras proponents like Kushnick routinely appeal to consumer freedom in defending people's "right" to purchase (and sell) foie gras, they invariably neglect to mention that what they are really trying to protect is the food industry's "right" to wring blood money from the necks of force-fed ducks and geese. Yet, no matter how foie gras profiteers try to validate their "right" to torture animals - whether in the name of freedom, tradition or taste - they cannot ethically justify their shameless exploitation of animals.

Washington and Hawaii are the fifth and sixth states respectively to consider banning foie gras because of the inherent cruelty involved in force-feeding waterfowl to make them so sick that their organs swell up to ten times their normal size. In 2004, California became the first state to pass legislation banning foie gras (it will be illegal to produce or sell "fatty liver" by 2012). In addition, 15 nations around the world have either banned force-feeding outright or deemed it illegal under established animal protection laws.

What You Can Do:

- Hawaii residents: please click http://ga0.org/campaign/HI_FGban_House to send the Chair and Vice Chair of the House of Representatives Agriculture Committee a message urging them to support and co-sponsor Representative Halford's bill to ban foie gras production. Also contact them by phone to have greater influence.

Chair: Rep. Felipe P. Abinsay, Jr.
Tel: (808) 586-6010
Email: repabinsay [at] Capitol.hawaii.gov

Vice Chair: Rep. Clift Tsuji
Tel: (808) 586-8480
Email: reptsuji [at] Capitol.hawaii.gov

Please also click http://ga0.org/campaign/HI_FGban_Senate to send the Chair and Vice Chair in Senate Water, Land, and Agriculture Committee a message urge them to introduce a bill in the Senate.

Chair: Senator Russell S. Kokubun
Tel: (808) 586-6760
Email: senkokubun [at] Capitol.hawaii.gov

Vice Chair: Senator Gary Hooser
Tel: (808) 586-6030
Email: senhooser [at] Capitol.hawaii.gov

- Washington State residents: please click http://ga0.org/campaign/Wash_house_fg to send an your Representative a message in support of HB 2421. Also click http://heraldnet.com/stories/06/01/07/100loc_b5foiegras001.cfm to read the Herald article "Lawmaker wants to ban a delicacy" and write a letter to the editor in favor of the bill. Click http://www.heraldnet.com/opinion for guidelines and contact information.


3. FOX News Reports on IDA's Campaign to Save Exotic Point Reyes Deer
IDA Bay Area Coordinator Speaks Out Against Extermination Plan in National Television Broadcast

IDA's campaign to prevent the National Park Service (NPS) from killing the magnificent White Fallow and Spotted Axis deer at Point Reyes National Seashore gained national attention recently when FOX News covered the story and broadcast it across the country. The news segment features statements from IDA Bay Area Coordinator Karen Steele, who is spearheading the campaign to save the deer and has organized local activists to leaflet park visitors at Point Reyes. "We're concerned about turning the wonderful Point Reyes National Seashore into a killing field," she states, "and there's no justification for the extermination of these beautiful deer." To view the clip on the FOX News website, visit http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,180723,00.html and scroll down the page, then click on the picture of the deer on the right hand side in the VIDEO section.

The exotic deer have resided at the Point Reyes National Seashore north of San Francisco for more than half a century, having been brought there by a private landowner in 1948. When the area was declared a national park in 1962, Point Reyes became a wildlife refuge, protecting the deer and other species from hunters. Today, about 1,150 exotic deer live peacefully in the park alongside numerous native species. The NPS claims that the deer population must be drastically reduced to restore the park's ecological balance, but their Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) lacks scientific evidence that the fallow and axis deer are negatively impacting the environment or other species in the park. The NPS plans to manage the deer using a combination of contraception and hunting, but has not yet considered a non-lethal alternative such as contraception alone. Humane methods have proven successful for controlling exponential growth in other protected wilderness areas.

The FOX news story shows that, even though the formal public comment period is closed, animal advocates can still prevent the use of lethal force against the deer if enough people tell the Park Service to pursue a humane solution. The park system belongs to the American people who have hired NPS officials to act as protectors of wildlife. Please help IDA put pressure on the NPS to fulfill their duty to the public and the animals.

What You Can Do:

1) Visit http://www.idausa.org/campaigns/wildlife/pr_deer_wycd.html for information on:
- Writing letters to the Park Service, elected officials and the media.
- Helping gather signatures on IDA's Save the Point Reyes Deer petition.
- Ordering and distributing IDA's Save the Point Reyes Deer flyers.

1) Click http://ga0.org/campaign/ptreyesdeer to urge the NPS's Pacific West Regional Director to drop the agency's plan to shoot the deer and instead undertake a feasibility study of using humane methods to manage the exotic deer population at Point Reyes.

3) Also visit http://www.idausa.org/campaigns/wildlife/point_reyes.html to learn more about this issue and why IDA and other animal protection advocates are so strongly opposed to the Park Service's deadly plans.


CAMPAIGN NEWS & UPDATES

1. Northwest IDA Anti-Fur Demonstrations Heating Up
Portland Furrier's Heavy-Handed Attempts to Drive Protesters Away Backfire

Northwest In Defense of Animals (NWIDA) is keeping up the pressure on the fur industry with weekly demonstrations outside Schumacher Fur Co. While the fur flies in downtown Portland, Ore., the store's owner, Greg Schumacher, is flying off the handle. He has physically and verbally assaulted animal advocates numerous times by shoving them and knocking signs out of people's hands. He has also tried to damage video cameras documenting his actions, and even made death threats to a high school teen who decided to deliver a speech about the fur industry's abuse of animals at Schumacher's doorstep. Yet all of the furrier's attempts to drive demonstrators away have blown up right in his face. His wild antics have brought even more people to the protests, which are now louder and longer than ever before. Ironically, Schumacher's strange schemes for suppressing the truth about the suffering he subsidizes are having a positive impact for the animals.

For instance, on Christmas Eve, Schumacher rented (at considerable cost, no doubt) four enormous speakers on tripods to blare obnoxious Christmas tunes in an attempt to drown out the activists' bullhorn and raised voices. Undeterred, activists started loudly chanting, "Stop the anal electrocution, stop the pain, Schumacher Fur is to blame!" That's when the furrier turned up the volume to eardrum-shattering levels. The volume was lowered slightly after a couple of bicycle cops arrived, but it still exceeded the decibel level allowed under the Portland city ordinance. One passerby was so offended by the punishing volume that he started unplugging the speakers, and one of them came crashing to the sidewalk after a scuffle ensued between him and the store's hired security. Soon after, the police forced Schumacher to turn the volume down and the activists continued chanting for several more hours.

With 25 to 30 activists educating the public outside at each protest, hardly a single customer steps foot in Schumacher's fur salon during NWIDA's demonstrations. In fact, his Saturday business has been so become so dismal that Schumacher has resorted to having "protest sales" on days when activists are present, putting up signs in the window reading, "50% OFF EVERYTHING, PROTEST SALE (only during protest)." Activists reacted by holding longer protests, further undercutting Schumacher's profit margin. Those dedicated to this cause are anxiously awaiting the celebratory demonstration marking Schumacher's going out of business sale, which may happen sooner than he realizes!

What You Can Do:

Visit IDA's website http://www.furkills.org/wycd.shtml for information about holding an anti-fur protest in your community and other ways that you can help us dump the fur industry in the dustbin of history where it belongs.


2. IDA Releases 2005 Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants List
See Whether Your City's Zoo Made IDA's Less-Than-Prestigious List

IDA is putting elephants back in the news with our annual Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants List, which awards institutions that put profits ahead of pachyderms' health and welfare the dubious dishonor of some well-deserved negative media attention. IDA invited people from around the country to nominate zoos for the list, then chose the "winners" based on how they treat their largest residents. This week, we sent the list as a press release to media outlets nationwide detailing the tragic lives of elephants living in cramped concrete enclosures and suffering from captivity-related illnesses.

Topping IDA's list and taking the title of Worst Zoo in America for Elephants for the second year in a row is the Alaska Zoo, where miserable Maggie lives a solitary existence in an artificially lit concrete cell, the only one of her species in the state. During Alaska's long winters, Maggie is locked inside a small barn where she is forced to stand on concrete in her own feces and urine. These same unsanitary conditions led to the foot infections that killed Maggie's former roommate, Annabelle. In a desperate bid to dodge charges that Maggie's space needs couldn't be met in Alaska, the Zoo constructed an elephant "treadmill" on which Maggie has yet to step foot. Elephants are known for their keen intelligence, so maybe Maggie refuses to use the contraption because she realizes that it was built not to improve her quality of life but to keep her in the same sad space, on exhibit to make money for the Zoo.

Broken family bonds, chronic joint and foot pain from inadequate movement and premature deaths are just some of the reasons our other nine "winners" made this year's Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants List. To find out where they are, and whether the zoo in your city made the cut, visit http://www.savezooelephants.com/10_worst_2005.html.

What You Can Do:

IDA is looking for activists living in cities with zoos to ensure the animals come first. There are opportunities to get involved at various levels, from simply visiting your local zoo and documenting conditions with your camera to making phone calls and organizing demonstrations. As a member of IDA's Elephant Task Force, you can help call attention to the need for serious zoo reform. We have already experienced success with the transfer of elephants from the San Francisco and Detroit zoos to the PAWS sanctuary. If you are interested in joining the IDA Elephant Task Force or would like more information about the ways you can get involved, please send an email to zoos [at] idausa.org today. Include your full name, city, telephone number, and the name of the zoo near you.


3. Time to gear up for Meatout 2006!
Promote the Joys and Benefits of a Compassionate Plant-Based Diet on March 20th

This year on the first day of spring, join thousands of other caring people in all 50 states and around the world in celebrating the Great American Meatout, an international educational campaign sponsored by the Farm Animal Reform Movement (FARM) and co-sponsored by IDA. Every year during Meatout, people of all ages and from all walks of life educate their communities about the joys and benefits of a compassionate plant-based diet and ask their friends, families and neighbors to "kick the meat habit" (at least for a day). This will be the 21st annual Meatout in a row, making it the largest and longest-running annual grassroots diet education campaign in history.

This year, FARM recommends targeting the fast food industry with Meatout events across the nation. Please take part by attending - or better yet, organizing - a Meatout event in your area. Examples of Meatout events include festivals, lectures, public dinners, cooking demonstrations, feed-ins, leafleting, street theater, information tables (i.e., "steakouts"), exhibits, farm animal walks, activism skill-building workshops and video screenings of pro-animal documentaries. Be sure to work with friends and local activists to make your Meatout event a big success!

What You Can Do:

Visit http://www.meatout.org to find out what events are scheduled for your community and for information about planning and registering your own Meatout event. When you register, you can request an Event Pack with an official Meatout banner, color posters, leaflets, stickers and more!


Join IDA's President's Circle

President's Circle members are IDA donors who support our critical efforts to help animals by making a regular monthly contribution. Your monthly gift, along with those of other President's Circle members, will afford us the resources we need to act quickly in defense of animals. In addition, your monthly gift will provide a pool of stable funding that IDA can count on whenever an emergency need to help animals arises. It will also help us maintain the critical ongoing campaigns we carry out in support of our mission.

The President's Circle makes giving easy. Donating automatically through your credit card each month lets you save time and effort while conserving IDA's resources.

To find out more and to join the President's Circle, please visit http://www.idausa.org/supportf.html and scroll down to the President's Circle section. From there you can click the link to our secure on-line enrollment form at https://secure.ga3.org/02/idadonations .


A Warm Touch on a Cold Winter's Eve
by Jan Allegretti

These cold January days we're all starting to get a bit of cabin fever. There's no sun for warming our bones out on the deck, and it's too chilly even to open the windows. My friends in the Sierras are snowed in, and here in Northern California there's enough mud to make it way too squishy to go out without rubber boots. When the Greenies are all gnawed to bits and even the Cat Dancer has become a bore, we start casting about for an enjoyable way to spend another evening indoors.

It's a good excuse to treat everyone in the family to a bit of gentle bodywork to calm a restless mind, warm the spirit, and spend some genuine quality time together. There are as many techniques to choose from as there are cookies in the cookie jar, but one of the easiest and safest methods is Therapeutic Touch. Its benefits have been well documented, and it's absolutely safe for any animal, even those who are very young or very old, or dealing with an illness or injury.

Therapeutic Touch is derived from the ancient practice known as "laying on of hands," in which the healer seeks to rebalance the energy field of the patient. In the early 1970s, therapist Dora Kunz and Delores Krieger, Ph.D., R.N., developed a systematic approach to the technique, and were instrumental in the acceptance and implementation of Therapeutic Touch in nursing programs and hospitals throughout the United States. Since then, it has been widely recognized as a way to relieve stress, stimulate the immune system, and promote healing. One study documented a significantly higher level of hemoglobin in the blood of patients who received Therapeutic Touch as compared to a control group that did not, even though nurses who had no prior experience with the therapy administered it.

Interestingly enough, Therapeutic Touch doesn't actually involve touching the body at all. Rather, it involves moving the hands over the patient's energy field—about 3 to 5 inches away from the physical body—assessing any irregularities and restoring balance where they exist. Because no actual touch is involved, even very sensitive animals can enjoy it, so you can use it for animals who share your home as well as any others in your care. It's beneficial for dogs and cats, of course, but also horses, birds, cows, goats—most any animal who is comfortable having you within a few feet of his or her body. Frequently, when receiving the therapy, they relax into a deep sigh, give a gentle nudge with the nose, or a lazy wag at the tip of the tail, even though no physical contact has been made.

"Touching" someone's energy field may sound like a foreign concept for anyone imbued with Western notions of physical reality. But with a little experimentation and practice, almost anyone can feel what might be described as subtle variations in the air around the body. These variations can provide valuable clues to early-stage health problems, and may even help you locate an elusive injury. Once you've assessed your companion's condition, you can apply the technique to help get blocked energy moving again, or just to treat your friend to a deep relaxation even when he's feeling fine.

Try this:
§ If you're working with an animal who shares your home, have her rest quietly on her bed or other comfortable spot. If you're treating an animal outside or one who's more comfortable standing up, that's fine. Just join him in his favorite resting place, and give him a chance to settle quietly into your company. Talk to him gently and touch him in any way that is soothing for him.
§ It's customary among Therapeutic Touch practitioners to ask their patients' permission before beginning a treatment. Since your animal friend deserves the same respect accorded human patients, go ahead and do the same for her.
§ Take a moment to clear and quiet your mind. Make a conscious intention to set aside any negative thoughts or emotions for the moment. (Imagine putting them in a box and tucking it away where you can return to it later, if necessary.) Fill your mind, your heart, and your body with the love you feel for your friend, and make a conscious intention to make this a time of deep healing for both of you.
§ Rub your hands together briskly several times to stimulate their sensitivity. When they feel a little warm and tingly, hold one hand over the animal's body about 6 to 12 inches away (or further away if that's what's required for him to feel comfortable), palm facing him, and slowly move it closer and closer to his body, gliding it gently in the direction of his fur, feathers, or scales. Move from nose or beak to the tip of the tail, or from top to bottom, a little closer each time. For most of us this is the direction of the natural flow of energy. Do this several times, till you are about 3 to 6 inches away from his body (again, a greater distance is fine if the animal is more comfortable that way). You may find that the air feels slightly denser as you get within a few inches. That density you feel is a layer of his energy field, or aura.
§ Continue to float your hand over her body just where the density increases, until you begin to feel subtle differences in the texture of the energy as you move along the length of the body—there may be a place where the air feels particularly thick, or where the density seems to diminish. You may even find that your hands tingle when they glide over a particular spot. Don't be misled by changes in temperature due to body heat; the sensations you're interested in are related to disturbances in the energy pattern around the body, not temperature.
§ Be observant of your companion's responses. Chances are he'll relax, his breath may become slower and more even, he may even go to sleep. However, if he seems disturbed by your efforts, respect his feedback. Check to be sure that your mind is calm and quiet. Try moving your hands further away from his body, or moving them more slowly. Some very sensitive animals feel your energy acutely; in other cases the energy is so disrupted in a particular area that he's unable to tolerate more than a very mild energetic touch from you. In any case, if he gets up and moves away, don't persist. Take note of his sensitivity, and consider the possibility that it's a sign of illness or injury. Reassess your techniques and try again another time.
§ If your friend relaxes into your treatment, as most will, continue to move your hands in the direction of her energy flow, as though you're smoothing any disturbances. Move your hands gently, just as if you were softly stroking and smoothing the coat. Pay special attention to those places where you felt a disturbance. Imagine that you're encouraging movement where energy is blocked, drawing out excessive energy, or adding energy where it's depleted. Always move the energy out toward the tip of her tail, or down through the bottom of her feet.
§ Finish your session by gently smoothing over his entire aura. Sit quietly a moment with him.

Therapeutic Touch is a technique that you can explore with a minimum of training. However, the more you practice the more skilled you will become. Everyone has the capacity to feel energy, but for some it takes time. Continue to practice, and explore opportunities to attend workshops or study with a skilled therapist. Many nursing schools now teach the technique. Your local hospital may be able to guide you to training opportunities.

Use your Therapeutic Touch any time you want to make a special connection with any friend, regardless of species. I promise you, these winter nights won't feel nearly as cold anymore.


Adapted from The Complete Holistic Dog Book: Home Health Care for Our Canine Companions by Jan Allegretti and Katy Sommers, D.V.M. Copyright © 2003 by Jan Allegretti and Katy Sommers.

Jan Allegretti is a teacher, consultant and writer in the field of holistic health care for animals. She is the author of Listen to the Silence: Lessons From Trees and Other Masters, and co-author with Katy Sommers of The Complete Holistic Dog Book: Home Health Care for Our Canine Companions. You can contact Jan with questions about caring for companion animals at AskJan [at] idausa.org . Also visit her web site at http://ListenToTheSilence.com .


The Cat Therapist

Twice a month, Carole Wilbourn, the Cat Therapist, answers questions and offers advice on how guardians can enrich their relationships with their beloved feline companions. Click http://www.idausa.org/cat_therapist/index.html to read the latest edition of Cats on the Couch.
Men: the deadline to enter Carole's "Men and their Cats" contest has been extended through January, so there's still time to enter. Also visit Carole's Cat Store at http://thecattherapist.com/cat_store.htm to purchase a copy of her classic book, "Cat Talk: What Your Cat is Trying to Tell You."

Contact Carole at TheCatTherapist [at] idausa.org with your questions about cats.