A victory for Tasmania and pigs, or: a change for Australia

Well that's good news! I'd like to think it was my letter, but I assume it was a critical mass ...

Dear Rachel, Today marks an extraordinary day for pigs. It’s days like these that we are reminded that with hard work and persistence, comes results. In this case — the first state-based commitment to phase out one of the cruellest practices in Australia...

This historic development would never have been possible without the support of Animals Australia’s members. Thank You. Animals Australia relies entirely on public donations. Please give generously to support our ongoing efforts to free animals from needless cruelty. ABOVE: Animals Australia in conjunction with Brightside Farm Sanctuary recently placed a series of high impact print advertisements in three state-wide newspapers, bringing Minister Green face to face with the animals he had the opportunity to help. TIP: Visit AnimalsAustralia.org, or our Facebook page to see other recent campaign initiatives. Following a state-wide newspaper advertising blitz by Animals Australia and Brightside Farm Sanctuary, Tasmania's Primary Industries Minister Bryan Green announced in parliament today (June 10th 2010) that he will ban cruel sow stalls in the state! Pigs are among the most intelligent species on the planet, and yet have been subjected to one of the cruellest practices ever inflicted on animals in Australia. 'Sow stalls' are typically used in factory farming operations across the country to confine and isolate mother pigs during pregnancy. The national Code of Practice permits these animals to be confined in tiny crates, unable even to turn around for months on end, denying them exercise and any quality of life. As a result, pigs suffer painful physical ailments and even depression. Recently the Tasmanian Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (AWAC) recognised the unacceptable cruelty permitted by the flawed national code, and recommended to Primary Industries Minister Bryan Green that Tasmania take a leading role to become the first state to outlaw the cruel practice of confining sows in stalls. Animals Australia’s representative on the AWAC provided crucial input on the scientific and ethical arguments against confining sows in tiny stalls. Despite heavy lobbying from Australia's intensive pork industry, Minister Green has accepted this recommendation, encouraged by a flood of supportive letters and e-mails from thousands of caring Animals Australia supporters. This significant development, along with the recent announcement by Australia's largest piggery to voluntarily phase out sow stalls, could never have happened without Animals Australia's investigations, media exposés, and high profile public awareness campaigns. Consistent with international precedents, the Tasmanian government will implement a phase out of sow stalls with a total ban in 2017. Therefore it is crucial that Animals Australia continues to highlight to consumers in Tasmania and throughout Australia that they have the power to help these animals right now by refusing to purchase factory farmed products. In addition, we will be lobbying other state governments to follow the precedent established in Tasmania. Please help us maintain our high impact campaigns on behalf of animals. Hope is finally on the horizon for these intelligent animals thanks to the committed support of our members. You can help us bring about change even sooner by donating today. Thank you for being a voice for animals, Lyn White Animals Australia Communication Director P.S. If you have friends who love animals please tell them about Animals Australia. Our small team of campaigners ensure that animals in need get maximum value out of every precious dollar donated to us. With greater support, more important outcomes like this will become possible.

Tasmania could lead the way, or: banning sow stalls

I received the following email from Animals Australia. My response is below, and I urge you to do the same. This is an ooprtunity for one state to forge ahead in making positive changes to the welfare of pigs - someone must be first. 

Dear Rachel,

I'm writing to you today to share with you some wonderfully hopeful news, and also to ask for a small favour on behalf of thousands of needy animals.

Your critical support of our campaign to end factory farming has helped create the groundswell that has made it possible for the first Australian state government to consider a legislative ban on the use of sow stalls.

As you may know, the 'sow stall' represents one of the cruellest practices ever inflicted on pigs in Australia. Already banned in the U.K. and in parts of Europe, these cruel concrete and metal crates imprison mother pigs so severely that they cannot even turn around. Here in Australia, laws currently permit pregnant sows to be left in this debilitating state for months at a time.

In an incredibly positive move, Tasmania’s Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (AWAC) recently recommended that Tasmania become the first state to ban the use of sow stalls on the basis of unacceptable cruelty. The decision to accept the recommendation now rests with one man: Primary Industries Minister Bryan Green.

The pig industry is hard at work lobbying Minister Green to ignore science that clearly reveals how pigs suffer physically and emotionally inside stalls. They would rather continue the practice of confining pigs in stalls indefinitely. So who will speak up for the pigs?

Animals Australia in collaboration with Tasmanian-based member society Brightside Farm Sanctuary have responded in force by placing a series of 18 high-impact ads across three state-wide newspapers that will bring the Tasmanian Primary Industries Minister face to face with the very animals he has the opportunity to help. You can view the ads here.

Right now it is critical that Minister Green be reminded that all caring Australians are appalled by animal cruelty and will enthusiastically support a ban on cruel sow stalls — which brings me to that favour I wanted to ask you...

You can help us bring about this important outcome by sending a personal e-mail to Minister Green to urge him to accept AWAC's recommendation to ban sow stalls in Tasmania. Your message need only be a few short lines. His address is: bryan.green@parliament.tas.gov.au

Thank you dearly for your ongoing support. A few minutes of your time today could help end a lifetime of suffering for animals.

For the pigs, 

Lyn White

Dear Minister,

I write to urge you to accept the recommendation of Tasmania's Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (AWAC) that Tasmania ban the use of sow stalls on the basis of unacceptable cruelty.

The United Kingdom and Europe have also recognised that the confinement of pregnant sows in a conrete and metal crate for months at a time without room to turn around constitutes severe cruelty.

It is scientifically well established that pigs are animals with significant levels of intelligence and emotion, much the same as that of a dog. Their technical classification as farm animals is insufficient justification to allow treatment of them that we would not accept if applied to domestic animals and our pets. 

The pig industry will attempt to reduce the severity of suffering experienced by sows, and present economic arguments to continue current practices. I strongly urge you to consider instead the moral imperative that each of us bears to uphold acceptable standards of welfare for animals under our care. 

I hope very much that Tasmania will lead the nation in banning this unecessary, cruel and inhumane practice.

Yours faithfully,

Miss T

Kerry Greenwood's latest book 'Forbidden Fruit' - thoughts and an invitation, or: an open letter

Dear Kerry,

I write as a long time fan of both the Phryne Fisher and Corinna Chapman books. One thing that I have always admired about both series, particularly Earthly Delights, is the sensible and inclusive way that you handle people and groups who are often misunderstood by society - Wiccans, S&M, recovering addicts, goths and the homeless for example.

I was surprised to read the portrayal of vegans and animals rights groups in Forbidden Fruit. While I understand that artistic licence can be invoked for literary means, I found the portrayal of the motivations, philosophies and people confusing and disappointing.

I am vegan and focus very heavily on making sure that my decisions and ethical positions are reasonable, rational and accessible to others. Even the most 'extreme' liberationists I know, of which there are very few compared to the mainstream midground, fall well short of the characters in the book. I am concerned that these characters, untempered by some exposition on what most vegans are really like, perpetuate the myth that we are all foaming-at-the-mouth fanatics about to launch ourselves over the dinner table to wrestle the steak from your fork. We really do cop a lot of criticism from the uninformed and the belligerent, and we work very hard to engage and explain to the interested.

I was surprised that there was no point at which any reasons for veganism were put forward even in explanation, even though these reasons range from animal liberation to welfare to environmentalism to health. There are as many reasons to be vegan as there are vegans, but I didn't read anything that might imply that these reasons might be valid and rational. Vegans do not eat, wear or consume animal products not because we are slightly unhinged and extremists, but because we care deeply about animals, the environment and our health, and because we have thought deeply and carefully about our decision. I would have loved to have seen some acknowledgement of this in the book, even in a small way to counteract the perception that we are all Sarahs and hopeful cannibals, or Janeens who secretly crave and sneak dairy.

And we love food! I am yet to meet a vegan who is not obsessed with food and, particularly, baking. We have regular potlucks and most of us blog about food too. I would love to suggest a few blogs that you might consider reading, if you might be interested in reading a little of what we do (and cook)? I attach a list below, as well as some sites which try to explain why we feel that eggs and dairy are just as objectionable as meat, which seemed to be a sticking point in the book.

I would also like to extend an open, and very warm, invitation to you to attend one of our potlucks. I promise that the food will be delicious, and the company unextreme! We love to share our food and cooking with one another and recent triumphs include tiramisu, sausage rolls, tequila cupcakes, savoury watermelon salad and (my own) peanut butter ice cream. We would love for you to come along; we have a great community and appreciate the opportunity to share it. You would be most welcome at any time.

With thanks for two wonderful series of books, and in hope that you will have a read of our blogs and perhaps admire the baking,

Warm regards,

Rachel

PS: I am writing this as an open letter and publishing it on my blog in the interests of my own transparency. Please feel free to respond publicly too.


Blog roll:
www.misstprincessvegan.blogspot.com (my own blog)
www.bluerthanpink.blogspot.com (Kristy)
www.cupcakekitteh.blogspot.com (Mandee)
www.lisadempster.com.au (Lisa)
www.fairestfeed.blogspot.com (Pip)
www.veganabouttown.blogspot.com (Steph)
www.veganyumyum.com (USA - Lolo)
www.herestheveg.blogspot.com (Cindy and Michael)
www.theppk.com (USA: website of vegan chefs with massive baking component)

Other sites:
www.animalsaustralia.org
www.voiceless.org.au

Don't bet on cruelty, or: think twice about the Spring Racing Carnival (please).

More videos from Animals Australia

It is spring in Melbourne. Windows flourish with floaty dresses, floral adornments, teetering shoes. The city is chattering with fascinators, hats, gloves, heels, dresses, marquees, sport of kings, trifectas, quadrellas, win or place, and who got the favourite in the sweeptakes. People plan their outfits, their picnics, their drinks. David Jones is a jungle of sky-high floristy and the sun shines and the horses race and we all get a public holiday and drink a lot of champagne.

The Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival is here, and I had planned and wanted very much to write a well-researched, well-argued essay about horse racing and its cruelties. This didn’t happen with life and work and family and so on, so instead I am posting a video from Animals Australia which is sad, not too graphic, and very very real.

The race season can be fun with all the dressing up, sunshine and champagne. It’s easy to hear why it’s all so enjoyable

“The horses love it!”

“They were bred to run!”

“They’re worth millions!”

“Its good for our tourism!”

“It’s good for our economy!”

“I wish I could retire to stud!”

“They’re an investment; they’re treated well!”

and easy to forget

the jockeys too who fall and break bones and die

the horses who fall and break bones and inevitably shot

the road to the knackery upon retirement for all but the luckiest who go to stud

how many horses are not good enough to race and are slaughtered before they
even make it on to the track

the horses who can remain 22 hours a day in a stall, fed periodically and denied the right to graze in the open as a part of a herd

the way that we have bred thoroughbreds so far from a natural state that their bones break and shatter under the pressure of the race

This isn’t right; it’s cruel and unnatural and just because it involves frocking up and drinking bubbly doesn’t make it fun.

Just because the aim of the game isn’t the death of the animal, like in dogfighting or cockfighting, doesn’t make this any less cruel – they will live in misery and eventually they will all be killed and be forgotten and we will continue to bet on their lives.

This Spring Racing Carnival, please look behind the flash and glamour. Don’t bet on cruelty.

A Bit of Shameless Promtion, or: I am an easily influenced shopper!

Mandee over at Cupcake Kitteh has posted a fabulous item about helping to raise money for Animals Australia by purchasing their Lamb and Pig plushies - seeing as her post made me immediately go and buy one of each and make a donation, I hope that by putting it up here too someone else will be similarly inspired!

They're cute, huh (and totally vegan)!

Have a look at Mandee's post over here: www.cupcakekitteh.blogspot.com

... and have a look at the awesome work done by Animals Australia here (and buy something!): www.animalsaustralia.sansolo.com