Articles

WSPA Animal Protector Stories Palestine: Samir is happy and healthy again 5 May 2011 As told by Dr Yousef, vet for WSPA’s local partner the Palestine Wildlife Society (PWLS) in Palestine… “You might remember Samir from our 2010 Christmas appeal. He now looks healthy in this photo, but when I first met him last year, things were not so good. Samir’s owner David brought him to one of our clinics after he began acting strangely while out working the land. I decided to do an examination to see if there was an injury causing the changes in his behaviour and when I removed Samir’s neck collar, I was horrified to find deep, infected wounds across both of his shoulders.

It was obvious to me that Samir’s collar was far too big and must have been rubbing constantly for many weeks, causing the wounds to form and then be aggravated again and again.

Samir would have been in excruciating pain and his difficult behaviour was a direct result of this.

I told David that Samir would need very special care and treatment and must be rested for at least three weeks, otherwise he would never recover.

David agreed to this and Kamal, the community partner, visited him daily to help him continue Samir’s treatment. Kamal also taught David how to adjust the neck collar to the correct size to avoid injury in the future.

I’m pleased to be able to tell Animal Protectors that I recently saw Samir and he is healthy and completely recovered as a result of the treatment and re-adjustments to his collar.

David has made Samir a leather neck collar to prevent these terrible injuries from happening again and he brings Samir to the mobile clinic for regular check-ups as well.”

Part one of two - Pakistan: Leela, Kaali and Bhoori's steps to freedom

11 April 2011

When the World Society for the Protection of Animals and Dr Fakhar-i-Abbas (founder of the Bioresource Research Centre (BRC) and our partner in Pakistan) rescued three bears used in bear baiting, we were only able to do it because of the support of Animal Protectors like you.

Leela, Kaali and Bhoori are still in quarantine at the WSPA-funded sanctuary, but these three female bears are nearly healthy enough to be released into the main enclosure.

Like most bears who come to the sanctuary, these bears arrived in very poor shape - both physically and mentally. They have endured years of chronic stress. They suffer from weak immune systems which can result in life-threatening infections, are infested with parasites and have terrible wounds inflicted from bear baiting events, during which they are tied up and mauled by dogs for ‘entertainment’.

Treatment and rest

It can take weeks of rehabilitation and round-the-clock care from sanctuary staff before a bear is well enough to leave the quarantine area. But thanks to your help as Animal Protectors and the dedicated staff, these bears are now protected from cruelty and suffering.

Road to safety

As the staff prepare for Leela, Kaali and Bhoori’s release into the main enclosure, we thought we’d look at their journey so far and share with you images of their handover and final journey to freedom and safety at the WSPA-funded bear sanctuary in Pakistan. We’ll update you in a few weeks to let you know how they are getting on.

http://www.slideshare.net/Kirsty_McFadden/lkb-final-2

Bali: First round of vaccinations complete

19 April 2011

WSPA-funded vaccination teams have just finished the crucial first stage of anti-rabies vaccinations in Bali. Here’s the latest news from the Indonesian island…

You may have previously read about WSPA’s work vaccinating dogs against rabies in Bali. We wanted to share with you the wonderful news that Balinese teams on the ground have now vaccinated 210,000 dogs against rabies, in over 4,000 villages (that’s around 70 per cent of the dogs on Bali - the level of immunity needed to prevent the re-emergence of the disease).

Ray Mitchell, new Campaign Director at WSPA says: “This vital work is not only contributing to the eradication of rabies on the island, for the benefit of dogs and humans alike, it’s also demonstrating to the world that it’s cruel and unnecessary to kill dogs in response to outbreaks of rabies.”

While we still have one more round of vaccinations to go, this is fantastic progress and with your help, WSPA is proving that vaccinating against rabies does save lives. In the past three months alone, we’ve seen rabies cases in humans drop by 48 per cent and in dogs by 45 per cent.

All of this is only made possible thanks to Animal Protectors like you and to celebrate, we thought we’d share with you photos of a few of the dogs you’ve helped to protect.

http://www.slideshare.net/Kirsty_McFadden/bali-dogs

Norway: No excuses - whaling does not add up

12 April 2011

As an Animal Protector, you’ll be angered by the news that Norway has started its whaling season and that hundreds of whales will again be hunted for their meat between April and September.

But we hope you’ll be pleased to hear that a new independent report, commissioned by WSPA and our Norwegian partner groups, proves that whaling in Norway is neither wanted nor needed and that it’s time for the Norwegian government to listen and change their practices.

Changing attitudes

Research shows that whale meat is increasingly unpopular in Norway - less than 5 per cent of Norwegians actually eat whale meat regularly - and there is growing concern amongst Norwegians about the welfare of the whales hunted.

Despite the declining support, the whaling industry is kept afloat with substantial public funds, allocated without the support of the Norwegian public who, as this new report shows, object to their taxes being used to support the industry.

It’s clear from all this that whaling cannot continue and with your support, WSPA is urging the Norwegian government to act now and make hunting whales a thing of the past.

To read the WSPA report, Seas of Change, please click here.

You are helping protect animals from cruel intensive farming methods

23 February 2011

You can help stop the rapid expansion of factory farming

Intensive factory farming is by far the greatest source of animal suffering in the world today. Of the staggering 60 billion farm animals reared each year for food, the vast majority spend their short lives in miserable conditions, kept in cages or crates not seeing the light of day and experiencing unimaginable suffering for the entirety of their lives.

The world’s demand for cheap food has encouraged producers to improve their agricultural efficiency by increasing yield and cutting costs, further intensifying farming practices. The agricultural powerhouses of Brazil, India and China are on the brink of an explosion in intensive animal agriculture. India could be set to agree its first-ever industrial mega-dairy, housing thousands of cows indoors in order to produce cheap milk - but at a devastating cost to the cows’ welfare.

You can help protect the welfare of animals

Humane farming respects the welfare of animals by working to protect them from pain and distress. But it’s also central to sustainable agriculture. With your help, we can develop evidence that proves the commercial viability of humane farming - vital if we are to persuade the farming industry to reject cheap, intensive farming methods.

As an Animal Protector, your regular gifts could help us campaign against the cruelty of intense farming methods and seek the protection of farm animals through legislation and a change in consumer behaviour.

Say “Not in my Cuppa” to factory milk from battery cows

Thanks to WSPA’s Not in my Cuppa campaign, plans put forward by Nocton Dairies for a mega-dairy in the UK were withdrawn in February 2011, representing a huge victory for British dairy cows.

If you take part in WSPA’s Not in my Cuppa campaign, you can help stop the very real threat of US-style industrial mega-dairies emerging in the UK. WSPA believes that dairy cows should be free to graze in fields, not kept in factories. Cows kept in mega-dairies have an increased likelihood of suffering lameness, mastitis and disease. These “battery cows” would have little or no freedom to graze in open fields and would be milked intensively. You can support the campaign by visiting the Not in my Cuppa website.

Part one of two – Israel: healing Kofiko

7 March 2011

As told by Zvika Tamuz, founder of WSPA’s local partner Pegasus, in Israel…

“At around 4am on Saturday morning, I received an emergency call from a police officer asking for help with an injured horse. He told me that the horse had been pulling a cart and was injured as police chased after its owners - youths suspected of stealing from factories.

As the suspected thieves fled from police, the horse who had been pulling an overloaded cart stumbled on a traffic island and collapsed on the road. Rather than check on their animal, the owners immediately fled.

Awful injuries become clear at accident scene

The horse, who I later named Kofiko, had injured himself quite seriously after his fall. When I arrived Kofiko was lying in the road, still harnessed to the cart and was bleeding from his head and his left flank.

He lay there looking completely helpless and confused and it was obvious he was in pain as he was grinding his teeth, something horses only do when they’re badly hurt.

But there was worse to come. When I freed Kofiko from his harness, I could see his true condition. Like many others I’ve treated, he had an awful, bloody wound on his back, caused by the harness being too tight.

In such cases, owners must avoid working their horse until the wound heals completely, but this is rarely done. Instead, owners keep loading their carts with heavy materials and the harness continues to cut into the horse’s flesh. The injury can never fully heal and often turns into a chronic wound which, when finally treated, takes so much longer to heal.

Working hard to improve the lives of horses like Kofiko

Sadly, we’re used to such sights at Pegasus, but it still makes me sad and frustrated to see such injuries. These wounds can so easily be prevented and I know as an Animal Protector, you’ll be angered and upset by this also.

It’s another reason why we work so hard to train policemen and border patrolmen for signs of distress in animals - often equipment masks very serious wounds, so it’s difficult to assess a donkey or horse’s true condition.

Kofiko was carefully loaded into our trailer and taken to the Pegasus shelter where he is being cared for. He’s being treated now and so I’d best be off there soon to support the vet. I’ll let you know how he’s getting on in a few weeks.”

Part two of two – Israel: healing Kofiko

7 April 2011

As told by Zvika Tamuz, founder of local partner Pegasus in Israel.

“You might remember a previous about the rescue of Kofiko, a horse who was badly hurt in a road accident.

I’m pleased to tell you as an Animal Protector that he’s doing well; his wounds are healing and he’s putting on weight.

When I got Kofiko back to our shelter for treatment, he was in a bad way. I immediately called our vet, Dr Rony Hayk, who is so dedicated to the donkeys and horses we rescue, that we can call him day or night.

Dr Hayk arrived first thing that morning and treated Kofiko’s painful wounds and I was relieved to find that apart from the gashes from the fall and the harness wounds, this little guy had suffered no serious injuries to his legs or his ribs.

After treating the wounds, he gave Kofiko a course of antibiotics - the only way to ensure the harness wound on his shoulder blades can heal completely.

An unusual diagnosis gives Kofiko his unusual name

During the examination, Dr Hayk also noticed that the little horse’s upper jaw was shorter than the lower one and diagnosed him with a rare condition known as ‘monkey mouth’. It was this that helped us name him Kofiko, after the Israeli primate hero of a popular series of children’s books.

Kofiko is a patient and nice-mannered little fellow. The wounds on his flank and back are slowly healing and he’s finally putting on a little more weight.

Kofiko has a smallish stature for a horse, and even though it would have been difficult for such a horse to pull heavy loads, he was forced to do just that, day in and day out.

Ironically the terrible accident and injuries actually turned out to be Kofiko’s ticket out of a life of abuse, and we’re hoping to find him a nice new permanent home soon with caring owners.”

Donkeys like Kofiko are part of WSPA’s recent appeal to help raise funds to treat and care for neglected and overworked donkeys in Bethlehem.