Bills Introduced to Ban Ivory Sales in the U.S.

Politics Pivotal to Protecting Elephants in Africa

Many people presume that there has been a complete ban on ivory in the United States; that it is other countries that are to blame for Africa’s elephants being poached so intensively that they are experiencing a population crisis. Yes, since 1990, the United States and almost all other countries in the world, have agreed to a ban on the international trade in elephant ivory, signed under United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). But, most countries, including the two largest ivory markets in the world, the United States and China, did not ban domestic trade in ivory.

Federal laws pertaining to elephants and rhinos are limited to authorize federal authorities to regulate import, export, and interstate sales only. Thus the domestic markets for ivory in the United States have continued to flourish and create the demand for illegal importation of ivory from newly-poached elephants. We may too easily place the blame for demand in ivory on China. Certainly, China’s activities need to change radically and quickly on behalf of elephants. But most Americans would be shocked to learn that in the United States, about one-third of ivory on sale was recently attributed to recently poached elephants. And there seems to be plenty of ivory for sale in America.

Click here to read more and to get involved.

Live Baiting is a Real Life Nightmare

Recent events have thrown the Australian greyhound racing industry under the spotlight once again, except this time the light is far dimmer than before. Thanks to work by Australian animal rights organizations and an exposé by ABC TV's Four Corners,the inhumane practice of live baiting, where piglets, rabbits, and opossums are pulled by a line, chased, and mauled by greyhounds, has been uncovered. Thankfully, this abuse has not gone unnoticed or unpunished. Over 30 people have been suspended, tracks have been raided, and Greyhound Racing Victoria chairman Peter Caillard, the entire Greyhound Racing New South Wales board, and CEO Brent Hogan have stepped down.

Deputy Premier and Minister of Racing Troy Grant has expressed his outrage, stating that animal cruelty is taken and dealt with severely in Australia, however he still refuses to suspend the greyhound industry. The fact that he is not even considering suspending the sport is unbelievable. Those connected to the abuse are none other than the president of a racing club, a two-time Australian Trainer of the Year winner, and also a former Integrity Manager. For an industry not to be suspended when their own Integrity Manager lacks all morale and integrity is unfathomable.

Click here to read more and to take action.

Are you AWARE?

Cows, Sheep, and Pigs are Animals

Animals used in agriculture research, such as pigs, cows, and sheep, are not considered 'animals,' as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). In fact, they are specifically excluded from the minimal protections afforded by the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), the only law meant to protect animals in laboratories.

However, the Animal Welfare in Agricultural Research Endeavors (AWARE) Act, a bill amending the AWA to include protection for animals used in agriculture research at federal labs, could change this. But only Congress can make this happen.

Tell your legislators that ALL animals in labs need and deserve AWA protection!

Widespread concern over this issue was first raised following a New York Times article that revealed shocking animal cruelty and neglect at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center (MARC), which uses taxpayer dollars to conduct research benefiting the meat industry. AAVS was outraged and we know you were, too.

Although the AWARE Act was introduced just three weeks ago, support for the bill is rapidly growing. Please contact your legislators and ask them to support the AWARE Act. Tell them that ALL animals deserve AWA protection!

Breaking news and analysis from the world of science policy

Gianluca Felicetti (<i>left</i>) is the president of LAV, one of the groups that filed a complaint against Green Hill. — LAV

Gianluca Felicetti (*left*) is the president of LAV, one of the groups that filed a complaint against Green Hill.

Jail sentences for staff of Italian dog breeding facility

ROME—Three employees of Green Hill, a company that breeds beagles for animal studies, are guilty of unjustified killing and mistreatment of dogs, a court in Brescia, Italy, ruled on Friday. Ghislaine Rondot, Green Hill’s executive manager, and Renzo Graziosi, the facility's veterinarian, were each sentenced to 18 months in jail; Green Hill’s director, Roberto Bravi, received a 1-year sentence. A fourth defendant was cleared of all accusations.

The court has to release a written motivation for the verdicts within 60 days.

The accusations against Green Hill, a subsidiary of U.S.-based Marshall BioResources and one of Europe's largest suppliers of dogs for research, were presented to prosecutors in June 2012 in a complaint filed by Legambiente, an environmental organization, and the animal rights group Lega Anti Vivisezione (LAV). In July 2012, the court in Brescia ordered the temporary closure of the facility and the seizure of all animals. Legambiente and LAV took custody of more than 3000 dogs, which were later placed in foster homes all over Italy. The trial against Green Hill employees started in June 2014.

Enrico Moriconi, a veterinarian who served as a consultant to the prosecutor and reviewed evidence gathered by the police, says that 6023 dogs died at the center between 2008 and 2012, compared with 98 in the 2-year period that followed the animals’ seizure in 2012. In 44 cases, the court was able to establish that dogs were euthanized even though they suffered only from mild, curable diseases, Moriconi says. Some of the beagles were put down with Tanax—a drug that causes cardiorespiratory failure—without prior anesthesia, which is widely considered a less ethical way to kill them.

As to the abuse charges, the dogs weren't beaten or otherwise physically harmed, Moriconi stresses. “It’s their ethology that was not respected,” he says. The dogs were never outdoors and didn't have a common area where they could socialize and move freely, “key factors for their well-being.” The animals were also exposed to artificial light day and night in spaces that weren't properly cleaned and too hot during summer, Moriconi claims, and sick dogs were left without medical assistance or supervision between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Moriconi says Green Hill tamed dogs by suspending them in a hammocklike device. Lack of contact with the ground made the animals twitch frantically and eventually become motionless with fear, a state called freezing. “I don’t know about such a technique, but surely if dogs lose contact with the ground and hence their balance, this would be very annoying to them," says Angelo Gazzano, an ethologist at the University of Pisa in Italy who has worked on the behavioral rehabilitation of beagles used in animal research.

“The public prosecutor has provided [the court] with kilos of evidence,” says LAV President Gianluca Felicetti. But Gaetano Di Chiara, a pharmacologist at the University of Cagliari in Italy and a campaigner for animal testing, says that although he has not heard all the evidence for abuse presented in court, he's not impressed with what he has read about it in the media so far; the court should have rejected that charge, he says.. Pro-Test Italia, an Italian group that supports animal experimentation, says on its Facebook page that it prefers not to comment until the reasoning behind the verdict is released. The statement adds that “the monocratic judgment on this sentence leaves us puzzled"—a reference to the fact that only one judge was involved—and says the penalties are mild and "symbolic rather than anything else.”

The European Animal Research Association (EARA) strongly condemned the verdicts. “These appalling sentences are without precedent in Europe," EARA Executive Director Kirk Leech said in a statement distributed by the United Kingdom's Science Media Centre. "They are a legal travesty and a part of a politically motivated campaign to end animal research in Italy." Europe's life sciences sector should condemn the "sham decision," Leech added.

Italian media have reported that the Green Hill employees plan to appeal; the judge in the case, Roberto Gurini, has suspended their sentences pending a final verdict. The three have also been barred from breeding dogs for 2 years.

A representative for Marshall BioResources says the company has produced a press release about the matter but that she would not be able to send it to ScienceInsider today.

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