News for Florida animal advocates

Fair season has begun. This week the Florida State Fair kicked off, and the Charlotte County Fair and Collier County Fair also opened their gates. Next week is the start of the Osceola County Fair, followed by the Pasco County Fair, the Central Florida Fair, and others.

Fairs are great for funnel cakes, demolition derbies, talent competitions, horticulture shows, rickety Midway rides and people watching. But at fairs in Florida this year you’re also likely to find a depressing sea lion act, muzzled bears doing ridiculous tricks, a  solitary elephant suffering through daily shows, or Midway games where goldfish and iguanas are given away as prizes.

If you make it to a fair this year, please contact ARFF if you find a cruel animal act, and then complain to fair management. Let them know that exploitive animal shows ruin the fun of the fair.

Last Saturday, “Boo,” an 11-month-old, 215-pound pig was stolen from an enclosure maintained by the Future Farmers of America program at Armwood High School in Seffner. The pigs owner, 15-year-old Ema Rivera, told the St. Petersburg Times that she feared her pig would be killed, “I thought that whoever took her might use her in a barbecue.”

On Wednesday, the pig was found and safely returned to Ema. Two men who hoped to sell the pig have been arrested and charged with burglary and grand theft. We’re glad that the pig has been returned. After raising Boo from a young age, we have no doubt that Ema feels an emotional attachment to the animal. But it’s not exactly a happy ending for Boo. The newspaper article ended with a curious statement. Now that Ema has been reunited with Boo, they’re headed to the Florida Strawberry Festival, where, “She hopes to later sell the pig at auction.” Boo may not be sold directly to a slaughterhouse, but that will most likely be her ultimate destination.

Today’s Tampa Tribune had a somewhat more positive article about the “purebred poultry” contest at the Florida State Fair. The paper featured two young women who raise ornamental chickens. “These aren’t your average birds,” explained 17-year-old Brittany Wagner. “You show them off. You don’t eat these birds.” Her friend, 16-year-old Anna Hoffmann, agreed, “I would never eat them.” We believe them. Unfortunately, most of the chickens in Florida are “average” and will be killed and eaten after short and miserable lives. The millions of chickens raised for their eggs and flesh in Florida have just as much personality and are just as beautiful as the chickens that will be judged at the fair. We wish everyone could get to know a chicken like Brittany and Anna. Click here to view photos that accompanied the Tampa Tribune article (including shots of Anna blow-drying one of her chickens).

Last week was “Florida Birding & Wildlife Watching and Natural Resource Education Week.” The proclamation by Florida Governor Charlie Crist coincided with the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival, which wrapped-up yesterday in Titusville. The festival is the largest of its kind in the country, and draws thousands of visitors from around the world to Brevard County.

Did you know that more people travel to Florida each year to view wildlife than to any other state?

Birders add almost $3 billion to the state’s economy each year, an economic impact that is more than 3 times larger than hunting!

For more information about wildlife and birding festivals in Florida, and wildlife viewing destinations, visit MyFWC.com/Viewing

Yesterday the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners voted 5-0 to approve a plan by the National Elephant Center, a partnership of over 70 U.S. zoos, to create an elephant holding and breeding facility on land at the western edge of the county (The Center is not a sanctuary). The approval was not unexpected, but the commissioner’s unanimous vote came with a number of conditions, the most important being that no bullhooks will be allowed on the premises.

On Monday, ARFF participated in a news conference with representatives from In Defense of Animals and PETA, as well as from St. Lucie County-based United For Animals. One of our main concerns was that The National Elephant Center would allow use of the bullhook, a weapon that resembles a fireplace poker that is used to strike, stab, hook, prod and intimidate elephants into obedience. Bullhooks are commonly used by circuses, but most U.S. zoos that have elephants have eliminated bullhooks and now rely on a safer and more humane elephant handling method that relies on positive reinforcement only.

At Tuesday’s commission meeting, an ARFF representative again joined with other animal advocates to plead that, if commissioners went forward with The National Elephant Center, that they require as conditions of approval a prohibition of cruel circus-style training at the facility.

Speaking before the commission, Craig Piper, Vice Chair of the National Elephant Center’s Board of Directors, said that bullhooks are “terrible” tools in the wrong hands, but he argued that bullhooks could be used appropriately. From the commissioners questions, it was clear that they didn’t agree.

Commissioner Doug Coward described the bullhook as a “weapon” and said that he could not be proud to support a facility that uses bullhooks. Commissioner Charles Grande asked why bullhooks have sharp points if they aren’t intended to cause pain?

Perhaps The National Elephant Center representatives in the audience felt the mood turning against them, because the last speaker during the meeting, Jerry Borin, the National Elephant Center’s Interim Executive Director, had something surprising to say. Borin began, “I’m going to say something today that I had no idea when I came into this meeting I was going to say …. I can’t speak for the Board as a whole, or the directors of the 70 zoos that are a part of this partnership, but I am going back to this Board and I’m going to tell the Board: We have to set a goal for the National Elephant Center, that we have to eliminate use of the bullhook…. and if they don’t approve that goal, I’m resigning as director of the National Elephant Center.”

Shortly after that statement, a motion was made to ban bullhooks from the site, as one condition for approval of The National Elephant Center’s plans. The vote was unanimous.

Please contact the St. Lucie County Board of County Commission and thank them for their vote condemning the bullhook. The vote is a strong statement that the use of bullhooks can never be humane. We hope that circuses, and those U.S. zoos that still use bullhooks, are listening.

Contact:

St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners
Online comment form.

- and/or contact the commissioners individually -

Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky
E-mail: DzadovskyC@stlucieco.org

Commissioner Doug Coward
E-mail: CowardD@stlucieco.org

Commissioner Paula A. Lewis
E-mail: LewisP@stlucieco.org

Commissioner Charles Grande
E-mail: GrandeC@stlucieco.org

Commissioner Chris Craft
E-mail: CraftC@stlucieco.org

2009 was a tough year for animal shelters in Florida. Shelters struggled with an increase in abandoned and surrendered animals at the same time as their budgets were cut. But there was some good news. According to an article in Wednesday’s Miami Herald, many shelters reported an increase in adoptions. Broward County Animal Care and Regulation reported that 3,267 animals were adopted in 2009, up from 3,050 in 2008. Miami-Dade Animal Services reported 768 adoptions in the month of December alone, which was a record for the shelter. The Humane Society of Greater Miami and the Humane Society of Broward County also reported increases in adoptions in 2009. Dr. Sara Pizano, director of Miami-Dade’s Animal Services Department, suggested that because of the poor economy people were choosing to adopt instead of purchasing a pricey dog or cat from a pet store. Whatever the reason, it’s good news!

This week, the St. Lucie News Tribune reported that St. Lucie County will be getting its first “pet friendly” hurricane shelter. The City of Port St. Lucie has received a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to upgrade the Ravenswood Community Center on Prima Vista Boulevard. When finished in the summer of 2011, the center will be able to withstand a Category 5 hurricane and will provide emergency shelter for at least 100 animals and their owners.

Walton County, in Florida’s Panhandle, has opened its first animal shelter. For years, dogs and cats picked up by animal control in the county had to be taken to a shelter in a neighboring county. That wasted time and money, and made it difficult for residents to recover lost animals or to adopt new companions. Within a week the new shelter has become home to seventy-five dogs and cats, and the shelter made its first adoption. The new shelter also has a veternarian on site to spay and neuter animals. Animal Control Officer Larry Hester told WJHG-TV Ch. 7 that the new shelter will save the lives of hundreds of dogs and cats, “Definitely gonna make it easier for them to be adopted out, finding homes for them–just taking care of them.” If you are interested in adopting an animal from the new Walton County Shelter, call (850) 892-8758.

Earlier this month, the City of Seminole city council unanimously approved an ordinance prohibiting dogs within the city limits from being tied up outdoors unless a guardian is outside along with the dog (read our earlier post about the vote here). But councilmembers didn’t stop there. City staff were instructed to e-mail a letter to all Florida governments urging them to follow Seminole’s lead. According to an article in Wednesday’s St. Petersburg Times, the City Manager has already received requests for more information about the ordinance from three cities (Gulfport, Largo and Clearwater) and from Lee and Pinellas counties! See our earlier post for details on how to contact the City Council and thank them for their proactive steps on behalf of dogs in Florida.

Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a holiday to honor one of history’s greatest advocates for equality. On Monday at the South Florida Fair, one of the featured events was “Mutton Bustin’,” a rodeo event in which young children ride terrified sheep. The ridiculous event is not good for the child or the sheep, and it is certainly inappropriate to encourage brutal treatment of animals on a day when children should be taught the value of respect and kindness toward people and animals. Please contact the fair’s agricultural operations manager and urge her not to include Mutton Bustin’ in next year’s South Florida Fair. Contact:

Bettye Thompson
Phone: (561) 790-5229
Fax: (561) 790-5237
E-mail: bettye@southfloridafair.com

Tuesday night, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus train arrived in Jacksonville and unloaded its elephants for a march from the tracks to Veterans Memorial Arena. On hand to watch the sad spectacle was Jacksonville mayor John Peyton and City Council member Johnny Gaffney and their families (they were photographed for a story in Jacksonville’s Daily Record).

Animals in circuses live miserable lives of deprivation, confinement and abuse. Please contact Mayor Peyton and Council Member Gaffney and urge them not to lend legitimacy to this circus by participating in circus promotions in the future.
When you write, urge them to take a look at the recently-released photographs of cruel elephant “training” sessions taken at Ringling’s so-called “Center for Elephant Conservation” in Polk City. Follow this link to view the photos. Contact:

Mayor John Peyton
Phone: (904) 630-1776
Fax: (904) 630-2391
E-mail: jpeyton@coj.net

Dr. Johnny Gaffney, City Council member
Phone: (904) 630-1384
Fax: (904) 630-2906
E-mail: Gaffney@coj.net

Under natural conditions, a female cow might live for 20 years or more. It is rare for a cow on a dairy farm to survive to her fourth or fifth birthday. The bleak cycle of pregnancy, birth and milking places cows under constant stress and puts them at risk of illness, infection, and disease. Not surprisingly, the disposal of dead cows is a serious issue at industrial-size dairy farms in Florida.

Last week we learned that a dairy farm on the eastern edge of Sarasota County had been cited by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for “improper disposal of deceased animals.” In March 2009, inspectors from the EPA visited Peachey Dairy and found that dead cows had been dumped above ground (rules require that carcasses either be burned or buried). The EPA report includes two grim black & white photos of a mound of dead cows at the back of the property, with several vultures perched on top.

Visit ARFF’s YouTube page to watch a short video about a dead calf ARFF found at a dairy farm in Okeechobee County. Visit ARFF’s website to learn more about the reality of dairy production.

It has warmed our hearts during the recent cold snap to hear about Floridians taking steps to help vulnerable animals. Last week on this blog we wrote about an instructional video with tips on helping iguanas who have become immobilized by the cold. Today we have a new video for you: Erin Saley from Pompano Beach demonstrates how a hair dryer can be used to revive catatonic iquanas and anoles. Click here for the video.

Thanks Erin!

Tonight outside American Airlines Arena in Miami, ARFF activists– bundled up against the cold– will protest opening night of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. This week the Miami Herald and New Times ran preview articles about the circus that featured ARFF spokespersons (click here and here to read the articles).

By any measure, Ringling Bros. is the largest circus in the country, and it will most likely be the last circus to do away with animal acts. But this week there was more evidence that animal-free is the future of circuses.

Yesterday, the Key West Citizen reported that when the Walker Bros. Circus performs in the Keys later this month the perfomance will feature trapeze artists, jugglers, clowns and contortionists, but no elephants. Circus spokeswoman Sashi Meluzzi told the paper, “We’ve basically done away with using exotic animals in the show because of the activists.”

This will be welcome news for activists who joined ARFF protests against Walker Bros. in North Palm Beach in 2008 and in Fort Lauderdale the previous year, and hopefully will provide encouragement for activists at protests targeting Ringling Bros. across Florida this month.

Visit ARFF’s website for details of how you can join protests against the cruelty of the circus.

ARFF would like to thank the SPCA Wildlife Care Center and the Miami Herald for an excellent instructional video– view here– about how to assist iguanas who have become immobilized by the frigid weather.

The video is in stark contrast to other stories in the media this week that encouraged people to take advantage of the animals’ vulnerable state and capture and kill them.

Write to the Miami Herald and thank them for featuring this compassionate video on their website.

Contact:

The Miami Herald
Online comment form

Click here to learn more about Green iguanas.