Wildlife Rescue Series!

Nestling Robins

Originally uploaded by Jane Ray’s Wildlife Rescue Series

Spring is sprung, the grass is riz.
Do you know where your kitty cat iz?

Hopefully nowhere near all the baby birds that are hatching right now! This is busy season at the Wildlife Rescue Association of BC, when over two thirds of their 3,000+ patients are admitted for rescue and rehabilitation. Many of them are baby animals.

The unfortunate thing is, too many well-meaning passers-by scoop up perfectly healthy nestlings and fledglings and bring them to the rescue centre without realizing that the baby was out of the nest for a reason, learning some very important bird thing, like hunting for food or flying, and that the parent was close by watching helplessly as their baby was taken away.

Click here to read an exciting near-rescue story and my latest Burnaby NOW column on how — and when — to rescue a baby bird!

Animal Testing: The Beginning of the End

Originally uploaded by Jane Ray’s Wildlife Rescue Series

It is estimated that anywhere from 50 to 100 million vertebrate animals worldwide — from zebrafish to non-human primates — are used annually in animal experimentation, and are killed during or after the experiments.

In North America, at least, this is about to change.

For an overview of animal experimentation, click here.

For the best news I’ve ever heard about this gut-wrenching subject, see my related post, below.

It’s the best news I could possibly have received this Valentine’s Day: the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Toxicology Program and the National Institutes of Health have signed a “Memorandum of Understanding” to work toward the end of animal testing and begin developing new methods of evaluating the safety of new chemicals and drugs.

The conversion could take up to 10 years because of the need for scientific validation of the new approaches. But Martin Stephens of the Humane Society of the United States says, “We believe this is the beginning of the end for animal testing.”

Amen.

Click here to read the full story on USA Today!

Today’s edition of The Tyee is running the first installment in a two-part story on the need to preserve the Flathead Valley. It is a wild, untouched home to top-of-the-food-chain predators such as grizzlies, wolves and wolverines, and they survive in such numbers and with such success because the Valley is free from human habitation. But there are plans afoot to turn the area into a park.

My thanks to the Tyee for bringing the situation to light and giving us a chance to consider all sides of the debate and make our own decisions.

For a wonderful book about the importance of protecting predators and preserving their habitats (and for a simply beautiful novel written with the spare eloquence of a former scientist and the elegance of an artist) check out Barbara Kingsolver’s Prodigal Summer. One of my favourite books of all time, and one of the very few I know I’ll re-read again and again.

Did you know polar bears don’t eat penguins?

If you’ve already added your name (it takes just a few seconds!), here’s a big thank you, and an even bigger (polar) bear hug.

Siona
and the rest of the Zaadz Team

Go on. Try it. Don’t think of a white bear. And tell your friends not to think of one, either.

Okay, I’m back. Where have I been? Well, I’ll get to that in a future post. But for now, I want to pass along the media tip sheet that Vancouver Sun journalist and animal welfare activist Nicholas Read wrote for the Vancouver Humane Society’s latest newsletter. Click here for the full text; below are his key points for getting animal issues into the news, and keeping them at the forefront of people’s awareness.

Be Media Savvy for Animals

Adapted from an article by Nicholas Read

When it comes to the news business, the good news is that the media take animal issues a lot more seriously than they used to, especially here in BC. The bad news is that they still don’t take them seriously enough.

That means getting someone who works in the media to take your concerns about animals seriously can be a challenge. But it’s not an insurmountable one.* You just have to know what to do.

So here’s a checklist of what to keep in mind the next time you attempt to get someone in the media interested in what matters to you.

1. Be new. Remember, it’s called the newspaper, not the oldspaper. Whatever you pitch, make sure it’s something the reporter won’t have heard before.
2. Be specific. People in the media want concrete examples of whatever it is you’re complaining about.
3. Think in pictures. Think about how best to illustrate your story in photos, and then create the photo opp for the reporter.
4. Think individually. People relate far better to stories of individual animals than to stories about hundreds, thousands or millions of them. When you tell the story of one animal, you tell the story of the rest by extension.
5. Be brief. People in the media have little time and short attention spans. Grab them with your opening pitch, provide comprehensive contact details, and be ready for their call.
6. Be polite. We animal welfare activists have a dodgy reputation in some circles, and in some cases, it’s deserved. Being rude, impatient or unforgiving won’t get you anywhere. Be nice. It works.
7. Be conservative. Avoid stereotypical dress or behaviour. Garbing yourself like in warrior’s camouflage or like a crazy cat lady will only give the media ammunition to take you less seriously.

Click here to go to the Vancouver Humane Society’s web site, the click on Fall 2007 and scroll to page 14 for Nicholas Read’s full text.

*Burnaby citizens, don’t forget I’m a columnist with the Burnaby NOW, so if you have a Burnaby-related animal story you feel deserves coverage, use this blog site to get in touch with me and let me know! 

Three BC cities have passed resolutions banning the use of battery-cage eggs in city-run facilities and events. I am sorry to say my home city of Burnaby is not yet one of them. Come on, Burnaby, what are we waiting for?

It’s time. Chickens before “cheep” egg prices. In other words, let’s put the chicken before the egg.
Click here to read my column in the October 10 issue of the Burnaby NOW, and then, if you live in Burnaby, email our Mayor [mayor.corrigan@burnaby.ca] with your thoughts. If you live elsewhere and think a resolution to use cage-free eggs is a good idea, then write your mayor and say so.

These kinds of changes are happening because individual citizens are taking the time — five minutes, at most — to make their voices heard on behalf of animals.

It’s time. You can do it — go talk to your Mayor. And let me know how it goes.

Click on the links below to learn more about:

Chicken Out! Initiative

Vancouver Humane Society

City of Richmond Resolution to Use Cage-Free Eggs May 29

City of Vancouver Resolution July 26

City of Whistler Resolution September 5