The Animal Rights Blog

Animal activists suing sheriff's office

A pair of animal-rights groups are suing the Union County Sheriff's Office over its use of a gas chamber to euthanize some animals at the county animal shelter. The lawsuit claims the sheriff's office violates N.C. law against cruel treatment of animals by using carbon monoxide gas to kill sick, injured, very old, very young or pregnant animals brought to the shelter in Monroe. Sheriff Eddie Cathey denied his office, which oversees the shelter, has done anything wrong. "The things we are accused of, the violations of statutes, (are) totally untrue," he said. He declined to elaborate, saying he had not been served with the complaint yet. The lawsuit was filed Friday in Union County District Court. The plaintiffs, the N.C. Coalition for Humane Euthanasia and the Humane Society of Union County, say using a gas chamber violates N.C.

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University Sues Animal Rights Activists

The University of California Regents has sued three animal-rights groups over alleged attacks on researchers who conduct experiments on animals. The suit seeks an injunction against the organizations and five alleged associates to prevent confrontational actions against the scientists. .

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Animal-rights activists invade Europe

A rash of vandalism, intimidation and arson across continental Europe in 2008 is evidence of a worrying new wave of animal-rights extremism being exported from Britain, experts say. In early January, threats led to a Dutch developer withdrawing from a new, €60 million (about US$89 million) biomedical research park in Venray, the Netherlands. To read this story in full you will need to login or make a payment (see right). Comments Reader comments are usually moderated after posting. If you find something offensive or inappropriate, you can speed this process by clicking 'Report this comment' (or, if that doesn't work for you, email redesign@nature.com). For more controversial topics, we reserve the right to moderate before comments are published. There seems to be an assumption when Nature and other science-related publications write of animal rights activity that all your readers will be of one mind: outraged that members of the lay public would actually interfere with whatever action certified scientists wish to take, however cruel.

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Animal-rights activists invade Europe

A rash of vandalism, intimidation and arson across continental Europe in 2008 is evidence of a worrying new wave of animal-rights extremism being exported from Britain, experts say. In early January, threats led to a Dutch developer withdrawing from a new, €60 million (about US$89 million) biomedical research park in Venray, the Netherlands. To read this story in full you will need to login or make a payment (see right). Comments Reader comments are usually moderated after posting. If you find something offensive or inappropriate, you can speed this process by clicking 'Report this comment' (or, if that doesn't work for you, email redesign@nature.com). For more controversial topics, we reserve the right to moderate before comments are published. There seems to be an assumption when Nature and other science-related publications write of animal rights activity that all your readers will be of one mind: outraged that members of the lay public would actually interfere with whatever action certified scientists wish to take, however cruel.

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Animal rights groups urge PGA to act after golfer kills hawk

Tripp Isenhour could be facing charges after an animal rights group called on the PGA Tour to punish him for killing a hawk with a golf shot. The 39-year-old player, whose real name is John Henry Isenhour III, killed the bird after becoming frustrated with its persistent squawking during the filming of his television show Shoot Like A Pro. The incident happened on December 12 at Isenhour's home course, the Grand Cypress Golf Club in Orlando, Florida, and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) are now urging the PGA to launch a full investigation. After becoming angry with the red-shouldered hawk, Isenhour is reported to have driven his golf cart to within 300 metres of the bird before he starting to hit shots at it. However, the bird failed to move and the American gave up and drove away.

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Animal Rights Activists Suing Union County Sheriff’s Office

MONROE, N.C. -- A lawsuit filed in Monroe on Friday asks a judge to stop Union County's animal shelter from killing young, geriatric, injured, sick or pregnant animals in its gas chamber. �We hope to stop the inhumane euthanasia of defenseless animals,� said Sue Ratliff, head of the Humane Society of Union County. Her group and another, the North Carolina Coalition for Humane Euthanasia, are suing Union County. They support lethal injections for euthanasia. Their attorney, Rodney Alexander, said many of the deaths in Union County's gas chamber violate state law. �Union County's sheriff's department, based on documents we've received from them, is euthanizing young, sick, injured, old and pregnant animals in the gas chamber,� Alexander said. �We believe that it's against the law.

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Animal-rights activists invade Europe

A rash of vandalism, intimidation and arson across continental Europe in 2008 is evidence of a worrying new wave of animal-rights extremism being exported from Britain, experts say. In early January, threats led to a Dutch developer withdrawing from a new, €60 million (about US$89 million) biomedical research park in Venray, the Netherlands. To read this story in full you will need to login or make a payment (see right). Comments Reader comments are usually moderated after posting. If you find something offensive or inappropriate, you can speed this process by clicking 'Report this comment' (or, if that doesn't work for you, email redesign@nature.com). For more controversial topics, we reserve the right to moderate before comments are published. There seems to be an assumption when Nature and other science-related publications write of animal rights activity that all your readers will be of one mind: outraged that members of the lay public would actually interfere with whatever action certified scientists wish to take, however cruel.

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Animal rights group urges kindness and respect for rats

"Rats are intelligent, sensitive and friendly animals who bear the brunt of human fears and prejudices," said People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in the Asia-Pacific. The group urged consumers to boycott companies that conduct "cruel experiments" on rats, mentioning several candy companies. PETA cited studies showing rats are "fastidiously clean animals who groom themselves throughout the day." They naturally have a pleasant perfume-like smell. The rodents are smart and can learn to recognize their names and respond when called, PETA said "Rats laugh and express joy," the PETA report said. "Recent studies have shown that when rats play or are playfully tickled, they make chirping sounds that are strikingly similar to human laughter." "Rats who live with people often seek touch play or tickling, in much the same way that dogs and cats do," PETA said.

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Animal-rights activists invade Europe

A rash of vandalism, intimidation and arson across continental Europe in 2008 is evidence of a worrying new wave of animal-rights extremism being exported from Britain, experts say. In early January, threats led to a Dutch developer withdrawing from a new, €60 million (about US$89 million) biomedical research park in Venray, the Netherlands. To read this story in full you will need to login or make a payment (see right). Comments Reader comments are usually moderated after posting. If you find something offensive or inappropriate, you can speed this process by clicking 'Report this comment' (or, if that doesn't work for you, email redesign@nature.com). For more controversial topics, we reserve the right to moderate before comments are published. There seems to be an assumption when Nature and other science-related publications write of animal rights activity that all your readers will be of one mind: outraged that members of the lay public would actually interfere with whatever action certified scientists wish to take, however cruel.

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Animal rights outrage over plan to cull South Africa's elephants

With barely a grunt, the powerful elephant yanked the trunk of the decades-old mopane tree out of the reddened earth of the South African bush. The party may soon be over, however. Yesterday, in a move that will anger armchair conservationists worldwide, South Africa said that it would reintroduce culling for the first time since 1994 to control elephant numbers, which environmentalists say are threatening the country’s game reserves. Marthinus van Schalkwyk, the Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, announced the policy reversal after a year-long review. He declined to be drawn on how many elephants might be killed, saying only that figures of between 2,000 to 10,000 claimed by animal rights groups were "hugely inflated". He emphasised that the measure would be a final resort.

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