Snout Blog

RITA MILJO - AN INDOMITABLE SPIRIT

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 13:57:00 +0000

The evening of Friday 27^th July 2012 saw the end of an era. A pioneer and legend in conservation, Rita Miljo was the first person in the world who managed to rehabilitate Chacma baboons and reintroduce them, as troops, into the wild - a feat which was regarded as impossible. She died in a horrific blaze which destroyed her flat above the clinic, a house and much of the sanctuary she had built in the bush in the Limpopo province.

Born in Germany in 1931, Rita fell in love with Africa where she and her husband settled in the 1950's. Tragically, her husband and only child, a daughter, were both killed in a light airplane crash.

It was a chance encounter with a baby baboon not long afterwards that changed her life, setting her on a course which was to shake the foundations of Conservation in South Africa, and reverberate around the world. Travelling in South West Africa during the bush wars, she came upon a baby baboon, mascot to a troop of soldiers, who had been left for dead in a dustbin. Rita established that the little baboon was, in fact, only suffering from a massive alcohol overdose. A qualified pilot with her own aircraft, she managed to smuggle him over the border and back to her farm outside Phalaborwa. And so the Centre for Animal Rehabilitation and Education (CARE) had its beginnings in 1981 with Rita claiming ever afterwards that Bobby( as she had named the little baboon) was actually the founder of the facility.

Initially dedicated to the care, rehabilitation and protection of injured and orphaned indigenous wild animals, CARE soon specialized in the care of Chacma baboons, actively pursuing their rescue, rehabilitation and release. It was the only facility in Southern Africa that accepted orphaned or abandoned baboons and offered them long-term care.

They kept coming in orphaned babies whose mothers had been shot by farmers, traumatized laboratory baboons whose release had been negotiated - the unwanted, the maimed.

Where they could be rehabilitated and released in troops, this was done. Others were to live out the rest of their lives without fear in large outside enclosures.

From the start Rita was engaged in virtually a war situation with the singularly hostile Nature Conservation officials who were determined to shut her down, baboons being classified as 'vermin' and therefore to be shot on sight. Who can forget the occasion when the feisty lady stood with a loaded shotgun between her baboons and the officials who had come to confiscate them? The officials thought better of it and hastily retreated.

But it was only the start, with Rita being hounded at every turn. On one notable occasion she rushed to Mpumalanga to save the life of an orphaned baby baboon and bring him back to CARE. She was hauled before the Court where the prosecutor asked her: "Why do you waste your time on problem animals like baboons?" Rita's reply: ¨Who are you to tell God he should not have created baboons?" had the magistrate struggling to hide a smile. She was acquitted from the charges of moving the baby baboon without the necessary permits as she 'had acted out of necessity."

In time the officials learned to respect (even admire) her, but the next obstacle that was thrown into CARE's path was the "destruction of original genes" dogma it was alright to kill baboons in any way possible but if one wanted to put a Free State Baboon in touch with a Transvaal baboon, one committed the ultimate Armageddon the destruction of their gene pool, their being considered different sub-species.

Ow convenient,How

"How convenient that God knew there would be four or nine provinces in South Africa," retorted Rita.

A task team of young American students was assembled by Pretoria University to go into this gene research. Rita invited some of their members to C.A.R.E. She asked the students: "Where do you obtain your blood samples to be absolutely sure that you have the right blood source for your studies?" She was informed that they just asked the guys from Nature Conversation and got sent a bag full of baboon ears. Rita was met by a flood of emotions and tears when she offered them a knife and told them to go and cut off as many ears as they needed from her baby orphans. "I have no idea where this particular study ended," Rita wryly informed me.

But she did afterwards travel to Pretoria to have a word with Professor Peter Henzi, the then leading primatologist in South Africa. Not long after, the taxonomy of the Chacma baboon was changed and all baboon "separate" species, from the Chacma in the South through to the North African Hamadryas baboon now became sub-species.

There were lows, such as when she was called to the hastily abandoned secret French

Laboratory in the bush at Hazyview. A dying baboon quietly handed over her baby while looking straight into Rita's eyes as if imploring her: "Please look after my baby." This affected Rita so much that she had to seek medical assistance. But the remaining baboons were later relocated to CARE and a proud moment was when Madiba himself attended their eventual release back into the bush.

From 2010, when the telephone lines would permit, I had several long distance exchanges with Rita, in connection with a book I wanted to write. During our last conversation she described how she had partitioned off half of her lounge for her beloved Bobby. Now both old, they would share many Woolworths ready-meals, which Bobby loved. Was it prescience or Rita's famed black humour when she concluded: "And so we sit, two oldies staring at each other as if wondering which one of us will be the first to go."

And then the shocking news that she and Bobby had succumbed together in the horrific blaze, the cause of which is still under investigation.

I am reminded of Rita's words to me: "How many millions of creatures, animals and humans, never have much else in their lives just an existence. The human species have created illusions for themselves, they call it HOPE. And if there is nothing to hope for in this world there will be happiness in the next. Mr. Dawkins calls this the God Delusion. I wonder whether animals also have their own delusions called Hope or does their happiness consist of the presence of the moment only?"

Hamba Kahle, dear friend.

Beatrice Wiltshire

NIKKI BOTHA - A ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 13:41:00 +0000

The Faroe Islands, a self governing region of Denmark situated Northwest of Scotland and halfway between Iceland and Norway, has been described by the National Geographic as 'unspoilt, a delight to the traveller.' The islands earned high marks for preservation of nature, historic architecture and local pride.

But this deceptively peaceful destination has an ugly side. For a thousand years there would be the annual 'grind' during which a flotilla of small boats drives whales or dolphins into a shallow bay where they can be easily killed with knives. This archaic tradition was also practiced by other cultures in the Arctic and Europe, but these have either stopped or changed their techniques considerably.

Recently, South Africa woke up to the news that six animal activists had been arrested at the Faroe islands on charges of hindering the hunt of the pilot whales and not following police orders when being asked to leave the water.

Two of those arrested were South Africans and Bolander interviewed one of them, Nikki Botha.

So who is this dedicated animal activist and what made her follow this journey?

According to Nikki she had a pretty unstable childhood, being placed in boarding school from an early age, first in Touwsrivier and then at the Bloemhof Girls' High in Stellenbosch.

She became aware of the cruel fate of animals from her activist mother and after leaving school and relocating to Cape Town, she became a vegetarian, moving on to veganism after 18 years.

But what really started her off on her 'animal' journey was when in 2006 a friend introduced her to Captain Alex Cornelissen of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) whose boat, the Farley Mowatt, was being detained at Cape Town harbour "under the guise of red tape, but it was really at the behest of the Japanese government," she says.

The crew had no way out of the harbour and no food. In return for the latter, the captain would give her a tour of the boat. The crew were vegans and Nikki immediately went out and bought two trolley fulls of vegan food.

The tour of the boat included Cornelissen telling them about sealing and whaling and all the other atrocities perpetrated against the oceans. Nikki's Damascus moment was the point when he described how he stood ankle deep in seal blood on the ice floes of Canada. She had finally found her purpose.

She realized there was no way she could go home and pretend what she had learnt was not real. "I needed to do something. I had never been involved in activism and knew nothing about it. So I went home and internetted the hell out of the topic and at the end of the day I knew I had found my calling."

She sent an email to Francois Hugo of the local organization Seal alert (Bolander The Seal Whisperers 3 August 2011) then joined up with Francois and was his spokesperson for 3 years.

One thing led to another. Nikki decided to become politically active for animals. In order to understand how laws were made and passed, one needed to understand the politics and the decision makers behind it. So she joined up with the DA and was constituency secretary for the Cape Town CBD ward.

The incident where a DA Councillor violated the Animal Protection act and received a "slap on the wrist for bringing the party's name into disrepute" upset Nikki. "It became clear that animal welfare wasn't high on the agenda and I often sat in meetings and had to bite my tongue when activists were denigrated and ridiculed. When the DA decided to implement an archaic, racist law which would pass as an animal welfare by-law, I put my foot down. I was in a ward meeting and was told straight out by the chairperson that the DA would rather lose the vote of animal lovers than lose a Councillor. I wasn't towing the party line and I wasn't willing to sacrifice my ethics, morals and principles." So she resigned very publicly.

Meanwhile, Nikki had got involved with the local chapter of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society of which she currently shares the running, together with two other ladies.

She has joined the SSCS in several campaigns, in Taiji as a Cove Guardian (a subsequent film The Cove won several international awards. Nikki considers this to be her most rewarding mission.)

She was also part of Operation Desert Seal in Namibia where they covertly filmed the cruel seal slaughter, escaping at night with their equipment in a dramatic chase through the desert, pursued by the Namibian authorities who listed them as "a threat to national security" and banned them from entering Namibia ever again.

And then there was their operation Sunu Gaal, which is their anti-poaching patrol on the West Coast of Africa. It is operated from a vessel called the Jairo Mora Sandoval, named in honour of a young South American turtle activist who was murdered by poachers.

Their latest campaign was as part of Operation Grindstop 2014 in the Faroe Islands where she and her five team mates were arrested for interfering with the inhumane grind. They were fined kr1000 each (which they refuse to pay) and banned from the Faroe Islands for one year.

I asked Nikki about their stay in jail and the subsequent court case, which must have been harrowing. She shrugged her shoulders and replied that for her a visit to the dentist was worse.

But it is clear that despite their fighting with everything they had to save those whales, the harrowing experience of watching entire pods, babies included, being butchered left emotional scars with which they are still battling to come to terms. "We might have been on trial for allegedly breaking the law, but the Faroe Islands are on trial and the world needs to find them guilty. No decent person could ever condone the complete and utterly abhorrent way those animals were treated and butchered."

Nikki's main focus now is lobbying for change within a constitutional framework. As such she no longer considers herself to be an animal rights activist, she says, but rather a civil society activist: "Because no civil society treats animals the way we do."

In this she is supported by her husband "my dream man who loves me unconditionally and supports me in everything that I do."

Beatrice Wiltshire

CIRCUS ANIMALS' PLIGHT HIGHLIGHTED

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 16 Jun 2014 08:34:00 +0000

Circuses have a special magic in the life of a child, but the ethical question of the use of wild animals in circuses has engendered public outrage.

As there is now increasing evidence about animal sentience several countries have banned the use of wild animals in circuses, with good reason, whilst still retaining the magical atmosphere of clowns, trapeze artists, acrobats, magicians and music.

South Africa has not yet followed the overseas example but momentum towards a ban is picking up since an exposé on Carte Blanche in April last year which has also resulted in many standing up and organising demonstrations country-wide.

Accordingly, activists from various walks of life, some travelling from Cape Town, staged a peaceful protest on Saturday 8^th February to raise awareness of the practice of using wild animals in circus acts, when McClaren's Circus came to the Gordon High School in Somerset West.

McClaren's boasts a variety of animals including white lions and Bengal Tigers. Clearly not everybody was impressed with the notion of incarcerating wild animals in cages and teaching them tricks for public amusement.

Toni Brockhoven who manages media liaison for Beauty without Cruetly (BWC) and who also travelled through from Cape Town, said that given the choice, no animal would choose to live an unnatural life of captivity, regardless of the kindness of the treatment and no animal would choose a life that allows none of their natural behaviour.

"Certainly animals would not choose to be taken from their families to be obliged to amuse us. Circus animals spend months travelling in small, bare cages. The stress of continued confinement as well as the transportation result in long term suffering and a lack of appropriate social interaction, reduction in time spent foraging and the restricted freedom to perform natural behaviours represent stressors for captive animals," she said.

A natural environment cannot be recreated in circuses due to the travelling, with inadequate accommodation and exercise areas, forced movement and handling by humans. Noise, along with confinement results in both short-term as well as long-term behavioural and psychological effects.

Toni feels that teaching children that wild animals belong in cages for our use and amusement is not the way to go. "There are so many options today to teach children about animals in their natural environment, with a wide range of educational nature films readily available," she said.

Somerset resident Louise Spagnuolo who helped organize the protest said that many local residents sent messages to Gordon High requesting that they not host circuses featuring wild animals. No reply had as yet been received.

They were aware that Gordon High probably had contractual responsibilities, but it was hoped that they would not host circuses featuring wild animals in future," she said.

To which Asanda Village resident Kenesias Dambakurima added: "Free them from slavery."

When asked for his views on the matter, Paul Hart who runs the Drakenstein Lion Sanctuary outside Paarl pointed out that he currently had eight lions rescued from circuses. Having seen the effects on these animals, he does not support the use of wild animals in circuses.

Alan Perrins, Chief Executive Officer of the SPCA stated: "Wild animals belong in the wild."

Bolander also posed the question to him: "Local authorities require rescued lions to be housed in enclosures no smaller than 400 sq.metres and yet take no action in cases where circus lions spend their lives in cramped caravans. How can this be justified?"

At the time of going to press, no answer had been received.

SECOND PROTEST HELD AGAINST WILD CREATURES IN CAPTIVITY

Close to 100 people again demonstrated peacefully on the corner of the N2 and De Beers Avenue outside the Gordon High School on Saturday 15^th, against having wild animals in circuses.

Law Enforcement were out in full force to see that they stayed within the limits of their permit, as were members of Mclaren circus.

The media officer for the latter would not answer any queries except in writing. However he did say that they had no objection to the protest adding that "all animals were removed from their families at some stage anyway."

When asked by Bolander at what age it happened that lion cubs were naturally separated from their families, he did not know but said he would ask their trainer.

Kenesias Dambakurima, who works for a media company and lives in Asanda village, was present and energetically led the chant: "No no no; nee, nee, nee." He said he loved wild animals and started his animal activism in 2010.

Resident Louise Spagnuolo, who organised the protest, said that McClarens claimed that their animals were well cared for "But this justification was like saying that rape was O.K. if you bought her champagne and chocolates beforehand and provided a nice, soft bed."

ROARING FOR A CAUSE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 20 Apr 2014 18:13:00 +0000

ROARING FOR A CAUSE

In a world first, on the 15^th March 2014 organizations and activists joined marches in 65 cities around the world to protest against the 'canned' lion hunting industry.

This was the result of a process which started in early 1991 when Gareth Patterson learned that hunters in the Eastern Cape had used bows and arrows to kill lions and some time later an undercover video came to hand which showed the sickening scene of a 'canned' trophy hunt

at the Marlothi game farm close to the Kruger National Park's southern boundary.

The video caused the investigative Cook Report team in Britain to arrange for an undercover hunting team to travel to South Africa, with Roger Cook himself posing as a wealthy but unwell 'client.' (Bolander June 5 2013). Their subsequent report, shown in South Africa on Carte Blanche, sent shock waves throughout the world in 1997.

It also spurred into action Chris Mercer and Bev Pervan of the Kalahari Raptor Centre who started a campaign to get canned hunting banned in South Africa. In their Publication "Canned Lion unting Hunting - A National Disgrace" which also contained their submission to the S.A. Government, they describe how "they were snubbed by just about every wildlife organization in the country, from nature conservation authorities to N.G.O's, from hunting organizations to environmental journalists. No political party showed any interest in fighting this cause. The environmental ethic in South Africa was that animals were a mere resource to be used."

The canned hunting industry flourished, as did the various industries which fed upon its practice the lion breeding farms and 'cub petting' and 'walking with the lions' facilities, the trophy hunters and taxidermists, the circuses and zoos and, eventually, the taxidermists. Also the lion bone industry, the bones being sold to known Asian crime syndicates who pay lion farmers for lion carcasses, which are processed in Asia and then fraudulently sold as tiger bone cake at (US$1000 per 100 grams) for unproven medicinal purposes.

But with a dogged determination Chris and Bev persisted and founded the Campaign Against Canned Hunting (CACH). Not getting much support in South Africa, their unrelenting lobbying was directed world-wide.

This persistence paid off, critical mass being reached 15 years later with the Global March being organized, proving that a vast number of people across the world would no longer be silent about the cruelty involved.

Sixty five cities came aboard with thousands of people marching to tell the world about the nightmare which is the horrific canned hunting industry in South Africa and that they wanted to see lions living wild and free.

In Los Angeles TheTokens performed live the original version of their number one hit and theme song of Disney's Lion King.

In South Africa marches took place in Durban, Johannesburg, Grahamstown and Cape Town where an estimated 1,700 people marched, with Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu's daughter Rev. Mpho Tutu joining the latter. She read out the Arch's prayer "for all God's beautiful wildlife, especially the wild white lion, that are at risk because of the (human) predators going around destroying them." He also prayed for blessings on those who had made public this practice and that they would succeed in their quest.

Chris Mercer from CACH handed over a submission to Dr. Mario Ambrosini MP for delivery to Deputy Director General Dr. Guy Preston of the Department of Environmental Affairs.

According to Mercer, a retired lawyer, there is no legal definition of canned hunting, but the key is the absence of fair chase. So "canned hunting is where the target animal is unfairly prevented from escaping the hunter, either by physical constraints (fencing) or by mental constraints (tame, habituated to humans.) On this definition, all hunts of captive bred lions are canned hunts."

He goes on to point out that there are fewer than 4000 lions left in the 'wild' in South Africa, but more than 8,000 in captivity, being bred for the bullet or the arrow, with the number increasing daily. "Lion farming is a real threat to wild lion prides, for many reasons. The on-going capture of wild lions to introduce fresh blood into captive breeding and the growth of the lion bone trade to Asia will impact severely on wild lions from poaching."

Already there are reports in the media about wild lions being killed in Botswana to obtain cubs which are then smuggled across the border into S.A. Unscrupulous S.A. lion breeders will buy them to bring fresh blood to their lion stock for genetic reasons, and to ward off captivity depression.

This wholesale and unscientific killing of lions has long term effects on wild prides, destroying the core pride function. Research shows that it can take as long as seven years for a lion pride to re-establish itself after the death of the trophy male.

"The public needs to be informed through sustained campaigns and the US and EU governments being persuaded to ban the import of lion/predator trophies. Only that way can the supply of dollars be cut off and the industry closed down," Mercer says.

Lion farming does not fall under the Department of Agriculture but the Supreme Court has ruled that it has nothing to do with conservation, so it cannot be regulated by conservation officials either. Lion farming thus falls between two government departments. In consequence, captive predators bred for hunting purposes have no regulatory protection.

"In the end," he says, "canned hunting only exists because of a failure of government policy, and being ferociously defended by wealthy vested interests."

It is causing a backlash against tourism to South Africa. Ethical tourists are already boycotting SA, causing losses to the legitimate tourism industry.

These boycotts will surely increase over time with sustained pressure through world-wide campaigns such as the recent global march against canned hunting.

TINY TEACUP PIGS' AND HUMAN FOLLIES

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 27 Feb 2014 11:10:00 +0000

Humans appear to have a fascination for small animals that can be held in the palm of one's hand and so potbellied pigs were introduced into the United States in 1985 and promoted as the perfect house pet. Correctly, it was claimed that they were easier to house train than dogs and did not carry fleas but, in the interests of sales, essential information was omitted.

The average "tiny teacup pig" weighs 80 kg on reaching adulthood so it was not long before they were abandoned, much like puppies purchased on a whim at Christmas time. They can also become extremely aggressive and, following their natural instincts, root up carpets as well as your garden. This craze has now reached South Africa and is already creating a problem for animal welfare societies country-wide that have had to deal with the consequences of their being dumped as they reach adulthood.

It does rather seem as if the new about-to-be-promulgated animal by-laws do not make specific provision for potbellied pigs as pets, or about their limitation per household, as is the case with cats and dogs, leading to unintended consequences A question directed to Alan Perrins, CEO of the Cape of Good Hope ope SPCA, about whether these would fall under the classification of farm animals or pets, elicited the brief response: "semantics."

According to Cora Bailey of Community Led Animal Welfare (CLAW), they have been dealing with this problem in Gauteng for some time.

People are dumping their formerly cosseted "tiny teacup pigs" in townships to be slaughtered in which-ever way people see fit.

Clearly there is a serious gap in the by-law here.

THE JOY AND TRAGEDY OF PIGS

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 14 Feb 2014 07:41:00 +0000

Winston Churchill said: Dogs look up to you cats look down on you, but pigs treat you like equals.

Pigs resemble human beings in many ways. Like dogs and other animals they share many of our feelings - compassion, fear, and their need for companionship and intelligence.

They are able to solve problems and have been shown to excel at video games that would be hard for a young child, and sometimes perform better than primates.

Karl Schwenke points out in his 1985 classic, In a Pig's Eye: "Pigs are gregarious animals. Like children they thrive on affection, enjoy toys, have a short attention span and are easily bored. Much like children, piglets do not develop in a normal way when they are deprived of the opportunity to engage in play. They are at least as intelligent as dogs and have been known to rescue their owners from drowning.

They also dream and see colours like us. It is now recognised that they know when they are going to be slaughtered. Like dogs, they are individuals.

The one big difference between pigs and dogs is the way we treat them. We play with our dogs, take them for walks - we rarely do the same with pigs. It is difficult to understand why they receive such a raw deal.

George Orwell's classic novel, Animal Farm, is generally considered to be a political fable about totalitarianism and Russia. However, as Jeffrey Masson points out, Orwell himself saw it in another light, explaining in a preface written for the Ukranian translation, that the story came to him when he saw a little boy, perhaps ten years old, abusing a carthorse.

He was struck with the force of a revelation "that men exploit animals in much the same way as the rich exploit the proletariat" and proceeded to analyze Marx's theory from the animals' point of view.

In the beginning of the book, as Major tells the animals on the farm, "No animal in England knows the meaning of happiness or leisure after he is a year old. No animal in England is free. The life of an animal is misery and slavery: that is the plain truth."

And so, as farm animals, pigs now live in a world that has become very far removed from nature - and where the purpose of their existence is almost entirely defined by their death or exploitation, where animals are seen as objects and have to earn their keep along the world view of if it pays it stays. We confine pigs in factory farms in sheds where they are constantly impregnated, and where they stand on slats, not even able to move around. As piglets their tails are docked without anaesthetic and in the end, like the old horse in Animal Farm, their fate is the slaughterhouse.

But a visit to the Rustler's Valley community, near Ficksburg in the Free State, demonstrated again the symbiotic relationship between human- and non-human animals, where the pigs' keen sense of smell and natural inclination to root is used to the benefit of all.

The Rustlers' Valley community practices permaculture, a sustainable way of agriculture which is about "caring for the environment so that the environment can care for us." The use of pesticides and other chemicals is dispensed with by the inter-planting of crops with herbs that heal the soil and keep away harmful pests. In working with nature mechanical devices are dispensed with. New veggie patches are prepared by making use of 'pig tractoring.' A sty is erected over a patch of veld which is to be cleared.

The pigs then root to their hearts' content, clearing the ground of unwanted vegetation and spreading manure to feed the soil. As such, everybody is happy and the community is able to live off the land entirely.

Proposed Animal Welfare Laws for Western Cape under Scrutiny

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 09 Feb 2014 12:58:00 +0000

During October 2013 the City of Cape Town put out for public comment a draft animal welfare policy for the Western Cape. The Animal Protection Act of 1962 still informs national welfare policy despite the changing values, norms and principles of our new non-racial society being very different from those in place all those years ago when the legislation was passed.

Owing to public pressure, the national government as long ago as 2006 put out a draft policy document called the "Draft Animal Care Policy for South Africa" but since then the trail has gone cold with no progress being made, at national level, on taking up the suggestions in the draft. It is speculated that this is due to cultural practices that are arguably a criminal contravention of the Animal Protection Act.

"These considerations do not, however, constrain the law-makers of the Western Cape where the DA governs at both provincial and city level. Its policies are therefore those that ought to inform the laws, by-laws and regulations in place in this province and its mother city," points out Adv. Paul Hoffman SC, director of the Institute for Accountability in Southern Africa, who also referred to the fact that the DA did not have a policy on animals as disclosed by the Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille except that they were opposed to cruelty against animals. Zille suggested that an animal welfare forum be established, which would include all animal welfare organizations. The subsequent draft policy was put out for public participation.

Alan Perrins, Chief Executive Officer for the Cape of Good Hope SPCA and chairperson of the Animal Welfare Forum, feels encouraged by the draft policy which recognizes the sentience of animals and makes sterilization compulsory under certain conditions. (Mandatory sterilization of cats and dogs is a stance already adopted by other Municipalities in South Africa including Swellendam and Kannaland.)

Sterilization as a strategy would address the cause, not just effects, of the many problems attendant upon the over-population of animals, such as the resultant burden on welfare organizations who are filled to capacity with unwanted animals.

Presently a disproportionate amount of donors' funding is being spent on euthanasing instead of re-homing and sterilization. In this respect, the Animal Welfare Forum decries the gross underfunding of municipal pounds such as the official City pound at Atlantis.

An annual figure of, say R 250 000 R300 000 is woefully inadequate for its efficient running, with the costs then spilling over onto other animal welfare organizations who receive absolutely no funding from the City. The Cape SPCA alone has had to spend around two million rands of donor funds on collecting animals and spaying them or euthanasing them humanely.

Still remaining also, are serious challenges to enforcing the bylaws such as animals being defined as property or possessions in terms of the law while, at the same time, the draft animal welfare policy acknowledges their sentience.

This anomaly can only be resolved by lobbying at national government level as national laws will always supercede provincial ones.

Further challenges, says Perrins, are entrenched cruel practices resulting in avoidable cruelty such as battery farming and sow crates. Fortunately there has been a change in attitude since a decade or so ago with consumers world-wide becoming increasingly aware and abhorrent of cruel farming practices and opting to buy ethically produced foods and goods.

The challenges described are but some of the legal loopholes in the draft animal welfare policy of which just one example is the potbellied pig (also erroneously referred to by the misnomer 'tea cup' pig .

These reside under the classification of farm animals and the problem arises when people don't do their homework properly and then take them into their homes as pets, not realizing (as with huskies) the tremendous problems which can result when the animal reaches adulthood.

The potbellied pig, raised as a four legged child in the family, then suddenly finds himself taken for slaughter in any which way as they are not even afforded the meagre legal protection of pets such as dogs and cats. Only the lucky ones land up at the animal welfare organizations.

Perhaps the way forward would lie in creating a single Department of Animal Welfare under which all animal issues would resort, thus avoiding the current fragmentation to different departments, such as agriculture, health, etc., of issues that are of a cross cutting nature. In this respect Adv. Paul Hoffman points out that the City of Los Angeles established such a "Department of Animal Welfare" in 1978, making them a forerunner in the sphere of implementing and enforcing humane, modern and sensible animal welfare policies.

DO WE LEGALISE THE TRADE IN RHINO HORN?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 02 Jul 2013 06:27:00 +0000

The poaching of rhinos is escalating exponentially and the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) is currently being asked to legalise the trade in Rhino horn. Proponents for the lifting of the ban argue that rhino numbers have increased due to rhino farming and that legalizing the trade will stop the poaching. But will this be the case?

Retired Lawyer Chris Mercer of the Campaign Against Canned Hunting points out that any scheme to legalise the trade in rhino horns rests upon the assumption that governments can be un-corrupt, efficient (doing things right) and effective (doing the right thing). He cannot imagine a shakier foundation for a legal trade in rhino horn. To remain in power some African governments buy patronage, he says, and corruption is therefore endemic.

This statement seems to be borne out by a recent international comparative study of conservation and environmental issues by Yale University and the UNEP which placed South Africa 124^th out of 132 countries, thus reflecting badly upon South Africa's ability to conserve its natural resources. Coupled with the fact that China, the main user of rhino horn for 'medicinal purposes' is increasingly getting a foot hold in Africa, he paints a bleak future indeed.

Rhino breeders like John Hume feel that the answer is legalization of the trade and the continued breeding of rhinos in captivity in what Mercer described as factory farm conditions. Using a purely economical argument which disregards the fact that rhinos are sentient beings, Hume's ume'sHvision is that we "breed enough rhinos to supply the market with horns that come from live, breeding herds of rhinos and fill our game reserves and wilderness areas with horned ones." This will not only serve the ongoing demand for medicinal purposes but also cater for hunters. He openly boasts: "The horns which I've removed are stored in banks and have increased in value like no other asset owned by myself."

But this vision is debunked by Michele Pickover, author of Animal Rights in South Africa, who published a well researched document on the issue. She points out that when considering the legalization of the trade in Rhino horn it is important to look to the results of lifting the ban on elephant tusks following similar arguments, that elephant numbers had increased sufficiently and legalizing the trade would stop poaching. In fact, the opposite occurred and what we learned from the elephant ivory trade is as follows:

Cites is an international agreement signed by 175 governments, including one of the world's major markets for illegal wildlife products - China. After several years of polarised discussion and debate, CITES in 2008 granted China approved buyer status in the controversial sale of stockpiled ivory from Botswana, South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

The argument was that a legalized, controlled trade in specimens of naturally deceased, managed and culled elephants could be used to flood the market and thereby lower demand, so reducing illegal trade and easing pressure on wild populations of endangered species. Two years after this stockpile sale took place, environmental investigations revealed that, far from flooding the market with legal ivory to reduce demand, the sale of the stockpiles simply fuelled the demand for illegal ivory, spurring a massive increase in the poaching of elephants. Up to 90 per cent of ivory on sale came from illegal sources and prices had increased. The illegal ivory simply got laundered onto the market under cover of the 'legal' ivory.

Turning to rhinos, the species that has already teetered on the brink of extinction once in the past 30 years is once again facing a total onslaught. The current crisis has an added dimension not seen before the involvement of organized criminal syndicates in countries which are neither range states nor major consumer markets. This suggests the demand for rhino horn is currently at an all-time high. What the ivory issue has taught us is that a legalized trade can never be properly monitored or regulated because the principal markets for rhino horn, including China, have failed spectacularly to fulfill commitments and has been abysmal at implementing an ivory regulation and control system. If China cannot implement a control system designed specifically to address the problem (while at the same time satisfying demand) how on earth can it even be considered a suitable candidate for introducing a similar system for rhinos?

The organization TRAFFIC (Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce), formerly in favour of legalizing the trade in horns, have now done an about turn and concurs with Pickover's views.

There is a battle ahead the illegal trade in wildlife and their by-products is an industry worth billions, being second only to the illegal trade in drugs.

Beatrice Wiltshire

GARETH PATTERSON - WILD LIFE WARRIOR

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 14:53:00 +0000

The cruel bow hunting of animals has always been abhorrent to most and a recent undercover video of a lion, bow hunted in 'canned' fashion and showing on You Tube has once again caused an international outcry. So it was timeous that Gareth Patterson, Warrior for the Wild, award winning author, environmentalist and independent wildlife researcher, should visit the Helderberg as guest of the U3A in the Strand Town Hall on Wednesday 8^th May.

His talk entitled Inspiration from the Wilds a life with the lions and elephants of Africa was a condensed version of his latest autobiographical book which describes his work with both lions and elephants. In the latter case Gareth went on to prove that the Knysna elephants, considered functionally extinct, still existed.

The field work for this independent study lasted seven years, and necessitated that he cover thousands of kilometres on foot, following ancient elephant paths through the dense Knysna forest and surrounding mountain fynbos. He wrote up his journey in his 2009 book The Secret Elephants.

However, it is his 1998 book Dying to be Free which describes in detail the Canned Lion scandal which rocked the world through the 1997 British investigative television documentary The Cook Report.

Gareth, known as "Ra de Tau," father of lions as he came to be called in Botswana, was born in Britain but taken over to Africa by his parents when he was just a small baby. He developed a deep love for Africa and considers this his home.

The late George Adamson of 'Born Free' fame had a big influence on him since his ninth birthday when his mother gave him a game reserve which she had made out of paper-maché . It had mountains and water holes and plastic animals and a little zebra striped land rover. e never imagined She also gave him George Adamson's first autobiography called "Bwana Game." Obviously as a child he never imagined that one day he would work for Adamson and then, after Adamson's murder by ivory poachers, would rescue his last lion orphans and eventually rehabilitate them back into the wild.

Living in the Botswana Tuli bushlands as a member of the pride of lions consisting of the orphan cubs the male Batian and his two sisters Furaha and Rafiki was an intensely spiritual experience: "In that period I learned fellowship. I was totally immersed into their world and though I had studied them before that experience it really allowed me to enter the world of lions. I was seeing the world through their eyes. I was spending far more time in the world of lions than I was in the world of human beings. It was a very privileged time," says Gareth.

But with that privilege came a lot of pain. There were several deaths. He lost his Lion son Batian to trophy hunters and then Furaha and two of their cubs were shot. But Rafiki lived on to produce several litters and her descendants are still out there today.

Meanwhile, early in 1991 Gareth learned that for the past two years hunters in the Eastern Cape had used bows and arrows to kill lions- with the Department of Nature Conservation's approval, it seemed. Some time later an undercover videotape came to hand which showed the sickening scene of a 'canned' trophy hunt at the Marlothi game farm situated close to the Kruger National Park's southern boundary.

A lioness, in the prime of her life and with three suckling cubs still dependent on her, was removed from an enclosure. Refusing to leave her cubs, she was 'hunted' on the other side of the electric fence, by a German client accompanied by a professional hunter. True to form the grinning client posed hunter style for a photograph with his trophy. In the skinning shed, the milk was shown pouring from her teats.

His rehabilitation into the wild of the Adamson cubs complete, Gareth set about gathering information about the 'canned' hunting industry. This necessitated visiting several lion breeding facilities and experiencing first-hand the lies, the cruelty perpetrated by this industry which also allowed canned hunts to be staged for clients who were either elderly, unfit or both and therefore required 'easy' hunts.

Having gathered the necessary proof, it was time to approach the investigative Cook report team in Britain who decided to send an undercover hunting team to South Africa. The wealthy but unwell 'client' was in fact to be Roger Cook himself, the programme's veteran investigative journalist. And so Roger Cook and his team entered the sordid and secret world of the canned lion industry right up to the point where the client was supposed to pull the trigger and shoot a drugged lion. At that point Cook revealed himself.

The resultant film sent shock waves through the world including South Africa. But the secret industry is clearly still thriving as shown by the recent video on You Tube.

Patterson's investigations showed the link between game farms, breeding facilities, zoos and circuses whence the lions for trophies are sourced. And also the lion baiting, where wild lions are lured from conservancies such as the Kruger National Park. The industry includes the petting of 'orphan' cubs at game farms by the general public who never stop to question what happened to the cubs' mothers or what happens to the cubs once they reach adulthood.

His investigations show how all hunting in South Africa is canned. and cannot be compared to hunting in the vast stretches of wild Africa one reads about in the history books. "Game Farmsare small areas which have been stocked with wild animals bought at game auctions," he says.

A recent Supreme Court of Appeal ruling held that lion farming was Mero Motu i.e. "a closed circuit" and that since no captive bred lions have ever been released back to the wild, lion farming had nothing to do with conservation.

Gareth feels that what is needed is a shift away from the 'sustainable use' notion that drives the hunting industry today, the mindset of 'if it pays it stays' which condemns wild animals to be viewed in economical terms rather than having an intrinsic value.

If the demand dries up perhaps game famers might become motivated to form conservancies with their neighbours for eco-tourism by dropping boundary fences to create wild areas where the natural full spectrum of species, including the predators, can once again exist. This is the world he would like to see.

Meanwhile, this strong but sensitive man who suffered from post traumatic stress disorder consequent to the horrors he experienced, but having spent seven restorative years in the Knysna forest on the trail of the Secret Elephants, is ready to take on the lion issue again, spurred on by his motto: "Never Give Up."

Beatrice Wiltshire

RITA MILJO: AN INDOMITABLE SPIRIT

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 14:59:00 +0000

Born in Germany in 1931, Rita fell in love with Africa where she and her husband settled in the 1950's. Tragically, her husband and only child, a daughter, were both killed in a light airplane crash.

It was a chance encounter with a baby baboon not long afterwards that changed her life, setting her on a course which was to shake the foundations of conservation in South Africa. Travelling in South West Africa during the bush wars, she came upon a baby baboon, mascot to a troop of soldiers, who had been left for dead in a dustbin. Rita established that the little baboon was, in fact, only suffering from a massive alcohol overdose. A qualified pilot with her own aircraft, she managed to smuggle him over the border and back to her farm outside Phalaborwa. And so the Centre for Animal Rehabilitation and Education (CARE) had its beginnings in 1981 with Rita claiming ever afterwards that Bobby( as she had named the little baboon) was actually the founder of the facility.

They kept coming in orphaned babies whose mothers had been shot by farmers, traumatized laboratory baboons whose release had been negotiated - the unwanted, the maimed.

Where they could be rehabilitated and released in troops, this was done. Others were to live out the rest of their lives without fear in large outside enclosures.

There were lows, such as when she was called to the hastily abandoned secret French Laboratory in the bush at Hazyview. A dying baboon quietly handed over her baby while looking straight into Rita's eyes as if imploring her: "Please look after my baby." This affected Rita so much that she had to seek medical assistance. But the remaining baboons were later relocated to CARE and a proud moment was when Madiba himself attended their eventual release back into the bush.

And then the shocking news that she and Bobby had succumbed together in the horrific blaze, the cause of which is still under investigation.

Hamba Kahle, dear friend.

First published in Bolander by Beatrice Wiltshire

RITA MILJO - AN INDOMITABLE SPIRIT

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 07:10:00 +0000

At around 20h00 on Friday 27th July a giant in conservation circles, Rita Miljo, died tragically in a fire which destroyed her flat above the clinic and much of her rehabilitation centre

in the bush in Limpopo province. She was often referred to as the 'Jane Goodall of baboons.'

Rita was the first person in the world to form baboons into troops and reintegrate them into the wild - a feat which had been considered impossible.

The cause of the fire is being investigated.

A full article in celebration of her life is to follow shortly.

Hamba Kahle, dear friend.

PITY OUR LITTLE LEOPARD

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 15:06:00 +0000

When the first Europeans arrived at the Cape, the plains and mountains were teeming with wild life, including large mammals. Today few species remain and the Cape Leopard has made the TOPS (Threatened or Protected Species) listing, due to the threats to this species. Part of this can be attributed to the fact that more than a million animals are sport hunted in South Africa every year with more animals reputedly being shot in the Eastern Cape, home of the pristine Baviaanskloof Mega Reserve and World Heritage Site, than in any other province - according to the Patterson report. This rugged mountain wilderness area, relatively untouched by human development, is a domain in which this unique little Leopard (half the size of the other African leopards) has survived. So too, it has found refuge in the remaining wilderness of the Cape fold mountains.

Although their diet primarily consists of klipspringers and dassies, with porcupines, duiker, other antelope species and rodents making up the rest, leopards are known to kill sheep, where available and left unguarded. In retaliation leopards, as well as jackals and caracals, are sometimes killed by farmers by being shot or caught in cruel gin traps or through the use of the 1080 poison, banned in the USA and Europe, and hunted with dogs. The unintended consequences are that many innocent animals are also killed, causing a serious disturbance in the eco-system.

In view of the endangered status and dwindling numbers of the Cape Leopard, two conservation bodies, the Cape Leopard Trust and the Landmark Foundation, have been at the forefront of finding solutions by engaging in research involving the installation of cameras with movement sensors as well as fitting trapped leopards with GPS tracking systems before releasing them back into the wild. Education of farmers regarding non-lethal methods of control is on-going and many farmers, both locally and abroad, are able to manage these systems pro-actively, with good results, through the use of Anatolian Shepherd dogs and Alpacas. Livestock protection collars, herding techniques, other technology aids and kraaling the animals at night is also effective as well as employing herders.

The feud which has been raging for years between sheep farmers and hunters, conservation bodies and provincial officials, culminated in a Wildlife Forum held on 11^th June this year, but representation excluded some very knowledgeable environmentalists, who have been vocal against Cape Nature's culling practices of predators. From the start the farmers made their intentions very clear they wanted a blanket permit for each farmer to decide for himself how to combat predation in any way he deemed fit, while the conservationist/animal welfare contingent was very unhappy about the draft protocol drawn up by Cape Nature with the Predator Management arm of the farming industry.

The draft was criticised as it could re-introduce paramilitary hunt clubs such as Oranjejag in the Free State during the apartheid years, which allowed bands of farmers to invade any farm where a predator was suspected to be hiding and to shoot on sight, with or without permission of the owner. Shooting from helicopters and from the backs of bakkies in specially designed chairs, using spotlights and rifles with telescopic lenses and silencers are employed in the hunts. Recordings of animal sounds are also used to lure predators. This, together with the barbaric and environmentally ruinous use of gin traps, poisons and hunting dogs to hunt jackals, leads to the unintended deaths of many innocent victims and a disturbance of ecological systems, creating havoc in the natural order.

Every non-lethal method of control put forward by the environmental and welfare lobby was rejected by the farming industry, with unconvincing reasons.

There is a dispute between Cape Nature and Dr. Bool Smuts from the Landmark Foundation regarding the amount of animals killed. Cape Nature admits to issuing 400 permits for the period of six months on condition that the farmers gave regular feedback on the amount of predators shot. This worked for one month and then the report- backs dwindled away, so that in the end farmers only admitted to killing some 300 animals.

But in fact Cape Nature, in correspondence in Bolander's possession, admitted to granting 490 permits, each permit allowing 5 caracal and 5 jackal to be destroyed per day, per permit holder for a full 6 months period. According to Dr. Smuts, this would bring the figures killed over a six month period to 894,250 animals rather than the risible figure of 300 admitted to.

So how does all this impact on the Cape Leopard? The issue of permits is at present the subject of a court case that Dr. Smuts has launched against Cape Nature and the Provincial administration, thus causing him to be banned from attending the Wildlife workshop although, as a registered NGO working in the field of predators, he clearly had locus standi.

Says Chris Mercer of CACH: "Unless the farmers become more open to change, negative perceptions against the industry will spread and farmers along with our wildlife heritage - will be the losers."

PORCUPINES - A PRICKLY ISSUE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 18:19:00 +0000

Do porcupines really shoot their quills? This erroneous belief seems to have been around a long time, possibly perpetuated by childhood story book illustrations. The truth is that, if attacked, the little animal engages in some formidable posturing, erecting its quills, which are quite loosely attached and lets its enemy's teeth sink into them. The attacker ends up with a mouth and throat full of painful barbs, as our own Jock of the Bushveld experienced.

On browsing through the gift- and curio shops, it becomes obvious that porcupine quills are increasingly being used in the manufacture of various commodities relating to the Afro-chic fad. And don't be misled by the shop owner's assurance that the quills were 'picked up around the farms.' The quills you see are usually obtained by killing the animal in the most inhumane manner by clubbing to death, hunting with dogs or the cruellest of all, using gin traps, the latter banned in more than 90 countries but not in South Africa.

The species has definite positive implications within a biodiversity context and porcupine research scientist Christy Bragg has written scientific papers referring to them as 'ecosystem engineers.' According to her, 'studies show that productivity and diversity of plants within porcupine diggings can be many times higher compared to outside their diggings. They not only increase bulb diversity (which has important eco -tourism implications) but also contribute towards an increase in the diversity and germination of annuals, shrubs and grasses.' This was all as Nature intended.

Going back in history, one learns that porcupine populations were inherently stable as there were

no urban or agricultural impacts on them. This stability was brought about by a self-regulating mechanism determined by population density and predation.

Then arrived the most destructive predator of all the human being, which saw the natural balance disturbed and the start of human/animal conflict.

With an increase in agriculture and urban development, coupled with a concomitant decrease in natural habitat and predator species such as big cats, jackals, etc. this vegetarian animal turned to the ready food supply afforded by agricultural practices. With their strong incisors, porcupines were able to bite their way through agricultural fencing. In arid regions their keen sense of smell caused the thirsty animals to locate and bite through PVP water pipes, often positioned below ground level.

But this problem is not insurmountable. After discussion with farmers in the affected regions, Grant McIlrath of the Meerkat Conservation Project in the Karoo , suggested that farmers should raise their piping above ground level, perhaps on the farm fencing, to prevent porcupines from getting to them. Letsie Coetzee, Section Ranger from the Tankwa National Park, suggests that in other areas, where PVP pipes could be damaged by the sun, the problem appears to be solved by burying the pipes deep enough in the ground. It all depends on the area and its particular problems and needs.

Be that as it may, a tipping point was reached when porcupines were classified 'vermin' and 'problem animals' because of their perceived detrimental effect on farming activities. This classification led to large scale mortalities through hunting, trapping and poisoning.

Their fate was sealed when consumption of their meat entered into the equation and some game lodges now have porcupine steaks on their menus. Opportunistic farm stalls began introducing the public to the quirky commodity of porcupine quills, thereby putting an economic value on them. This led to an exponential increase in demand and killing to supply the quill trade.

Occasionally, however, some ethical farmers would contact conservation organisations, requesting help in removing problem porcupines, but this was not the norm and the fact that it is happening less frequently, is put down to the destructive impact the quill industry is having on porcupines. It appears that the animals are now being targeted specifically for their quills.

Because of their classification as vermin, porcupines were not afforded protection through either national or provincial conservation legislation. This was further compounded by the fact that little was known regarding their distribution and population. So while commercial exploitation of the species was taking place on a large scale, it was happening in a vacuum of scientific data on its effects. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW,) through their Think Twice campaign, highlighted the plight of the porcupine within Southern Africa and the threat placed on them by commercial exploitation.

In order to address this problem and as a result of public pressure, the government drew up draft Biodiversity and Threatened and Protected Species Bills and called for input in the matter from stakeholders. In the subsequent Biodiversity Act, the porcupine has now been listed a 'protected species,' which by definition means 'an indigenous species of high conservation value of national importance that requires national protection.'

Because of the Government's policy of 'sustainable usage' however, this new classification does not mean that they are no longer hunted or trophy hunted. It merely means that they may be 'used sustainably.'

There has been an exponential increase in the number of quills being supplied to the market and no documentation to trace the source or extent of each transaction a person can deal in porcupine by-products without having to obtain a permit to do so. So there is no control over this random hunting and killing of porcupines and no means of accountability. Exports thrive.

Meanwhile our indigenous porcupine continues to be trapped (including use of the inhumane gin trap) and then shot or clubbed to death, as well as hunted with dogs. The latter method is cruel to the dogs as well, because of collateral injuries. Such is the result of the commodification of sentient beings.

It has been pointed out, also in the Farmer's Weekly (4 August 2006) that 'no farmer/wildlife programme has much chance of success without input from the kingpins in the debate namely the farmers.' This is so as, apart from a few isolated eco-friendly farmers, it is mostly the farmers who have been encouraging their labourers to hunt porcupines both for their meat and their quills.

And it is all so unnecessary. When we asked one of the biggest exporters of quill products whether these quills could be manufactured synthetically, the answer was a resounding 'no.' However, the

Inter-Continental hotel at the O.R. Tambo airport sports an eighteen metre long sculpture, all made of synthetic quills, hanging in the atrium of its Quills restaurant. So the only thing keeping this cruel trade going is the retail industry.

The next time you are browsing through gift- and curio shops, don't be tempted to buy an item of beauty made up of porcupine quills. By doing so, you are actively supporting a cruel and unethical, consumer driven trade and could be assisting in the demise of the porcupine. A relevant, recent example would be the indigenous porcupine in Italy, which was considered a delicacy and hunted extensively within its range until it became extinct.

We can do without the lamp shades, jewellery, picture frames and even glass coasters made up of porcupine quills, but our environment cannot do without our little eco-system engineers.

THE JOY AND TRAGEDY OF POTBELLIED PIGS

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 16:17:00 +0000

The average 'tiny tea-cup pig' weighs 80kg pounds on reaching adulthood so it was not long before they were abandoned, much like puppies purchased on a whim at Christmas time. They can also become extremely aggressive and, following their natural instincts, root up carpets as well as your garden. This craze has now reached South Africa and is already creating a problem for animal welfare societies country-wide who have to deal with the consequences of their being dumped as they reach adulthood.

It does rather seem as if the new about-to-be promulgated animal by-laws do not make specific provision for pot-bellied pigs as pets regarding their limitation per household, as is the case with cats and dogs, leading to unintended consequences. A question directed to Mr. Alan Perrins, CEO of the SPCA, regarding whether these would fall under the classification of farm animals or pets, elicited the brief response: 'semantics.'

According to Cora Bailey of Community Led Animal Welfare (CLAW) they have been dealing with this problem in Gauteng for some time. People are dumping their formerly cosseted 'tiny teacup pigs' in townships, to be slaughtered in whichever way people see fit.

Clearly there is a serious gap in the by-law here.

The Noble and Human Pig

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 18:40:00 +0000

Winston Churchill said: Dogs look up to you, cats look down on you, but pigs treat you like equals.

Pigs resemble human beings in many ways. Like dogs and other animals, they share many of our feelings - compassion, fear, their need for companionship and intelligence. They are able to solve problems and have been shown to excel at video games that would be hard for a young child, and sometimes perform better than primates.

Karl Schwenke points out in his 1985 classic, In a pig's eye: "Pigs are gregarious animals. Like children they thrive on affection, enjoy toys, have a short attention span and are easily bored. Much like children, piglets do not develop in a normal way when they are deprived of the opportunity to engage in play." They are at least as intelligent as dogs and have been known to rescue their owners from drowning.

They also dream and see colours like us. It is now recognised that they know when they are going to be slaughtered. Like dogs they are individuals.

The one big difference between pigs and dogs is the way we treat them. We play with our dogs, take them for walks we rarely do the same with pigs. It is difficult to understand whey they receive such a raw deal.

George Orwell's classic novel, Animal Farm, is generally considered to be a political fable about totalitarianism and Russia. However, as Jeffrey Masson points out, Orwell saw it in another light, explaining in a preface written for the Ukranian translation, that the story came to him when he saw a little boy, perhaps ten years old, abusing a carthorse.

And so, as farm animals, pigs now live in a world that has become very far removed from nature where the purpose of their existence is almost entirely defined by their death or exploitation, where animals are seen as objects and have to earn their keep along the world view of "if it pays, it stays." We confine pigs in factory farms in sheds where they are constantly impregnated, and where they stand on slats, not even able to move around. As piglets, their tails are docked without anaesthetic. And in the end, like the old horse in Animal Farm, their fate is the slaughterhouse.

But a visit to the Rustler's Valley community, near Ficksburg in the Free State, demonstrated again the symbiotic relationship between human- and non-human animals where the pigs' keen sense of smell and natural inclination to root is used to the benefit of all.

The Rustler's Valley community practices permaculture, a sustainable way of agriculture, which is about "caring for the environment so that the environment can care for us. The use of pesticides and other chemicals are dispensed with by the inter-planting of crops with herbs that heal the soil and keep away harmful pests. In working with nature, mechanical devices are dispensed with. New veggie patches are prepared by making use of "pig tractoring." A sty is erected over a patch of veld which is to be cleared.

The pigs then root to their hearts' content, clearing the ground of unwanted vegetation and spreading manure to feed the soil. As such, everybody's happy and the community is able to live off the land entirely.

DO WE LEGALISE THE TRADE IN RHINO HORN?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 17:44:00 +0000

The poaching of rhinos is escalating exponentially and the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) is currently being asked to legalise the trade in Rhino horn.

Proponents for the lifting of the ban argue that rhino numbers have increased due to rhino farming and that legalizing the trade will stop the poaching. But will this be the case?

Rhino breeders like John Hume, feel that the answer is legalization of the trade and the continued breeding of rhinos

in captivity in what Mercer described as factory farm conditions. Using a purely economical argument which disregards the fact that rhinos are sentient beings, Hume's ume'sHvision is that we "breed enough rhinos to supply the market with horns that come from live, breeding herds of rhinos and fill our game reserves and wilderness areas with horned ones." This will not only serve the ongoing demand for medicinal purposes but also cater for hunters. He openly boasts: "The horns which I've removed are stored in banks and have increased in value like no other asset owned by myself."

But this vision is debunked by Michele Pickover, author of Animal Rights in South Africa, who published a well researched document on the issue. She points out that when considering the legalization of the trade in Rhino horn it is important to look to the results of lifting the ban on elephant tusks as a result of similar arguments, that elephant numbers had increased sufficiently and legalizing the trade would stop poaching. In fact, the opposite occurred and what we learned from the elephant ivory trade is as follows:

Cites is an international agreement signed by 175 governments, including one of the world's major markets for illegal wildlife products- China. After several years of polarised discussion and debate, CITES in 2008 granted China approved buyer status in the controversial sale of stockpiled ivory from Botswana, South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

The organization TRAFFIC (Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce), formerly in favour of legalizing the trade in horns, have now done an about turn and concurs with Pickover's views.

There is a battle ahead the illegal trade in wildlife and their by-products is an industry worth billions, being second only to the illegal trade in drugs.

Beatrice Wiltshire

CONVERTING SANPARKS’ ECOBABBLE INTO ORDINARY ENGLISH.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:23:00 +0000

Once more the SANParks killing machine has moved in, this time on the jackals. Their subsequent report is now to hand and for the benefit of Snoutians, Chris Mercer has converted their Ecobabble into ordinary English:

Extermination of Jackals in Addo
The Jackal Slaughter by SANParks (or Einstein’s Quantum Theory on Jackals)

The ‘Brief report’ by SANParks is now to hand. After explaining that the Springbok herds in Addo and Karoo were not increasing at the desired rate, SANParks deduced that, in the absence of large predators, the problem might be caused by caracals and jackals. A reasonable deduction, all other things being equal. The solution? Kill all the jackals. (The report does not say anything about killing caracals! Hmmm.) Or as they put it in their quaint Ecobabble:

‘This intervention took the form of reduction of the jackal population, together with monitoring of jackal and antelope populations. Since the start of this intervention 132 jackals have been removed from Karoo National Park, 73 from the Darlington Section of Addo Elephant National Park, and 139 from the Kuzuko Contractual Section of the Addo Elephant National Park. The jackals were shot in accordance with SANParks Standard Operating Procedures for Lethal Population Management, which has been approved by the SANParks Animal Use and Care Committee. No traps or poisons of any kind were used’
(The jackals must have been very happy to know that they were being shot in accordance with standard operating procedures, as approved by the Ethics committee.)

Having admitted that the whole thing was an experiment, the report goes on to state as follows. However, it is written in Ecobabble, comprehensible only to the High Priests of Conservation, so we have translated the text into ordinary English after each statement, for better understanding by ordinary mortals.

1. The outcome of this intervention is envisaged to be a robust manuscript about the complexities of jackal-herbivore interactions, which will provide SANParks with guidance for jackal management. (Translation: When we have counted the dead jackals, and the live springbok, then we can tell other parks so they can also go out and kill all their jackals.)

2. All SA National Parks with jackal will benefit by having explicitly tested the competing hypotheses about the efficacy of jackal population management. (Translation: Once we have proved beyond doubt that exterminating jackal populations in game parks stops them from stealing springbok lambs, all of us in SANParks will be so much wiser..er..better informed.)

3. The results can be used in other parks outside of the Frontier Cluster to aid in drawing up mechanism diagrams, and hence management options, for park-specific jackal-herbivore interactions. (Translation: Conservation officers in other parks will be better equipped with ‘robust manuscripts’ telling them how to draw diagrams and exterminate jackals.)

4. The results will also contribute towards the broader understanding of jackal-herbivore interactions and the efficacy of jackal population control within the livestock farming community. (Translation: After this experiment, no one will ever be able to deny that exterminating jackals stops them from stealing springbok lambs, and we can pass this scientific truth on to livestock farmers so that they too can draw diagrams and exterminate jackals.)

5. SANParks will also benefit by being able to demonstrate its ability in implementing active adaptive management to strategically direct its conservation decisions in the face of uncertainty in complex ecosystems. (Translation: Once we are left with no jackals and lots of diagrams, everyone will have to admit how clever we are in solving complicated stock theft cases.)

THE REAL RHINO ISSUE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 17:51:00 +0000

The WWF, in support of its P.R. campaign, declared an 'Anti Rhino poaching day' and urged people to 'make a noise at 13h00 in support of anti-rhino poaching.' But few people realise that behind the public image of WWF lies an organisation which actually keeps the system going by its old-style conservationist approach and its touting of a policy of sustainable usage of resources which sees sentient beings reduced to unfeeling commodities, indeed money making machines.
The WWF is not against the hunting or trophy hunting of sentient beings but about preserving a killing machine which brings in money. So it's all right to hunt, as long as you hunt sustainably, that is leave enough to be hunted another day.

One of the real comparisons we should be making is add up the number of 'poached' animals for the year and the number of those that are 'legally trophy hunted' (a very grey area) and add up these two. Only then will we get a better idea of what's happening with the animals. The only difference between 'poaching' and 'hunting' is that the money goes to different people, and that's the big issue for the game farmers associations - they are losing income. They don't give a damn about the animals.

It is notable that the WWF only makes a noise about politically correct issues and not controversial ones, such as, trophy hunting, the millions of animals tortured in the vivisection labs or, indeed, the slaughter of millions of sentient beings in the abattoirs on a daily basis, plus the intensive factory farming that feeds the latter practice and contributes to the major part of the destruction of the ozone layer and the subsequent earth warming.

I would urge Snoutians to read the Animal Rights Africa press release below which deals with the Rhino issue, and then you might even consult the following website:

www.goallover.org/rhino-charity-profits-from-trophy-hunting/8729

ANIMAL RIGHTS AFRICA
PRESS RELEASE: 05 August 2010

SOUTH AFRICA’S CALLOUS COMMODIFICATION OF RHINOS IS AT THE ROOT OF THEIR CURRENT MISERY

It is a foregone conclusion that at the very least, 300 rhinos will die horrible and painful deaths in South Africa in 2010.

South Africa is currently entrusted with the vast majority of the world’s population of rhinos, but at the same time it has become abundantly clear that not only are rhinos in South Africa facing one of their worst threats ever as a species, but they are literally under siege. More rhinos have been killed illegally in South Africa during 2008, 2009 and 2010 than at any other time in the last 90 years. South Africa is quite literally the last bastion for rhinos in the world but the colossal growth of rhino killings (both legal and illegal, and the concomitant insufficient anti‐poaching capacity and poor record keeping, means that rhinos are facing untold suffering, exploitation and death and has the potential to once again threaten the survival of the entire species.

Almost daily we read, see or hear about rhino killings. There is no doubt that ordinary South Africans are horror-struck and outraged at the suffering rhinos are enduring. Yet astonishingly, the perpetrators caught for these unspeakable acts of cruelty are never prosecuted under the Animal Protection Act but rather for the possession of illegal ‘wildlife products’.

“We should not be surprised that welfare and anti-cruelty legislation has never been invoked because treating rhinos as if they are merely a tradable commodity is the cornerstone of South Africa’s approach to ‘conservation’. There seems something deeply unethical and inappropriate about supposedly championing rhino conservation and protection but at the same time driving trophy hunting, trade in rhinos, the sale of rhino from national and provincial Parks to known ‘put and take’ hunting outfitters and the stockpiling of their horns by government and private individuals” said Animal Rights Africa (ARA) spokesperson Michele Pickover.

Undoubtedly that there needs to be a global initiative to tackle the insatiable illegal market for rhino horn in the East but equally South Africa needs to recognize its culpability in bolstering the market through trophy hunting and rhino horn stockpiling. It’s morally and ecologically bankrupt and rampant ‘consumptive and sustainable use’ policies are trumping ethical conservation, biodiversity protection and concern for the welfare of wildlife. This is literally translating into a war against wildlife. Wild animal, who were victims and suffered under colonialism and apartheid, now continue to be victims under sustainable use policies, which are turning living beings into mere commodities.

“ARA is extremely concerned about our government’s uncritical support for the ethically and scientifically flawed process of ‘sustainable use’ which has no regard for who rhinos and no understanding of their social complexities, relationships or culture. It is just a euphemism for unsustainable killing, suffering and massive exploitation. ARA urges the South African public to speak out against these current policies” said Pickover.

South Africa remains the world's top destination for the hunting of captive raised lions and is also the premier market for those wishing to shoot rhinos.The hunting permit system has been repeatedly used in recent years to launder horn into the illegal market. The government says it is trying to limit the number of rhinos hunted illegally. Yet despite the abuses within the industry, selling rhino hunts to foreigners remains a growing business.

It is therefore not surprising that it is within this context of overt ‘consumptive use’ that poaching of rhinos in South Africa has reached the highest levels in decades. In the short space of 19 months, poaching of rhinoceroses in South Africa has accelerated to a rate almost six times higher than that of the previous eight years and at the same time South Africa has become the conduit of most of the rhino horns leaving the African continent.

Exactly a year ago, through the release of a special report on rhinos entitled, Under Siege: Rhinoceroses in South Africa, ARA alerted people to the alarming situation in relation to rhinos. Since then the killings have not only continued but have risen. The recommendations of that report remain unchanged and need to be restated. There is an urgent need to:
• Open the government policy of ‘sustainable use’ and trophy hunting to public debate.
• Impose an immediate moratorium on all capture, sale, translocation and hunting of rhino in South Africa.
• Burn rhino horn stockpiles.

The Report is available on: http://www.animalrightsafrica.org/Archive/ARA_Report_Under_Siege_Rhinos_in_South_Africa2009.pdf

Ends.

BORN FREE – OR ARE THEY?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:33:00 +0000

'A Robin Redbreast in a cage sends all heaven in a rage'

Many, like the author of the above - William Blake, would agree that imprisoning a bird in a cage for human entertainment is cruel, but few are fully aware of the vast trade in wildlife which causes animals to be taken from their natural habitats to be imprisoned either in zoos or circuses or else languishing in small indoor enclosures in private homes, in climates which are not endemic to their species. Wildlife Trafficking, the illegal trade in plants and sale of wild birds and exotic pets is said to be the second biggest threat to species survival after habitat destruction. It is also thought to be the third most valuable illicit commerce in the world, after drugs and weapons, each believed to be worth billions of dollars each.
There are serious environmental implications. A number of popular pet birds, especially those from Central and South America, are declining in number in the wild in the wake of the chopping down of trees, in the search of baby parrots in high up nests. The resultant deforestation then also destroys the habitat of other small animals. The Environmental Investigation Agency estimates that for every wild caught bird that reaches a pet shop, three others have died during capture, confinement and transportation.
A furore has recently erupted over the trade in the Kalahari Meerkat. This follows an undercover investigation by the Captive Animals’ Protection society (CAPS) which has spearheaded an international campaign based on the message ‘Wild Animals Belong in the Wild’. The investigation established that these little mammals sell for up to R 17 000 each in the flourishing pet trade. Indeed, they are on the wish list of an increasing number of Britons, according to Craig Redman, spokesperson for CAPS who found many of these mammals, indigenous to Southern African deserts, for sale in pet shops.
Grant McIlrath of the Meerkat Magic Conservation Project in Oudtshoorn confirms that the Meerkats are highly sociable animals who live in family groups of up to thirty and care for each other. They are generally considered cute but in fact bite and are very destructive indoors as they will still exhibit burrowing behaviour and easily become ill because of an incorrect diet. Many literally go insane because of lack of social contact, which leads to their subsequently being disposed of.
Permits are required before wild animals can be exported but there are many illegal means to circumvent the environmental laws. Documented cases have shown the involvement of zoos being used to ‘launder’ the animals. Whilst permits are not readily obtained for export for domestic purposes, it’s relatively easy to obtain permits for inter-zoo transfer. One such documented case was the transfer of three chimps from Whippersnade Zoo in the U.K. to Johannesburg Zoo whence they were obtained for experimental purposes in the SADF’s infamous Chemical and Biological warfare (CBW) programme. It’s also very difficult to trace the ultimate destination of animals transferred in this way, as zoos from time to time dispose of their ‘surplus’ animals, including baby animals that have reached maturity and are no longer a drawing card.
In this regard Paul Hart of the Drakenstein Lion Park, which provides sanctuary to abused lions rescued from cruel circumstances around the world, has many a tale to tell.
For instance Dodo, the cute lion cub, purchased illegally from an Eastern European zoo. This is quite a common practice with many of these zoos, which sell animals like lion cubs as pets to earn extra revenue. The buyer’s intent was to keep him as a pet, but obviously a growing lion does not fit in well in any household. Dodo's owner evicted him from the house and ended up keeping him in a small underground concrete pit. There he was incarcerated for almost his entire life of eight years. In winter his jail filled with snow while temperatures dropped to minus 20 degrees. Many animal welfare organizations tried to liberate Dodo from his dungeon, unsuccessfully, but Paul Hart persevered and after almost three years of hard work Dodo was finally freed from his prison.

No wild animal is safe from exploitation. Apart from birds, monkeys and even tortoises are exploited. “This is because animals are seen as commodities to be traded and there is a lot of pressure on governments in Africa to up their trade surplus. So animals, natural resources, etc. are all being stripped and going to the North,” says Michele Pickover of Animal Rights Africa. “There is little or no consideration for the welfare of the animals.”

And so the silent screams of these creatures remain unheard, while the human species continues to imprison them, creating the very market which sustains this unethical practice.

But at least there was a happy ending for Dodo the Lion . Highly traumatised on arrival at the Drakenstein Lion Park as grey walls and the rusted steel bars above his head were all that he’d seen his entire life, and unused to nature, he feared even the leaves that rustled in the wind. Fortunately, after several months of special care, he is now well adjusted.
“Everything he experiences is new for him and he delights in everything around him,” says Paul Hart. “He has found sanctuary and can now live the kind of life he deserves.”

If only this could be the fate of all wild animals.

PUPPY MILLS PERPETUATE THE CRUELTY

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 11:42:00 +0000

There is great need at the animal welfare societies that house thousands of dogs. As the number of available homes is limited, many of these loyal companion animals, some of them in the prime of their lives, have to be put down. One also hears how puppies, bought from a local pet shop, have to be put down owing to the fact that they are harboring an illness incubating at the time they are bought. Pet shops seldom bother to check whether new ‘merchandise’ has received all the necessary innoculations, possibly because it would be cutting into profits.
Another ugly reality is the ‘puppy mills’ or unlicenced backyard breeders who supply the pet shops. These puppy farmers care little for the well-being of the dogs, as long as they bring in the tax free profits. Very often the mothers have their pups removed at age six weeks instead of the optimal eight or twelve in order that they may become pregnant more quickly. So these hapless animals become little more than perpetual breeding machines, their off-spring sold, unspayed of course, to the nearest pet shop.
From time to time exposés highlight the plight of these wretched creatures, doomed to lives of misery. Currently, there is an on-going case against such a puppy mill brought by the Wet Nose Animal Rescue Centre (WNARC). Shocking scenes of the conditions at the puppy farm were aired on the TV programme Carte Blanche.
Laws are currently being considered, outlawing the breeding of dogs without a valid breeders’ license.
Considering the price pet shops ask for the puppies, that makes for an enormous amount of tax free merchandise. And anybody can open a pet shop and sell animals, without having any knowledge or background of animal welfare. What restrictions there are, pertain to health regulations and not the welfare of the animals. There does not appear to be any law requiring these animals to have valid vaccination certificates before being sold. The new Cape bylaws currently under consideration stipulate that pet shop owners have to have proof that the dogs and cats they are selling have been vaccinated. But these new bylaws have been a long time coming and besides they are difficult to police as the SPCA only covers a small area and this constitutes a big loophole.
Ideally, pet shops should not sell live animals anyway. This would not necessarily mean the end of the road for such concerns. Most well run pet shops who don’t deal in animals manage a steady income from pet accessories and dog foods which, world-wide, constitute a multi-billion dollar industry. Surprisingly, this market slice has also proved to be recession proof as good owners will always spend on their companion animals.
Meanwhile, a word of caution from the WNARC: Buy only from registered welfare organizations that will ensure that the animals come to you vaccinated and spayed. But if you should be so unwise as to buy from a pet shop, do read their legal disclaimer as the minute you leave there, any subsequent problems become your own. Take time about purchasing the animal and ensure that the breeder is registered, that the documentation is correct and the breeder info on the vaccination card is up-to-date. You should also contact the Kennel Union of South Africa (KUSA) in order to check up on the breeder who might just be among those banned from the organization because of bad practices. Some of the certificates that are supplied are fraudulent.
It is most unwise to advertise animals in the papers and on Gumtree offering them ‘Free to good homes’ rather than sending them to a registered animal welfare society. There have been documented instances where such pets have landed up in experimental laboratories or for use as bait in dog fights.
In the end it is those who buy from pet shops who must carry the blame for this unethical trade. If we would rather adopt from the nearest shelter, the puppy mills would close down. It’s all about supply and demand.
So the next time you walk past a pet shop on a cold evening or weekend, do spare
a thought for the puppies shivering inside, deprived of their mothers’ warmth. And remember that for every person that supports a breeder (be it backyard or registered) a rescue dog dies – even pedigreed ones.

Abuse against animals and humans – the link

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 27 May 2010 14:14:00 +0000

Capetonians were recently stunned to hear of a case of cruelty against a horse by a youthful gang in Macassar. Their game involves stealing ponies and taking them for a joy ride using a makeshift bridle, often of barbed wire. When the exhausted horse can go no longer respond to relentless whipping and beating, they stab it in the flanks to coax a further few kilometres out of it. On this particular occasion the aged pony had been put out to pasture, whence it was stolen. After the event, it managed to drag its pain racked body home where it subsequently died, just fifty kilometres from home.

Rescued from a life of abuse as a cart horse, he had found sanctuary with horse lover Anthea Myburgh 15 years before and it was to this happy home and his beloved owner that he tried to return with his last reserve of strength.

It is important that the youthfulness of the perpetrators or their social circumstances should not be used as an excuse for a less vigorous sentencing.

Sadistic tendencies are not just a result of poverty as sadists are to be found in all income groups. Rather, these barbaric acts should be seen as indicative of a greater problem which should be taken most seriously and investigated rigorously.

In his book Child Abuse, Domestic Violence and Animal Cruelty, Phil Arkow of the Latham Foundation shows a link between domestic violence and animal abuse. He shows how animals, esp. pets, often get caught up in the cycle of family violence and in many cases the animal is just the last victim in a cycle of abuse that filters down from the strongest in the family to the weakest. Women and children are sometimes intimidated into silence about sexual and other abuses by threats against a favourite pet. Pets are sometimes hurt or killed to punish a child for something he has done.

An abused child might act out aggression or frustration on an animal that is perceived to be more vulnerable. At the same time, well documented research shows disturbing correlations between early childhood cruelty to animals and later juvenile delinquency or adult aggressive criminal behaviour towards humans.

Animal abuse is a predictor of violent behaviour and psychopathic tendencies. Intentional cruelty is of particular concern, because it is a sign of psychological distress and often indicates either that an individual has already experienced violence, or may be predisposed to committing acts of violence. It could also be an indication of a serious pathological disorder. It is a fact that in most cases psychopaths have been found to have tortured animals in their youth and such tendencies escalate as the culprit grows older. Most serial killers such as the Boston Strangler and Jeffrey Dahmer have a history of cruelty towards animals.

Clearly, what is needed is an animal abuse reporting policy. We need a central base of animal abuse cases as pointers to domestic violence and vice versa and in this instance welfare and child protection officials should work together.

There is no doubt that, on a global scale, a culture of violence appears to be escalating and perpetrators of violent crimes are becoming younger. Taking animal abuse seriously will bring us step closer to eliminating violence from our society. It is therefore in the interests of society as a whole that these perpetrators be dealt with decisively and that justice is seen to be done, whatever the age of the perpetrators.

PORCUPINES – A PRICKLY ISSUE

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 16:29:00 +0000

Beatrice Wiltshire

Photo : courtesy of Anna Haw of the Landmark Foundation

Do porcupines really shoot their quills? This erroneous belief seems to have been around a long time, possibly perpetuated by childhood story book illustrations. The truth is that, if attacked, the little animal engages in some formidable posturing, erecting its quills, which are quite loosely attached and lets its enemy’s teeth sink into them. The attacker ends up with a mouth and throat full of painful barbs, as our own Jock of the Bushveld experienced.

On browsing through the gift- and curio shops, it becomes obvious that porcupine quills are increasingly being used in the manufacture of various commodities relating to the Afro-chic fad. And don’t be misled by the shop owner’s assurance that the quills were ‘picked up around the farms.’ The quills you see are usually obtained by killing the animal in the most inhumane manner by clubbing to death, hunting with dogs or the cruellest of all, using gin traps, the latter banned in more than 90 countries – but not in South Africa.

The specie has definite positive implications within a biodiversity context and porcupine research scientist Christy Bragg has written scientific papers referring to them as ‘ecosystem engineers.’ According to her, ‘studies show that productivity and diversity of plants within porcupine diggings can be many times higher compared to outside their diggings. They not only increase bulb diversity (which has important eco -tourism implications) but also contribute towards an increase in the diversity and germination of annuals, shrubs and grasses.’ This was all as Nature intended.

Going back in history, one learns that porcupine populations were inherently stable as there were

no urban or agricultural impacts on them. This stability was brought about by a self-regulating mechanism determined by population density and predation.

Then arrived the most destructive predator of all – the human being, which saw the natural balance disturbed and the start of human/animal conflict.

Be that as it may, a tipping point was reached when porcupines were classified ‘vermin’ and ‘problem animals’ because of their perceived detrimental effect on farming activities. This classification led to large scale mortalities through hunting, trapping and poisoning.

In order to address this problem and as a result of public pressure, the government drew up draft Biodiversity and Threatened and Protected Species Bills and called for input in the matter from stakeholders. In the subsequent Biodiversity Act, the porcupine has now been listed a ‘protected species,’ which by definition means ‘an indigenous species of high conservation value of national importance that requires national protection.’

Because of the Government’s policy of ‘sustainable usage’ however, this new classification does not mean that they are no longer hunted or trophy hunted. It merely means that they may be ‘used sustainably.’

There has been an exponential increase in the number of quills being supplied to the market and no documentation to trace the source or extent of each transaction – a person can deal in porcupine by-products without having to obtain a permit to do so. So there is no control over this random hunting and killing of porcupines and no means of accountability. Exports thrive.

It has been pointed out, also in the Farmer’s Weekly (4 August 2006) that ‘no farmer/wildlife programme has much chance of success without input from the kingpins in the debate namely the farmers.’ This is so as, apart from a few isolated eco-friendly farmers, it is mostly the farmers who have been encouraging their labourers to hunt porcupines both for their meat and their quills.

And it is all so unnecessary. When we asked one of the biggest exporters of quill products whether these quills could be manufactured synthetically, the answer was a resounding ‘no.’ However, the Inter-Continental hotel at the O.R. Tambo airport sports an eighteen metre long sculpture, all made of synthetic quills, hanging in the atrium of its Quills restaurant. So the only thing keeping this cruel trade going is the retail industry.

The next time you are browsing through gift- and curio shops, don’t be tempted to buy an item of beauty made up of porcupine quills. By doing so, you are actively supporting a cruel and unethical, consumer driven trade and could be assisting in the demise of the porcupine. A relevant, recent example would be the indigenous porcupine in Italy, which was considered a delicacy and hunted extensively within its range until it became extinct.

We can do without the lamp shades, jewellery, picture frames and even glass coasters made up of porcupine quills, but our environment cannot do without our little eco-system engineers.

ZOOS – AN OUTDATED CONCEPT

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:51:00 +0000

“They pay the price for their beauty, poor beasts. Mankind wants to catch anything beautiful and shut it up, and then come in thousands to watch it die by inches.”

David Garnett – A Man in the Zoo.

Zoos have come to represent fun days for children, but the public spotlight is increasingly falling on this relic of colonialism. Like many institutions of the past that have fallen by the wayside as they no longer measure up to moral scrutiny (slavery and child labour spring to mind) modern society is increasingly questioning the incarceration of wild animals in cages.

Few are aware of the enormous cruelty inherent in the system. To be placed in zoos, animals have been captured in the wild, taken from their habitat and families, manhandled, transported, made to feel pain and caged in order to be exhibited and exposed to continual human gaze.

In their wild state, the average lion pride has a range of 15 to 150 square miles, depending on the carrying capacity of the habitat and prey density. Like elephants, primates and other wild animals, they live in colonies with strong social structures and hierarchies. So the environments provided by zoos are at best artificial, creating artificial animals, with not a thought to their sadness and loneliness, torn from their families, unable to live out their natural and social instincts, for the whole of their lifetimes, often decades.

States EC Young, Professor of Zoology, Auckland University: “The simple basis of my opposition to captivity in zoos is that we are holding animals in grossly unnatural, debilitating, and aberrant circumstances. None of their beauty and force and intelligence is apparent. Confined, frustrated, performing the same ritualistic and often dangerous damaging behavior of acute boredom, they caricature the real thing.” Confining wild animals to zoos can therefore hardly be called educational.

In his book: ‘Reading Zoos: Representations of Animals in Captivity’ Professor Randy Malamud exposes the zoo’s unwritten history in its relation to colonialism. Zoos were inextricably bound up with imperialism and its ideologies of conquest, and they provided much-needed symbols and legitimation for conquering nations. Animals captured in foreign lands were brought back to capitals such as London in order to be displayed for a gawking public. Exotic animals symbolized the empire’s prowess to gain dominion over nature. Prof. David Ehrenfeld of Rutgers University states in Ethics on the Ark: "In many ways, the zoo has come to typify the themes of the Age of Control: exploration, domination, machismo, exhibitionism, assertion of superiority, manipulation.”

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries humans were frequently exhibited in cages with animals as part of an exotic collection of life forms. Dwarfs, bearded women and people with all kinds of deformities and oddities were exhibited for human amusement, forming part of the ‘us’ and ‘them’ distancing scenario.

Closer to home in the early 20th Century, Saartjie Baartman , a member of the Griqua tribe in the Eastern Cape, caught the eye of a visiting English ship’s surgeon who persuaded her to accompany him to England as a subject of medical and anthropological research. She was considered a freak because of her extraordinary enlarged buttocks and genital peculiarities, and after being put under scrutiny by the researchers, was exhibited like a wild beast in the streets of London, eventually being taken to Paris where she was handed to a “showman of wild animals” in a traveling circus. While moral progress compelled people to realize the wrongs of exhibiting humans, society is only now starting to comprehend the injustice of exploiting wild animals in zoos and circuses.

A possible parallel to Saartjie Baartman’s story is the well documented case of Jackie the Chimp who, torn from the wild, was kept in unbearable captivity and taught to do demeaning tricks for the patrons of Boswell Wilkie circus. He was subsequently given to the Johannesburg zoo in 1966 before eventually being passed on to Roodeplaat, the South African Defence Force’s covert Biological and Chemical Warfare facility. His Hveterinary history over the period of 10 years spent at the zoo shows that he was kept on drugs and tranquillizers for most of the time.

Like the majority of zoo animals who are denied a rich social life, their every need and instinct thwarted and in possession of complex minds, he’d developed zoochosis, a term used to describe various psychological problems, from stereotypic behaviour that includes rocking and walking in circles, to self mutilation and even infanticide.

The drugs on which Jackie was kept also raises disturbing questions about what zoos do to animals in their care in order to make them viewable objects.

According to Travers and McKenna of the Born Free Foundation over 60% of polar bears in British zoos are mentally deranged.

Alarmingly, zoos are not only breeding excessively, but this is an activity that is encouraged, particularly because young cubs and baby animals are more of an attraction and because animals bred in zoos are often sold for profit via dealers. This is how zoo animals end up in the pet trade, in circuses or experimental laboratories, as victims of canned hunts, or as breeding animals for the cruel wildlife trade.

Says Dr. Steven Best of the University of Texas: “The fact that, as insipid parents claim, their children might ‘enjoy’ the zoo is not an argument for it, but a disturbing indication of an early stage in the warping of a young mind.”

Indeed, a society that cages animals cages itself.

CANNED HUNTING - THE LEGACY OF CALLOUSNESS AND GREED

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 19:32:00 +0000

The human animal has always tended to sport his manliness by vanquishing the weaker or defenceless. In an earlier civilization this resulted in the scalping of the vanquished, these scalps to be taken as trophies. Modern man has not evolved much. From the Nazi lampshades purportedly made from human skin, it is now the heads of defenceless animals that are mounted on walls as proof of male dominance.

In 1997, Roger Cook, producer of the British investigative television documentary The Cook Report, investigated the killing of rare wild animals in the name of sport. Posing as a tourist-hunter in South Africa, he was taken on a hunt for lions and tigers – the latter specially imported for the purpose. The documentary exposed more than just blood lust. It also exposed the despicable and clandestine activity known as 'canned hunting,' whereby captive-bred lions were let loose in an enclosure from which they had nowhere to flee and where they were shot by khaki clad 'hunters' from overseas. Many of them were not even good shots and after one or two wounding attempts the hapless animal would be put out of its misery by an accompanying hunter. But this was after all what they paid good money for, as well as being able to pose for the camera with one intrepid foot on the slaughtered animal, at an angle which did not show the fence in the background. One particularly poignant scene showed a lioness who had been separated from her cubs, being shot several times while attempting to get to her babies.

The resultant public uproar did nothing for South Africa's image overseas, and there were calls to have 'canned hunting' banned, not only because of its ethical but also ecological and biological implications. The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) then resorting under Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk, also joined in the condemnation, but was subsequently accused by Animal Rights Africa and others of 'double speak'. With all the spin and fanfare put out by the government, the general public was lulled into thinking that canned lion hunting was indeed being banned but the industry, far from being controlled, grew exponentially, with the active support from the government. And it was not only confined to the hunting of large predators – elephants, rhinos, buffaloes and antelope species were also hunted in this way. Between 2007 and 2008 the number of lions trophy hunted and killed by the predator industry doubled. Captive lion breeding farms mushroomed. The government played a double game. On the one hand they made public announcements that they were going to 'put an end, once and for all, to the reprehensible practice of canned hunting' and that after 1 June 2007 there would be no more canned hunting of large animals in South Africa, while on the other hand providing the predator breeding industry with loopholes that would allow this reprehensible industry to continue and expand.

Loophole 1: The NEMBA Threatened or Protected Species (TOPS) is a flawed and inadequate legislation that does not ban canned predator hunting but merely attempts to regulate it.

Loophole 2: Inexplicably postponing the implementation of TOPS from June 2007 to February 2008, thereby giving the South African Predator Breeders Association the opportunity to challenge TOPS before it came into force.

Loophole 3: Excluding lions from the definition for listed large predators of the TOPS legislation promulgated in February 2008, supposedly while the South African Predator Breeders'Association court

case against the Minister was pending.

Furthermore, as recently as 9 July 2008 the Deputy Minister Rejoice Mabudafhasi unequivocally assured them that "government does appreciate the existence of the industry and that there is no way that the regulations will eventually lead to its closure as the industry is an accepted part of the tourism experience package that South Africa markets."

Eventually, on Thursday 11th June 2009 judgment was given in the Free State High Court in Bloemfontein when Judge Ian van der Merwe concurred with the government that biodiversity must be protected and that the breeding of lions in captivity with the sole purpose of canned hunting did not aid their protection. The verdict was that these semi-tame animals may only be hunted 24 months after being set free from their breeding cages. The lion breeders' request that the period of 24 months in the regulations be changed to 'a few days' was dismissed with costs.

Reason to celebrate? Hold on to your hats and brollies! Whilst the verdict is welcomed, there are still some very serious gaps. There is no stipulation as to the size of the encampment into which the animals are to be released after being set free. So they could still be released into quite a small area from which they have no way of escaping. Furthermore, these are semi-tamed, hand reared animals and those who are involved with the rehabilitation of lions will agree that a lion that has been hand reared and thus human imprinted will never be able to be truly wild and fend for itself as a lion should. Also, how on earth would this be enforced? Surely not by the conservation officials, most of whom are hunters themselves and are widely suspected to be hand-in-glove with the breeding fraternity?

The bottom line is that the lion breeders have now escalated to 123 and there are 3000 canned lions waiting to be, well, canned. This situation could have been avoided. Attempts many years ago by Animal Rights Africa (ARA) and others to persuade DEAT to support a plan that would address the ethical and welfare concerns for the predators still caught up in the industry, fell on deaf ears.

And the industry has not been slow to engage in the emotional terrorism of pointing out that '5000 breadwinners will lose their jobs and 3000 semi-tamed lions will have be put down.'

Says Paul Hart of the Drakenstein Lion Park: 'This ploy to gain public sympathy is ridiculous in the extreme, especially coming from people who breed lions for the express purpose of killing them in a variety of gruesome ways, such as shooting arrows into them, setting packs of dogs on them and blasting away at them with high powered rifles.'

Meanwhile, the breeders will no doubt play for even more time by going to the various courts of appeal, a process which could take many years, while the problem continues to escalate.

Says Michele Pickover of ARA 'Quite clearly this is all about profits and greed, while what it should be about, is the animals.'

Until the property status of animals gives way to a classification of 'sentient beings' animal cruelty will continue.

THE HIDDEN SIDE OF GREYHOUND RACING

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 25 May 2009 16:19:00 +0000

According to recent reports would-be promoters of the as yet illegal greyhound racing industry tout the legalisation of this industry as having the potential to create 30 000 jobs and provide a R1,5bn tax offspin. Indeed a preliminary report from that University in the land of BROC (Braaivleis, Rugby, Oranjejag and Canned Lion Hunting) would presume to support this.

The statements made are clearly a sop pandering to top politicians, in order to try and legalise what should remain banned. If we are now to legalise this form of animal exploitation, then why not legalise drug dealing, child pornography and the human slave trade? That would create a lot of jobs and tax offspin too.

But any offspin from Greyhound racing would only be short-term. Greyhound racing has not worked anywhere else in Africa, being patronised for a number of years and then falling into disuse, creating an animal welfare crises because of the surplus animals. Furthermore, supporting greyhound racing would draw people away from the Lotto which at least benefits a wide range of good causes across the board such as Child Welfare, Animal Welfare, Aids etc.

But worst of all are the abuses inherent in this cruel and unethical 'sport' which critics oppose on the following grounds:

Only one in two dogs is deemed fit for racing, leading to tens of thousands of healthy dogs being killed every year. Some trainers prefer to drown or starve their dogs to death, thus preventing unwanted veterinary bills. Many more end up in laboratories, only to be further tortured by vivisectors conducting 'research.'

Once the 50% who 'make it' begin serious training, around their first birthday, they are kept in cages their entire racing lives – cages so small (90cm x 120 cm x 90 cm high) that they have room only to stand up and turn around. The backs and thighs of many racing dogs are worn bare and some dogs develop sores from lying in their cages for extended periods. A total of 22½ hours a day are spent in these crates.

The Greyhounds' freest moments come in the matter of seconds they spend racing. Yet this freedom is not without risk. Dogs rocketing out of their starting boxes are bunched tightly and turns on the racetrack are challenging. Spills can fracture bones and cause other injuries. The normal rigours of racing cause foot-pad abrasions, sprained ligaments and fractured right-front hocks, which absorb most of the concussion as dogs bend around counterclockwise turns.

Barbaric training techniques, such as tying a live rabbit to the mechanical arm, though illegal, are commonplace as many people believe that dogs trained on live lures qualify for racing twice as often as dogs trained on mechanical devices.

Very few retired greyhounds are ever re-homed as they first have to be rehabilitated before being adopted out. This requires a great deal of time and patience.

But in the end, the real issue here is that the exploitation of animals and turning them into commodities is part of a bigger picture of exploitation of the defenceless, whether human or non-human. It's up to us to decide whether our country is in need of a moral regeneration or whether we can afford to exploit sentient beings in the quest for a fast buck for the enrichment of a few.