When it comes to animal cruelty cases, it is often hard to tell whether the glass is half empty or half full. Some individuals who have committed heinous acts of abuse are not even prosecuted, while others are held accountable. Although there are still far too many sad and disappointing examples of the former, instances of the latter are on the rise.
It's easy to fall in love with Bernadette, Valerie and Wee Willy, three wild burros, adopted earlier this year from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Their charismatic personalities and occasional, delightful brays are enough to put a smile on anyone’s face.
For decades, America's wild horses have faced tremendous pressure from the government, ranchers, the livestock industry, state wildlife agencies and others who do not support the protection of these iconic animals on Western rangelands. As a result, wild horse and burro populations and their herd areas have dramatically declined in number and size to the point that many herds are no longer self-sustaining and genetically viable.
The Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act would end the use of helicopters in roundups of wild horses and burros.
Velma Bronn Johnston’s boss told her at the end of her lengthy secretarial career, "The world is made up of three kinds of people - those who make things happen; those who watch things happen; and those who don’t know what’s happening. Go girl, go!"
Are wild horses truly "wild," as an indigenous species in North America, or are they "feral weeds" – barnyard escapees, far removed genetically from their prehistoric ancestors? The question at hand is, therefore, whether or not modern horses, Equus caballus, should be considered native wildlife.
On September 8, the Wild Horse Annie Act (P.L. 86-234), having been approved by the US Congress unanimously, is signed into law. The Act prohibits the poisoning of wild horse and burro waterholes, as well as the use of motorized vehicles to round the horses up for sale to slaughterhouses.
Wild Things examines the US Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services (WS) program and its devastating impacts on native carnivores. Each year, WS kills thousands of predators who are viewed as threats to livestock, employing inhumane methods that are poorly grounded in science—at a substantial cost to taxpayers.
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Cetaceans can travel up to 100 miles dail Date created:
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Swing open the main gate at Senegal’s Ferlo North Wildlife Reserve and a broad avenue greets you, unfolding for more than two miles across an idyllic African landscape. Date created:
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The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Wildlife Alliance of Maine (WAM) filed a motion in federal district court in Bangor Maine today seeking a preliminary injunction (PI) to stop Maine’s early coyote and fox trapping season. Set to commence on October 18, this request for a PI is an effort to protect federally protected Canada lynx from leghold traps. Date created:
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The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Wildlife Alliance of Maine (WAM) urged the US Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) today to enforce the Endangered Species Act (ESA) against the unlawful trapping of Canada lynx in traps set for other species. Lynx continue to be trapped and sometimes killed in traps set by recreational fur trappers, licensed by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (IF&W), and the Service has failed thus far to stop this illegal activity. Date created:
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Incorporating animals into wedding ceremonies is a practice that spans many cultures and can involve a variety of species. Many couples, however, do not stop to consider how the animals got there, how they are treated, or what will happen to them after the party’s over. Date created:
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A national coalition of wildlife advocacy and conservation organizations representing more than 70,000 Maine citizens is calling for an end to a coyote killing tournament that is currently underway in northern Maine. Date created:
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Leading animal welfare and wildlife conservation organizations this week announced support for the reintroduction of the Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act (H.R. 2016/S. 1081) in both the US House of Representatives by Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) and the US Senate by Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ). This bill would ban the use or possession of all body-gripping animal traps—including snares, Conibear traps, and steel-jaw leghold traps—on lands within the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS). Date created:
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The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Wildlife Alliance of Maine (WAM) sent a letter of intent to sue Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (DIFW) Commissioner Roland D. Martin today to compel the agency to comply with federal law and take immediate action to protect Canada lynx from deadly traps. Date created:
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In this discussion, it would be easy to lose sight of pikas, wildebeest, Arctic shorebirds, green sea turtles, and a vast number of other wildlife species. Wild animals just take care of themselves, right? Always have, and always will. Except, the rapidity of climatic changes is a new phenomenon, and these changes may have devastating impacts on biodiversity. These issues are laid out in a new scholarly book titled Wildlife Conservation in a Changing Climate, edited by Jedediah Brody, Eric Post, and Daniel Doak. Date created:
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Wildlife Crime: An Environmental Criminology and Crime Science Perspective is a timely and most welcomed book, but fair warning: It is not light reading! Rather, it is a rigorous university textbook, apparently intended for students enrolled in criminal justice curricula, who want to specialize in protecting wildlife from illegal exploitation. Date created:
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With the Insurance institute for highway safety reporting a record 1.5 million vehicle strikes against wildlife annually, animals are forced to circumnavigate a daily procession of cars, trucks, SUV’s and more, barreling down highways that run through habitats in man-made surroundings which in no way resemble their own. Date created:
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