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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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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Animal Health & Behavior

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Studying the relationship between brain evolution and the death of fetal cells, University of
Tennessee researcher Dr. Robert Williams has discovered that cat species seem to have an unusual capacity for
fast biological adaptation to suit their circumstances. All mammals seem to select adaptive capabilities through
the death of up to half of their neural brain cells just before birth, enabling the remainder to grow, but cats shed as
many as 80% of their fetal neurons––and this explains the key differences between domestic cat brains and those
of Spanish wildcats. Williams studied the brains of domestic cats and Spanish wildcats who had been euthanized
due to illness and/or injury.

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Zoos & Aquariums

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

The American Association of
Zoological Parks and Aquariums
announced November 6 that it would rein-
state the accreditation of the Columbus Zoo
in Columbus, Ohio, effective January 1.
The zoo and former director Jack Hanna
were suspended in April for violating the
AAZPA code of ethics by importing two
pandas from China for an exhibit that closed
in September after attracting 925,000 of the
zoo’s 1.5 million visitors. AAZPA con-
tends––along with most other wildlife pro-
tection advocates––that China’s panda
rentals are not in the best interest of either
the species or the individual animals. A
week after the AAZPA announcement, the
Columbus Zoo executive committee named
Hanna “director emeritus” and replaced him
with longtime general manager Gerald
Borin.

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Wildlife

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

The World Wildlife Fund and
the National Wildlife Federation on
November 13 asked Interior Secretary
Manuel Lujan to impose trade sanctions on
China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Yemen
for permitting traffic in rhinocerous horns.
The wild black rhino population has plunged
from 65,000 to 2,000 since 1970.
The California condor who was
found dead October 8 suffered kidney fail-
ure from drinking antifreeze, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service has determined. The
condor was one of the first two to be
released into the wild after an intensive cap-
tive breeding program. Sixty-two California
condors remain in captivity, six of whom
are scheduled for release this month.

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Fur

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

The Dutch Advertising
Standards Authority has upheld allega-
tions of misleading advertising leveled
against the fur trade by the anti-fur group
Bont Voor Diren [Fur For Animals.] The
Standards Authority ruled that,
“Considering the way fur is being produced,
by means of unnatural catch in the wild
often by means of a leghold trap, fur farms,
and as byproduct of factory farming for the
production of meat, it cannot be maintained
that fur is ‘ecological’…According to the
judgement of the authority, the production
of fur has nothing to do with the natural
relations that exist between animals and the
environment they live in. Nor can the pro-
cessing of fur be called ecological or envi-
ronmentally friendly, since materials are
used that damage the environment.” Earlier,
the Standards Authority ruled that the fur
trade couldn’t describe the welfare of ani-
mals on fur farms as “excellent.”

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Performing Animals

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

Greyhound racing profits in New England
are sharply down, hurt in part by publicity surrounding
abuse cases at the Lakes Region, Green Mountain, and
Raynham raceways. Betting at Raynham was off 9%
this year from last, and down 26% from the peak
reached in 1989. Receipts at the Plainfield raceway
were down 22% from last year. Some New England
trainers have begun sending their dogs to Brazil, where
greyhound racing is just catching on.
The American Humane Association has given
the Warner Brothers film Pure Country a “questionable”
rating because of rodeo scenes. The film stars George
Strait and Leslie Ann Warren.
An occasional novelty since the 1930s,
female bullfighters are now the rage in Spanish rings.
One, 20-year-old Cristina Sanchez, is expected to
become the first Spanish woman to achieve the rank of
matador.

CHILDREN & ANIMALS

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

Serbian soldier Borislav Herak, 21, who may
become the first person executed for war crimes since 1945,
told New York Times reporter John Burns in November that
senior personnel taught him to kill by having him assist in
cutting pigs’ throats. Herak is charged with murdering 29
Moslem civilians between July and late October, and has
confessed to participating in more than 220 murders––most
of the victims women and children, many of them killed in
connection with rape. Herak, captured in mid-November
by Bosnian troops, goes to trial this month.
The first known controlled clinical trial of thera-
py and education involving animals, conducted by the
University of Pennsylvania, has confirmed what pet therapy
and classroom pet advocates have insisted all along: that
children learn more readily in the presence of other species.

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