Chicago, New Jersey, Macon: Model animal control programs meet fiscal reality; SHORT-TERM SAVINGS MAY MEAN LONG-TERM TROUBLE

June 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, June 1993:

CHICAGO, Ill., SPRINGFIELD, N.J., and MACON, Ga.–– The financial pres-

sures of the 1990s threaten to undo the model animal population control programs envisioned in

the late 1980s, just as their benefits are beginning to be realized.

The budgetary ax fell first and hardest in Los Angeles, California, where on July 1,

1992, the city closed the public low-cost neutering clinics that helped cut animal control pickups

from 144,000 in 1970 to 87,000 in 1991, even as the estimated city pet population rose by 21%.

Euthanasia rates were cut proportionately. Animal control officials estimated that for every dollar

What we’ve learned from feral cats

June 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, June 1993:

SHUSHAN, New York––If the ANIMAL PEO-

PLE headquarters were the space station in Star Trek: Deep

Space Nine, old Bull the former feral cat would be

Constable Odo. Battle-scarred as a pirate, he lived most of

his life in a wrecked car in the slum district of a struggling

Connecticut mill town. He hates and fears humanity. And

he’s the walking refutation of almost everything anyone has

ever believed about tough tomcats.

As ANIMAL PEOPLE publisher Kim Bartlett

puts it, “Bull would be moral by human standards.” Despite

his piratical appearance, he observes rules of conduct gen-

erally believed to be beyond feline comprehension. From

our first introduction to Bull, we’ve been repeatedly con-

founded by his altruism, his rigid respect for law and order,

and his courage in what could only be described as moral

dilemnas.

If they only knew

June 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, June 1993:

A recent survey commissioned by the

Connecticut Attorney General found that of 805

randomly selected state residents, 55% said they

would support a charity only if administrative and

fundraising costs were kept below 20% of the

charity’s total budget––a standard most charities

would fail but for accounting rules that allow many

to write off fundraising expenses as “public educa-

tion.” A ceiling of 30% would be more realistic,

and the National Charities Information Bureau sets

the ceiling for accreditation at 40%.

OBITUARIES

June 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, June 1993:

Mycologist Catherine Roberts

died on April 12. Roberts received her

Ph.D. at the University of California at

Berkeley in 1943. A pioneer in affirming

the ethical responsibility of humans toward

animals, Roberts published her book The

Scientific Conscience in 1967. This book

contained one of the earliest criticisms by a

respected scientist of such experiments as

the maternal deprivation studies done on

infant monkeys. Roberts was also author of

many articles on behalf of animals, and

another book, Science, Animals and

Evolution, which appeared in 1980. In this,

Obituaries

BOOKS: Natural Healing for Dogs and Cats.

June 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, June 1993:

Natural Healing for Dogs and Cats. B y

Diane Stein, The Crossing Press (P.O. Box 1048,

Freedom, CA 95019; 800-777-1048), 1993, 186 pages,

paper $16.95.

One American in three resorts to alternative health

care methods for some ailments, the New England Journal

of Medicine reported in January. Recognizing the potential

value of some alternative treatments, the National Institutes

of Health recently formed an Office of Alternative

Medicine, with an initial budget of $2 million. Yet the

availability of similar therapies for companion animals has

received relatively little attention. Pat Lazarus raised the

possibility in her 1983 volume Keep Your Pet Healthy The

Natural Way, and a few alternative-oriented veterinarians

such as Richard Kearns have attracted faithful followings,

but perhaps because there are few health food stores for ani-

mals, interest has been comparatively slow to develop.

Horses and Cattle

May 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 1993:

Senator Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) and Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-New York) have reintroduced the Downed Animal Protection Act, as S. 367 and H.R. 559, which would require stockyards to promptly euthanize sick and injured animals. Support for the measure may be addressed to Senators and Congressional Representatives.

The American Horse Protection Association’s sixth annual training seminar for equine cruelty investiga-

tors will be held May 20-21 at College Park, Maryland. Get details from Ellen Foysyth, 202-965-0500.

Norma Bearcroft, president of the Canadian Wild Horse Society, has asked members to approve a resolution to disband the struggling group by year’s end.

CHILDREN AND ANIMALS

May 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 1993:

The National Institutes of Health is now distrib-

uting seven sets of Let’s Visit a Research Laboratory Lesson

Plans free to public schools and to anyone else on request.

“Even though the Michigan Humane Society agrees with

legitimate uses of animals in biomedical research,” MHS

lobbyist Eileen Liska told U.S. Senator Carl Levin in a

recent letter of protest, “these are clearly an example of bla-

tantly one-sided pro-animal research propaganda, and as

such are an inappropriate use of tax dollars. The brochures

do not portray the scientific and ethical complexities of ani-

mal research. I have found a disturbing number of factual

errors in the texts. And also please notice how the refer-

ences at the end of each lesson plan are equally one-

sided––especially the frequency with which the National

Association for Biomedical Research and Foundation for

Biomedical Research are referenced. These are special

interest organizations with sizeable budgets for promoting

their viewpoint. There is no justication for allowing the NIH

to use limited federal funds,” supposed to be spent on pro-

moting public health, “to help such special interests.” The

lesson plans are available from Public Inquiries, National

Institute of Mental Health, NIH, Room 15C-05, 5600

Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857.

The dream that haunts Vic Koppelberger by Donna Robb

May 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 1993:

The dream that haunts Vic Koppelberger came to

him 30 years ago, and changed his life.

“I stood in a room before all the animals I ever

shot,” Koppelberger remembers. “They were lined up and

staring at me. It was my judgement day.”

Koppelberger, now 75, never hunted again.

He had the dream shortly after a disturbing hunt-

ing experience. Using a stuffed owl as a decoy,

Koppelberger and his game warden hunting companion hid

in the woods at the edge of a clearing. The owl, perched on

a stump, attracted crows who dive-bombed the stuffed

enemy. The crows made easy targets.

HUNTING

May 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 1993:

The Wildlife Legislative Fund of

America, a hunting and trapping lobby,

recently sneaked an amendment to the 1994-

1995 Ohio Department of Natural Resources

budget through the state House of

Representatives that would raise $450,000 a

year for a subsidiary, the Wildlife Conserv-

ation Fund of America, through a 25¢ sur-

charge on the sale of hunting, fishing, and

trapping licenses. The amendment was intro-

duced by representative Ronald Amstutz, at

request of WLF director Tom Addis. After the

proposed diversion of public money to a spe-

cial interest lobby became known, Amstutz

claimed it was all a mistake. “I was misin-

formed,” he told Michael Sangiacomo of the

Cleveland Plain Dealer. “I thought it was a

small raise for the people who write the licens-

es. I made certain assumptions, and apparent-

ly I was wrong. I never looked at the lan-

guage.” ODNR legislative liasion Scott Zody

said his agency “did not ask for” the amend-

ment, “and does not support it.”

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