Crime in the Réunion: Cat hunting is in open season

Crime in the Réunion: Cat hunting is in open season
24.02.2017
Crime in the Réunion: Cat hunting is in open season
Domestic animals

A cruel and indiscriminate hunt against cats has been opened by the Prefect of the Réunion on the pretext of protecting two endemic bird species. One Voice intervenes…

On 23 February, One Voice filed an interim appeal to suspend a recent order from the Prefect of the Réunion, which allows the controlling
of stray cat populations near the nesting sites of the Barau Petrel and Bourbon Black Petrel seabirds. These endemic species of highly endangered seabirds have been the subject of successive and legitimate conservation plans since 2008. The occasional predation of birds by hungry cats is one of the possible threats identified by these plans (among ‘others, like that of rats, which cats chase …), the Prefect implements massive, totally illegal measures, which are the lethal capture and trapping of all stray cats over large areas of the National Park of the Réunion, for a period of 2 years.

State deficiencies in the management of feline strays, despite the record of euthanasia on the island (15,000 cats per year), is being carried out underhandly using the risk of extinction of Petrels. Already victims of abandonment or loss of their homes for first-generation cats, here now these cats are the target of illegal trapping, using different techniques: cages-traps, « Steve Allan Conibear-kill trap » and « Timms » devices. Kill traps or poisoned bait.

All of these attacks on the lives of domestic animals are prohibited, they seem not concerned by the regulations about animals liable to cause damage (formerly known as «harmful») or affected by rabies.

While other means could be used, deadly traps and poisonings are deployed without knowing which cats (or other animals) will be victims, for lack of prior identification. Activated traps are supposed to be removed within 24 hours … in remote areas around the cirque of Cilaos (Piton des Neiges, Grand Bénare, Dimitile). A day at least of torture for each cat trapped under the blinding hot sun. We are anticipating the court date…

Reunion Island: Saint-André Shark Accident

Reunion Island: Saint-André Shark Accident
21.02.2017
Reunion
Reunion Island: Saint-André Shark Accident
Wildlife

A young man has just lost his life in Saint-André in a new accident.

We would like to give to the family and friends of this young man our utmost sincere condolences.

We urge the « users of the ocean » to respect the bans on swimming and surfing in the areas deemed dangerous and to the Prefect who was so quick to spend millions on irresponsible fishing to enforce his own orders.

This accident comes in full consultation on fishing in the Marine Reserve.

Remember that there is no Marine Reserve in Saint-André, but it only takes a few hours for a shark to move from the West Coast to the East Coast as the CHARC program has demonstrated.

A bait belt was installed in front of the west coast and this bait belt extended to Sainte-Marie. Reunion sharks, which are quietly around the island, have been set on Réunion.

The observations of off-season sharks have never been more numerous than since the senseless baiting of the shark cap experiment has been extended. Today there is a new fatal accident.

We will react further in another release.

Association Collective: Aspas, Brigitte Bardot Foundation, Longitude 181, One Voice, Shark Integration, Shark Conservation, Sea shepherd, Tendua, Waves.

A bait belt was installed in front of the west coast and this bait belt was extended to Sainte-Marie. In this way, the Reunion has been fixed as a passing point for sharks that are quietly circling around the island.

The observations of off-season sharks have never been more numerous than since this senseless baiting experiment for sharks off the headland which had been extended.

Today there has been a new fatality.

We will be reacting further in another release.

Association Collective: Aspas, Brigitte Bardot Foundation, Longitude 181, One Voice, Shark Integration, Shark Conservation, Sea shepherd, Tendua, Waves.

One voice demands justice!

One voice demands justice!
13.02.2017
One voice demands justice!
Domestic animals

Faced with unbearable cases of cruelty that have occurred throughout France, One Voice demands justice. We are rising up and are going to plead for animal rights in four different courts over three months.

Dogs thrown from windows, drowned, abused

When we know the link between animal abuse and domestic violence, recent cases where One Voice has intervened are worrying …

Yes, we throw out of the window what we do not want, even if it is a dog and we live on the 4th floor! On August 15, 2016, in Mende (48), a veterinarian who came to a Border Collie barely 1 year old, the vertebrae broken by this fall, will now have to be put down and not without noticing how thin he was. Also, One Voice has taken to court this owner, who didn’t care about his dog once the window was closed, for acts of cruelty and serious abuse of his animal.

What about the end of Câline, a Labrador bitch drowned and then fished out from a river last summer, in a channel of the Garonne Lafox (47)? She had been thrown in alive, a block attached to the collar and the hind legs tied up? In this case, which initially should be classified without follow-up, it is essential that the owner, found thanks to the dog’s chip, responds with an unspeakable gesture.

In the Pas-de-Calais, a new case of abuse in a kennel club that will be judged. The defendant, president of the club, refused to admit his guilt of the facts that occurred in April 2016, yet explicit on a video broadcast on social networks. The teacher is seen assaulting Lemon, an 8-month-old German Shepherd, during a training exercise in defence. The dog, having not obeyed an order, is caught by the collar, it flies high in the air and is slammed heavily on the ground, like an old bag of flour!

Pigeon shooting

More complex is the case before a local jurisdiction of Lot-et-Garonne this mid-February. It follows the decision of the mayor of Villaréal who had, at the end of January 2016, authorized local hunting companies to « hunt » pigeons « of cities » in the territory of his community. The city having given out more than 3,000 cartridges to 80 hunters, some 500 pigeons were slaughtered in 3 hours from the streets of the town.

Such massive destruction of pigeons, domestic animals returned to the wild, is not only contrary to the regulations but also totally ineffective in its methods. By yielding to the pressure of owners and operators demanding to clarify these populations of birds, which certainly can eat seedlings and can litter the roofs with their droppings. This mayor has denied the law, ethics and the lives of sensitive and defenceless animals who share our environment. A sad attitude to have adopted for an elected official, whom One Voice wishes to see sentenced by the judges …

Fight the dolphinarium decree!

Fight the dolphinarium decree!
08.02.2017
Fight the dolphinarium decree!
Exploitation for shows

The statute which One Voice has been opposing since last September is in the process of being accepted. But there is still time to influence: a public consultation is open until the 1st of March. Get involved to stop it being passed!

Latest news

When the consultation was closed, there were no less than 4,500 pages of comments opposed to the draft statute on the Minister of the Environment’s website!
This is a great response which must be heard.

No – A 35 year old statute cannot be adapted. No – The cetaceans must accept a life in captivity where they keep dying, one after the other. A prison, whatever its size, remains a prison.

One Voice, supported by the European coalition Dolphinaria-Free Europe, is firmly opposed to the statute which is being prepared for voting. Since September, the association has intensified its activity directed at the minister, to stop France from becoming a
dolphin breeding farm.

The few modifications that have been integrated into the statute are just a means of allowing for their activity to continue whilst everything proves that it is time to put an end to this!

The famous Doctor Naomi Rose, a cetacean specialist known in particular for her appearance in Blackfish, confirms this:
« It is of course useful that campaigners communicate with the authorities regarding the legal framework on captivity to make it respected, if not to strengthen it, to improve cetacean well-being. But any new legislation should have abolition as its only objective, either immediately or in phases. These small legal steps forward are too time-consuming, deferring the day when these deeply cruel practices are finally banned. As for an exchange with marine circuses, this is recommended. This industry prevails every time with a kind of « greenwashing ». »

For his part, the French veterinarian, Pierre Gallego, cetacean specialist and President of Odyssea, reminds us that
« it is well known, in the cetacean veterinary world as well as in specialised scientific literature, that bottlenose dolphins in captivity can be exposed to high levels of stress (…) aggressive behaviour between fellow dolphins is not rare. This is exacerbated by the fact that the dolphins live in a confined space and they cannot avoid aggressive behaviour by simply fleeing, which would be the case in their natural environment. »

This statute is nonsense. It does not take into account the well-being of animals, as well as the French people’s inclination, of which 54% are in favour of banning dolphin and orca shows (survey conducted by IPSOS/One Voice in December 2016). The international context is also not considered; several countries have already banned these shows, or taken measures in this direction, complying with the
Helsinki Declaration. In addition, there is the situation in France today, where several cetaceans have died since 2015, including Aicko, a death which was questionable enough that the Tribunal of Nantes accepted our application and have asked for the mandate of an expert to determine the cause of death!

One Voice is not ruling out taking on a Council of State lawyer to cancel the statute if it is adopted, but right now is the time for citizen mobilisation. Support our action by addressing your comments for the public consultation which is open up until the 1^st of March.

Here are some arguments which you can use by copying and pasting them in the comments section:

Cetaceans are sentient beings with particularly developed cognitive capacities. India has already given them animal person status, as is advocated in the Helsinki declaration, as adopted by 50 international scientists since 2010, and which stipulates that « all cetaceans as persons have the right to life, liberty and wellbeing. »

In their wild state, cetaceans can swim up to 160 kilometres per day and dive to depths of 60 metres. As a comparison, the space which they have in captivity represents less than 1% of what they can experience in nature (Perrin et al., 2009)

The facilities which contain them are not able to recreate the richness of their natural environment. Most pools are small, with smooth sides and exempt from any stimulus (Couquiaud, 2005). It is regularly observed that large carnivorous wild fauna which do not have sufficient space develop behavioural problems such as repeated stereotypical behaviours (Clubb & Mason, 2003).

To mix unrelated cetaceans that sometimes come from different regions and different species can interfere with the group dynamic and can lead to dominance related attacks, injuries and illness, sometimes leading to individual death (Waples & Gales, 2002). In captivity, cetaceans cannot flee to avoid aggressive behaviour.

The transfer of individuals between the dolphinariums modifies the social links and the fragile balance between groups, and beyond that creates risks for the well-being of all group members, ingoing and outgoing.

A “rabbit” mutilated in public to denounce the violence of angora

A « rabbit » mutilated in public to denounce the violence of angora

A “rabbit” mutilated in public to denounce the violence of angora
08.02.2017
A “rabbit” mutilated in public to denounce the violence of angora

PETA and One Voice call on the Minister of Agriculture to ban the production of this cruel material.

What:

A giant angora « rabbit », stretched out and tied up on a table overlooking a large banner saying « Angora: torture the of rabbits », there will be a violent pulling out handfuls of hair Thursday in front of an annex of the Ministry of Agriculture. This joint action by PETA and One Voice, which will take place accompanied in the background by the cries of rabbits recorded during this cruel process of hair removal, this will aim to sensitize the government and bystanders on the suffering of these soft and sensitive animals and to urge the Minister of Agriculture Stéphane Le Foll to ban the
breeding of angora rabbits in France.

When:
Thursday, February 9, 10:30

Where:

251 rue Vaugirard, 75015, Paris (in the district of the Ministry of
Agriculture)

Recent PETA revelations and an investigation by the association One Voice have shown Angora rabbits being tied up by workers and violently having the fur torn from their bodies, leaving bloody wounds, while these fragile beings scream out in agony. After suffering this torture every three months for two to five years, they are sent to the slaughterhouse. This is standard practice in the angora industry.

« Anyone who sees images of mutilated rabbits and hears their cries of pain when they are dehaired in this way will understand that this ill gotten material has no place in the 21st century. It is high time that its production is banned, » says Muriel Arnal, president of One Voice.

“There are many humane and animal-free materials available on the market and the list of companies that have renounced angora, such as Zara, Lacoste, Monoprix, The Kooples, Camaïeu, Accessorize, ASOS and Mango among many others is growing day by day, « explains Isabelle Goetz, spokeswoman for PETA France.

PETA (whose motto says that « the animals do not belong to us and [that] we do not have to use them for clothing ») and One Voice calls Mr Le Foll to take immediate measures to ban the production of angora in France and encourage consumers who are concerned about animal welfare to commit to getting rid of this cruel material.

For more information, visit PETAFrance.com.

And so stopangora.fr

One Voice challenges the plan to fight the animal wandering of the prefect of Reunion

One Voice challenges the plan to fight the animal wandering of the prefect of Reunion
03.02.2017
Reunion
One Voice challenges the plan to fight the animal wandering of the prefect of Reunion
Domestic animals

The metropolitan NGO One Voice has called on the island’s prefect to take effective measures to combat stray dogs and cats and put an end to the mass euthanasia of healthy animals.

The number of animals euthanized is not reduced despite sterilization campaigns which are renewed every year.

For the association One Voice, the new sterilization campaigns announced will be useless if they are not backed by other measures such as the sustainable management of pet cats and pet dogs, provided by publicized texts or public awareness.

On this occasion, One Voice deplores the fact that local associations for animal protection are not involved in this fight plan, who’s funding always benefits the same actors.

The costly study that must be carried out on the causes of strays is according to the association One Voice totally useless since such
studies have already been carried out in Reunion with the GEVEC (Veterinary Study Group on stray carnivores). Studies have also been carried out in Guadeloupe and Martinique where there is a similar phenomenon or by the World Organization for Animal Health (OEH).

In 2008 the meetings « Animal and Society » had also listed the factors behind strays and identified the possibility of releasing the so-called pet dogs once they are sterilized. A measure that has not been put in place in Reunion.

One Voice does not preclude taking this matter to the Administrative Court.

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February 1st, join with One Voice against palm oil!

February 1st, join with One Voice against palm oil!
01.02.2017
February 1st, join with One Voice against palm oil!
Natural habitat

One Voice, in an international collective of associations [1], is a partner of the International Palm Oil Free Day on February 1st. Objective: to inform everyone about the tragedy of this production and to mobilize Internet users by an original Facebook challenge.

A wild life disaster

Tropical forests are melting like polar ice caps, faster than in Brazil. Between 1990 and 2010, 8.7 million hectares of forest [2] were razed
to the ground in Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea for oil palm crops. At this rate of constant deforestation and along with the additional ecological consequences to the climate, the animal populations that the forests shelter will disappear in only two decades. This means, from Sumatra to Borneo, the extinction of a unique variety of wildlife in the world: orangutans, gibbons, tigers, elephants, rhinos, Malayan bears (on the island of Sumatra alone, 10,000 plants including 17 endemic genera, 600 resident or endemic
bird species and 200 mammals are also concerned).

The palm, is it academic?

In the Americas (Colombia in particular), in Africa (Nigeria, Ivory Coast) and especially in South-East Asia, a vegetable oil is extracted from the pulp of its fruits (palm oil) or from its almonds (palm kernel oil). 85% of the world’s production of this vegetable oil (65 million tonnes, more than twice that of rapeseed, sunflower and soya combined) comes from Indonesian and Malaysian plantations alone. It feeds three sectors: food industry (80%), cosmetics (19%) and energy (1%, and yes, we deforest there to produce biodiesel here, it’s the world village).

At a low cost and some texture properties (its high content of saturated fatty acids favouring the risk of cardiovascular disease is not put
forward), palm oil is everywhere in our supermarket shelves: chocolate spreads and pasta, biscuits and cereals, baby milk, canned sardines, soaps, mayonnaise, chips, freeze-dried soups, ready meals … In 2013, a French person consumed 2.8 g per day [3].

A challenge for the planet and animals!

For the International Palm Oil Free Day, One Voice invites you to log on to https://www.facebook.com/events/312655225795249/. Among other fun or informative resources, you will find every week of February guaranteed cooking recipes without palm oil, for snacks, aperitif or meals, alternative care products or maintenance, information on the international label carried by the collective (www.gopalmoilfree.com) and links to sites of products labelled 100% without palm oil. Consumers, look, like, join … It will be a first step forward.

[1] On the initiative of
Jakarta Animal Aid Network and the Dutch association EDEV (An animal,
A friend).

[2]
http://www.rspo.org/

[3]
according to a study of the Research Center for the study and
observation of living conditions

Franck Sorbier commits to One Voice!

Franck Sorbier commits to One Voice!
12.01.2017
Franck Sorbier commits to One Voice!
Fashion

Franck Sorbier, a great name of the French Haute Couture, is engaging with One Voice in the program « Fur Free Retailer » to say no to animal fur!

Franck Sorbier a great name of the French Haute Couture is committed with One Voice in the program « Fur Free Retailer » to say no to animal fur!

Couturier Franck Sorbier sends a strong signal to his peers by taking a stand for a humane ethical style.

Distinguished Master of Art for his unique technique of compacting (mixture of materials), Franck Sorbier is among the few holders of the name « Haute Couture ». By signing today the Fur Free Retailer program promoted by One Voice and its international coalition, the Fur Free Alliance (already 90 ethical brands in France, and more than 450 in the world), Franck Sorbier reconciles creation and compassion, conjugate designer with “without cruelty »!

For this insatiable creator, it is also about educating young people on a key issue so that, in one or two generations, animal fur is eradicated from clothing stores, hoods and other fashion accessories…

Recall the poll undertaken by One Voice / Ipsos which revealed in late August 2016 that fur is primarily associated with cruelty for nearly 6 out of 10 French, and that 91% of the French are in favour of a label « no animal fur ».

In Europe, where many countries have already banned fur farms from their soil, millions of animals are still killed each year for their skin. A suffering and environmental impact that One Voice has always been fighting.

Congratulations to Franck Sorbier and his team for this position, joining that of Giorgio Armani who joined our FFR program for the autumn-winter 2016/2017 season.

Help us grow the Fur Free Retailer network for ethical fashion! Distribute the information.

Luxury, from the mink point of view: an unprecedented investigation by One Voice!

Luxury, from the mink point of view: an unprecedented investigation by One Voice!
10.01.2017
Luxury, from the mink point of view: an unprecedented investigation by One Voice!
Fashion

One Voice conducted a survey into French mink farms, mink who are farmed for their fur. While the latter is synonymous with luxury, the other side of the picture is not glamorous. The images, unveiled exclusively, give a tragic insight.

They dream only of one thing, freedom. They should have enjoyed a hectic life alone, protecting their territory, teaching the little ones to
hunt and fish, dig burrows, smell the fresh humus, hide in the weeds of the wetlands … But these mink from America are born in a cage and will only know the time of their short life, the wire cages, self-mutilation by force of stress and deprivation, then a long death by asphyxiation. For their fur...

No respect for the needs of mink

Of these images, filmed by people who had access to the farms, we discovered and dismayed, the cages all lined up and in very poor condition or even completely dilapidated. The minks frantically seeking a way out of their psychological misery, stress and boredom, by surveying in the few cubic decimetres of living space that are conceded to them. They are caught in a vice between the putrefied remains of food, deposited directly onto the cages, and their droppings, piled up on the ground beneath them, inevitably polluting the groundwater that runs off it, and saturating the air with a pestilential odour.

These animals, naturally solitary and territorial, are subjected to extreme stress. Lack of space, even promiscuity, is unbearable for them. How to escape a conflict in these conditions? How to isolate yourself a little? The fence abruptly shears their semi-webbed legs, over-solicited. Deprived of all access to water, an element essential to their well-being, they are hurt, they are afraid, they are bored, they want to go out, they go crazy …

Suffering right up to the end

While a free mink lives for about ten years, they are barely eight months old when they are harshly picked out by the breeder. On our images,
we see them being thrown brutally on top of each other in a container. In one of the filmed farms, a dog watches, and pounces on those who desperately try to flee.

Death by asphyxiation has relative « success » and speed. Piled on top of each other, some survive a first session. But this choice of industry is not made to limit their suffering. We must above all preserve their precious coat from any blood stains!

A disaster for the environment

The fur industry has major environmental consequences, including its use of heavy metals, its water consumption and its effluent production.
In many of the mink farms filmed, the excrement evacuation system was substandard or non-existent. The images also show corpses decomposing on the ground, which means a significant polluting effect to the environment, and therefore major health risks for the entire ecosystem … including human.

As for the mink that manages to escape, their freedom is at the price of their future European cousins.

To learn more, discover our full report

One Voice calls for the ban on mink farming in France. Let us write together to the Prime Minister to enhance the power of the voices of mink and all the other animals raised and killed for their fur. We must put an end to this industry of suffering and death. Let’s respect the mink!

The hidden face of the fur industry in France: Mink farm revelations

The hidden face of the fur industry in France: Mink farm revelations
09.01.2017
The hidden face of the fur industry in France: Mink farm revelations
Fashion

One Voice reveals its breaking images, filmed in six mink fur farms amongst the 14 currently in operation1. The evidence exposes the mink’s suffering, as well as the particularly worrying environmental practices. Reinforced by the French public’s opinion, the majority of whom do not want fur, the association is demanding for the rapid closure of these mink farms.

The images, which will be made public on the 9^th of January 2017 by One Voice, were filmed by people with access to the French mink farms’ premises. For the animals, luxury is a long way away, as they suffer in their dirty cages. A vile porridge is deposited on the cage roof of their pathetic ‘nest’, where the remains are left to rot, sometimes for some time. The floor is comprised of painful cage bars for their paws, where their excrement is allowed to fall through and accumulate in sometimes incredible quantities. The water seen running around their cages carries the effluent with it, provoking concern for the environment, as well as the hygiene questions raised by the corpses discovered in the grass… For a coat, up to 80 minks need to be killed, and it is estimated that a farm of 1,500 females generate 120 tonnes of manure a year, plus a tonne of phosphorus². 200,000 minks are killed in France every year.

Whilst the farmers make a mockery of « creating life » and guaranteeing the well-being of the animals, the minks that we see in these farms are denied water and any form of activity, despite being semi-aquatic predators. Their only outlet is craziness, which is expressed through stereotypical behaviours. And when the time comes to discharge them from their sad existence, they are brutally snatched and thrown one on top of another into a container…

If we believe the breeder’s line, captivity spanning several generations has removed their desire for freedom. So how can we explain their attempts to escape when they have the chance? The biological reality of these animals is the need to live in liberty, near a watercourse, the need to hunt, to fish, to hide. No living being is designed to live imprisoned. We don’t adapt to suffering. Two minks who were filmed in a desperate attempt to escape were both caught and brutalised by the dog on the premises. But how many manage to escape and enter the feral population which has been recorded across France? They are not native, their introduction upsets the ecosystems. Ethical management plans exist but in order to be effective, no more individuals can be imported… So more farms.

Muriel Arnal, One Voice’s president declares: « Any notion of humanity seems to have deserted the passageways of these farms.The individuals who are raised there are sentient beings and possess an incontestable desire to live. But they are continually denied their identity. Their lives are comprised of misery and torment. It is not right that the luxury sector continues to endorse such practices. Real beauty can’t exist without ethics. We are asking for the immediate ban of fur farms in France. »

All of the observations are available in a report written by One Voice. A video has also been made following the investigation.

All information collated is available on the campaign website.

(1) Source : Well Fur
(2) Source : Nasi, 1977, in : Guégan er Rougeot (1987) : Le vison, techniques d’élevage et rentabilité, TAVI, 1987 (The mink, farming and profitability techniques)

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