Block pleads guilty

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Miami animal trafficker Matth-
ew Block pleaded guilty to felony conspira-
cy February 9 for his role in the 1990
Bangkok Six case, in which six desperately
ill baby orangutans were intercepted in
Thailand en route from Malaysia to Moscow
via Yugoslavia in a crate marked “birds.”
Three of the orangutans died. The deal was
arranged in violation of the Convention on
International Trade in Endanged Species;
the U.S. prosecutor indicated it was initiated
by the KGB, which hoped to resell the
orangutans after they reached Moscow to
raise hard currency. The guilty plea came
two months after U.S. District Judge James
Kehoe on February 9 refused an attempted

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Zoos & Aquariums

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

The proposed marine mammal
exhibit at Colorado’s Ocean Journey, a
theme park planned for Denver, took a blow
January 20 when Animal Rights Mobiliz-
ation revealed that two veterinarians
involved in the project have records of vio-
lating marine mammal care standards. Dr.
Gregory Bossart was the veterinarian of
record at Ocean World in Fort Lauderdale,
Florida, 1987-1991, when it was cited
repeatedly for dolphin care violations, while
Dr. Jay Sweeney was barred from practicing
in Florida for his part in the illegal capture
of two dolphins for the Baltimore Aquarium.

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COURT CALENDAR

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Humane Enforcement
Houston police and animal con-
trol officers on January 2 seized 16 pit bulls
at the scene of a dogfight––the fourth big
dogfighting bust in the U.S. in two months.
Simultaneous raids on January
1 7 netted 35 spectators at a cockfight in
Mossy, West Virginia, and five alleged
cockfight organizers in Gilroy, California,
where more than 500 fighting cocks were
seized. About 20 to 25 people evaded the
police in West Virginia, and an estimated 60
got away in California.

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Dogs & Cats

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Fire chief John Dugan, of Wellsboro,
Pennsylvania, credited a cat named Puff for saving the
lives of Charles and Sandra Bergenstock on January 18
by waking them up and alerting them to thick smoke.
“There’s no question about it,” Dugan said. “They had
no smoke detectors.”
SEPTA, the Philadelphia public transitsys-
tem, on February 4 suspended the use of dogs to evict
homeless people from subway passages––one day after
city council member Jannie Blackwell was allegedly
roughed up by transit police while investigating allega-
tions that dogs were being used to attack the homeless.
Sue Turkington, 32, of Austin, Texas, told
reporters she plans to use some of the $7.2 million she
won in the January 15 Texas lottery to “start breeding
dogs.”

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ANIMAL CONTROL & RESCUE

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Los Angeles County on January 5 became the
largest and most populous jurisdiction in the U.S. to require
cat licensing. Cats must wear either collar identification or
ear tags. The new ordinance is modeled after ordinances
already in effect in Carson and Lomita, California, but
enforcibility remains in doubt. The ordinance was passed at
the urging of Citizens for Sheltered Animals, who argue
that it will reduce the euthanasia rate for cats picked up by
animal control: 39,000 of 42,000 in 1992.
Zoocheck Canada seeks letters supporting pas-
sage of the Ontario Animal Welfare Act, eight years in
development, “which would license and set standards for
the care and keeping of animals in zoos, aquaria, wildlife
displays, pet stores, pounds and shelters, breeding and
boarding establishments, and native wildlife rehabilitation
centers.” Address Bob Rae, Office of the Premier,
Legislative Bldg., Room 281, Queen’s Park, Toronto,
Ontario M7A 1A1.

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Salvation Army denies link to Sportsmen Against Hunger

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia ––
Trying to boost the image of hunting,
Sportsmen Against Hunger again this winter
urged hunters to donate kills to soup kitchens,
prominently mentioning the Salvation Army.
But Salvation Army national com-
munications director Colonel Leon R. Ferraez
reiterated February 4 that “The Salvation
Army does not have an agreement with
Sportsmen Against Hunger. The organiza-
tion has misrepresented that fact a number of
times. “Sportsmen Against Hunger has
assured us they are not using the name of the
Salvation Army, but we continue to receive
reports that they do use our name, then deny
it later. We have tried to overcome this prob-
lem for a number of years,” he added,
“including with the threat of legal action.”

Marine Mammals

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

“EAT WHALES,” SAYS JAPAN
TOKYO, Japan –– The Japan Fisheries Agency and
25 Japanese fishing organizations on January 29 launched an
aggressive media campaign urging Japanese citizens to eat more
whale meat. The goal is to generate pressure on the International
Whaling Commission to rescind the six-year-old global ban on
whaling at its annual meeting in May, to be held in Kyoto.
The blitz includes radio and television spots touting
whale meat as a cure for asthma and acne, and distribution of
100,000 comic books depicting the history of the Japanese whal-
ing industry. The history is likely to be inaccurate: contrary to
the industry claim that whaling is part of Japanese cultural tradi-
tion, historian Fujiwara Eiji documented in 1989 that Japanese
commercial whaling actually began in 1909, when a man named
Oka Juro brought the concept and techniques from Norway. His
activity was so detested by traditional fishers that some of them
burned his facilities in 1911.

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Progress for animals used in entertainment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

The Green Mountain Race Track in
Pownal, Vermont, the only greyhound track in
the state, announced December 30 that it
would not reopen due to financial losses.
January 24, villagers at Manganeses
de la Polvorsa dropped a goat only 30 feet
rather than from the full height of the church
tower during one of Spain’s most notorious
religious festivals. “This is not a victory,”
said longtime protester Vicki Moore.

Woofs and growls…

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Fed up with nonprofit executives who hide the size of
their salaries by dividing them among related groups who file sepa-
rate returns, the Internal Revenue Service asks on the 1992 Form
990, “Did any officer, director, trustee, or key employee receive
aggregate compensation of more than $100,000 from your organiza-
tion and all related organizations, of which more than $10,000 was
provided by the related organization?” If the answer is yes, detailed
explanations are required.
The Senate Select Committee on Prisoners of War and
Missing In Action Affairs has recommended that the IRS should
crack down on charities who report fundraising costs as “educational”
program expenses. This would affect many animal-related charities;
see the notes accompanying the financial tables on over 60 national
groups published in the December 1992 and January/February issues
of ANIMAL PEOPLE. (Copies are still available at $2.00 each.)

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