❀ The Good News ❀

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Stop watching the News on T.V. filled with lies, propaganda, and made to make you feel helpless and afraid.

With all the negative news in the world, it's time to give you hope and inspiration. It's time to the weekly Good News! 

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Israel Will Trap, Neuter and Return 45,000 Street Cats

Street cats are everywhere in Israel, in huge numbers, and they tend to be dirty and skinny, often with visible skin infections and eye problems. Their lifespans average just one or two years, compared to 13-17 years for cats who live indoors or in managed colonies.

The outlook for street cats in Israel is improving thanks to changing attitudes. The Israeli government just committed 4.5 million NIS (about 1.27 million in U.S. dollars) to trap, spay or neuter, and release 45,000 feral cats before June 2014. There are an estimated 39,000 street cats in the Tel Aviv area alone — just one shelter, the SPCA, takes in 200 kittens every day during breeding season — so the government’s plan is not a comprehensive solution.

Nonetheless, it is a huge step forward.

(Read more) 

Readers Go On a Mission to Save Kindly Barber and His Stray Cats

This is one of those heart-warming stories about the goodness of people and what they do for each other as well as for animals. Manuela comes  by Hussein's Barber shop in Turkey every week where they feed the alley cats--which is often scorned there in Turkey with the overpopulation problems. So when Hussein's Barber shop was closing down due to lack of rent, there was sadness for the man and for his four-legged friends.

But as fate would have it,  there is something better in store for the barber and his cats. Although animal rescue is thought of as an art exclusively devoted to the four-legged, it is often about saving people as well. As Manuela’s Facebook supporters read her post about the barber’s fate, there is a swell of support. One after another, readers begin making small contributions to help...

(Read the full heart-warming story here) 

Victory! Toronto Zoo’s Elephants Arrive at Sanctuary

After years of lobbying, debating, delays and a seriously long road trip, animal advocates are celebrating a victory with the safe arrival of the Toronto Zoo’s three remaining elephants at a sanctuary.

The three elephants — Iringa, 44; Toka, 43; and Thika, 33 — who were born at the zoo, embarked on a long journey across the continent from Ontario, Canada, to their new home at the Performing Animal Welfare Society’s (PAWS) sanctuary near Sacramento, Calif., where they will spend the rest of their lives being cared for in peace.

A huge thanks to the Care2 members who signed petitions demanding the elephants’ removal from the zoo. Their arrival at PAWS would not have been possible without the continued support of concerned citizens like you.

(Read more) 

Bystander’s Kindness Saves Terrified Orangutan from Jeering Crowd

Sometimes it takes only a simple act of kindness to change an animal’s life. So it was for Ael, an orangutan whose only offense was searching for food near a village in Borneo.

Ael was captured while foraging in a field that had been cleared for planting rice. It’s not clear why they decided to capture her, but it took six men to grab Ael, hold her down and secure her. Then they dragged her back to their village for a little fun. The poor orangutan became a public spectacle — an object of curiosity and degradation. Villagers crowded around her, jeering and taunting to get a rise out of her. Word spread, and soon people from other nearby areas arrived on motorcycles to get in on the excitement.

Poor Ael had little chance of living her life as anything other than a roadside attraction until one compassionate villager decided enough was enough. This kind villager, whose name we don’t know, contacted Argitoe Ranting. Ranting works for International Animal Rescue (IAR) as its field manager for IAR’s project in Ketapang, on the island of Borneo. Ranting also oversees rescues in the area and has a great deal of experience working with orangutans. He arrived on scene to find Ael tied to the tire, struggling to break free and frightened for her life.

Ranting called his team, realizing immediately he had a rescue situation on his hands. The team removed her from the scene to their 60-acre orangutan rehabilitation center in West Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo.

(Read the full story) 

New York School’s Plan to Go Vegetarian Is an All-Around Success

A public school in Queens, N.Y. is the first in the nation to offer a 100 percent vegetarian lunch menu. That’s right, no more sloppy joes or scary meatloaf. Instead 400 students in grades pre-K through 3 choose from options like organic roasted tofu, braised black beans and falafel.

Before you get upset about the school forcing kids to eat vegetarian, know that students are still allowed to bring any lunch item from home that they want, including meat. The funny, and truly awesome part is, about 90 percent of the students voluntarily choose the veggie-based cafeteria food. And the results have been phenomenal.

After one semester, the number of students at the school who were classified as overweight and obese dropped 2 percent and is still falling, according to school officials. They’ve also documented improved attendance, higher test scores and better attention spans in the wake of the change.

(Read more) 

VICTORY! Fox News North will not be on every TV in Canada

SumOfUs helped keep the racist and biased “Fox News North”, or Sun News, off our TVs. Over 20,000 SumOfUs supporters called on the Canadian regulators (CRTC) to reject the channel’s request for mandatory carriage and a $20 million subsidy -- and they listened! The rejection of this ridiculous bid will hopefully mean that the commercially unviable Fox News North and its vitriol will soon be gone from Canadian airwaves, forever.

(Read more) 

Thanks For Your Help:  SumOfUs filled the war chest to fight Harper’s secret trade deal

SumOfUs: "For the past year, Prime Minister Harper has been trying to ram through his secretive Canada-China FIPA trade deal. When it was introduced, Harper expected he would face no opposition and be able sign the deal in weeks. But thanks to our opposition and strong partners like LeadNow, we have delayed the deal for longer than anyone thought possible.

The next battle is a crucial legal fight that, with our support, the Hupacasath First Nations is waging. Thousands of us donated to support the Hupacasath as they take the Harper government to court to challenge the constitutionality of FIPA. If we keep up this crucial fight together, we can defeat FIPA once and for all and save Canadian democracy."

Victory! River Island (UK) and Woolworths (AU) sign the Bangladesh Fire and Safety Accord!

SumOfUs has called on major apparel companies to join the independently-monitored Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh to ensure that their clothes weren't being made under deadly conditions that might repeat mistakes in the past. 

Over 90 companies have now signed the landmark accord. In breaking news, major Australian brand Woolworths has announced it will also join the Accord, after months of pressure from SumOfUs and friends at Oxfam Australia, the Uniting Church and elsewhere. In the UK, more than 16,000 SumOfUs members and their allies targeted major UK brand River Island, demanding it stop dragging its feet and sign the Accord -- and it listened! River Island was one of the last major UK holdouts on the Accord, so it’s a huge win for Bangladeshi workers and all consumers everywhere!

Cameroon Elections Catapult Women to Power

In Cameroon, defenders of gender equality and the empowerment of women today have a reason to celebrate. This follows the announcement of the results of the legislative elections held on September 30. The results of the elections have ensured that women now hold 56 of the 180 deputy positions in the National Assembly, making up 31.1 percent of the legislature.

The percentage exceeds the threshold set out in the Beijing Plan of Action. It is even more significant since the numbers have more than doubled. The previous legislature had only 25 women deputies out of 180, a mere 13.8 percent.

The advocacy efforts were already underway some years ago and were further spurred by UN Women’s strategic plan for gender and elections that received national approval on June 12, 2012.

(Read more) 

Celebrating the 1,000th Sierra Club Solar Home

The Sierra Club and its solar home partner Sungevity reached a clean-energy milestone when the 1,000th rooftop solar array was installed as part of the Club's Solar Homes Program. The program makes it easy for homeowners to go solar, save money, and curb carbon pollution. 

(Read more and join the solar revolution!) 

Asheville, NC, Moves Beyond Coal 

Last week the city council in Asheville, NC, voted unanimously to move the city off coal-fired electricity. Duke Energy's coal plant in Asheville is the largest source of carbon pollution in western North Carolina, and the city will now work with Duke to phase out the use of coal there. Asheville joins Chicago, Los Angeles, Austin, and a growing number of other cities transitioning to clean energy.

Los Angeles Could Become the Country’s Largest GMO-Free Zone

Two Los Angeles City Councilmen have introduced a measure [PDF] that would ban the growth, sale and distribution of genetically engineered seeds and plants within the city limits. If passed, Los Angeles would have the illustrious honor of being the country’s largest GMO plant-free zone.

The councilmen, Paul Koretz and Mitch O’Farrell, say they proposed the ban in the hopes of protecting local gardens and homegrown food from GMO contamination. ”We don’t want to consume mystery food,” O’Farrell told The Huffington Post. “Since there’s currently no requirement, anyone could unwittingly purchase a genetically modified product and not know it. I think that’s irresponsible.”

(Read more) 

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☆ What's Going On: Zoos; Not for the Animal Lover ☆

I know, omg, I am soooo not fun! Everything is "bad" :p Well it's not, but some things are. Zoos are one of those things. I care about animals so I am going to get your brains thinking because there are plenty of things that we do in our lives that we don't really think about. 

I'm not innocent, I've been to zoos without thinking. I'm here to share information with you, to get you thinking and questioning so you can make choices with animal welfare in mind. If you love animals then you will be open to listening and thinking. 

Most of us go to the zoo because we do love animals and we want to see those animals. However, most of us don't think about the fact that zoos aren't all they are cracked up to be. 

We think of Zoos as these opportunistic places where children and adults can explore and learn about wild animals. The reality is, however, that zoos hardly teach you anything about how animals actually live and behave in the wild. I would even go so far as to say it teaches us falsely. There is nothing "natural" or "real" about viewing animals behind bars. Their behaviours are anything but natural, happy, or healthy.

Shall I elaborate?

Habitat: 

The small enclosures that zoo animals call "home" will never match up to life in the wild. Zoos simply cannot provide the amount of space animals need to live their lives in a natural manner, especially for those species that roam huge distances in their natural habitats. Tigers and lions have around 18,000 times less space in zoos than they would in the wild and Polar bears have one million times less space. Aquatic animals do not have enough water. Birds are prevented from flying away by having their wings clipped and being in aviaries. 

These animals spend their entire lives in these small inadequate spaces making their lives a monotonous bore.

Unhappy Animals:

That persistent roaming you watch animals do about their cages, that over-sleeping, that hiding, that motionless sitting, all those repetitive movements are not natural, they are signs of stress, depression, boredom, and psychoses. Some zoos actually give their animals anti-depressants and tranquilizers to control such behaviour problems. 

What causes these behaviours? 

Some zoos have mixed exhibits in which some species of animals will distress another species. Then there are many social animals that are kept alone and suffer boredom when they should be kept in groups where they can interact and live a bit more "naturally." 

But the bottom line is this... In nature, animals consume their energy by running, walking, jumping, climbing, hunting, hiding, playing, cleaning, and so on. They do not get to experience anything that is natural to them in zoo life. They have a complete lack of mental stimulation, physical exercise, and a complete lack of privacy. Animals do not get used to life in captivity either, not even those born in captivity generations down the line. Animals never lose their natural instincts. 

Poor Living Conditions:

On top of their habitat and depression, many zoo animals face disease and sickness as a result of this new unnatural habitat. Some zoos don't even have trained vets, so the staff allow their sick animals to die. 

Other zoos have health and safety problems such as spikes on railings or hidden ditches where the animals can get hurt. 

Many zoo animals are not fed properly and some zoos still allow people to feed their animals with all kinds of unsuitable food. 

Zoo animals hardly ever return to the wild because the reintroduction process never works, the animal transport process fails, and the animals are exposed to disease and chemicals because of the confinement.

Many visitors also do not respect the animals and complain if their favourite animal is resting or can't be seen. There are zoos where the keepers will drag out a resting animal to show the public for their satisfaction. 

Transport:

Transport is another issue. Many animals are moved around a lot from one zoo to another, either because they are bought, they are sick where they are, or for breeding. This transportation process is far from stressless and painless and is simply not good for the animals. Transportation standards are low and the animals often face weather extremes. 

Conservation: 

Many animals are taken from the wild, captured, and transported miles and miles away to your local zoo. Some of these animals are injured, orphaned, their habitats are destroyed, or do not have enough food. And yet, almost all of these are human-caused. 

Some Zoos will claim to breed animals as part of Endangered Species protection programs or Conservation for eventual release to the wild. But these animals will almost Never return to the wild. 

There are thousands of endangered species, but zoos have only been able to return about 16 species to the wild with varying levels of success. These Reintroduction programs rarely work because captive animals no longer possess the skills for survival. The zoo animals are essentially, set up for failure. They would need to live in habitats that actually resemble their natural ones, especially for climate and geological regions. They would also need to be raised with minimal human contact, clearly not the case at zoos, and they would need to be in populations large enough to provide a natural social balance. 

Sanctuaries exist and these endangered animals are often not sent to such Sanctuaries when they should be. Why? Because we live in a world where money is everything, and Zoos Make Money.

Zoos spend tons of money on their breeding programs when it is at least 50 times more expensive to maintain these animals in zoos than to protect the equivalent number of animals in the wild. Care about conservation? Put your money to better use. Using the money for conservation programs in the wild, such as by creating more protected reserves, will not only allow the animals to live in their natural habitat, but it also helps balance whole eco-systems.

Breeding Programs:

Breeding programmes are said to be in place for conservation, even though breeding animals in captivity and artificially inseminating them is hardly the best way to help conservation as mentioned above. These programs are really there primarily to ensure a captive population, not for reintroduction. Why? Well, behind the appearance of saving endangered species, the blatant fact remains; zoos are there to make money. They need to keep those cages full and just look at how many visitors Baby animals attract! Baby animals become powerful marketing tools.  

It is not uncommon for zoo babies to be rejected by their mothers. In some situations zoo keepers will step in and take care of the rejected babies, in other situations they choose to simply leave the babies to die.

Zoo keepers also choose to remove babies sometimes, even when their mothers have not rejected them. They do this to make the babies "better exhibit animals" meaning they are safer to work with and more at ease around people.

Surplus Animals:

Surplus animals are the unwanted animals left over when there is no more space. This is usually when zoos have bred yet another cute little baby to attract visitors. Sometimes these surplus animals are even the babies themselves when they've stopped being cute at the end of the season. 

Zoos have a systematic "overproduction" of animals. These surplus animals are either killed are are either fed to their fellow zoo habitants, or sold to other zoos or dealers.

Selling animals is a profitable way for zoos to dispose of them. Dealers will sell them to hunting ranches, pet shops, circuses, the exotic meat industry and research facilities. Surplus animals are also found for sale on the internet.

Conclusion... 

Every zoo is different and the information above may not apply to all zoos. I'm not saying all zoos are necessarily bad. Are most of them? Probably. But I'm not saying never go to a zoo, that will be your choice to make at your own discretion. Maybe you will choose to find out which Zoos actually care and are actually part of animal conservation, not just zoo breeders. 

Animal Sanctuaries are another good option. You may have to travel farther but it is definitely worth it. 

Think about what you are supporting when you visit zoos that mistreat their animals. If you truly love and care about animals, you will think about where you are going to see those favorite species before you jump to your nearest zoo.  

Peace & Love,

xo

~Bianca   

Want more?

http://www.captiveanimals.org/zoos/zfact1.htm

http://www.veganpeace.com/animal_cruelty/zoos.htm

http://www.bornfreeusa.org/a1b_zoocheck.php

http://www.captiveanimals.org/zoos/index.htm

http://www.zoocheck.com/

http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-In-Entertainment/Animals-Used-for-Entertainment-Factsheets.aspx

"Wild Animals in Captivity" by Rob Laidlaw

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