News for Florida animal advocates

Not too long ago, fans of the sport of jai alai could watch, and gamble on, games in several states across the country, but interest declined and jai alai frontons can now only be found in Florida. America’s greyhound racing industry will likely also spend its waning years in Florida.

Today, a bill takes effect that will allow New Hampshire’s two greyhound racing tracks to continue simulcast gambling without live racing. The tracks are expected to end greyhound racing immediately. A representative for one of the tracks said the decision to end racing was not a hard one, “It costs a lot more money to run live racing than we get from it,” he said.

The move leaves greyhound racing tracks operational in just nine states, and that number may soon shrink even further (last week, the owners of Rhode Island’s only dog track filed for bankruptcy protection).

There are more tracks in Florida (13) than any other state in the country; the greyhound racing industry will most likely make its last stand in Florida. The end can’t come too soon for the thousands of greyhounds each year who are injured while racing, who spend much of their short lives in small cages, and for those who will be killed when they are no longer profitable. Visit ARFF’s website to learn more about greyhound racing.

ARFF’s protest of the “Rodeo for Youth” in Davie (Broward County) resulted in an overall positive story by columnist Michael Mayo in Sunday’s Sun-Sentinel.

The column quoted a camp counselor who accompanied a group of children to the rodeo but shared our concerns about the brutal treatment of animals in rodeo, “You know what, I actually agree with you, but my hands are tied on this,” he said.

Even Mr. Mayo, whose job it is to be entertaining and make a little fun of both sides in his columns, concluded, “Part of me knows that animals probably don’t enjoy getting pinned down and tied up.”

Not surprisingly, Jackie Tucker, organizer of the youth rodeo, was confused about ARFF’s demonstration. Ms. Tucker claimed that rodeo was an “American tradition” (is tradition an excuse for cruelty?) and then asked, “If they want to get upset about something, how about that steak or hamburger on our dinner plates?” We invite Ms. Tucker to join us at our weekly vegan outreach event in Miami Beach, where we distribute information about the cruelty of the meat industry, as well as the advantages of a vegetarian or vegan diet.

The National Weather Service has issued heat advisory’s for most of Florida today. Temperatures are expected to approach 100 degrees this afternoon across the state, from Miami to Orlando to Pensacola, and with the high humidity it will feel even warmer. To prevent heat exhaustion, or deadly heat stroke, animals should be provided with shelter from the sun and plenty of fresh water.

Commissioner Joe Sanchez, the Chairman of the City of Miami Commission, sent the following alert to city residents:

“I urge pet owners to please do everything possible to keep pets inside, and make sure they have plenty of water.  If anyone sees a homeless animal, please provide them with water and temporary shelter if possible. Thank you for your compassion to all beings!”  

Thank you commissioner!

Local politics is not for everyone, but if you have the courage to approach elected officials with an idea to help animals, the stubborness to follow-up on your meeting or correspondence, and the patience to sit through city or county commission meetings that can be excruciatingly long, then you can make a big difference for animals in your community.*

Last week there were three great examples of local government taking action for animals.

After numerous complaints about a miserable pet store in the city, the City of Hallandale Beach (Broward County) drafted an ordinance to strengthen its regulation of pet shops. The ordinance which passed last Wednesday requires that cages at pet shops be clean and provide animals with enough space to stand and turn around, prohibits animals in pet shops from being left unattended for more than 12 hours, and requires appropriate exercise for animals. (The ordinance also prohibits the cruel chaining of dogs, by making it illegal to chain or tether an animal outdoors for more than 15 minutes unless the owner is present.)

Please send a quick e-mail to Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper thanking the city for its actions to protect animals. E-mail Mayor Cooper: jcooper@hallandalebeachfl.gov

Last Tuesday, city commissioners in Tarpon Springs (Pinellas County) approved an ordinance restricting the chaining or tethering of dogs for longer than one hour at a time or for more than three hours a day. The ordinance also requires a three-hour interval between each time a dog is tethered.

Send a quick thank you to Tarpon Springs Mayor Beverley Billiris: bbilliris@ci.tarpon-springs.fl.us

On Thursday, the Town of Southwest Ranches (Broward County) also unanimously approved a tethering ordinance, prohibiting the tethering of dogs in bad weather or for longer than 16 hours a day.

Send a thank you to Mayor Jeff Nelson: jnelson@swranches.org

*Contact ARFF; we can help by providing you with model ordinances, and by mobilizing compassionate individuals in your community.

Clapping is not a sound you would expect to hear during meetings of the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). But during yesterday’s FWC meeting in Crystal River, applause erupted after the commission voted unanimously to ban the commercial hunting of freshwater turtles in Florida. Florida now has the strongest protections for freshwater turtles of any state in the country.

Protecting Florida’s turtles was not the only important issue on the agenda. Commissioners also gave final approval to long-awaited updates to Florida’s captive wildlife rules, including the addition of cougars, cheetahs and hyenas to the list of potentially-dangerous animals that are illegal to keep as pets. An ARFF representative attended the meeting and spoke in support of the rule changes.

The FWC classifies captive wildlife according to the danger they present to the owner and the general public; examples of Class I and Class II animals include bears, tigers and large primates. The FWC has resisted calls to require people who apply for a permit to possess these animals to notify their neighbors. But during yesterday’s meeting, FWC staff demonstrated a new feature on the FWC website that allows Florida residents to discover if their neighbors own Class I or Class II wildlife.

Do you have wild neighbors? To find out, go to http://ocean.floridamarine.org/dle/, click on the + box next to “Captive Wildlife” to expand the selection, and then use the map to drag and zoom to your neighborhood.

On Saturday night, 18-year-old Tyler Weinman was arrested as a suspect in a spree of mutilation and killings of cats that has terrified residents in the Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay communities of Miami-Dade County since early May. At least 19 dead cats have been discovered. Many of the cats were found with their bellies cut open and their organs pulled out; other cats had been skinned.

In court yesterday it was revealed that Weinman had dissected cats during anatomy class last year at Palmetto Senior High School. According to a story in the Miami Herald, “Investigators…were mum on whether Weinman’s classroom training played a role in the teen’s alleged crime spree.”

Is it a coincidence that the suspect in the disturbing mutilation of cats had been encouraged to mutilate cats in school?

Important reminder: Students in Florida public schools (grades K-12) have the right to refuse to dissect on animals (Florida statute 1003.47). Please contact ARFF if you know of a school that has refused to provide students with an alternative to dissection, or that has penalized students for choosing a non-animal alternative.

This week there were two very different announcements concerning sharks.

First, the Destin Fishing Rodeo, a month-long fishing tournament that takes place during the month of October, announced that this year’s event will feature “Shark Saturday.” Every Saturday during the tournament participants will be encouraged to catch sharks and bring them to the docks to weigh. The largest (dead) shark will win a prize. The tournament explained that the new feature was intended to add “excitement” to the event.

Reaction to the announcement was mixed. In Thursday’s Northwest Florida Daily News, columnist Del Stone Jr. asked, rhetorically, “Who but a fool would pass up a chance to see a giant, bloody carcass hanging from a hook with its entrails slopping over the dock?”

Also this week the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced a series of workshops* to be held throughout Florida to receive comments from the public about commercial and recreational shark fishing.

The FWC is considering several changes to its shark fishing rules, including  adopting a 4.5 foot minimum size limit for recreational fishermen (sharks shorter than that could not be kept).

Many species of sharks have seen their numbers decline in recent years. To preserve a healthy population of sharks, it is important to protect young sharks. (This is especially important for bull sharks and other species who do not reach sexual maturity until 12 to 18 years of age.) Because many species of sharks give birth in estuaries and bays along Florida’s coast, protecting sharks in state waters is vital.

The size limit is a small change, but if enacted will prevent the killing of many young sharks. Now if we could only convince the Destin Fishing Rodeo to stop killing the older, “trophy size” sharks!

*The workshops begin Monday night in Panama City, and continue the following week in Key Colony Beach, Cocoa, Punta Gorda and Dania Beach. Click here for times and locations.

We have received a few interesting responses to our previous post about the Miss Florida USA pageant and a pre-taping event last month that featured contestants modeling fur coats. (The Fur Information Council of America is a sponsor of the pageant and provides fur coats as “prizes” for the winners).

When we first saw photos from the pre-taping, we considered that perhaps the contestants did not feel that they could refuse to model the coats. An e-mail from a former preliminary pageant director who wished to remain anonymous confirmed our suspicions. She wrote, “One of the many reasons I quit was the barbaric way the Miss Florida USA directors paraded the girls around in fur coats, fur stoles and fur vests! Even when the girls protest against wearing a fur they are made fun of and made to feel that they will not win if they do not participate in the ‘fur’ pre-taping.”

ARFF will hold an anti-fur demonstration outside the pageant finals on Saturday, July 18 at Broward Community College’s Bailey Hall in Davie. Please join us!

On Wednesday it was announced that Florida’s Turnpike has signed a 30-year contract with a new company to operate the gas stations, shops and restaurants in the eight service plazas along Florida’s longest highway.

The plaza’s current not-so-friendly-for-vegans selection of restaurants– such as Popeyes and Nathan’s Famous– will be replaced with a new lineup, including Jamba Juice (offering several vegan juice drinks with soymilk), Qdoba Mexican Grill (Qdoba’s beans, grilled vegetables and guacamole are vegan), Nature’s Table (vegetarian chili and sandwiches), Cheeburger Cheeburger (veggie burger) and Taco Bell (we recommend the 7-layer burrito, minus the cheese and sour cream).

One change that has already happened is that Dunkin’ Donuts has replaced Starbucks. That’s bad news for drowsy, vegan drivers who had enjoyed a hot latte or an iced coffee with soymilk. Unfortunately, Dunkin’ Donuts does not make soy milk available to its customers (with the exception of a few stores in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore area).

You can help.

Please contact Dunkin’ Donuts and encourage them to serve soy milk at their new locations on Florida’s Turnpike.

• Dunkin’ Donuts’ online comment form, or call Dunkin’ Donuts’ consumer care hotline at (800) 859-5339.
• Send a copy of your comments to Areas USA, the new company that won the concession contract: online comment form.

Today is the first day of the 2009 hurricane season. Do you have a plan in place to ensure your companion animal’s safety in the event of a hurricane?

Last month, Hillsborough County announced two new pet-friendly hurricane shelters (there are now four in the county). Hillsborough County Commissioner Rose Ferlita explained the importance of shelter space where people can go with their pets, “People won’t leave without their animals,” she said and added, “If we help the animals, we help our constituents. It’s a public safety issue.”

Many counties in Florida have established hurricane shelters that will accept you and your companion animal(s). But these shelters are intended for use only as a last resort. It is much better to arrange to stay with family or friends, or to find an inland hotel that will allow pets.

For more information about preparations that should be taken now to protect your companion animals, click here to read ARFF’s Guidelines for Weather Emergencies. Another excellent resource is FloridaPets.net’s Pet-Friendly Emergency Shelter Guide.