summer action line

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STOP. THINK. ADOPT.LEAVE WILD HORSES UNTOUCHED

RUNWAY REBEL: BRINGING COMPASSION TO HIGH FASHION

FOA: HANDS OFF NY SWANS, DEC!

2 | Friends of Animals Summer 2014 | 3

BY PRISCILLA FERAL, PRESIDENT

IN MY VIEWOUR TEAM

PRESIDENT Priscilla Feral [CT] [email protected] www.twitter.com/pferal www.twitter.com/primate_refuge

VICE PRESIDENT Dianne Forthman [CT]

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS Robert Orabona [CT]

ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT Donna Thigpen [CT]

SECRETARY TO THE PRESIDENT Shelly Scott [CT]

SPAY/NEUTER PROJECT Paula Santo [CT]

DIRECTOR, WILDLIFE LAW PROGRAM Michael Harris [CO]

ASSOCIATE ATTORNEY Jenni Barnes [CO]

CAMPAIGNS DIRECTOR Edita Birnkrant [NY] www.twitter.com/EditaFoANYC

CORRESPONDENT Nicole Rivard [CT] [email protected]

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Meghan McIntire [CT] www.twitter.com/FoAorg

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PPI Brooke Chavez [TX] [email protected]

DESIGN MSLK

WHO WE ARE Friends of Animals is an international non-profit animal-advocacy organization, incorporated in the state of New York in 1957. FoA works to cultivate a respectful view of nonhuman animals, free-living and domestic. Our goal is to free animals from cruelty and institutionalized exploitation around the world.

CONTACT US NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS 777 Post Road Darien, Connecticut 06820 (203) 656-1522 [email protected]

NEW YORK OFFICE 1841 Broadway, Suite 350 New York, NY 10023 212 (247)-8120

WESTERN OFFICE P.O. Box 102041 Denver, CO 80250-2041 (720) 949-7791

PRIMARILY PRIMATES SANCTUARY P.O. Box 207 San Antonio, TX 7891-02907 (830) 755-4646 primarilyprimates@ friendsofanimals.org

VISIT US www.friendsofanimals.org www.primarilyprimates.org

FOLLOW US facebook.com /friendsofanimals.org facebook.com /primarilyprimates.org

MEMBERSHIP Annual membership includes a year’s subscription to Action Line. Students/Senior membership, $15; Annual membership, $25; International member, $35; Sustaining membership, $50; Sponsor, $100; Patron, $1,000. All contributions, bequests and gifts are fully tax-deductible in accordance with current laws.

REPRODUCTION No prior permission for the reproduction of materials from Action Line is required provided the content is not altered and due credit is given as follows: “Reprinted from Action Line, the Friends of Animals’ magazine, 777 Post Road, Darien, CT 06820.”

Action Line is a quarterly publication Issue CLIX, Spring 2014 ISSN 1072-2068

16 FEATURE Stop. Think. Adopt

4 NEWS Beyond Meat: Protein That’s Animal and Earth Friendly

6 FEATURE Leave Wild Horses Untouched

10 NEWS For the Love of Prairie Dogs

12 NEWS Everything Vegan at Your Fingertips

14 NEWS Oliver’s Playground Opens

20 FEATURE Runway Rebel: Bringing

Compassion to High Fashion

26 NEWS FOA: Hands off NY Swans DEC!

28 LETTERS

29 CHEERS & JEERS

30 FOA MERCHANDISE

Printed on Recycled Paper

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IN LOVING MEMORY OF LOLA, 2003–2014

It can be unexpectedly expensive to share your home with a dog or cat, but many families attest there’s no greater joy. Certainly, I feel that way 10½ years later, after my daughter arrived at home during winter break from college with a bulldog she impulsively purchased when the puppy appeared in a New Jersey store window.

After a trip to investigate the Kansas puppy mill that sold her Lola, and interviews with bulldog rescuers who pointed us to auctions that puppy mills stage to sell off dogs they discard, we wrote a Summer 2004 Action Line expose’ about puppy mills and Lola, who had so many health problems that she received a “not for sale” certificate from a vet.

Lola and our other large dog, Harry, came to work at Friends of Animals each day. Shockingly, Lola passed away in April, and thoughts about adopting another dog returned, which got me thinking about Meg McIntire’s poignant story in this issue of Action Line: “Stop. Think. Adopt. How Misconceptions About Rescue Animals Are Part Of The Homeless Problem.”

Unfortunately, homelessness isn’t solved entirely by publi-cizing shelter adoptions. Sometimes, animals who make it into a home face people ill-equipped or incapable of assuming veter-inary costs and responsibilities of lifetime care—not to mention paying to reupholster damaged furniture.

To help avert the perils of homelessness and draw attention to the financial commitments of rescuing an animal, FoA just launched a creative initiative to link adoptions to our afford-able spay-neuter program. With our network of more than 600 veterinarians, FoA is the non-profit leader for spay-neuter efforts, as approximately 35,000 animals are sterilized through this project each year.

Through the talents of the Atlanta-based agency, Breensmith Advertising, thought-provoking outdoor billboards are appearing in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Georgia (with more states to follow), to educate folks that spay-neuter is a big part of the solution that protects dogs and cats from harm, aban-donment and in some cases death.

Although the number has fallen, animals killed in U.S. animal shelters and pounds is still close to three million, and evenly divided between cats and dogs. Only 30 percent of pets come from shelters or rescues even though they typically provide shots plus spaying and neutering before animals are put up for adoption.

We will also target young people to remind them adopting an animal is not a harmless impulse-buy like purchasing a new pair of shoes or uploading a song from iTunes.

College students typically live in small dorm rooms. They’re always broke. As one 2013 graduate informed me, when colleges prohibit pets on campus, they’re often rescued and smuggled into the dorm, with no thought given to pet food costs, vet care, spay-neuter or even walking the dog. One roommate rescued a pregnant cat and then the cat had a litter. At the end of the school year many of these animals are not welcomed into the student’s home, so they’re abandoned on campus or dropped at a shelter.

Next fall, the University of Northern Colorado will become one of fewer than a dozen colleges in the United States that allows cats and dogs on campus – launching the ill-conceived effort “to beef up what it is like to live in a pet-friendly commu-nity,” says Jennifer Brundage, assistant director of apartment life and operations for the college.

That cats and dogs are any college’s experimental pilot program to attract and excite students is highly problematic.

We’ll aim to blanket college newspapers and social media with our new spay-neuter ads so that the best ideas flourish, and animals whose lives matter so much are beneficiaries.

Cover & Above Shelter dogs photographed by Richard Phibbs


Like many children, Ethan Brown was taught not to judge someone by the way they look.

“Where I went to school you’d have these classroom exercises where brown-eyed and blue-eyed people would be separated, and one group would get benefits at the expense of the other,” Brown recalled. “It was intended to show the stupidity and harm of discrimination.”

It never occurred to Brown such an exercise should only apply to humans. So when he would visit his family’s dairy farm, it weighed on him that the cows and pigs were treated differently than the family’s dogs.

“Just because one has a bigger snout doesn’t mean it should be

PROTEIN THAT’S ANIMAL AND EARTH FRIENDLYBEYOND MEAT

ETHAN BROWN IS

GIVING CONSUMERS

PLANT-BASED MEATS

SO TASTY HE HOPES

THE NON-VEGAN

KIND WILL BECOME

OBSOLETE

By Nicole RivaRd • PHoToGRaPHy coURTeSy oF BeyoNd MeaT

subject to being caged its entire life while the other one lives a life of luxury,” said Brown, who became a vegan 14 years ago.

Last year at age 41, fueled by decades of soul-searching about the treatment of animals, Brown launched Beyond Meat to elimi-nate animals from our food supply. Beyond Meat replicates animal protein using soy and pea protein to create a vegan meat alternative. The company currently offers chicken strips and beef crumble.

Vegan meat is not an oxymoron to Brown, who set out to reinvent meat and challenge the idea that it has to come from animals versus plants.

Brown admits that when he talks to people about creating meat

from plants, there is skepticism. So Beyond Meat has a food truck that travels around to events and to Whole Food stores, where the product launched in 2013, so people can taste it for themselves.

After people try the truck’s vegan beef and chicken tacos, more often than not they run into the store and buy the product, Brown says. In addition to hooking consumers one bite at a time, the company has attracted investors like Bill Gates and Twitter co-founders Evan Williams and Biz Stone.

“I feel so blessed to have the people behind me that I have,” Brown said, adding, there is an obligation I feel, it’s like I just want to make sure this works.”

But it’s an obligation to making sure animals get the justice they deserve and a commitment to the environment that also drives Brown. In interviews, he doesn’t hesitate to point out that 51 percent of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to animal farming.

Prior to Beyond Meat, Brown worked in the alternative energy sector because he felt strongly about trying to resolve climate change.

Then he started investing in vegan restaurants, where he observed mainstream people consuming plant-based versions of their favorite dishes, like a Philly cheese steak. It struck him how so much effort went into disguising the flavorless products with heavy sauces.

It occurred to him: What if you were able to truly recreate meat texture from plants and its ability to deliver flavor? Wouldn’t someone pick the plant-based version?

“I started to think about what meat is—amino acids, lipids, trace carbohydrates, minerals and water,” Brown said. “If you create a way of assembling those parts with the same architectural structure that animal muscle assembles them, and there’s nothing artificial about it—you just apply heating, cooling and pressure—then why isn’t that meat?”

He believes the texture of Beyond Meat’s vegan meat products and the way they absorb and contribute to the flavor profile is what sets them apart from anything else in the marketplace.

“Meat is a way of delivering flavor. Meat itself doesn’t taste great,” Brown said. “You don’t long for a piece of chicken flesh.

“We’ve focused on texture for years. I started working on this in early 2009,” Brown said. “Before that, Dr. Fu-hung Hsieh and Harold Huff, the scientists of the University of Missouri that we collaborated with and who really invented the approach, had been working on it for 10 years prior to that.”

Brown said he loves crisping up the Beyond Meat chicken strips in a pan with just a little bit of oil and spices—his products don’t need to be disguised with sauces.

“Our beef tacos are delicious,”

Brown said. “At six-foot-five, 215 pounds, I can eat an embarrassing number of tacos. But with the pea protein base our beef doesn’t make you feel slow or heavy, just full.”

Earlier this year Fast Company named Beyond Meat one of the top 50 most innovative companies of 2014. But Brown said what’s been the most gratifying is talking to kids about his vegan meat products.

“They get it. They say ‘If I can eat this, why would I eat an animal?’ Brown said.

To really affect change with the population at large, Brown hopes Beyond Meat makes its way into fast food chains like McDonald’s, where millions of people eat every day.

“If you think about a Chicken McNugget, it’s really just good tasting crispy breading surrounding white stuff,” Brown said. “Why can’t that white stuff be clean, plant-based protein?


“Of all the brute creation the horse is the most admired by men. Combining beauty with usefulness,

all countries and all ages yield it their admiration. But, though the finest specimen of its kind,

a domestic horse will ever lack that magic and indescribable charm that

beams like a halo around the simple name of freedom.” –Matthew Field (1839)

One hundred years ago, two to five million horses roamed freely across healthy western ranges in the United States. To make room for commercially exploitable animals, such as cattle and sheep, the government established a goal to substantially reduce the number of free wild horses.

Since 1971, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has removed nearly 230,000 wild horses and burros from their habitat, and completely eradicated them from more than 20 million acres of public land designated by Congress as habitat for these animals. The goal today is to keep the population at or below 26,677.

BLM recently budgeted $6 million for helicopter contracts to gather wild horses in 2014 and $1.5 million for plans to sterilize them, despite that it is widely accepted that current management of wild horses is ineffective and unsustainable, not to mention cruel.

Their “gather” methods generally consist of flying a helicopter close to the ground, knocking up dirt and

debris, and forcing horses, including small foals, to run into trap sites miles away. Not only it is difficult for the horses to run long distances from the helicopter in a state of fear, but the BLM then transfers them to long-term, crowded, holding facilities. There, horses suffer due to confinement in close quarters with unfamiliar horses, and the loss of or separation from lifelong herd mates. If this abuse continues, the American wild horse is likely to go extinct.

One thing the government has not tried: Leaving them alone.

To help make this the new reality for America’s wild horses, Friends of Animals has submitted a petition to list wild horses as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Listing the animals would provide needed regulation to halt further exploitation of this species, including making it illegal for the BLM to gather wild horses.

Because FoA filed the petition, the secretary of the interior is mandated to make certain findings on whether or not the petition is warranted. If it is deemed warranted, the secretary must then commence a status review of the species and make a final listing determina-tion within 12 months of the initial petition.

For centuries, people have attempted to manipulate and “manage” wild animals, but they often forget to step back and consider the inherent value of the animals and the benefits of allowing them to live freely.

Wild horses were in America long before humans.

FOA HAS FILED A PETITION TO LIST WILD HORSES AS ENDANGERED UNDER THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT TO PUT AN END TO A LEGACY OF ABUSE

LEAVE WILD HORSES By JeNNiFeR BaRNeS, STaFF aTToRNey, WildliFe laW PRoGRaM • illUSTRaTioNS By MaRcUS PieRNo

D


Fossil records indicate that modern wild horses had a large geographic distribution across North America, originating there about 1.7 million years ago.1 Scientists believe that approximately 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, hunting by prehistoric humans, climate change (and resulting vegetation shifts), or a combination of the two, may have eradicated horses in this continent or at least significantly reduced their numbers here. The wild horses in America today are likely descendants from domesticated horses brought to America by Spanish conquistadors in the mid-1500s. Some domestic horses escaped or were released from captivity onto western rangelands and likely mixed with horses who evolved on the continent. These horses quickly adapted to freedom and filled the niche of free-roaming horses on western rangelands, millions of years in the making. The fact that horses were domesticated before they were reintroduced matters little from a biological or behavioral viewpoint.2

Wild horses thrive without any human intervention. They live in highly structured, hard-won family groups, called bands, generally consisting of several females (mares) led by a dominant male (stallion). Stallions and mares form long-term, sometimes lifelong relationships. Each horse plays an important role in the band. The lead stallion and mare look over the band and prevent over-crowding and overgrazing. The band stallion will fight to defend against intrusion or takeover. Over time, each band will search out and establish its own home range, which in drier regions could cover hundreds of square miles on an annual basis.

LEGACY OF ExPLOITATIONExploitation of wild horses started around the 1920s, when they were trapped and sold for chicken-feed or pet food.3 Around the same time, American ranch-ers began to pack cattle and sheep onto public land to graze. Unlike wild horses and other wild animals, cattle concentrate in one place for long periods of time grazing on grasses and trampling on most vegetation, causing large-scale degradation of rangeland.

Rather than acknowledge that their own manipu-lation of the landscape and excessive animal farming were causing damage, many Americans, along with the government transferred blame to the less “marketable” animal—the wild horse. From 1934 to 1963, the U.S. government paid private contractors to kill wild horses on federal land, and allowed ranchers to round up and shoot any horses they wanted.

Outraged at the practice of extinguishing wild horses, some people stepped up and encouraged Congress to pass the Hunting Wild Horses and Burros on Public Lands Act in 1959, which banned the hunting of wild horses on federal land from aircraft or motor-ized vehicles. After passage of this law, ranchers and others continued to sell and slaughter wild horses. In 1971, upon finding that “these horses and burros are fast disappearing from the American scene” and that they

“contribute to the diversity of life forms within the nation and enrich the lives of the American people,” Congress passed the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act to protect wild horses.

Unfortunately, the act does little to ensure wild

horses are actually protected, so the BLM continues to drive them off the range through so called “gather” or

“round up” operations. A series of amendments, continued pressure from

ranchers and aggressive, uniformed management has stripped wild horses of their habitat and reduced their population to an alarmingly low number.

Clearly, commercially exploited cattle and sheep receive priority over wildlife. Of the 245 million acres of public land managed by the BLM, 155 million is open to livestock grazing (virtually all BLM land outside of Alaska). By contrast, wild horses are restricted to just 26.9 million acres, which they must share with privately owned cattle and sheep. Even though wild horses are restricted to a small fraction (approximately 11 percent) of BLM land, the agency routinely allocates the vast majority of forage on this land to privately-owned animals instead of wild horses.

BLM NEEDS TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLEAccording to a report the National Academy of Sciences released last year, the Wild Horse and Burro Program has not used scientifically rigorous methods to model the effects of management actions on the animals, or to assess the availability and use of forage on rangelands. The report explained that it is not clear how BLM deter-mines that it should conduct a gather or whether gathers are necessary.4 In the 2013 fiscal year, BLM spent $4.8 million on gathers and removals, and $46.2 million on holding costs.5 The academy report concluded that “the continuation of ‘business-as-usual’ practices will be expensive and unproductive for BLM.”

BLM’s aggressive removal of wild horses to keep them at an artificially low number not only negatively affects the individual horses, and the genetic viability of the herd, it is also short-sighted and ineffective because it prompts short-term population growth as the horses attempt to reach a healthy or stable population.

But if given adequate habitat, wild horse bands will establish home ranges to achieve a balance with the natural resources in their territory. In fact, allowing wild horses to roam freely will likely benefit the range.

CONTACT THE BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT Send a letter to the Bureau of Land Management telling them you oppose wild horse gathers and support FoA’s Endangered Species Act Petition: BLM Washington Office 1849 C Street NW, Rm. 5665, Washington DC 20240.

CONTACT THE U.S. DEPT. OF THE INTERIOR Tell Secretary Sally Jewell that you support wild horses being listed as endangered species. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, N.W. Washington DC 20240 Phone: 202-208-3100 Email: [email protected]

DONATE Make a Donation to FoA to support our work to protect wild horses.

TAKE ACTION

Wild horses can prevent catastrophic fires because they are able to consume dry, fire-prone vegetation over vast areas of the west. Furthermore, wild horses help spread plant seeds over large areas where they roam; wild horses do not decompose the vegetation they ingest as thoroughly as ruminant grazers, such as cattle or sheep, which allows the seeds of many plant species to pass through their digestive tract intact into the soil that the wild horses fertilize by their droppings. Addition-ally, other animals depend on horses to make certain resources, such as water, available. For example, in the winter horses are able to break through the ice to expose water to a variety of species. However, these benefits cannot be realized when wild horses are limited by continued gathers and constricted by arbitrary boundaries.1. Downer, Craig C. “The horse and burro as positively contributing returned natives in

North America.” American Journal of Life Sciences 2.1 (2014): 5-23.

2. Kirkpatrick, Jay F., and Patricia M. Fazio. “Wild Horses as Native North American Wild-life.” Retrieved from The Science and Conservation Centre. Accessed April 28 (2010).

3. McKnight, Tom L. “The feral horse in Anglo-America.” Geographical review 49.4 (1959)- 506-525.

4. National Research Council, “Using Science to Improve the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program: A Way Forward” Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2013, 9, available at: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13511.

5. BLM, Quick Fact, Available at: http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/whbprogram/history_and_facts/quick_facts.html

WILD HORSES Wild horses are restricted to just 26.9 million acres, yet BLM forces them to share even that small fraction of land with privately owned animals.

COMMERCIAL LIVESTOCK Of the 245 million acres of public land managed by BLM, 155 million is open to livestock grazing. Unlike wild horses, cattle graze in one place for long periods of time, causing degradation of rangeland.

BLM PUBLIC LAND ALLOCATION

85%

155 M ACRES

26.9 M ACRES


Last year Friends of Animals’ newest project, the Wildlife Law Program, chose protection of prairie dogs as one of its cornerstone missions. It didn’t take long before the program jumped into action to defend the Utah prairie dog against a frivolous attack by the Pacific Legal Foundation, an anti-environmental, pro-property legal rights group.

The foundation filed suit against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on behalf of a group of property owners in Cedar City, Utah who claim the listing of the prairie dog as a protected species under the Endan-gered Species Act infringes on their constitutional rights.

The Wildlife Law Program tapped FoA member John Hoogland, who has a Ph.D in zoology and has been studying prairie dogs for 41 years, to testify in the case and pursue the rights of prairie dogs before he left in the spring on a five-month adven-ture to observe Gunnison’s prairie dogs at Valles Caldera National Preserve in New Mexico. Read here why he is the best man for the job.

WHY DO ANIMALS LIVE IN GROUPS? CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE MOMENT WHEN YOU REAL-IzED DISCOVERING ANSWERS TO THIS qUESTION COULD INSPIRE YOUR LIFE’S WORK?When I wanted to study why animals live in groups, I initiated research with Wyoming ground squirrels in March 1974. I discov-ered six weeks into my project that although they are gregarious,

in 2014 will be my 41st year of research with prairie dogs.

Students and I have devoted more than 185,000 man-hours of research over the last 41 years in our attempt to figure out how certain females manage to live as long as eight years, why only some individuals give an alarm call when a red fox attacks, why some females kill the offspring of close kin and why females avoid mating with close kin such as fathers and sons but commonly mate with more distant kin such as first and second cousins. These are only some of the mesmerizing issues that chain us to our observa-tion towers each spring.

WHAT ROLE DOES THE PRAIRIE DOG PLAY IN ITS ECOSYSTEM?The prairie dog (all species) is a keystone species, and that means that it has a profound impact on its grassland ecosystem. Prairie dogs serve as prey for terrestrial predators such as American badgers, black-footed ferrets, bobcats, coyotes and long-tailed weasels, and for avian predators such as ferruginous hawks, golden eagles, northern goshawks, prairie falcons and

Swainson’s hawks. Their burrows provide homes for a diverse array of animals, such as black-footed ferrets, burrowing owls, bull snakes, tiger salamanders and hundreds of species of insects and spiders. The burrows also improve cycling of water and other nutrients. The subsoil exposed by excavations at colony-sites promotes the growth of certain plants, such as the aptly-named prairie dog weed, that do not commonly grow elsewhere. And plants at colony-sites commonly have more nutrition than the same plants away from colony- sites, so that American bison and pronghorn antelope prefer to feed at colony-sites.

WHAT IS YOUR MOST SURPRISING FINDING ABOUT PRAIRIE DOGS?Perhaps my most sensational discov-eries concern communal nursing and infanticide. Female black-tailed prairie dogs frequently nurse the unweaned offspring of close kin such as sisters and daughters. But in dry years when competition is severe, females commonly kill rather than nurse the offspring of close

kin. Life for prairie dogs is all about balancing extreme cooperation such as communal nursing with extreme competition such as infanticide.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT PRAIRIE DOGS? That they are prolific breeders and therefore resemble rats. In reality several factors severely limit repro-duction of prairie dogs. Even in good years with copious rainfall each female is sexually receptive on only a single day of the year and can wean a maximum of only one litter per year.

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO HELP FRIENDS OF ANIMALS PROTECT PRAIRIE DOGS?Saving prairie dogs is a formidable task. But it’s a battle that we can win, because prairie dogs are so resilient to threats such as shooting, poisoning and destruction of habitat. I am happy to help FoA and every other organization that is trying to preserve my favorite animals.

WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT RESEARCH WITH PRAIRIE DOGS?The main focus of my research has always been the mating system. Students and I have known for years that each female (all species) frequently mates with more than one male (i.e., is polyandrous) during the five-six hours of sexual receptivity on a single day. We have just discovered that females reap three clear, compelling benefits from polyandry: They are more likely to conceive, they rear larger litters to weaning and their offspring are more likely to survive in the first year after weaning. Wow! But polyandrous females also pay a cost, because they are less likely than monandrous females to survive until the next mating season. Over the next several years we will further investigate the costs and benefits of polyandry for female prairie dogs. The results are certain to be provoc-ative, so stay tuned.

Wyoming ground squirrels do not live in distinct colonies with clear boundaries. I was devastated, and one night just sobbed. My wife of three months (Judy), immediately suggested, ‘Why not study prairie dogs? Everybody knows that prairie dogs live in colonies.’ The next day I started to study prairie dogs instead of Wyoming ground squir-rels. That’s one of the best decisions I ever made. Thanks, Judy!

WHAT MAKES PRAIRIE DOGS SO SPECIAL?When I drove up to a colony of black-tailed prairie dogs for the first time in April 1974, some of the residents were chasing and fighting. Others were constructing large mounds at the entrances to burrows. And others appeared to be kissing and grooming each other. At frequent but unpredictable times, an individual would jump into the air and vocalize in a way that initiated a chain-reaction of other jump-vocalizations. I remember saying out loud to myself after about 10 minutes at that colony, “I could study these animals for the next 10 years.” Alas, my upcoming research

FOR THE LOVE OF PRAIRIE DOGS

COMPILED BY NICOLE RIVARD

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13 | Friends of Animals

IN MEMORIAMFriends of Animals has received kind donations in memory of the following individuals:

LOLA

LINDA PETRIE

MIRIAM JUTRAS

MARIA BARNETT

TOBY

EMILY CERICOLA

ELLEN BANKS

ELSIE O’NEIL

MIDNIGHT

JAMIE WALDERA

DONALD LEWIS

PRINCESS FINKEL

KATHLEEN GOODGAME

ANNA JOAN SULLIVAN

MISA

LARRY M. CLAY

CHARLES CAVALLARO

PEEKA

ERNA McNAMARA

BRUTUS

ROSE MARY ALLEN

TIKO

ELLIN DAWSON

ANDREW GROSSER

SARAH ODA

FIJI PETREQUIN

DALE HART

DORA MORA

MAGGIE

CINDY DWYER

CASEY

CHARLIE STRAUS

DUTCHESS

PARIS

ZAK, RIVER & MAGIC

BARNEY

ONSLOW

RASCAL

SADIE & CHARO

KOZMO TRODICK

GYPSY ROSELOUISE

ALL OF MICHAEL D. HARRIS’ ANIMALS IN HEAVEN

For many people, their cell phone has become a necessity by giving them

unlimited information at their fingertips through different apps and Internet

access. While this level of convenience may have some downfalls, it is also true

that this technology can help you make more informed decisions about the

products you purchase and the food you eat. Vegan apps have become a niche

in the app marketplace and we’ve highlighted some of the most noteworthy ones,

so you can quickly scan an ingredient list to make sure a product is 100 percent

vegan or easily find a vegan restaurant no matter where you are.

EVERYTHING VEGAN AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

BY MEG MCINTIRE CRUELTY-FREE By Symbiotic Soft-ware LLC: This incredibly handy app allows you to

look up a wide variety of cosmetic and household product companies while you’re on the go and check to see if what you’re buying is certifi-ably cruelty-free. Published by the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics’ CCIC Leaping Bunny Program, this continuously updated shopping guide lists more than 200 U.S. and Canadian companies that do not test ingredients, formulations or finished products on animals.

Price: Free

THESE SMARTPHONE APPS CAN HELP YOU MAKE VEGAN-FRIENDLY CHOICES ON THE GO

VEGANxPRESSA very useful app that lets you know what vegan menu options are available at popular

chain restaurants and fast food places. It also contains a full list of vegan and vegetarian beer, wine and snack foods that you may not have known were vegan to begin with! It will definitely come in handy if you find yourself out to eat with non-vegan friends and family.

Price: $1.99

VEGEz HD By Delicious TV (For iPad): Created by our friends at Deli-cious TV, this app

offers short cooking videos and

teaches you how to make fantastic vegan recipes, step-by-step, with 57 companion videos. Browse through six different categories: light bites, main dishes, sandwiches and more.

Price: $.99

VEGSCANThis app makes grocery shopping a breeze. Checking

labels to make sure all your purchases are vegan can be a bit time consuming, but this app streamlines the process by allow-ing you to just scan the product’s barcode to find out if it’s vegan. It’s a community-driven app, so you can add your own vegan finds as well!

Price: Free

VEGSCANVEGANXPRESSCRUELTY-FREE


enter Oliver’s Playground. It was Andy Cockrum’s idea to put the dome in the area where the late chimpanzee Oliver lived. He is working on a documentary depicting Oliver’s life.

“When I observed the chimpanzees step on the grass in Oliver’s Playground for the first time, it reminded me that this is a new chapter for PPI,” said Chavez. “Its presence serves as inspi-ration, and is evidence that through the generosity of our supporters, we can all significantly contribute to the shaping of our new sanctuary.”

STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY NICOLE RIVARD

Shrieks of delight and clapping rang through the air at Primarily Primates PPI March 22, but this time it wasn’t the chimpanzees, spider monkeys or gibbons expressing themselves. It was staff from PPI and Friends of Animals as well as invited guests who gathered outside the new PrimaDome, a.k.a. Oliver’s Playground, to cheer on Wanda and Beauregard as they experienced the new habitat for the first time.

“This is so emotional,” said Priscilla Feral, president of Friends of Animals, as she waited for Wanda and Beau to walk from their enclosure through an overhead tunnel to the PrimaDome.

“This is exciting. It’s incredible to see,” added Don Barnes, who has a long history with PPI. His persever-ance resulted in the chimps from the movie Project X finding a new home at the sanctuary.

“The PrimaDome is really a unique design. It’s great. It’s prefabricated and then put together. It’s powerful.”

Once inside, Wanda rolled in the grass and hopped onto the tire swing, while Beau climbed gracefully to the top of the cupola.

Brooke Chavez, director of PPI, shared their stories.

“Beau was born in the wild and is 44 years old. He started off at Monkey Jungle

in Florida. He made a lot of friendships there according to the documentation that we have read.”

But Beau wasn’t able to breed, so he was given up to the Buckshire Corporation in Pennsylvania, a company that leased animals out for proto-cols for medical research.

Wanda was born in a zoo and later found as a pet in a brothel in Philadelphia where her owners decided she had grown too large. She too ended up at the Buckshire Corporation. They came to PPI with two other males and seven other females in 1996.

“The most touching thing Wanda did on her first day in the playground was to lie on her back in the grass, playing

‘happy baby’ and wiggling her toes,” said Dr. Val Kirk, PPI’s veterinarian for the last eight years. “Beauregard, always the attention seeker, did back-flips and spins and made silly faces. He is really enjoying running around, banging the barrels and climbing up to the cupola.

The seed for the PrimaDome was planted in 2012 when Feral toured the Center for Great Apes, a lovely sanctuary for chimpanzees and orangutans in Florida with an array of enclosures marketed by PrimaDome. The company’s geodesic domes connected through overhead tunnels to other habitats.

mental stimulation to ward off boredom and maintain good mental and physical health,” Kirk explained. “This playground provides that and lends itself very well to the addition of further enrichment, making each visit to the playground a stimulating and fun adventure.”

Oliver’s Playground was made possible by support from the San Antonio Area Foundation and generous donations. Producer and director of Danger Dog Films, Andy Cockrum, joined by his father, made the first pledge to start off the fund-raising effort at PPI.

The Cockrums were on hand March 22 to pull the lever to open the tunnel so Wanda and Beau could

Seeing the apes enjoying the vertical space inside the domes, Feral became inspired to introduce this design to PPI.

Enrichment elements in Oliver’s Playground at PPI include a grassy floor, a variety of climbing structures and hammocks, and a cupola where chimpanzees can climb 25 feet to view the tree tops. Overhead tunnels connect habitats so that three to five groups of chimpanzees have access to this exciting area in which to explore.

The flexibility of this new area allows care staff to vary play elements and hide toys and treats for the apes to discover throughout the day.

“A captive animal of such high intelligence as a chimpanzee needs regular

OLIVER’S PLAYGROUND OPENS ADVENTURE AWAITS CHIMPS INSIDE PRIMARILY

PRIMATES’ NEWEST HABITAT ADVENTURE

PRIMADOME AT PRIMARILY PRIMATES

WANDA IN THE PRIMADOME

Summer 2014 | 17

An extra-large coffee, a new pair of shoes, a candy bar while in line at the grocery store...all of these are perfectly harmless impulse buys. A German Shepherd puppy from your local animal shelter? Not so much.

These days, with shelters hosting free or low-cost adoption days, “My Dog’s a Rescue” bumper stickers plastered on cars and the heartbreaking TV ads showing a seemingly endless slideshow of shelter animals, it’s easy to feel like the only way to show you care is by immediately rushing to a shelter and taking home a furry friend. Sometimes it even seems as though adoption campaigns push the idea that rescuing an animal is like an easily attainable badge of honor – but instead of an iron-on patch or certificate, you get a brand new cat or dog.

This is not to say that you shouldn’t go to a shelter if you’re considering getting a dog or cat—everyone should adopt their animals from rescue organizations. It’s just crucial to be prepared for the responsibility and lifelong commit-ment rescuing an animal entails and not to take the decision lightly. Then it can be one of the most rewarding experiences you’ll ever have.

One of the major reasons there

are so many homeless animals in America is because their previous owners realized they were not prepared financially to own a dog or cat. After realizing how costly it can be to have an animal in their lives, some owners decide the costs outweigh the benefits and get rid of the dog or cat the same way they cancel a gym membership or stop buying take-out for dinner in an effort to save a few bucks. Abandon-ing an animal should never be an option when attempting to balance a budget, but according to a study done during the 2009 recession, 500,000 to one million cats and dogs were predicted to be given up by owners during the financial crisis.1

The price tag for owning a dog or cat adds up when considering the price of food, toys, vet visits, medical complications, treats, grooming– the list is endless. According to a study done in 2011, the cost of owning a dog averages about $20,000 during its lifetime and a cat can cost up to $17,000.2 These aren’t the numbers that get tossed around during “free adoption” day at shelters or in TV commercials, so often times new pet owners underestimate how having an animal will impact their finances.

This also results in a miscon-ception about how a shelter dog is

SToRy By MeG MciNTiRe • PHoToGRaPHy By RicHaRd PHiBBS

STOP. THINK. ADOPT. HOW MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT RESCUE ANIMALS ARE

PART OF THE HOMELESS PET PROBLEM IN AMERICA.


TAKE ACTIONIf you’re prepared for the commitment of owning a cat or dog, Friends of Animals offers a low-cost spay and neutering program, which is an effective means of preventing homelessness. From its beginning in 1957, FoA has assumed a leadership role in advocating low-cost spaying and altering as the most effective means of preventing the births of dogs and cats, and their subsequent abandon-ment, suffering and mass killing. For more than five decades, we have operated the only nationwide breeding control program in the United States facilitating more than 2.6 million spay/neuter procedures. For information, call 1 (800) 321–7387 or visit www.friendsofanimals.org.

When someone adopts a dog or cat on a whim without any real foresight only to give it up again, it takes away from valuable time that animal could have spent finding a real home and puts incredible stress on the animal. Occasionally, some overcrowded shelters also consider returns as a strike against the animal, and then they get bumped up on the euthanasia list.

The pressure by rescue groups to adopt first, ask questions later is something that needs to be corrected if we truly want to make a difference in the lives of shelter animals and reduce the homeless pet population. Stop and think before you adopt a dog or cat so recycling is no longer part of rescuing.

1. http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/dvm/article/arti-cleDetail.jsp?id=579918

2. http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2013/01/14/is-your-new-dog-a-money-pit

like the Walmart version of a pet. As though only expensive “fancy, boutique dogs” will cost you a fortune, but shelter dogs are money savers. The reality is that owning any type of cat or dog is a serious financial responsibility, especially considering they can live for up to 20 years, so you’re not getting a “deal” when adopting from a shelter. It’s true that the initial cost of purchasing the animal will be relatively inexpensive, but that is no indication of future costs.

Many times, someone will purchase a dog or cat only to decide a short time later they can’t handle the responsibility and return it to a shelter, as though animals are

“recyclable.” According to a study by Dog Time, every year, about 13 million American households adopt a dog or a puppy and within 12 months, half of them have been taken to a shelter. That number is indicative of the common attitude some have towards animals in this country—they’re easily attainable and just as easily discarded.


By Nicole RivaRd • PHoToGRaPHy By BalaRaMa HelleR

LEANNE MAI-LY HILGART IS INNOVATING

IN A WAY THAT PEOPLE DON’T NEED

TO WEAR ANIMALS AGAIN.

BRINGING COMPASSION TO HIGH FASHION

RUNWAYLeanne Mai-ly Hilgart poses with Audrey, a min pin Chihuahua mix she rescued from the Harlem Animal Care and Control.

REBEL

Summer 2014 | 23

Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart, creator of Vaute Couture, a high fashion vegan clothing label, is hard pressed to pick just one highlight from 2013.

First, she made history by becoming the first inde-pendent fashion house with animal-free built into its brand to show a vegan line during New York Fashion Week. As a result, she inspired CNN to do a story about how Vaute Couture is poised to change the fashion industry instead of focusing its piece on fur making a comeback during fashion week. And she impressed Business Insider enough that it named Vaute Couture one of the most innovative businesses in New York City.

The CNN story garnered 7,000 shares, which is unheard of for a fashion story, Hilgart says.

“I thought I was just going to give the reporter one quote,” Hilgart told Friends of Animals recently from her flagship store in Brooklyn.

“But I didn’t just say here’s my quote about why I don’t use fur. I opened up my heart to talk to the reporter…and told her why I’ve dedicated my life to this. It’s not just about fur. It’s about animals being treated like cogs in a machine and industries. They aren’t meant to be in these industries. We industrialized every-thing, and we forgot to say we should not be including sentient beings in these machines because they aren’t part of machines.”

Having a big media outlet like CNN give her a chance to say that vegan fashion wasn’t simply an alternative, but instead the future of fashion, meant a lot to her.

However, Business Insider’s recognition meant even more.

“They didn’t just say Vaute Couture was one of the most innovative ethical businesses, or vegan businesses—it was of any business in New York City,” Hilgart said.

“Business Insider recognized that this is relevant, and it’s relevant to everyone, because I am innovating in a way that people don’t need to wear animals again…in a way that’s actually better.

“I have been an animal rights advocate since I was

a kid. And it made me an outsider. It made me ignored. People didn’t want to talk to me. They just didn’t understand why I cared so much. For Business Insider to say not only that it was important and innovative but relevant to everyone…for the little girl who went from being super popular to being completely shunned for caring about animals, that was a really big deal to me.”

BEING CRUEL ISN’T COOL Hilgart has been anti-fur since she was six, when her neighbor came to school wearing a rabbit fur coat.

“I just thought, ‘these rabbits have no life because you have a stupid coat,’” Hilgart recalled.

“I didn’t even know how they were killed yet.”That knowledge—about anal electrocution and

trapping—came later at age 10 when she focused her social studies project on the fur industry, vivisection and factory farming.

She named it “Being cruel isn’t cool,” which ended up being the slogan on the first t-shirt she ever sold.

Hilgart became a vegetarian after working on that project and decided to become a vegan as a teenager. By that point she had already ran a campaign in her high school against dissection. Her efforts helped get a bill signed into law in Illinois that requires every public elementary and high school district to offer students a

substitute to dissection and bar them from penalizing youngsters who opt for such alternatives.

While a career that protected animals in some way seems like it would be an obvious choice, Hilgart got a little lost after high school. She entered college with the hopes of becoming a teacher, but became disenchanted while student teaching. While modeling part time, Hilgart got into marketing and realized she was natu-rally good at spreading messages, especially ones that had to do with animal rights, and that she could have the biggest impact if she shared that message through an animal friendly business.

“With animal rights, I found ways to reach people who didn’t really think they cared about animals and get them to realize that they do, and all the things they can do in their life as a result,” Hilgart said.

“And I realized that with business you create a process, and that process is done every time you make something. So that’s exponential change. It’s like a megaphone for your activism.”

Hilgart drew from all her life experiences and decided that the business animals needed her to create the most was vegan fashion.

She embarked on a mission to create the perfect animal-free winter dress coat, inspired by a lifetime of bitterly cold Chicago winters. She did eight months

THE NAME IS A NOD TO THE

FRENCH PHRASE FOR HIGH FASHION WITH A “V”

FOR VEGAN, PLUS VAUTE SOUNDS LIKE VOTE,

HILGART, SAYS, WHICH IS WHAT WE DO WHEN

WE BUY, WE VOTE FOR EVERYTHING BEHIND IT.

KAITLIN UTILITY JACKET

VAUTE COUTURE


of fabric research and development, and then let the community vote on designs. In 2008 she launched her first Vaute Couture collection of coats made of local-ly-produced recyclable and recycled fibers that were warmer than wool, windproof, snow resistant, rain resistant and heat retaining.

The name Vaute Couture is a nod to the French phrase for high fashion with a V for vegan, plus Vaute sounds like vote, Hilgart, says, “Which is what we do when we buy, we vote for everything behind it.”

Six years later, innovation, not fashion, continues to drive her designs. However it’s hard to ignore the style that Hilgart achieves without even trying.

“One aspect of how I design is from an invention standpoint,” Hilgart explained. “My parents are both science people so a lot of what I do is development. It’s figuring out how fabrics can be combined, or what fabrics can be used in a new way, or discovering the newest fabrics that mills have been working on. Then it’s figuring out how I can use them to make something better than what’s out there. It’s not about creating fashion it’s about creating innovation and clothing items that are better than what’s out there.”

Most designers do the opposite. They think about what kind of look they want to make, and then choose from millions of fabrics.

As for this designer’s future, Hilgart said she’s ready to talk to investors and perhaps open another store on the West Coast or in Canada. Her flagship store in Brooklyn, surrounded by other animal friendly businesses like Skinny Skinny (organic and vegan body

and home care) and Food Swings (vegan junk food), is just a 12-minute walk from her home.

“I have a rescue, Audrey, and she can’t take the subway because she’s scared of it so I moved close enough that I can walk her there,” Hilgart said.

She is also adding sweater and evening gown lines to Vaute Couture.

She said she found beautiful fabrics made from bottles mechanically recycled in Italy for the evening gowns.

“I have some amazing celebrity fans who say, ‘I can’t wear a coat on the red carpet, are you going to make a dress some time?’ Hilgart said. “I also get a lot of wedding dress requests.”

She thinks that gowns and sweaters are a great way to get people thinking about their entire wardrobe when embracing a plant-based lifestyle.

Hilgart believes the biggest myth about adopting a plant-based lifestyle is that it’s a sacrifice. “The way we make choices as a society is not to make them. We end up being silent participants in structures that have been set up by industries and tradition,” she said. “And when we silently participate in those things, we aren’t making those choices. So choosing to take back your proactive interaction with the world through your daily lifestyle choices by what you wear and what you eat, that’s empowerment. That’s the opposite of sacrifice.”

Despite the success of 2013, Hilgart said she worries about the future just like any entrepreneur.

“But just after the fear subsides is the best,” Hilgart says, adding that one of her favorite quotes is:

“Everything you want is on the other side of fear.”For Hilgart everything she wants now is quite

similar to what she wanted as that budding six-year-old animal rights activist. Looking back, she says she was her own best role model at age six.

“I believe that who you were when you were six, is a great role model for who you will become. It’s kind of like before you start listening to people telling you how you should act and what you should do and all of that stuff.

“For me it was making arts and crafts stuff with my friends to sell door to door for a local animal shelter. That is what I did when I was a kid. That’s kind of what I do now. I create art to open people’s hearts up to thinking about how they can live differently and to raise awareness and money for animals.”

MARAIS DRESSTUNIC WITH HEART POCKETS


By ediTa BiRNkRaNT, Ny diRecToR • PHoToGRaPH coURTeSy oF MicHael BiSceGlie

It’s unthinkable that New Yorkers and tourists would no longer be able to visit parks, lakes and other areas to observe and admire these elegant birds that have been beloved by the public since the 1800s. A park I frequent in my Queens neighbor-hood has a pair of mute swans that co-exist peacefully with Canada geese and ducks and I’m continually thrilled by the sight of the snow white, long-necked, graceful birds gliding along the lake.

A New York without mute swans would not happen on our watch. As soon as we heard about the plan we demanded the DEC replace its swan eradication proposal with legal protections that would instead

and potential hazards to aviation—yet offers no demonstrable evidence of these absurd claims.

DEC’s flimsy attempt to blame 2,200 mute swans for causing significant environmental damage throughout all of New York lacks scientific evidence. While the diet of mute swans consists of SAV, studies have shown that runoff from fertilizers, pesticides and animal waste contribute significantly to the loss of SAV in other areas, like the Chesapeake Bay.

As the backlash against the plan intensified, we recognized the need for legislative action to ensure it was struck down. We contacted New York State Senator Tony Avella, a longtime defender of animal issues, and urged him to introduce legislation. With input from FoA and ornithologists, Avella introduced Senate Bill #6589 on Feb. 10, boosting the campaign to save the swans and garnering much media attention.

Avella said, “I was horrified to learn that our state wildlife agency would make such an extreme, unfounded proposal, and do not believe that the DEC has provided evidence to justify the elimination of these beauti-ful swans…In addition to imposing a two-year moratorium, my bill requires DEC to illustrate the necessity of eradicating this non-native species by demonstrating the actual damage to the environment or other species caused by mute swans. We should be research-ing ways of how to protect these birds, not eradicate them.”

DEC caved under the pressure and said they would scrap the plan and release a “revised plan” in the Spring of 2014 followed by another 30-day comment period for the public to weigh in. DEC admitted receiving more than 1,500 comments from individuals and organizations, including FoA’s official statement, 16,000 letters and 50,000 signatures via petitions in opposition of the swan kill plan.

By the time this article appears in Action Line, the DEC’s revised plan will have been released. We are committed to rejecting any new DEC proposal that pushes forth a control scheme that manages swans to extinction—denying these beau-tiful birds flight, families and the right to live in nature.

We restated this commitment with Avella at a press conference in Albany on March 12. Our goal is full protection for NY’s mute swans and we intend to make sure that not a single mute swan is killed or harassed nor a single swan egg destroyed or sterilized. FoA is also requesting that Governor Andrew Cuomo issue a New York state proclamation to recognize an offi-cial “Swan Appreciation Week.” NY DEC’s hateful attitudes are out of step with the very residents of New York whose tax dollars fund the agency.

The DEC has perversely been operating for far too long as if its only duty is to act in the interests of hunters. This swan extermina-

tion plan is a dream come true for hunters who overall dislike mute swans because they are not a hunted species and charge mute swans with displacing waterfowl species they can hunt.

Our ongoing message to the DEC is “Hands off NY’s swans.”

IN DECEMBER OF 2013

THE NY DEPARTMENT OF

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION

(DEC) DECLARED ITS INTENT

TO WIPE OUT THE SPECIES

OF MUTE SWANS, TOTALING

2,200, IN NEW YORK AND

TO OFFICIALLY CLASSIFY THEM

AS A “PROHIBITED SPECIES.”

FRIENDS OF ANIMALS

RESPONSE TO THIS

SWANICIDE SCHEME?

HELL, NO!

FOA: HANDS OFF NY SWANS, DEC!

TAKE ACTION

CALL YOUR STATE SENATOR AND ASSEMBLY MEMBER Urge them to support the efforts to save NY’s mute swans and pass Senate Bill #6589 and Assembly Bill #8790.

CONTACT NY GOVERNOR, ANDREW CUOMO Ask that he institute a Swan Apprecia-tion Week and that he advocate for total protection for NY’s mute swans. Call his office at 518-474-8390 or send an email: [email protected]

CONTACT THE NY DEC COMMISSIONER, JOSEPH MARTENS Call 518-402-8545 or email [email protected] and tell him you want NY’s mute swans protected, not targeted for slaughter, egg destruction or steriliza-tion. Demand that swans are allowed to live free as they deserve.

allow New York residents to live in harmony with these treasured birds.

We rallied ornithologists, our members and other activists to vigorously oppose the DEC’s crazed plan. In the DEC’s preposterous Draft Management Plan for Mute Swans in New York State, the agency tries to justify this potential killing spree by claiming swans can cause a variety of problems in spite of their small numbers, which only equal about one half of one percent of all waterfowl in New York. It claims the problems include aggressive behav-ior towards people, destruction of submerged aquatic vegetation SAV, displacement of native wildlife species, degradation of water quality

28 | Friends of Animals

LETTERS

MAIL US: Editor, Action Line Friends of Animals 777 Post Road Darien, CT 06820

E-MAIL US: [email protected]

LET’S HEAR FROM YOU!

STANDING UP FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T CRY OUTI received the enclosed letter almost

13 years ago from the Prime Minister

of Israel, Ariel Sharon. Regretfully,

Mr. Sharon recently passed away.

I had written to Mr. Sharon regarding

a proposed horse track to be built

in Israel and about the cruelty and

abuse to horses used in racing. I was

glad to receive a nice reply from the

Prime Minister’s office stating that my

“stand against cruelty to animals who

are unable to cry out and tell of their

suffering is commendable.”

At that time I was living one mile from

an Air Force base while my son was an

airman and I was sorry to hear that the

military used animals in some training. I

read this in an animal welfare newsletter.

Now, 10 years later, I’ve written a

letter to Idaho Governor Otter urging him

to stop the wolf killings (murder) in Idaho

where they recently held a “wolf derby”

where hunters get paid cash for killing

wolves. This is an inhumane and horrible

event that must never be held again.

There were protests by supporters of our

fellow creature the wolf. May there be

more protests in hopes of stopping the

murder of God’s creatures!

HeleN keTT • BoiSe, id

“BIG GAME HUNTING” INTERVIEW WITH FoA ON 60 MINUTES

Friends of Animals, you are an

amazing organization. I am 12 years

old and I am in love with animals! I

would like to say that I support the case

against Charlie Seal. What he said on

60 Minutes was SO NOT TRUE! First

of all, what he said was completely

irrelevant and didn’t make sense at all.

The interviewer asked, “How can you

kill something you love?” and to that

he replied, “I know it’s for the welfare

of every one of those animals. You

sacrifice one so that many more are

born.” What does sacrifice have to do

with the birth of a species? They have

endangered species in their hands and

they decide to kill them off? What jerks!

I’m sorry, I get very fired up about this.

kaTie • via e-Mail

NO ANIMAL IS AN ‘IT’Please tell Stan Minasian that no animal

is an “it.” All animals are either a he or

a she, including those who are spayed or

neutered. If Mr. Minasian doesn’t know

which, he can pick one. He can always

change later if he finds out that they are

the opposite or just say he/she.

Other than that, I enjoyed the 10

Lives article (Spring 2014).

BReNda SaUeR • NoRTH BRUNSWick, NJ

Winter 2014 | 29

CHEERSBY MEG MCINTIRE AND NICOLE RIVARD

DARREN ARONOFSKY Cheers to director Darren Aronofsky, who collabo-rated with visual effects company ILM to ensure that no live animals were used in the filming of Noah, which was released

in the spring. In an interview, Aronof-sky explained how ILM created a virtual collection of animal actors: “We basically went through the animal kingdom and pinpointed the body types we wanted: some pachyderms, some rodents, reptiles and the bird kingdom. They were brought to life with different furs and colors.”

After seeing the awful conditions some primates were kept in during the making of his earlier film The Fountain, Aronofsky decided to never use “animal actors” again.

Friends of Animals knows all too well about animals exploited by the entertainment industry since it manages the Primarily Primates sanctu-ary in Texas, which cares for many chimpanzees who were discarded after they were too old to control. With the capability of computer generated imagery, live animals are absolutely not necessary in the movie-making industry.

JAY ASTAFA Cheers to vegan chef Jay Astafa, 21, known for his culinary creations at Three Brothers Pizzeria in Farmingdale, N.Y., who took a risk by making pappardelle pasta in the entrée round of the second annual Vegan Iron Chef competition held in San Francisco March 23. The risk paid off and he was crowned the winner of the event.

Astafa and fellow competitors Jillian Love and Chef AJ were each given a basket of ingredients and instructed to create one appetizer in 25 minutes, one entree in 45 minutes, and one dessert in 25 minutes with the theme of impromptu Sunday brunch to inspire them.

LADY GAGAJeers to Lady Gaga for trying to get an endangered slow loris to co-star with her in her music video recently. After the primate nipped her she decided to “fire” him.

Slow lorises have become increasingly endangered due to the illegal pet trade after people see them looking cute and cuddly on YouTube.

In captivity slow lorises are usually unable to clean themselves properly. This, combined with unsuitable diets, is a death sentence for the slow loris.

Pop stars should use their celebrity to raise awareness about the dark side of the illegal exotic pet trade, not fuel it and devastate the population of endangered species even more.

You can tweet Lady Gaga at @ladygaga. Or write on her official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ladygaga?fref=ts.

ANIMAL PLANET Jeers to Animal Planet and its show Call of the Wildman, which is yet again making headlines for its rampant abuse of wild animals, this time due to photographic evidence depicting the terrible treatment endured by a trapped coyote.

According to Mother Jones, the coyote involved in this incident was illegally transported over state lines while sick and kept in cramped conditions for days. The producers intended to release the coyote in a shed and film the animal being captured “in the wild.”

This offense comes on the heels of a seven-month long investigation of the show by Mother Jones, which showed multiple cases of death, abuse and injuries many different animals suffered during filming.

This show should be cancelled because it does not encourage the public to respect animals in their natural habitat and instead enforces a notion that animals are something that need to be “managed.” Our new blog (http://peacefullycoexist.wordpress.com) encourages peaceful coexistence with wildlife.

JEERSTIME GETS IT WRONG

I stopped reading Time long time ago,

so I missed the Dec. 9, 2013 issue.

I can’t believe that, in this time and

age, they publish (and advertise it on

the cover) an article on deer being a

“pest.” With the widespread awareness

of environmental and wildlife issues

permeating the media and social

internet, I was stunned to learn how far

behind Time editors are. Like you rightly

said, animals are struggling to survive in

a planet overtaken by humans. We could

write volumes about it. And it’s getting

worse every day to the point that the

boomerang is going to knock us down

sooner than later.

All I can say in face of such idiotic

journalistic blunder, is to quote, once

again, David Attenborough: “If humans

disappeared overnight the world would

be a better place.” I would add on my

own: “Humans (not deer) are the curse

of the planet.”

MiReya laNdiN • RivieRa aZ

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SPARE AN ANIMAL EAT A VEGETABLE T-SHIRT High-quality 100% combed cotton shirt in color on black.Women’s S, M, L, XL. Men’s S, M, L, XL

$14

VEGAN STARTER GUIDEIn this 24 page booklet, we define many of the reasons people decide to live vegan, along with providing you with resources and 12 recipes.

$1 each or 50 for $25

ROYAL BLUE OUT TO LUNCH BAG Insulated bag with Velcro closure and a handle to carry your meat-free lunch. Measures 10"H x 7"W x 4 .5"L

$14

ANIMAL RIGHTS, “WHAT IS IT?” A 16-page illustrated booklet that provides an introduction to animal rights and is targeted to high school and college level students.

$2

Vegan Starter guideWhy go vegan? • How to become vegan • Recipes

DINING WITH FRIENDSThe new edition of Friends of Animals premiere cookbook features 136 innovative recipes, brilliant photographs, and now a chapter devoted to gluten-free desserts.

$19.95 plus $3 S&H

THE BEST OF VEGAN COOKING Currently in its second printing, our latest vegan cookbook has drawn rave reviews.

$19.95 plus $3 S&H

VEGAN T-SHIRTMen’s and women’s 100% certified organic cotton black and white. Women’s run narrow and fitted so order larger size. Men’s and women’s sizes. S, M, L, XL. Artwork by Nash Hogan at Hand of Glory Tattoo, Brooklyn, NY

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$15

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