Press Releases

New York—The Animal Welfare Institute and Farm Sanctuary sued the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) today for failing to respond to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for department records related to the...

Washington, DC—Defending New York’s move to curtail the illegal ivory trade, AWI filed an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief earlier this month in support of a state law restricting trade in ivory and...

Yreka, CA—Responding to legal pressure from a coalition of animal-protection and conservation groups, Siskiyou County officials recently announced that the county has suspended its contract with the notorious federal wildlife-killing program known as Wildlife Services...

The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds Governor Rauner of Illinois for signing a bill to restrict the sale of ivory and rhino horn within the state yesterday. “This law limits the sale of tusks and...

Washington, DC—In a letter sent today to the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) urged the agency to protect poultry from mistreatment, citing more than 50 recent situations in which...

Fort Collins, CO—Following substantial public outcry, Colorado State University (CSU) announced yesterday that it was withdrawing from a joint plan with the Bureau of Land Management to conduct surgical sterilization experiments on wild horses. More...

Washington, London, Munich—A shocking new report released today reveals that more than 100,000 dolphins, small whales and porpoises (small cetaceans) are slaughtered globally in hunts each year—many to be used as fishing bait. Most of...

Washington, DC—Earlier this week, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) voiced their opposition to the Bureau of Land Management’s barbaric proposal to surgically sterilize wild horses using an experimental...

Washington, DC—The conference between the US House of Representatives and Senate to work out their differences on the Farm Bill (H.R. 2, Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018), has formally begun with the naming of each...

Washington, DC—In a letter sent Monday to Florida Gov. Rick Scott regarding the Ocala teacher accused of drowning animals in front of his students, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, and...

Raleigh, NC—Twenty-nine state legislators, including 17 representing North Carolina, submitted a joint statement yesterday condemning a US Fish and Wildlife Service proposal that would decimate the population of red wolves in a designated recovery area...

New York, NY—Responding to a lawsuit filed by conservation groups, the US Court of International Trade today ordered the Trump administration to ban seafood imports from Mexico caught with gillnets that kill the critically endangered...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds the members of Congress who successfully worked to remove anti-wildlife riders from the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The version of this bill that passed...

Redding, CA—Responding to legal pressure from a coalition of animal protection and conservation groups, Shasta County officials have announced that the county will suspend its contract with the notorious federal wildlife-killing program known as Wildlife...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute strongly opposes three proposed rules released today by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) that would undermine vital sections of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The rules impair protections...

The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) takes exception to comments included in recent media reports characterizing hybrid whales as neither important nor protected under law. Although “Whale 22”—the whale killed last week by Icelandic whaling company...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) strongly opposes a package of nine bills, 8 of which were introduced today by a coalition of Republican representatives, that would collectively demolish key aspects of the Endangered Species...

Washington, DC—Conservation and animal protection organizations rallied outside the Mexican Embassy today to call on the Mexican government to take drastic action to save the fewer than 30 vaquita porpoises left on the planet. Advocates...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is expressing vehement opposition to draft legislation, released yesterday by Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), entitled the Endangered Species Act Amendments of 2018. According to AWI, this bill would impose...

Manama, Bahrain—Conservation and animal protection organizations are alarmed that the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC) today postponed an “in danger” listing for Mexico’s Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California World Heritage site—home...