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One more animal experiment: force mice to vape and then to announce fake news

One more animal experiment: force mice to vape and then to announce fake news

One more animal experiment: force mice to vape and then to announce fake news
01.02.2018
United States
One more animal experiment: force mice to vape and then to announce fake news
Animal testing

A recent US study using mice to assess the dangers of e-cigarettes creates a new scientific controversy around animal testing.

After the scandal of diesel engines tested on animals, here again are other guinea pigs that have been subjected to toxic fumes in a very controversial research. Recent experiments conducted in the United States on mice and accrediting the dangers of vaping have quickly raised voices in the scientific community to denounce these scientific untruths; other studies on rodents are in support!

Who’s smoking?

The findings of a team from New York University are alarmist: exposed during 12 weeks from very high doses of vapour from e-cigarettes (the equivalent of ten years of nicotine vaping by a human), these mice have presented altered DNA in their lungs, heart and bladder, and a reduction of restorative proteins in the cells of these organs. Results clearly point towards possible carcinogenic risks from electronic cigarettes in humans. “We are without scientific truth, but with manipulation” Reacted Professor Bertrand Dautzenberg, Pulmonologist. According to him, this experiment is not representative of exposure to humans and makes assumptions between mice and humans without even comparing the effect of vaping with that of tobacco smoke.

“This does not prove that vaping causes cancer,” said Peter Hajek, an English specialist in tobacco addiction, who said the study was “fake news” … very toxic. Jacques Le Houzec, pharmacologist and tobacco expert, also recalls an earlier similar study, which totally contradicts this one. Rats exposed for 2 years, 5 days a week and 20 hours to concentrated nicotine aerosols did not develop tumours, just a loss of weight…

This debate points to the buzz sought by certain scientific publications that broadcast alarmist news from targeted studies, deserving of further work before concluding.

For One Voice, this controversy among researchers emphasizes above all that we must finally put an end to animal experimentation. It is high time we stop using the age-old excuse of the advancement of humans and then to torture and kill animals, all to present finding that are in the interest of one industry or another.

Behind the Dieselgate, the scandal of animal experimentation

Behind the Dieselgate, the scandal of animal experimentation

Behind the Dieselgate, the scandal of animal experimentation
29.01.2018
France
Behind the Dieselgate, the scandal of animal experimentation
Animal testing

From 2009 to 2015, Volkswagen claimed to have reduced the pollution emitted by its cars. As the current investigation is unveiling, the whole world is discovering the experiments made on macaques in an attempt to show that there is no danger for humans.

The animal experimentation lobby has always justified its existence by claiming to be a must to save lives. But what is reality? In 2014, just before the scandal of the Dieselgate broke out, they were still in the same old routine: locking up monkeys and exposing them to gas and fine particles from the exhausts of diesel cars and gasoline. Yet the effects and dangerousness of diesel on nature and living beings were already well known. Its strong tendency to pollute was well established.

These experiments were ordered by the car manufacturer in order to use the argument of « cleanliness » of its engines, giving it a- so-called- « green » guarantee and this, thanks to animal experimentation.

Cartoons for macaques

The personnel responsible for the experimentations knew very well who their guinea pigs were, otherwise why make them watch cartoons? The answer is obvious: so that primates stay calm during gassing since they were aware of what was happening to them. Macaques are indeed self-aware and capable of tremendous empathy. Yet the industrialists did not hesitate to condemn them.

Dieselgate is detrimental not only to guinea pigs, monkeys, humans and the planet, but also to car manufacturers who are trying to make their vehicles less polluting in an ethical way.

This scandal behind the scandal is extremely worrying. That the car industry is investing heavily in research and development to develop less and less polluting vehicles, all for the better! But how many animals are still at risk in this frantic commercial race?

One Voice are launching a petition demanding from all car manufacturers that they no longer subcontract any animal experience. Neither to test the pollution levels of their engines, nor to justify their progress as part of their development! With all the signatures, the association will ask each car manufacturer a firm commitment on this issue.

Sign the petition to say stop to animal testing in the car industry!

One Voice rescues abandoned cats

One Voice rescues abandoned cats

One Voice rescues abandoned cats
24.01.2018
Finistère One Voice rescues abandoned cats
Domestic animals

On 11th and 12th January 2018 in Quimperlé, One Voice’s Zoé Cell rescued 10 cats, left on their own, the home was abandoned, the house of their elderly owner, because of her long-term hospitalization.

The castrated and identified cat of the human owner, survived there for several weeks. Other cats had been abandoned at her home, probably by neighbours, which is punishable by law. Straying, and roaming of non-identified cats only leads to misery for these abandoned animals. In this unhealthy house, the little cats were locked in the midst of the corpses of their congeners in a state of decomposition. Excrement strewed on the ground and the furniture, the disorder and the pestilential odour adding to the rest of the filth.

The eight cats rescued on the first day were very stressed after weeks spent in such conditions. Our team immediately had them examined by a veterinarian attentive and respectful of their distress. All were the object of care. Some were dehydrated and had ulcers. One of them suffered terribly, having several cancerous tumours and unfortunately had to be euthanized.

This operation was made possible thanks to the listening of the Town hall of Quimperlé, enchanted by our intervention, with the help of “Cats without you”, “Cie Pays de Quimperlé”, and of the SPA of Vannes where the cats now wait to be adopted.

In France, more than 10 million homeless cats suffer and die on our doorstep. One Voice is engaged in this fight for them, for their dignity.

One Voice fight for dogs in Congo

One Voice fight for dogs in Congo

One Voice fight for dogs in Congo
22.01.2018
Congo
One Voice fight for dogs in Congo
Domestic animals

Cases of rabies and parasitosis have been reported around the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The animals in the area are in dire need of our help. Time is running out: the slaughter of animals is all too often the only way out for the authorities.

The socio-economic situation of local communities and the equilibrium of ecosystems have been the collateral but are very real victims for decades of armed conflicts. Since 2000, we have worked with Bantu for the animals on the spot. During the intensification of the armed conflict, he had to resort to taking refuge in Uganda. We helped him bring his wife and children to him and they survived. He is a very committed man of exemplary courage, with whom we have forged strong relationships, mutual aid and combat. He is both our anchor and our relay there.

Humans around the Virunga National Park survive only through hunting, accompanied by sick and contagious dogs. In such circumstances, health considerations are secondary and all pay a heavy price for this ignorance. One Voice, in partnership with Bantu, is working together to help humans and animals alleviate this health problem that is adding to the pre-existing political and humanitarian crisis.

One of the consequences of these extreme situations for the populations, is that the dogs participating in these hunts are sometimes wounded, or contract various parasitosis (verminousness and dermatoses), following tick bites. At least three out of four dogs are carriers, and suffer terribly from these untreated conditions. Populations, unaware of the resulting health consequences, often abandon or simply let wounded or sick dogs wander, which encourages their contagion and spread to vulnerable people with whom they come into contact with, but also to other domesticated animals and wild animals nearby. In particular, cases of rabies have been reported, which means an assured death for all affected people.

One Voice financially supports the anti-rabies vaccination campaign in the area around Bantu Virunga Park in Congo (which also sterilizes and castrates stray animals), and has participated in the purchase of many veterinary products to combat ticks and sores on pets.

It is urgent to act very quickly, to avoid that the authorities decide, as too often in the world, to slaughter animals instead of treating them!

Happy Bear: The Indian sanctuary of One Voice

Happy Bear: The Indian sanctuary of One Voice

Happy Bear: The Indian sanctuary of One Voice
20.01.2018
India
Happy Bear: The Indian sanctuary of One Voice
Wildlife

They went through the worst. Torn from their mother, beaten, nose often pierced with a rope, these bears were exploited, dancing to entertain in India. Thanks to the joint work of One Voice and Wildlife SOS, they found peace in a sanctuary. In an idyllic setting, they are finally entitled to respect.

Looking back on 7 years of fighting for sloth bears

It was in 2009, after seven years of hard work by One Voice, Wildlife SOS and the anti-poaching cell that the two NGOs had created together, the last rope of the last dancing bear in India was cut. In total, more than 620 bears have been saved and placed safely into the sanctuary of Agra in India. Kalandar bear exhibitors who exploited them were able to join the reintegration program that was offered to them in exchange for retraining, which was a real chance for this community that lived in misery and a huge relief for sloth bears who survived in the worst conditions.

The sanctuary of Agra: created with bears in mind

The sanctuary of Agra is not a zoo. It is not designed for the well-being of the visitors but for the happiness of the bears, at the heart of all the concerns. In most French zoos, the enclosures allow us to see the animals in all types of circumstances. In an often confined and concrete space, sloth bears have nowhere to hide from the public eye. In Agra, it’s the other way around. Bears are grouped by age, by sex – to avoid reproduction – or even by affinity. There are dark dens where they can hide. And the parks dedication to the youngest bears is huge! All have hammocks, wooden structures and many enriching activities which are renewed every day…

Protecting sloth bears

High walls prevent intruders. Poaching is still important issue and it is crucial to ensure the peace of those bears that have already suffered so much. Everywhere, trees and bushes provide living conditions in semi-freedom close to ideal conditions. And if the bears cannot go out, the wild animals present on the site and around the area do not deprive them of it. Monkeys, birds, but also deer, do not hesitate to come and see the bears … Only the oldest bears are visible to the public, those in a zoo would probably be hidden. Their scarred faces can explain their history and raise awareness of the protection of sloth bears, a species classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

Their pens are near the clinic to provide them the highest care and supervision that they require. Meanwhile younger bears are near to a river. Their enclosures are so large and densely landscaped that it is almost impossible to observe them. Not having been tainted by humans, their shyness is still respected…

You can help us give these bears a peaceful retirement by sponsoring one of them! By choosing Kamli, Jasmine or Rocky, you will regularly receive news and photos and enable the Agra sanctuary to continue to guarantee their happiness and safety.

Photos: Didier Pazery/One Voice

Russia: Bears to be used to train hunting dogs

Russia: Bears to be used to train hunting dogs

Russia: Bears to be used to train hunting dogs
18.01.2018
Russia
Russia: Bears to be used to train hunting dogs
Wildlife

We had investigated in the heart of these camps where hunters train their dogs by throwing them at wild animals, including chained bears. These practices persist, and the Russian legislators refuse to act! Let’s act against this barbarism!

Within the hunting dog training camps, an abject, daily drama takes place. Bears, foxes, martens and badgers are captured and fed to Laïka dogs trained for hunting during competitions. These animals live are atrocious. They are confined in cages without shelter, trampling in their droppings, fed with pieces of bread. Suffering is imposed on them for months and months, for years, even for the most resistant, and when they are considered too worn out, hunters kill and eat them.

During the competitions, the bears are tied by the neck, they cannot flee. They suffer the repeated assaults of several dogs biting them without respite. The more the dog bites, the more points he gets. The show is gruesome. Bears try to get rid of their shackles, and when too weak, they refuse to face the dogs, humans pull them by the neck, or hit them with a stick, so that they straighten up.

Since our investigation, we have asked for the prohibition of these barbaric activities, from another era. The bill aimed at banning this appalling practice has just been rejected by the Russian parliament. The country’s conservatives proudly make it the symbol of the cultural difference between Western and Eastern countries. All hope, however, is not lost: this legislation can be enforced by the Russian head of state. We cannot remain silent in the face of so much barbarity!

Support the work of animal advocates in Russia by creating a global sound box, please sign the petition: sign the petition!

The Zoe Cell mobilised for beaten geese, also in court for Copain the cat

The Zoe Cell mobilised for beaten geese, also in court for Copain the cat

The Zoe Cell mobilised for beaten geese, also in court for Copain the cat
16.01.2018
The Zoe Cell mobilised for beaten geese, also in court for Copain the cat
Domestic animals

This is unacceptable that peaceful animals, who ask nothing of anyone, be beaten, maimed, persecuted and killed by violent humans! One Voice’s Zoe Cell is there for them, of course and will not allow this!

The geese of a woman escaped to frolic in the garden next door. Surely the grass would have looked greener on the other side. The neighbour then turned on them in front of a witness horrified by the violence of the blows that cost the lives of one of the geese. One Voice will be a civil party to this for acts of cruelty.

In the East of France, the Zoe Cell is also mobilised for Buddy, who in September lost his life to two 9mm bullets just before returning home! One Voice filed a law suit in order for the perpetrator(s) not to remain unpunished.

A couple from Moselle, generous to a fault, had welcomed Copain, a stray cat, who had found in their other cat Tigrou (Tigger) a faithful companion. Copain had been part of the family for three years; he was an integral member of the family.

End of September 2017, their protectors are on vacation and the cats are for a few days under the supervision of the neighbour who knows them well. Tigger and Copain go out for their usual evening stroll in the neighbourhood. Later the neighbour calls Copain who has not yet returned. She hears two gunshots and rushes into the street. She then sees Copain coming out of nowhere and collapsing on the tarmac before he can reach the house. He will die after a few gasps, his main artery perforated by a 9 mm bullet as the autopsy of the veterinarian will reveal.

Tigrou lost his friend; Copain lost his life, because that night a human wanted to kill. This crime cannot remain unpunished.

A mockery of democracy concerning the Wolf Plan!

A mockery of democracy concerning the Wolf Plan!

A mockery of democracy concerning the Wolf Plan!
15.01.2018
A mockery of democracy concerning the Wolf Plan!
Wildlife

Each year, the Ministry of Ecology establishes a quota of wolves to be killed, this is the Wolf Plan. One Voice is against it and calls for an outright ban on the slaughter of wolves. These exciting animals are a wealth for biodiversity, they have their place in the mountains and forests of France.

On January 4th, 2018, we were received at the Ministry of the Ecological and Solidarity Transition to talk about the Wolf Plan 2018-2023. We discovered with amazement that it was already drafted and adopted, even though neither the opinion of the National Council for the Protection of Wildlife nor the results of the public consultation had been made. And for good reason, the consultation had not even started yet! It is a sham democracy that is being played before us, and this is unfortunately not the first time that public consultation has been despised.

How can a plan that takes into account the opinion of specialists and the public be developed and adopted even before any working meetings and the results of the consultation? We are faced with the fait accompli, and we are told that we will still ask public opinion? Who’s laughing at who? More than ever, we will have to respond to this consultation to allow the text to be amended before final ratification.

These magnificent animals fulfil a fundamental role in the ecosystem. We could talk endlessly about the personality of wolves, the different roles they fill in the pack, knowledge that the elders pass on to their young. Mothers are so loving, they complement each other … We could add that the protected nature of their species should be taken into account … We could finish by saying that the wolves represent an asset towards green tourism which is rarely put forward.

The rural code itself recognizes that “living things and biodiversity are part of the common heritage of the nation.” – L.110-1 first paragraph. But all this would be purely argumentative, and to lose sight of the main thing: the mountains should not be the scene of killings, but remain protected areas of nature, with animals that have the right to live in peace.

For One Voice, it is imperative to study the impact of pastoral rights over the biodiversity. Indeed, nothing says that agricultural activities are a good for the ecology of our country and more widely of the planet, everything indicates, on the other hand the opposite: destruction of the fauna and the flora of the mountain, sending lambs and sheep to the slaughterhouse …

In short, the only positive point of our meeting, which is light years away from the respect and protection due to wolves, is that the new text will only allow breeders who have made herd protection arrangements to be compensated in case of proven attacks, according to a graduated conditionality. Previously, nothing was required.

The consultation is open from January 8th to 29th, 2018. Let’s mobilize!