Photo by Plush Design Studio from Pexels
In March, we began a weekly series of Face Book posts recognizing those who have made positive contributions to animals, animal law and animal policy. We believe this was a good antidote to the often negative, sad and unjust reports about animals.
For the last Sunday of 2019, we’re listing all 39 (dating from March) and hope these will make you more positive going into the new year, and even put a smile on your face.
March 24: Sunday Shout-out to Genessee Co. Sheriff Robert J. Pickell who looks out for animals.
March 31: Sunday Shout-Out to these activists in the UP: Students Against Animal Exploitation at Northern Michigan University.
April 7: Sunday Shout-Out to Brad Boyink, a licensed wildlife rehabber specializing in squirrels. His goal is to release them, and he says “‘One day in a tree is better than a lifetime in a cage’”.
April 14: Sunday Shout-Out to animal advocates in Cuba who marched today.
April 21: Sunday Shout-Out: we go back 150 years to salute these 30 women (who never got the credit they deserved) who founded an organization in 1869 that today is the Women’s Animal Center.
April 28: Sunday Shout-Out to Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary this Easter. We hope they won’t be inundated with unwanted rabbits in the aftermath of the holiday. Remember: they aren’t an impulse buy, but a 10 to 12-year commitment.
May 5: Sunday Shout-Out: Senator Dick Durbin for urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to enforce the #AnimalWelfareAct to prevent illegal Puppy Mill operations around the US.
May 12: Sunday Shout-Out to Macomb Co. Prosecutor Eric Smith who created a county-wide Animal Abuse Task Force and an Animal Protection Unit within the Prosecutor’s Office, to be announced May 13 at a 1:30 press conference. He also was honored this past week for his prosecution of #Sterling’s abuser.
May 19: Sunday Shout-Out to Oahu SPCA who took care of Brad for 7+ years, and to Michiganders Hannah and Jack, who were visiting Hawaii and met Brad, and have adopted him!
May 26: Many disturbing facts here, including that the owners no longer lived in the house, 1 cat gave birth on the way to the shelter, and 60 cats were euthanized because of illness or aggression. The other cats are at Oakland County Animal Control & Pet Adoption Center, with the case turned over to Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office. Shout-out to Michigan Humane Society who assisted in the operation.
June 2: Sunday Shout-Out to US Reps Raul M. Grijalva and Rep. David Schweikert who introduced a bill to amend the Animal Welfare Act to ban use of exotic and wild animals in traveling circuses.Watch their press conference about why it’s important. #SupportTEAPSPA.
June 9: Somber Sunday Shout-Out to the dogs of the Virginia Beach K-9 unit who entered the building where there was an active shooter on Friday. We believe they all survived.
June 16: Sunday Shout-Out to State Representative Tommy Brann who was honored by the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan with its #BrandiAward at a ceremony Friday at Mackenzie’s Animal Sanctuary.
June 30: Sunday Shout-Out to ACO Rachel Whitlock, Oakland County Animal Control & Pet Adoption Center, who with assistance from Michigan Humane Society rescued 178 cats from an otherwise abandoned house over a period of 3+ weeks. Two people were arraigned this week on felony animal abandonment/cruelty charges.
July 7: Sunday Shout-Out to the Pennsylvania Auditor General who announced this week he will follow-up on his 2013 study of the state Agriculture Department’s Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement which showed “‘an intentional lack of enforcement of the state’s dog law and the commercial kennel canine health regulations'” and determined that funds weren’t being used properly.
July 14: Sunday Shout-Out to the fantastic animal advocate and friend, Amelia Hughes. She produced the documentary The Cat Rescuers which was reviewed this week in the New York Times! Watch for local screenings.
July 21: Sunday Shout-Out to Ryan Dobney of Westland, who saved a neighbor’s dogs, including 7 puppies. He was passing the house and noticed it was on fire.
July 28: Sunday Shout-Out: perhaps a surprise but this week’s shout-out goes to both the U.S. Department of Agriculture for (finally) terminating the license of Nosey’s former owner; and to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for insisting on enforcing the law to protect piping plovers nesting on the beach where a popular event had been scheduled, leading the organizers to cancel it.
August 4: Sunday Shout-Out to Hints From Heloise, for featuring Norma from Texas in a recent Sound-Off.
August 11: Sunday Shout-Out to National Police Foundation and spcaLA for this report. “When pet dogs are shot by police, this can erode public trust and legitimacy”. Read the report here.
August 18: Sunday Shout-Out to NY state which passed a law regulating an estimated 70-80 pet dealers. We’re posting at length the justification for the bill: “…The bill will require that areas in which animals are kept will have regular diurnal light cycles. The bill will require pet dealers to regularly groom the animals in their care. There have been reports throughout the state of pet dealers neglecting to properly groom animals, and animals have been found with excessively overgrown nails, excessive matting of fur, and flea and tick infestation. The bill also gives increased protections to nursing and pregnant dogs, by requiring that pet dealers provide such dogs with a separate amount of floor space, apart from her whelping box, which ensures that she can safely and adequately nurse and care for her litter. Pet dealers must be held to standards that will promote the safety, good health, and overall well-being of the animals in their care. This legislation will afford much needed protections to improve the quality of life of these animals and will prevent negligent treatment by pet dealers.
August 25: Sunday Shout-Out to Bay County Animal Services & Adoption Center, which recently changed its name from Bay County Animal Control. “‘We think Bay County Animal Services and Adoption Center accurately describes the mission for our shelter here,'” Bay County Executive Jim Barcia said.” Words matter!!
September 1: Sunday Shout-Out to Earthjustice which filed suit to invalidate the recent changes to the Endangered Species Act, and to the plaintiffs in the suit, Center for Biological Diversity, WildEarth Guardians, Defenders of Wildlife, NRDC, Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association and The Humane Society of the United States.
September 8: Sunday Shout-Out to so many organizations: The Humane Society of the United States – Michigan & Molly Tamulevich, Michigan Humane Society, and Wings of Rescue are partnering to evacuate FL animals. Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit, Michigan Animal Rescue League, Harbor Humane and Capital Area Humane Society, along with MHS will take the animals and adopt them out.
September 15: Sunday Shout-Out: to the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce which had the good sense and courage to pass a regulation which essentially negates a cattleman association-backed law that would criminalize labeling vegan products with animal-derived terms such as “meat.”
September 22: Sunday Shout-Out to the state of California, which has banned fur trapping, and is a (Governor’s) signature away from banning the sale of fur. Both are/would be firsts for a US state.
September 29: Sunday Shout-Out to our friends at Animal Advocates of Ann Arbor for this blog, “How To Become An Animal Advocate” (and thanks for the link to our #LegislativeTracker™).
October 6: Sunday Shout-Out (celebrity edition) to Taylor Swift for cancelling her performance at an Australian horse racing venue in response to allegations of animal abuse (and we think it was for that reason, not because of scheduling issues as her handlers say), ; and to The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for giving vegan products a huge platform with this “Implausible Burger” spoof.
October 13: Sunday Shout-Out to Adrian Treves, PhD for establishing the #CarnivoreCoexistenceLab at the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, UW-Madison. His method is non-anthropocentrism, which “‘doesn’t give higher standing to people, it just puts humans at an equal ground.’ Treves said in describing his set of ethics. ‘I came to realize that these ethics of non-anthropocentrism preserve biodiversity.’ ” “This contrasts conventional conservation management, in which the government delegates the ability to kill these wolves to humans through hunting allocations and regulations.”
October 20: Sunday Shout-Out to Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) and MSU Chapter of the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association for sponsoring a symposium followed by a street clinic in Detroit to provide free wellness care to animals of homeless people and others in need.
October 27: Sunday Shout-Out to the sage grouse and to those who are working to preserve the bird’s habitat. The court said that the plan, which makes it easier for oil and gas development and grazing permits, appeared to be “contrary to science” and enjoined the administration from implementing the plan while litigation proceeds.
November 3: Sunday Shout-Out to the advocates/activists in Milwaukee. 30 of them showed up at the city council meeting to protest a plan to open a slaughterhouse. The city council tabled the matter to get additional public input, and shortly thereafter the company announced it was cancelling plans to open the facility. We think this is the embodiment of Margaret Mead’s famous quote: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
November 10: Sunday Shout-Out to NYC! About 1000 restaurants currently serve this “delicacy.”
November 17: Sunday Shout-Out to the City of Paris. The ban will go into effect by 2022. The city will ensure that animals in the 3 remaining circuses will have a safe retirement.
November 24: Sunday Shout-Out to our fantastic, talented and compassionate Animal Friendly Attorneys® on the 1st anniversary of this program. Read about them, and the program here and consider nominating an attorney you know — or attorneys, self-nominate!
December 1: Sunday Shout-Out to the Big Apple: 1. Office of Animal Welfare established. 2. NYC shelters must post photographs of adoptable animals within 3 days. 3.Trafficking of wild birds, including pigeons prohibited. 4. Foie Gras banned. 5. Carriage horses can’t be used in certain temperatures. 6. NYPD required to publish semi-annual public reports on complaints, investigations of animal cruelty. 7. Dogs entering kennels must be in compliance with City Health Code, be vaccinated for kennel cough.
December 8: Sunday Shout-Out to #Buddy and to the students at Reeths-Puffer Elementary School for nominating Buddy for the award, and to Petco Foundation; and congratulations to Muskegon Humane Society!
December 15: Sunday Shout-Out to Traverse City Record-Eagle editorial staff for this sensitive piece contrasting the beloved animals whose pictures have been entered in the paper’s Holiday Pet Photo Contest, with Phoenix, a 2 year old dog, shot and left in the woods.
December 22: Sunday Shout-Out to all working on this issue: HollyThoms of Capital Area Humane Society; Ingham County Commissioner Carol Koenig; Burm Kim, the property owner’s manager; Merrill Ford Okemos; and The Home Depot. And any others we forgot! Looks like it’s on the way to being fully resolved.