ARC In Action meetings are held on the second Saturday of the month
from 10-11am at our office at 2615 E. Franklin Ave. in Minneapolis. Everyone
is welcome - you don't need to be an ARC member to attend.
Grillin' Without Killin'
It's summer, and you know what that means: Backyard barbecues! Fire up
the grill, don this fab new apron worn by chef Meagan Holtgrewe of Rhymes
With Vegan (available only at ARC), and you'll be all set to enjoy
the delights of outdoor cooking.
And
if you'd like to share your gastronomic gifts, we're looking for people
who want to throw a compassionate cookout for their omnivore friends to
introduce them to an animal-friendly way of eating. We've put together
a vegan BBQ kit that will provide you with enough Amy's veggie burgers
and Tofurkey brats for a party of ten - and gift bags for your guests
as well. If you need ideas for what else to serve, we've got that covered
too. Contact Dallas
for more info or to volunteer to host a compassionate cookout.
Circle
of Compassion (ARC blog)
ARC
on Facebook
ARC
on MySpace
Chicken
Run Rescue
fast & furless
vegan emporium
HumaneMyth.org
Rhymes With
Vegan
Vegan
Drinks Twin Cities
If an animal is in immediate danger, call 911. Read this section for more
information.
If you need to find a new home for your companion animal, read the information
in this section.
Newsletters
Fact Sheets
Recommended Reading
ARC
at Pride
Besides
our usual booth at the Pride Festival, this year ARC also marched in the
Pride parade in Minneapolis. Parade participants marched with "Go
Faux" flags and a pack of beautiful dogs, and handed out suckers
and stickers that said, "I fake it!" - all to encourage the
parade audience to think about swearing off leather and fur. The stickers
were a huge success! Here are some pics for your viewing enjoyment.
Chicken
Run Rescue: A Safe Haven
Every
year, domestic fowl, mostly chickens, are impounded by Minneapolis Animal
Control (MAC) and five metro area humane societies. These birds are victims
of neglect, abuse, and abandonment, often used as a source of eggs or
intended for slaughter, fighting, or ritual sacrifice. Some are the discards
from "nature lessons" for children or a hobby that no longer holds interest.
After their release from MAC, Chicken
Run Rescue, the only urban chicken rescue of its kind, provides the
birds with temporary shelter and vet care, locates and screens adopters
within 90 miles of the Twin Cities, and transports the birds to their
new homes. Read their latest Adoption
Chronicles and subscribe to this monthly e-newsletter to receive personality
profiles and photos of birds up for adoption, and info about chicken care
from the perspective of those who respect and advocate for them. To subscribe,
contact chickenrunrescue@comcast.net. Put "Subscribe Adoption Chronicles"
in the subject line of your e-mail.
Go
Green Go Veg!
A
great group of ARC volunteers marched in this year's May Day Parade. Our
theme, echoed in the green flags carried by marchers, was "go green,
go veg." Thanks to all the volunteers who staffed our booth at the
festival in Powderhorn Park, marched in the parade, and made the day so
successful!
These days it seems you can't turn on a television or open a newspaper without seeing a story about the importance of going green. While there are many things you can do to go green, one vitally important action, adopting a plant-based diet, has been ignored by the media and promoters of events such as the Living Green Expo.
According to a 2006 United Nations report "Livestock's Long Shadow," which received little to no media attention, livestock generate more greenhouse gases than automobiles. Here's some other facts about the devastating effects of livestock production:
- 70% of agricultural land, and a total of 30% of the land on this planet,
is used for raising livestock.
- The livestock industry is responsible for 18% of all global-warming
gases, 9%of carbon dioxide emissions, 37% of methane emissions, and 65%
of nitrous oxide emissions; methane and nitrous oxide have 23 to 296 times
the warming power of carbon dioxide.
- Animal agriculture accounts for most of the water consumed in this country,
emits two-thirds of the world's acid-rain causing ammonia, and is the
world's largest source of water pollution.
- The American meat industry produces more than 1.4 billion tons of waste.
That's equal to five tons for every U.S. citizen.
Lately, there has been much promotion of "sustainable animal agriculture."
The problem with this, however, is that it is not a solution - a cow with
access to fresh air and pasture is still a cow who needs plenty of water
and food. And that free-range cow still emits methane! The resources consumed
by just one person eating the typical American meat-based diet could feed
20 people a healthier plant-based diet. In other words, adopting a plant-based
diet is one of the single most important changes a person can make to
go green.
When
Rescuing Really Means Killing: A Follow-up
We
recently posted some important questions regarding the killing of about
130 cats that the Animal Humane Society reportedly "rescued"
from a mobile home in St. Anthony, Minnesota. In response to ARC's expressed
concerns, and concerns expressed by many other animal advocates, the AHS
board issued a form letter response on April 6.
In their response, the AHS board failed to address the serious issues raised by ARC and other animal advocates. Instead, they simply recited their talking points that killing the cats was necessary to keep people and animals safe from disease, points that had already been widely discredited by many knowledgeable authorities.
ARC has learned that nationally recognized veterinarians with expertise in shelter medicine have written AHS and stated that there is "no veterinary basis for such a statement."
Veterinarian, bioethicist, and syndicated columnist Dr. Michael Fox and consulting veterinarian, lecturer, and trainer Dr. Linda Wolf are distributing a public letter to the AHS board in which they chastise the organization for the killings, and for the failure of the board to address the very serious issues brought to them by many complainants.
Read the letter
from Drs. Wolf and Fox, along with the form
letter response from the AHS Board of Directors to prior complaints
about the killing of the cats in St. Anthony, and then contact the AHS
Board via email
to tell them that the serious questions raised by the community deserve
to be fully answered - and not just brushed off with a letter that fails
to address any of the questions raised.
Vegan
Drinks Twin Cities Enjoyed By All!
The
second Vegan Drinks Twin Cities was a rousing success with over 100 people
attending and enjoying cosmos and canapés, conversation and conviviality.
Vegan Drinks, a quarterly social networking event for people interested in veganism and animal rights. Vegan Drinks' mission is to bring together a diverse group of people—both newbies and oldies—from cupcake aficionados to animal lawyers to vegans of all stripes in between. Read what VegNews magazine had to say about Vegan Drinks.
When
Rescuing Really Means Killing:
The
Unanswered Questions
On
Tuesday, February 10, 130 cats were "rescued" by the Animal
Humane Society (AHS) from a hoarding situation in St. Anthony, Minnesota.
AHS received multiple offers of help from other shelters and rescue organizations.
AHS senior staff told the public and media that the cats would be kept
for two to three weeks to complete medical and behavior evaluations. However,
for the next few days, AHS executive director, Janelle Dixon was quoted
as saying the cats were, "unlikely to be adoptable." On Saturday,
February 14, Dixon appeared on WCCO television and announced that the
cats had been killed and cited common, treatable, and manageable ailments
as the rationale for killing the cats.
Early the following week, KSTP
Eyewitness News broke a story in which a shocking timeline was uncovered.
In the story Eyewitness News reported that Kathie Johnson, AHS Director
of Veterinary Services, had told reporters that it would take weeks to
determine the cats' health: " 'We're giving them time to settle down
and we're hoping after a few days, we can start fully evaluating them,'
Johnson said on February 11. But now, the Humane Society said they were
euthanized-not weeks later, not days later-but just hours later that same
night."
Most of the media that originally covered the "rescue" gave
no coverage to the revelation that AHS had grossly misled them. But even
after that revelation, there remain other questions that need to be asked
to get to the full truth behind this story:
1) Why has no one interviewed the veterinarian in charge of the case?
2) Has the AHS Board of Directors asked for, or been given, a full briefing
by the veterinarian in charge of the case?
3) Have reporters investigated the credentials of the Director of Veterinary
Services, Kathie Johnson, who is not a veterinarian? Why is Ms. Johnson
allowed to make life or death decisions for animals when she is not a
veterinarian?
4) The 2/17 press release issued by AHS said that the cats were euthanized
because "Clinical diagnosis and medical testing provided evidence
of multiple health issues within the group of cats. The issues included
upper respiratory infection (URI), ringworm, the herpes virus, and feline
immunodeficiency virus (FIV)." Why have no reporters questioned whether
there is an accurate veterinary basis for this statement? For example,
it is not possible to definitively diagnose ringworm within 24 hours.
A ringworm culture must be done and it takes at least 10 days to obtain
results from this culture. Another example, a positive FIV test result
does not indicate that a cat has FIV, only that a cat has been exposed
to the virus. How many cats were tested and how many positives were there?
5) If the St. Anthony cats were as unsocialized as AHS claimed, how was
it possible to thoroughly examine 130 cats in a matter of a few hours
before the cats were killed?
As of yet, there has been no public comment by AHS to the KSTP Eyewitness
News discovery that AHS misled both the media and the public. We encourage
the AHS Board of Directors, the media, and the public to ask the hard
questions listed above so that all the facts in this disturbing case can
be brought to light.
Chill
Out with the Latest Rhymes with Vegan Episode
Chill
out and check out Episode 3 of Rhymes
With Vegan! This wildly popular online vegan cooking show is sponsored
by ARC and has something for everyone, whether you're new to vegan cooking
or an old hand.
Calling
All Tofu Tots for VegKins Meetups! - Parents - Join the VegKins Yahoo!
Group
ARC's
VegKins is a unique social networking group for parents raising
vegetarian and vegan children. The group meets once a month (or more).
Kids play with other veggie kids while parents hang out and talk about
grown-up stuff. The group is currently made up of parents with children
up to five years old, but others are always welcome! Join the VegKins
Yahoo! group to exchange ideas and information online with other parents
and help build this community of parents raising compassionate kids.
Donate Furs to the Cuddle Coats Program
Tax-deductible for you, donated old furs offer comfort for orphaned animals
while they prepare for life in the wild. This program is in partnership
with Wildlife Rehabilitation
and Release. Furs can either be dropped off at our office at 2615
E. Franklin Ave. in Minneapolis or mailed to us. Any fur is accepted,
including coats, trims, muffs, and fur-lined gloves.
Protect
Your Companion Animal from Being Used as a Research Tool
Minnesota's
pound seizure law requires that publicly funded pounds and shelters turn
over unclaimed animals for experimentation after a five-day holding period
if requested by a research facility. MN Statute 35.71 states "However,
if a tag affixed to the animal or a statement by the animal's owner after
the animal's seizure specifies that the animal may not be used for research,
the animal must not be made available to any institution..."
Stop by ARC today and purchase a tag to so your companion animal is protected
should he or she ever be lost.
Challenging
the Myth of Humane Animal Products
As the media pay increased attention to the abuses occurring at large-scale
animal farming operations, consumers are seeking alternatives. Labels
such as “Cage Free,” “Free Range,” “Humanely
Certified,” and “Grass Fed” suggest that those willing
to pay a higher price can enjoy eggs, dairy, and meat from small-scale
“humane” farms that treat animals with compassion and respect.
But is the public being misled? ARC's "Humane Farming Myth"
brochure answers this question and is a great resource to share with family
and friends. Preview
the brochure and then contact ARC for copies to share with others.
Here's what Shannon Kimball of Bridges
of Respect had to say about the brochure:
"I'm a humane educator in Minneapolis giving roughly
80 presentations a year to students ranging from grades six through college...The
Animal Rights Coalition's brochure, The Humane Farming Myth, is just what
I was looking for! Finally, there is a comprehensible piece of literature
to encompass a broader insight: That regardless of the label on the package
'animals are harmed when they are used for food.' I want to make sure
each student receives at least one."
Pound seizure is the sale of cats and dogs from a pound or shelter to
research labs. Only three states --Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Utah, still
have laws requiring that publicly funded pounds and shelters turn over
unclaimed animals for experimentation.
The ultimate fate of these former companion animals is death. But before they die, they may suffer greatly. Visit End Pound Seizure Minnesota to sign the petition and find out more.
Petting
zoos at malls and fairs allow children to feed, ride, or have their pictures
taken with animals. Children who visit petting zoos often bring home much
more than their parents bargained for as petting zoos are notorious for
infecting children with potentially lethal bacteria such as E.
coli and salmonella. Click here
for a fact sheet with more details on petting zoos.
Hearing
a lot about violence in schools? You can do something to help: Cut out
dissection! Every year, millions of animals are killed and shipped off
to schools, where young people are given scalpels and told to slice up
the animals’ bodies. What does dissection teach? Not much, except
that it’s OK to chop up animals.
Contact ARC for information and support for students, parents, and teachers who object to dissection and advice on how to object to dissection at your school.
VegKins is a unique social networking group for
parents raising vegetarian
and vegan children.
Join the VegKins
Yahoo group
