Animals are not ours to wear!

Animals Are Not Ours to Wear

Skins: Abuse of Animals

Animals are not ours to wear, walk on or carry our possessions in. Before animal skins reach store shelves, animals live a life of misery, pain, boredom and fear, and many are skinned alive.
On fur farms, inquisitive and normally free-roaming animals such as foxes, minks and chinchillas spend their entire lives confined to tiny, filthy wire cages. They are denied the opportunity to engage in natural behaviours such as climbing, burrowing and swimming, and many go insane. When they are killed, animals are often gassed, anally or genitally electrocuted, or poisoned with strychnine, or their necks are snapped. These methods are not always effective: some animals wake up while the skin is being torn off their bodies.
Leather is just as cruel as fur. Every year, more than 1 billion animals are slaughtered in the global leather industry, which pulls in £600 million per year in Great Britain alone. In the UK, these animals are most commonly cows. Leather from Asian countries such as India and China often comes from animals whose throats were cut and whose skin was ripped off while they were still conscious.
But it's not just cows who suffer for the leather and fashion industries. The exotic-skins industry claims the lives of millions of snakes, alligators, seals, zebras and other beautiful animals, whose skins are regularly found on catwalks and celebrities' bodies. Other skins come from more familiar faces. An estimated 2 million cats and dogs are killed in China every year, and hundreds of thousands of cats' and dogs' skins are traded in Europe.
Thirty per cent of the world's wool comes from Australia, where sheep farmers mutilate millions of lambs in a cruel procedure known as mulesing. This mutilation is a misguided attempt to prevent flystrike, even though humane alternatives exist.
Many celebrities and important figures have joined PETA in the campaign against the cruel use of animal skin and fur.

This was taken from the peta web site -  http://www.peta.org.uk/issues/animals-are-not-ours-to-wear/

Make a difference - Make the pledge to go fur free.

China - the shocking fur trade.

China's Shocking Fur Trade

When undercover investigators made their way onto Chinese fur farms, they found that many animals are still alive and struggling desperately when workers flip them onto their backs or hang them up by their legs or tails to skin them. When workers on these farms begin to cut the skin and fur off an animal's leg, the free limbs kick and writhe. Workers stamp on the necks and heads of animals who struggle too hard in order to make a clean cut.
When the fur is finally peeled off over the animals' heads, their naked, bloody bodies are thrown onto a pile of those who have gone before them. Some are still alive, breathing in ragged gasps and blinking slowly. Some of the animals' hearts are still beating five to 10 minutes after they are skinned. One investigator recorded a skinned raccoon dog on the heap of carcasses who had enough strength to lift his bloodied head and stare into the camera.
Because a fur garment's origin can't be traced, anyone who wears any fur at all shares the blame for the horrific conditions on Chinese fur farms. The only way to prevent such unimaginable cruelty is by never wearing any fur. Take PETA's pledge to be fur-free today!

Pledge to go fur free, and save innocent lives.

Take a pledge to go fur free and help to stop the slaughter of innocent animals all over the world. Take this pledge today to make a positive difference in our world. This is the link where you can make that pledge that will save countless lives, every pledge helps! http://action.peta.org.uk/ea-campaign/clientcampaign.do?ea.client.id=5&ea.campaign.id=5045

Homeless by christmas without your help

FRIENDS OF RESCUED ANIMALS (FORA)- HOMELESS BY CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOUR HELP
.

Pro-life animal rescue centre FORA must find a new property by Christmas for 600 dogs and 200 cats after the sale last week of the Roodepoort property leased to founder Marlene de Beer six years ago by benefactor Bill Joffe in memory of his wife Francis Petlyn.
WE ARE APPEALING FOR YOUR HELP PLEASE DONATE WHATEVER AMOUNT YOU CAN MANAGE TO HELP US SAVE OUR DOGS AND CATS and PLEASE SEND EMAIL TO ALL THE ANIMAL-LOVERS YOU KNOW.
“We are definitely not closing, we are relocating, just as soon as we raise enough funds and finalise the right property”, says Breggie van Loggenberg, FORA manager since the death from cancer of Marlene de Beer in 2005.
The staff and volunteers at FORA are devastated at the need to find a suitable property and raise sufficient funds in a very short space of time.
We send out an urgent plea for your help, be it in the smallest way. We need to raise R3.5 million to buy a suitable property & put-up kennels, runs and other infrastructure.
Please think of all the dogs and cats with us at present but also those who will have nowhere to go in the future. We are a group of mainly volunteers who have spent years putting our time and care into running the shelter. These animals have become our friends and our family and we will not rest until we have secured a new home and secure future for them.
We have touched the lives of thousands of animals and people in six successful years and if just 3 000 people give us R1 000 each and 5 000 people give us R100 each, we will have reached our target !
We will be deeply grateful for any help, even the smallest donation of money or materials.
FORA will hold an Open Day on Saturday 3 October from 12 noon at their present property below Westgate and invites their many friends and supporters to join them and pledge whatever support they can.
Cnr Wilgespruit & Main Reef Rds, Roodepoort
Please help us save our animals - we will be deeply grateful for any help that you can give us


• emailing: fora@mweb.co.za

Further information will be available on the website : www.fora.org.za.
Other volunteers are also standing by to answer queries :
Verity 002782 892 4015, Ronell 002772 398 8165 or Betty 002772 413 5364
A PRESS RELEASE is going out today 21 September (will be on the website)
ABOUT FORA – Endless Hope not a Hopeless End
• FORA is a registered Non Profit Organisation
• FORA is a no kill shelter operating behind Westgate in Roodepoort on the West Rand
• FORA has helped animals and animal-lovers across Gauteng and as far afield as Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town, becoming known for their willingness to go the extra mile and take in any needy creature, even incurring medical costs to heal a sick animal when the bank account is empty.
• FORA receives wonderful support from the community and businesses, but no funding from government. We rely on faith a lot of the time and although we witness tragedy and suffering, we also experience miracles and the daily joy of helping and homing rescued animals.
• FORA takes in rescued, abandoned and lost dogs and cats, offering them a safe haven to live out their lives if they do not find new homes or are not reclaimed by their original owners.
• The enclosures and runs have adequate space for the dogs and cats to lead comfortable lives and they are regularly exercised.
• They are supplied daily with food, clean water and their enclosures are cleaned every day.
• All animals are sterilised, inoculated and dewormed while at the shelter and medical treatment is available for any who are injured or sick.
• Dogs and cats who have been traumatised are rehabilitated
• Strict home-checks are done before animals can be adopted.
• FORA has been established on the Roodepoort property for over 6 years as part of a 10 year lease granted by benefactor Mr Bill Joffe (now sadly deceased) in memory of his wife Francis Petlyn - except in the event of sale of the property, when the notice period is 3 months.
• FORA has over the past year been looking at affordable properties but these are few and far between, especially a property that would suit the shelter’s needs and still be within the area where they receive such great support from the community.
• FORA must raise at least R3 million for a new property + an estimated R500 000 for relocation/setup costs
• Interestingly, the notice of the sale of the property was received on 17 September 2009, the fourth anniversary of the death of FORA founder Marlene de Beer.
THANK YOU FROM ALL AT FORA.

ENDLESS HOPE, NOT A HOPELESS END.
FORA is a registered, non-profit organisation (NPO 29775) situated in Roodepoort. We adhere to a strict no-kill policy and operate on the three R's principal - Rescue, Rehabilitate and Rehome. We offer a "home-for-life" to those animals not fortunate enough to be rehomed, where they can live out their days free of pain, abuse and neglect.

This is an organisation in South Africa who needs all the help they can get right now.

The above was taken from the fora web site at

Winter's here, don't forget about outside dogs!

Winter is here again for a lot of us around the globe, which means warm clothes, heaters/fireplaces and everything to do with keeping snug. What about all those outside dogs who are often chained outside come winter, spring or summer. These dogs also need a warm dry place to snuggle and keep warm for winter, but they are often forgotten. They have to suffer through come what may resulting in severe aches and pains and unthinkable cold. Can you imagine being stuck outside in the cold wet of winter without any place to take shelter? This is a reality for so many dogs.

You can help make a difference is some of these dogs lives by joining a program called "Angel for animals" by PETA.

"As an "Angel for Animals" sponsor, you can help provide a sturdy, weatherproof PETA doghouse that will give a needy dog the shelter that can help see him or her through winter and also help him or her endure bad weather for years to come.

It's impossible to be anything other than miserable when you're wet and cold. That's what winter means for dogs who are kept chained outside like bicycles and forced to face the elements without proper shelter. PETA goes out and finds and helps hundreds of these dear individuals every winter. Most of these dogs find themselves with little more than a freezing patch of dirt and no way to escape the harsh conditions."

Helping these animals is only possible through donations by people like you and I, but wouldn't you feel great knowing what kind of a difference you have made? I am appealing to everyone in the position to help, yes we know times are tough and everyone is feeling the economic crisis, but come on guys these dogs have no other voices but our own.

"It is startling to see the difference that a well-built doghouse can make in these animals' lives. We fill our doghouses with warm, fluffy straw bedding—the dogs go inside immediately to curl up and can't believe their luck. They smile! Their tails thump, life comes into them, and their world doesn't seem quite so hopeless anymore. We also give them tangle-free lightweight line to replace the heavy chains that weigh them down, and we provide them with a toy, a nutritious meal to winter-proof them that day, clean water (often we break the ice or have to provide a bucket or bowl), and a few minutes of the love and attention that mean the world to these social souls."

"Last year, thanks to generous "Angel for Animals" sponsors, PETA provided nearly 300 neglected dogs who live in low-income areas with sturdy doghouses. These are dogs people can legally keep in conditions we find appalling. With many more dogs in urgent need—and with temperatures dropping fast—we want to top that number this year, and I hope that we can count on your support. There are so many ways that you can help:

• Your "Angel for Animals" sponsorship gift of $265 can provide a sturdy, straw-filled doghouse to one neglected dog.

• Your "Angel for Animals" sponsorship gift of $530 can provide sturdy, straw-filled doghouses to two neglected dogs.

• Your "Angel for Animals" sponsorship gift of $1,325 can provide sturdy, straw-filled doghouses to five neglected outdoor dogs. It will be the best present they will ever have!

Please know that any gift you can give, no matter its size, will be put to work immediately toward this vital program."

So if you can't afford any of these options contact me and I will give you the details to make a direct deposit to PETA towards this worthy cause. Your donation will be dealt with by yourself, I will just direct you to the appropriate place to make contact with the person at PETA who deals with the donations. Lets try and do whatever we can this winter to help a few extra helpless dogs survive.


* All excerpts were taken from an email I got this morning from PETA.

Help abused and homeless dogs for free..

I have been searching for every conceivable way to help underprivileged and abused dogs for those of us or who are unable to actually give financial aid. On my search I have found a South African site 'Barking Mad' where you can sign up to get a reminder each day to go to the site and click on a button that provides a bowl of food for the dogs they take care of, this is thanks to their sponsors . This way you have the chance of helping these dogs without actually donating money! www.barkingmad.co.za is the web address to this site. I unfortunately couldn't paste the link here so just add the http:// before the barkingmad.co.za.

Jack Russells - Dynamite comes in small packages!

In honor of that poor little Jack Russell that was treated so horribly I decided to do an info fact sheet today on Jack Russell Terriers.

History

The Jack Russell belongs to the terrier group of dogs. They are working dogs, used for hunting foxes and other ground-dwelling quarry such as Groundhog, Badger, Red and Grey fox from the early 1800's. They were named after a Reverend John Russell who was a breeder of fine Jack Russells during the 1800's.
After years of breeding the Jack Russell has a shape ideal for hunting foxes and getting into tight holes and spaces. The Fox Terrier that we know is an offspring of the original Jack Russell, but the Jack Russell has kept its pure blood line through working terrier enthusiasts keeping it's ideal measurements, whereas the fox terrier has become more of a companion dog.
The Fox Terrier was excepted as a kennel club breed in the late 1800's, but has undergone many changes due to breeding for the show ring. These changes have made the dogs less agile for hunting as the shape does not allow for them to get into all the places that the original Jack Russell Terriers could for hunting their quarry. The JRTCA have awarded the Jack Russell Terrier with the awards "Natural hunting certificate" and the bronze medallion for special merit in the field.

Description

The Jack Russell Terrier should be predominately white and have black and tan markings or patches. They should always have dense double coats which should be smooth or rough,sometimes with brown or black spots on the skin known as ticking. The head should be of average width to the ears, and narrow to the eyes, the top of the head should be slightly flat between the ears. The stop at the end of the muzzle should be defined and the nose should be black. The teeth are straight with a scissor bite. Eyes are dark and almond shaped. The ears are v shaped and carried forward on the head. The tail is set high and used to be docked to about 5 inches to provide a good grip for handlers. This breed of dog should always appear intelligent and alert. The Jack Russell Terrier should be between 10 and 15 inches at the shoulder.



temperament

These are highly intelligent, vocal and athletic dogs. they are also famous for being absolutely fearless little dogs. Due to their history as working dogs and their high intelligence they can become very destructive if not constantly stimulated. Obedience training is recommended for these little dogs of strong character as they are very stubborn and can become aggressive towards people and other animals if not trained and socialized. Overall wonderful little dogs that definitely fit the saying " Dynamite comes in small Packages"!

Animal cruelty by Owners of dogs

This morning I read a horrifying article from my home country of South Africa where the people are supposed to be educated and compassionate to animals and animal cruelty. I will insert the article here for all to read. This article was published in 'The Star' newspaper on the 15th of September 2009 and was posted on the 'Barking Dog' web site where I found it.

Jack Russell endures days of agony at heartless owner's home

UPDATE :(
Sadly the little Jack Russel that was rescued in Krugersdorp didn't make it. But at least he spent his last days in the care of Dr Koekemoer and the CLAW vets and staff who all did their utmost for him, he passed away being cared for, not alone discarded in a yard. Thanks to all who prayed and kept him in their thoughts. And to those who donated towards his vet bill

Jack Russell endures days of agony at heartless owner's home
The Star, September 15, 2009 Edition 4

A MALE Jack Russell found in Krugersdorp West yesterday morning is close
to death. Its leg has been ripped off at the pelvis and it seems it has
been lying for days in its owner's front yard without any medical
attention.

The animal had sustained massive blood loss, and when The Star went to
visit it, shortly after it had been taken to Horison Park Animal Clinic
by Cora Bailey of the Community-Led Animal Welfare Organisation (CLAW),
its brown eyes were glazed from the morphine injection it had been
given. It didn't lift its head.

When asked how the dog was doing, vet Dion Koekemoer replied "Not good".

According to the neighbour who reported the atrocity, the dog's owner
had left for work as usual yesterday morning. This means the woman must
have walked past her pet - with its gaping wound - as it lay in her
driveway.

Some men saw the dog from the street and attracted the attention of the
neighbour. One of the men was in tears.

According to the neighbour, the dog had hurt itself three or four months
ago and had been limping.

On Sunday, she heard it howling and tried to call the Krugersdorp SPCA,
but the organisation's phone cables had been stolen.

Yesterday, she eventually contacted the Krugersdorp News, which alerted
Bailey.

"We got to the house. In the driveway was this small dog. I thought he
was dead. The domestic worker came out and said 'We don't know what's
wrong with the dog'," said Bailey.

"Apparently there's a child in the house as well. It's appalling, to see
that and not react. This woman lives in a suburb. She has a domestic
worker.

"If you can afford to employ someone to clean your house, you can afford
medical attention."

Yesterday afternoon, the dog underwent surgery to clean its wound. "We
got all the maggots out the wound. Let's hope he doesn't succumb to the
infection. He's very weak, very thin," said Koekemoer.

It will be a while before the wound can be closed. Koekemoer is doing a
stretching procedure to get enough skin.

Under the Animal Protection Act, failure to seek medical attention for
one's animals is a criminal offence.

The Krugersdorp SPCA will be laying charges against the dog's owner.

This is the site with this story - www.barkingmad.co.za.

This poor Jack Russell after enduring so much pain passed away. We have to ask ourselves what kind of civilised society are we living in when this can happen to a domestic dog in its own home done by its own owner???

I just hope he has moved on to a better place. RIP