IDA e-news: 8/31/05

1. IDA's Guardian of the Month for September
2. IDA Joins Conservation Education Effort in Guyana
3. IDA and PETA Bring Elephant Expert Dr. Joyce Poole to Chicago
4. Urge Oklahoma Governor to End Prison Rodeo
5. IDA Offers Two Scholarships to National Feral Cat Summit
6. Hurricane Katrina: Animal Disaster Relief Teams to the Rescue


1. IDA's Guardian of the Month for September
Founder and President of Hospice and Rehabilitation Center Cares For Sick and Injured Animals

When Susan Marino founded Angel's Gate Hospice and Rehabilitation Center for Animals in 1992, her vision was to create a place where animals with special needs would be cared for, wanted and loved. Animals relinquished by their human companions or by shelters because of medical reasons often have no place to go. Today, because of Susan's determination, animals with special needs have a home in Long Island, New York where they can live out their lives.

Angel's Gate is a first-of-its-kind residential hospice for animals, as well as a wildlife rehabilitation center. The Center cares for over 200 animals of various species, many of whom suffer from cancer, liver or kidney disease, paralysis, blindness, deafness, diabetes, neurological or seizure disorders, orthopedic or geriatric problems, or other illnesses. Susan's experience as a Licensed Veterinary Technician and a Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner enables her to provide ongoing treatment and therapy for these animals and help restore mobility to those struggling with physical challenges. In doing this challenging work, she also draws on her background as a Registered Nurse who worked for more than three decades in emergency and critical care, mental health, and the care of critically and terminally ill children and their families. In addition, Susan practices many forms of holistic healing and animal communication that enhance her ability to aid in the recovery process.

Angel's Gate is also committed to community service and education. The Center sponsors a program to teach elementary school children about animals and reverence for all life, as well as a popular work/study program that allows high school students to earn academic credits for volunteering. Patients from the Long Island Head Injury Association have been volunteering at Angel's Gate for over two years, which really seems to help them and the animals. In fact, working with the animals at Angel's Gate has such a positive impact that the Center continually receives requests to give more young people an opportunity to experience it. Last year, the Center began a volunteer program for emotionally disturbed school children, and the Suffolk County Court System recently asked them to work with juvenile delinquents.

When she's not taking care of her animal patients or educating Long Island youth, Susan is out spreading the word about Angel's Gate and all the animals who need our help. She conducts classes and workshops in various subjects of animal care, gives lectures, appears frequently on radio and TV programs, and writes for national publications. Susan is the author of the book "Getting Lucky: How One Special Dog Found Love and a Second Chance at Angel's Gate," and is currently writing a book on hospice care for animals due out next spring.

Angel's Gate is a non-profit organization, and does not charge for hospice care or animal rehabilitation: their capacity to help animals depends solely on supporter contributions. To learn more about them or send a donation in support of their work, please visit http://www.angelsgate.org .


2. IDA Joins Conservation Education Effort in Guyana
Eco-Tourism Enterprise Ends Hunting and Preserves Fragile Ecosystem

IDA is proud to announce the beginning of a new traveling education program that we are starting in collaboration with the Jane Goodall Institute's Roots and Shoots Program and the World Parrot Trust. We have collectively purchased a sturdy secondhand Land Rover to be outfitted with a TV, DVD player and generator to visit remote villages in Guyana and teach them about conservation.

Central to this effort will be educating villagers about an important eco-tourism venture now being established in Nappi Village. The rescue and adoption organization Foster Parrots helped the villagers of Nappi develop an eco-tourism business complete with lodging for eight. In exchange, the village pledged to end the hunting of all wildlife for the export trade and to protect the fragile forests around them from logging.

The film that tells the story of this enterprise will be shown in many villages using the mobile video unit. Hopefully, villagers will use this example as a model for establishing their own earth-friendly eco-tourism ventures. The film will also be shown to American school children to encourage them to raise funds to help the Guyanese preserve their ecosystem.


3. IDA and PETA Bring Elephant Expert Dr. Joyce Poole to Chicago
Amboseli Elephant Research Project Director Speaks at City Council's Parks & Recreation Committee Hearing

Over the last year, the Lincoln Park Zoo (LPZ) in Chicago has come under fire after the premature deaths of three elephants at the facility. The 36-year old Wankie, who died during an attempted transfer to another zoo, is only the latest elephant to succumb to the poor conditions and lack of space at LPZ. That's why city officials are now considering legislation that could prevent any more tragic elephant deaths from occurring in Chicago. A new ordinance, introduced by Alderwoman Mary Ann Smith, would increase the amount of space zoos and circuses would need to provide for elephant exhibits to ensure the animals' welfare.

At a recent City Council hearing on the matter, city officials and residents heard the testimony of Dr. Joyce Poole, an elephant expert with over 30 years of experience working with elephants at the Amboseli Elephant Research Project. She presented an authoritative case against using animals for entertainment, emphasizing the inherent problems that result from substandard conditions. According to Dr. Poole, zoos and circuses simply cannot provide enough space for exercise or the development of large social groups, causing psychological stress and physical illness.

The meeting was also attended by dozens of elephant advocates wearing green t-shirts reading "Kindness to Elephants." There was standing room only in a space that can comfortably seat 100 people, with elephant supporters overflowing into the hallway. Plus, reporters from seven newspapers and five television stations covered the story.

What You Can Do

- Click http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-ele26.html to read an article about the hearing that appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times.

- If you live in Chicago, please contact RaeLeann Smith at RaeLeann [at] nmedia.net to learn how you can help pass the Elephant Protection Ordinance.


4. Urge Oklahoma Governor to End Prison Rodeo
Rodeo Violence Contradicts Prison System's Mandate to Reform and Rehabilitate

The Oklahoma State Penitentiary's (OSP) Annual Outlaw Rodeo touts itself as "The World's Largest Behind the Walls Rodeo!" The event is sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association, and brings inmates from OSP and professional riders from across the country together to compete for points and money at the animals' expense.

Rodeos are condemned by every major animal protection organization for their violence. The horses, bulls, and calves used in competition are roped, electrically shocked, and wrestled so roughly that they routinely suffer severe injuries, including fractured spines, paralysis, and internal bleeding.

Promoting violence is inappropriate for a prison whose mission is to reform and rehabilitate criminals, more than 56 percent of whom are incarcerated for violent offenses. Violence is violence, whether it's committed against humans or non-human animals. In fact, the majority of inmates on death row at California's San Quentin penitentiary "practiced" their crimes on animals before moving on to humans. Instead of a rodeo, the prison should have therapeutic programs that allow inmates to care for animals.

What You Can Do

Ask Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry, OSP Warden Mike Mullin, and the McAlester Chamber of Commerce to ban the rodeo from Oklahoma prisons. Here is a sample letter to get you started:

Dear (decision maker),

Please reconsider the plan to hold a rodeo at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary (OSP) because it will help neither the prisoners nor the animals.

Rodeos are violent events that should not take place in a prison whose mission is to reform and rehabilitate aggressive individuals. FBI profilers have found that many violent offenders learn how to hurt and kill by "practicing" their crimes on animal victims. A rodeo sends the message that the prison - and the State - condones violence against animals.

Rather than sponsoring an aggressive, exploitive competition, OSP must help inmates learn to respect themselves, other people, and other species. Instead of a rodeo, please consider initiating therapeutic programs in the prison that allow inmates to care for animals. This will truly help integrate them back into society.

Thank you,

Your Name
City of Residence

Contact:

Governor Brad Henry
State Capitol
2300 N. Lincoln Blvd., Rm. 212
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
Tel: (405) 521-2342
http://www.governor.state.ok.us/message.php (Web form)

Mike Mullin, Warden
Oklahoma State Penitentiary
P.O. Box 97
McAlester, OK 74502-0097
Tel: (918) 423-4700

McAlester Area Chamber of Commerce & Agriculture
10 S. Third St.
McAlester, OK 74501
Tel: (918) 423-2550
http://www.mcalester.org/index.cfm?link=contactus (Web form)


5. IDA Offers Two Scholarships to National Feral Cat Summit
Read On For Your Chance to Win!

IDA is offering two scholarships to the National Feral Cat Summit 2005 in Philadelphia on October 15th. They include entrance to all programs and a hot vegan lunch. The Scholarships will be awarded to the first two people who confirm they will attend. Just send an email to summit [at] neighborhoodcats.org and list "IDA Scholarship" in the subject line. That's it. Good luck!

The 2nd Annual National Feral Cat Summit
IDA is proud to co-sponsor this one-day conference featuring presentations and workshops by feral cat experts and Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) leaders from around the country. Presenters include Esther Mechler (SPAY USA), Dr. Margaret Slater (Texas A&M University professor), Kit Jenkins (PETsMART Charities), Anitra Frazier (author of "The New Natural Cat"), Bryan Kortis (Neighborhood Cats) and IDA's Valerie Sicignano. The Summit will also include a film screening, "How to Conduct a Mass Trapping," drop-trap demonstrations and an exhibit hall. For a complete event program and to purchase tickets, visit http://www.neighborhoodcats.org .


6. Hurricane Katrina: Animal Disaster Relief Teams to the Rescue
Funds are Urgently Needed to Save Animals from Storm's Destruction

Hurricane Katrina continues to wreak havoc across the southern U.S. Blowing winds of 135 mph and flooding whole communities, the storm has already claimed scores of lives, and that number is expected to climb into the hundreds. Over a million people have been forced to evacuate their homes and seek refuge elsewhere, with family or in crisis centers. If your family must leave your home to avoid the hurricane, please be sure to take your animals with you to ensure their safety.

Located in Grenada, Miss., IDA's Project Hope sanctuary sits in the northern half of the state about midway between the Capital, Jackson, and Memphis, Tenn. Grenada had a lot of rain and high winds, but was spared the full brunt of the hurricane that struck the southern part of the state along the Gulf of Mexico. The sanctuary still suffered about $5,000 in damages from fallen branches, broken fences, and some doghouses being ripped by the wind from their concrete foundations. Thankfully, all of the animals there are fine. Hotels in Grenada are filled with evacuees from areas blasted by the storm, many accompanied by their animal companions.

With the sanctuary safe in the hands of Sonya and Heather, Project Hope Director Doll Stanley and a team of four rescuers have gone to a massive staging area at the County Fairgrounds in Jackson to join in the efforts of Mississippi Emergency Response for Animals (MEPA) and the Disaster Animal Response Team (DART) to help animals there. The city's relief center is filled with people and animals (mostly from Gulfport, Miss. and Louisiana) who had to evacuate their homes. The Project Hope team reports that though many of these families may have lost their homes and all their possessions to the storm, they express gratitude for the kindness that rescuers have shown them and their animal companions, which include cats, dogs, birds, pot bellied pigs, a goat and a ferret. Others are bringing in strays off the street, and over 100 animals are at the rescue center at present.

Much of Jackson is flooded, and most areas have no electricity, yet emergency animal rescue teams continue to arrive at the relief center from different places, and are preparing to conduct rescues in impacted areas to the south. Right now, gaining access to flooded areas is difficult, and only human rescue teams are being let in to conduct search and rescue operations. With so much work yet to be done, the Project Hope team plans to spend several weeks in Jackson, but Doll will also conduct cruelty investigations as needed. They have been sleeping on bags of dog food in a big open barn at the relief center, keeping the most frightened animals nearby for comfort. Fortunately, Doll convinced PETsMART to donate $3,000 worth of supplies for the rescue operation. The carriers and crates supplied by PETsMART are being used to house animals at the rescue center, as well as to transport animals to shelters and foster homes.

We at IDA mourn this tragedy with the rest of the country, and hope for the safety of everyone affected by the disaster. We also offer condolences to those who have lost loved ones. Hundreds of people have lost family members to the storm, including many beloved companion animals. The hurricane's devastation shows us how important it is to plan ahead for the safety of animal companions in case of emergency. Do you know what you would do if disaster struck? Where would you take your animals? Do you have enough food and water stored away? Who would check on your animals if you were away from home during a disaster? Your animal friends' life could depend on your answers to these questions. For your safety and that of those who depend on you, be sure to have a plan for preparedness should disaster strike your area.

What You Can Do

- Get up to speed on safety by visiting United Animal Nations' Emergency Animal Rescue Services (EARS) website at http://www.ears.org .

- Donate to IDA's Hurricane Katrina Animal Relief Fund to support our rescue efforts in Jackson. See below for more details.


Support IDA's Hurricane Relief Efforts

In December 2004, much of southern Asia was devastated by a tsunami that took the lives of more than 150,000 people. Hundreds of thousands of animals were also killed in the disaster, and many who lost their guardians were left homeless. IDA took an active role in helping these animals, donating funds to animal rescue and relief organizations in the area and encouraging our members to support these important efforts with much-needed donations.

Now Hurricane Katrina has hit our own country, and IDA is again taking action to help the storm's victims. Project Hope Director Doll Stanley and her team of animal rescuers have gone to Jackson, Miss. to join the rescue efforts there. They are doing all they can to ensure the safety of animal companions brought to Jackson by their guardians to escape the hurricane. Please help us support their crucial work by donating to IDA's Hurricane Katrina Animal Relief Fund. Money is needed for transportation, to feed animals and volunteers, and to repair the damage done by the storm at the Project Hope sanctuary. IDA also hopes to build up an emergency animal relief fund so that we will be able to respond immediately whenever disaster strikes.

IDA will give any funds that exceed the Project Hope team's expenses directly to the Louisiana SPCA in New Orleans, which has been hit hard by the storm. To donate, send checks made payable to IDA with a note reading "for hurricane relief" to:

In Defense of Animals
131 Camino Alto
Mill Valley, CA 94941

Click https://secure.ga3.org/02/idadonations to donate online using your credit card. Please indicate "hurricane" in the first name field in the "in honor of" section of the form.