When a horse needs help

March 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – –

Held the weekend of February 6-7, the First

International Conference on Equine Rescue

could have run days longer, in Rich Meyer’s

estimation. As horse expert for the

American Humane Association, Meyer

knows horse rescue ranks among most shel-

ter directors’ and animal control officers’

worst nightmares. First, there’s the sheer

size and strength of the animal to contend

with. Second, where there’s one starving or

abused horse, there are usually several.

Third, shelters set up to handle dogs and

cats usually don’t have facilities for live-

stock: big trailers, paddocks, pastures.

Their regular veterinarians tend to be small

animal specialists. And their budgets aren’t

easily stretched to accommodate the special

needs and appetites of equines.

Vivisection

March 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 1993:

Physicians for Human Rights on February 6 asked the American Medical

Association to lead a probe of how German medical doctor Hans Joachim Sewering, 76,

became president elect of the World Medical Association. Sewering,a member of the Nazi SS

from 1933 until 1945, is accused of complicity in sending 203 people, including children, to

their deaths at Eglfing-Haar, a

euthanasia site for the disabled.

Ironically, the WMA was formed in

1947 in response to Nazi medical

abuses.

Animal Health & Behavior

March 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

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.

BOOKS: Care of the Wild: First Aid for Wild Creatures

December 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

Care of the Wild: First Aid for Wild

Creatures. By William J. Jordan and John

H u g h e s . University of Wisconsin Press (114 N.

Murray St., Madison, WI 53715). 1992. 225 pages.

$11.95 paper; $27.50 cloth.

I’ve never read Care of the Wild all the way

through. I probably should. There are pages of my battered

old 1983 edition that I’ve never read––and pages I’ve read

aloud over the telephone or photocopied many times while

fielding desperate calls from people who have found an

injured this or that and don’t know what to do. Simply put,

Care of the Wild is an invaluable desk reference for anyone

who may encounter wildlife in need of help: wildlife reha-

bilitators, animal control officers, humane societies; any-

one who notices and cares. First published in England, it is

now expanded and updated to more thoroughly cover North

American wildlife, but it did a fairly good job before: I’ve

used it to help other people help opossums, raccoons,

songbirds, rabbits, and deer––who are only a handful of

the species discussed. Care of the Wild won’t replace your

veterinarian, but it will tell you when to call the vet, and

what to do before and afterward.

––Merritt Clifton

Animal Health

December 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons on

November 10 announced that it would ask the British

Parliament to ban routine docking of dogs’ tails as, “an

unjustified mutilation and unethical,” over the objections

of Buckingham Palace. Under the RCVS proposal, vet-

erinarians who perform medically unjustified tail-dock-

ing could lose their licenses. Princess Anne vehemently

defended tail-docking at a recent meeting of the British

Veterinary Medical Association. Of the 7.5 million dogs

in Britain, about 1.3 million have been tail-docked,

mostly by breeders. Among the 185 breeds registered by

the Royal Kennel Club, about 50 are traditionally tail-

docked, including corgis (a royal favorite), boxers,

Dobermans, old English sheep dogs, poodles, and

Rottweilers.

They’ve spayed/neutered 5,000 animals––this year!

December 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

DENVER, Colorado––If people won’t take

their animals to a veterinary clinic for spaying or neuter-

ing, Jeff Young takes the Planned Pethood Plus clinic to

the animals. Working out of a bus, in cooperation with

local humane societies and activist groups, veterinarians

Young and business partner Mark Chamberlain set out

to alter 6,000 animals during 1992; surpassing 5,000 in

mid-November, they were right on pace, Young said.

The humane organizations publicize Young’s arrival in

each community and get the paperwork done in

advance. This enables him to go right to work, per-

forming as many as 32 surgeries per day, at average

fees of $15/tomcat, $20/queen, $25/male dog, and

$35/female dog.

Diet & Health

December 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

Trained on a vegetarian diet by former come-

dian Dick Gregory, challenger Riddick Bowe cut his

weight from 272 pounds to 235, then beat Evander

Holyfield out of the world heavyweight boxing champi-

onship November 13––but celebrated with a meal of fried

chicken. Holyfield’s training diet was heavy on turkey

sandwiches. Fight commentators included defending

world cruiserweight champion Bobby Czyz, who revived

a struggling career after becoming a vegetarian several

years ago. (Other boxers of interest to animal people

include former three-time world heavyweight champion

Muhammed Ali, an outspoken critic of sport hunting,

and former heavyweight champion George Foreman, who

harbors numerous once abused animals adopted from

shelters and sanctuaries, where he makes a point of ask-

ing for, “The ugliest, the ones nobody else will want.”

Editorial: Veterinarians are animal people too

December 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1992:

Veterinarians, as a profession, have a morale problem. It’s not that they don’t love

their work; most do. Dropouts from veterinary work are few, while competition to get into

veterinary schools is intense as ever. The morale problem comes, rather, from feeling

unappreciated. And it isn’t just a matter of not getting enough pats and tail-wags from happy

patients. Increasing numbers of veterinarians are having trouble meeting the sometimes con-

flicting demands of maintaining ethical standards and making a living.

Today’s veterinarians are acutely conscious of ethical issues involving animals.

Witness the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons’ recent stand against docking dogs’ tails

(see page 14); the 1991 survey of University of Missouri veterinary graduates that found

nearly half believe animals have rights and four-fifths believe leghold traps are cruel; the

widespread participation of veterinarians in the Friends of Animals and Spay U.S.A. dis-

count spay/neuter programs; and the emergence of two vet-based animal protection soci-

eties, the American Association of Veterinarians for Animal Welfare and the Association of

Veterinarians for Animal Rights. Volunteers from both were among the first rescuers on the

scene in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew.

Animal Health

November 1, 1992 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1992:

The Centers for Disease

Control revealed October 8 that a 31-

year-old man from Tucson, Arizona, had

become the first human plague fatality in

the U.S. since 1987. The man, who was

not further identified, became infected

when he breathed the same air as a dis-

eased cat he rescued from a crawl space

under a house in Chaffee County,

Colorado, on August 19. He fell ill on

August 21, was hospitalized August 25,

and died August 26, still undiagnosed.

The cat, who also died, apparently got

the plague from a flea-infested chipmunk.

Medicine

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