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| Monday, 12-Sep-2005 00:00 |
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The fostered dogs
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!st boy unloaded at our place
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Our only girl, also at our place
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The two of them at our place
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For the Sake of Animals, a no-kill shelter in the county next to us (Polk) brought us these dogs yesterday because Animal control would have killed them today. So begins our days of fostering.
We put the only girl (who luckily has already been spayed) and one of the boys in Junior and Blaze's old yard. The other two, Dusty and Sugar Boy (whom Laura's mother named) were put in what used to be Beavis and Taffy's yard.
Once we get them all cleaned up and taken care of, the folks will be back to get them and see about trying to adopt them out. Their last try in our county adopted out 6 dogs and a cat. Not bad, especially once you consider that each and every animal adopted into this community from them is one less animal capable of making more of themselves and thus adding to the overpopulation problem.
When we go out today and spend a little more time with our two we will see if they decide to reveal their names to us. They certainly do need some love - the poor little girl was terrified the most. All of then were quite confused and upset. Dusty has been so stressed that he has come down with that kid of mange that they get when they are treated that way and get too stressed - demodectic mange, I think they said. Anyway, it isn't contagious.
Mainly they just need cleaning up a bit and give a whole lot of love and attention. They brought them to the right place for that, don't you think?
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| Saturday, 10-Sep-2005 00:00 |
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Our Efforts to Help Katrina Victims
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Donated goods in Laura's grandmother's car
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Donated goods in Laura's grandmother's car
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Donated goods in Laura's grandmother's trunk
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As was written about on my blog, we did a big collection of donations for those suffering from the effects of Katrina. Here are some of the pictures taken showing what we did and what other citizens of our county did when we all pulled together to help. Special thanks to the Oden School, the 1st Baptist church in Oden for allowing us to use of the church and spreading the message, and the mayor of Oden, who not only helped spread the word, but also stayed there the whole time the day we collected in Oden, helping to load our vehicles. IN all, three vehicles worth of items were collected and delivered, some in Shreveport, LA, and the rest here in Montgomery County when after our collection we found out that our county would be receiving some evacuees. They are now pretty well taken care of and only needing things like towels and washcloths and linens.
Even though this county is poverty-stricken, these folks pulled together to help out. Thank you Montgomery county citizens for showing the world what even a poor county can do when fellow
Americans are in need.
We will be doing more to gather more items needed and are about to foster animals. Tomorrow For the Sake of Animals, a no-kill shelter in Mena, AR, will be coming out to inspect our facilities before bringing animals here for us to foster. Mostly dogs, but some cats too, most likely. And, of course, we are still on Farm Sanctuary's list to accept chickens once they are allowed in to rescue them. We will take as many as possible because the animals we foster will be killed otherwise, as they are coming from Animal Control in Mena. We also had a book donated to For Sake the of Animals in Princess' name by http://www.NoVoiceUnheard.org]No Voice Unheard, who will send a book in your companion animal's name when you lose one.
We still need donations to build our chicken expansion, as we can only accept 12-20 right now without it built. After it is built, we can take in ten times that number. We need building supplies, especially 12 ft. high fencing and the poles that go with it, and it would be nice to have some help putting it up if anyone in this area comes across this post. You can help us save even more lives.
Thank you all for your support!
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| Monday, 29-Aug-2005 00:00 |
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Vigil for Cindy Sheehan and the fallen
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Vigil for Cindy Sheehan and the fallen
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Here is the picture of our little vigil for Cindy. We stood inside a circle of tealights with our candles in support of Cindy Sheehan and remembered those like her son, Casey, whom had fallen for lies. There may have only been three of us - me, Laura, and her sister, but then you have to remember that the nearest town has an official population of only 18, and we live in a Bible-thumpin' "red" state. But we made sure that those who drove by on the road while we were there knew why because we posted a double-sided sign up on the road and stood where we could be seen by those passing over the bridge over the river.
So, even here in the woods of the Ouachitas, there were a few people who stood up for what they believe in. Hopefully more will continue to swell the ranks. It did feel good to know that we were among thousands of people all over the country participating in a peaceful candlelight vigil.
May we soon be at peace.
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| Friday, 15-Jul-2005 00:00 |
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AR2005
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This little write-up will be short, as I intend to go over what all happened at the conference in better detail at the blog site. But I knew that everyone was waiting for pictures, so here they are. I didn't get nearly the ones I wanted to because we were just so very busy. Lots of workshops we wanted to attend and lots of people to meet and talk to, especially those we had been corresponding with over email for quite a while, but never had a chance to actually meet face to face. We really did have a great time, even if Laura is now paying the price physically for it. She is having a lot of muscle spasms and pain and quite a bit of sciatica shooting down both legs, as well as a headache that won't quit. It was extremely hard on her, but it was definitely worth it. And the food was the best vegan food I have ever had. 
Notice that in one of the pictures I am actually wearing a suit! I can count on one hand the number of times I have done such a thing. Felt really weird, as I don't feel like "suit material," but I did it. Couldn't very well have Laura looking so nice and me in a pair of jeans, now could I?
Kim Sheridan, if you remember, wrote
Animals and the Afterlife: True Stories of Our Best Friends' Journey Beyond Death. I have written about this wonderful book before. It has stories in it from peple from all over the place and from all walks of life, including two from Laura's mother and sister in it. If you order it through this link, I will get sa small percentage to put towrd my work. It was great meeting her in person. What a caring person!
Howard Lyman is the one who wrote MAD COWBOY: Plain Truth from the Cattle Rancher Who Won't Eat Meat
Erik Maruc latest book is entitled Meat Market: Animals, Ethics, And Money
And, if anyone can please remember the name of the actress pictured in the photo labeled Just Shoot Me actress, please, please tell me. I have drawn a complete blank.
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| Friday, 24-Jun-2005 00:00 |
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The Sierra Club Float pics
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Bill and the family
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Just the family
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When I wrote the post on the blog about the fact that we would do this, I purposely didn't say when because there were those that were harassing us again, hiding in the woods, watching our place, breaking in the trailer, messing with the computer, tampering with the truck, etc. I wasn't about to advertise the fact that we would all be gone all day long on this float trip. But we did it anyway. They don't control our lives! We have fun anyway from time to time and when we need a break from the stress of it all.
I guess calling it an "official Sierra Club float trip" is actually a bit more than it really turned out to be. The local Sierra Club head out of Little Rock, Bill, came and was supposed to bring someone, but that didn't happen for whatever reason, so it was just our family and him. He camped out on our riverbank in the area cleared for camp-outs. It's pretty nice, actually, complete with tent, picnic table, fire pit with folding grill and ready-to-use firewood, hammock, and comfy chairs, etc. Pretty nice, actually. Nice and level and on nice soft grass, which we freshly mowed and raked up to save for the chickens' bedding and nesting material (some of it we used, though - they LOVE that, all the bugs and seeds and all), so he had it pretty good.
Anyway, he came in that Friday night eight after I wrote about this happening, and we left out the next morning for Oden, but only made it to Shirley Creek because Laura's Mom's canoe sprang a bad leak, ad they started sinking. They are both quite old canoes they bought cheap from a canoe rental place and had been freshly patched this year, probably fr the last time.  We certainly have gotten our money out of them (ours was only $75 for a 15-footer, and hers was only $90 for a 17-footer!), but we need new ones badly! Hers didn't take the dragging over the rocks that ours did, as it was patched with a different type of material and had more weight in it than ours did. Even Laura's 82-year-old grandmother went! And we didn't let a couple of thunderstorms ruin our float, either. But then, of course, once you are on that river, there isn't much choice but to keep pressing on. You just shelter under a tree when it rains and wait it out, then move on. Not too bad, and you get cooled off nicely. We are good sports about that kind of thing, anyway. The thunder and lightning was worrisome to some of the party but it was a ways off, so Laura and I weren't too worried but it. Though, just to be safe, we didn't touch the metal parts of the canoes, which are made of fiberglass - the best type of canoe to use on this particular river because of the rapids and rocks. Besides, they are light when you have to drag them, too!
Anyway, we had a wonderful time and picked out two bags of trash out of the river, quite a few feet of trot lines and throw lines, Styrofoam, Wal-Mart bags, and other assorted things dangerous to wildlife and just ugly and that didn't belong there. Some people are worse than tacky. I hope there is a special place for them at the end of their lives whereby they spend a L-O-N-G time picking up trash from the environment! I do have to say that the person who left the Tyson chicken livers container next to his throw lines that we picked up ended up doing us a favor, as Laura's grandmother used it to bail out the water to keep Laura's mother's canoe from sinking as we frantically paddled for Shirley Creek. Boy, were we sore when we got there! Instead of leisurely paddling and taking our time, enjoying the river and the float, all of a sudden it became a race for the pull-out place as we watched her canoe sink lower an lower in the water!
Anyway, since the truck was parked under the Oden bridge about 4 miles away, Laura decided to hitch, figuring that she would get picked up faster than anyone else. I offered to join her, but she said that no one would ever pick us up if they saw me with her. She was probably right. I look a bit rough anyway but after a day spent on the river, we all did and especially me.  She shook out her long hair to look a bit more feminine (it was in braids and under a Boonie hat) and started walking. It wasn't the first time she has had to do this, and she knew the ropes well. Well, her mother decided to join her, never having hitched a ride in her life and looking on it as a big adventure. They picked a few ripe blackberries for nourishment along the way on the back road out to the highway, and it wasn't long before someone stopped (maybe 10 minutes; they said it was only the 3rd car) - a very nice college student from Mena headed for school.
All in all, it was a fun trip - storms, leaks, hitching, and all. We are good sports, and nothing stops the River Rats! (And yes, that is actually painted in our canoe, complete with a pic of a rat someone drew, when they bought it, even though Laura's family was calling themselves that already when they moved up here and lived in tents that first summer. Was that canoe meant for them or what?)
(Oh, and btw, when Laura shows her mother the proper way to scan and send pics by email so that we can get them a little bigger, we will replace these with better ones. Her mother is, shall we say, technologically-challenged.  )
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| Tuesday, 21-Jun-2005 00:00 |
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What PETA is trying to prevent through euthanasia
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"Shelter" in Ahoskie before PETA came to help
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Windsor, NC "shelter" before PETA stepped in
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Injured dog PETA helped to end the suffering of
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Most of you coming here have already read the blog post, but you haven't seen the pictures. Well, here are some of the picture - just some! - of the kind of suffering they are trying to prevent. Sure some animals could be saved, if only there were enough caring people and money to go around, but sadly, there aren't. So, this is the result. At least these animals won't have to suffer anymore.
All of the pictures featured here are from PETA.
Here is their official statement:
Thank you for contacting PETA about the euthanization of dogs and cats in North Carolina.
It is against PETA’s policy to put the bodies of animals in dumpsters, and we are appalled that a member of our staff apparently did that. There is no excuse for that and, despite the fact that she is a caring soul, we have suspended her from work.
PETA has always supported and spoken openly about euthanasia. It is easy to throw stones at those doing the dirty work for society, but euthanasia is a necessary evil until the massive animal overpopulation problem can be solved. We invite anyone who can offer a home to any animal, pay for one or a hundred spay/neuter surgeries, or persuade others not to go to a pet shop or breeder, to please join us in doing these things. In the last year, we have spayed/neutered more than 7,600 dogs and cats, including feral animals, many free of charge and all others at well below our own costs. Support for this program is much needed.
To clarify, we do not run an adoption facility, although we do place animals, approximately 360 in the last year, despite having run out of friends and family members to approach. We are a “shelter of last resort,” taking in and giving a painless death in loving arms to animals who would otherwise have been shot with a .22 or gassed in a windowless metal box, which is what happened in North Carolina before PETA offered free euthanasia services to agencies there. North Carolina has the second highest rate per capita of euthanasia in the country—35 animals killed annually for every 1,000 residents—and most do not die a humane death. Sadly, the shelters we work with have no adoption programs or hours set aside for adoption. At the Bertie County dog shelter, residents were throwing unwanted dogs over an 8-foot-high fence, where they became infected or injured by other sick or aggressive dogs from whom they could not escape. Bertie County also had no facility for cats and used to let them go to breed in the woods and fend for themselves until PETA built a shelter for them this year. PETA has begged for years, through formal proposals and numerous meetings, to have the county allow PETA to implement an adoption program as part of a larger picture of sheltering that would also include a spay/neuter program, a humane education program, 24/7 emergency services, and rabies clinics. For more information on our efforts, please visit http://www.helpinganimals.com/f-nc.asp.
We try never to take in adoptable animals unless we know we have a home for them—only those who are mange-covered, have parvovirus, are injured, old, unsocialized from life on a chain, or unwanted and for whom there are no good homes available. We also work at the roots, spending more than $240,000 in one North Carolina county alone, to provide shelter in winter for animals left out in the cold, to spay/neuter, to get vet care for animals in dire straits, to send Bertie County’s one animal control officer to professional training, to pay a cleaner to maintain two shelters, and much more.
We have always outspokenly advocated fixing the problems of overpopulation through practical methods. Sadly, those stories don’t get coverage in the media.
We urge you to look closer and do your part to help us help these animals. For information and resources on how to do that, visit HelpingAnimals.com.
Sincerely,
The PETA Staff
PETA.org
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| Saturday, 18-Jun-2005 00:00 |
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In Memory of Beau
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Beau
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Annie and Beau
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Not much to say here, as it has all been said on the blog post today. Just that we are sad and missing Beau very much, as is Annie. Oh, and by the way, these pictures do not reflect the changes we have made to enhance their living space, such as the bigger waterer, logs to sit and perch on, a bigger and better house, etc. This was the first day and was thrown together in an emergency and the pics taken just to get them up quickly.
And, something I forgot to mention on the blog post was that the reason we didn't take Beau to the vet is that he indicated very strongly that he did not want to be messed with, just basically left alone, other than accepting the wter offered. The three of us discussed it and decided that the trauma alone would have been enough to kill him, so we simply did what we could, hoping for the best, but mostly just making sure he was comfortable and his passing as easy as possible. At least he knew he was loved, even until the very end, not only by us, but also by Annie.
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| Wednesday, 8-Jun-2005 00:00 |
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The roosters are in their new yard - FINALLY!!!!!!!
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Moving the first rooster
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He put up a bit of a fight, but I caught him without hurting him
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Moving the second rooster
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This post here will be short, as I intend to go into more detail in the blog post about all of this. but I wanted to let you know that, although we now got the yard finished to the point that we could finally move them in there, it is not finished. The windows in the house, directly across from each other to allow for good cross-circulation to combat the heat, will have not only actual windows on hinges in them, but also overhangs over them to prevent rain blowing in when they are open.
The door in the yard where they enter the house I left large on purpose for now. It will also be made smaller before the cooler weather sets in and have an overhang over it if needed, though there
is already an overhang over it from the overhang on the roof. We will just have to see what is needed.
We also intend to add more amenities to the yard and house for them that we haven't gotten to yet, as we were just trying our best to get them into a comfortable yard and house ASAP. As you can see from that one picture showing me catching one of them, where they were was anything but ideal (in fact it actually made us feel pretty guilty about it, to tell you the truth), but it was all we had for them in an emergency situation, and certainly better than leaving them on the side of the road.
You can notice that we left a small ironwood tree growing right in the middle of their yard. That will stay. We also gave them some half-rotten logs to perch/roost/sit on, besides the ones that ring
the yard to keep out predators, that they have been tearing apart to get at the bugs inside them. Before long we will probably have nothing but piles of wood chips in there! Ha ha ha! We will add
some low perches that they can get their big ol' selves on and that are the right circumference(s) to accommodate their feet and exercise their foot muscles. We also intend to build and attach a feeding trough to the house that will be covered by an overhang and will be able to be filled by a chute from outside the yard (a piece of leftover gutter) for the times when we are away because Laura's mother is so terrified of them that she will NOT go into that yard. Same with the water. We will figure out a way for her to be able to refill their water without having to open that door and actually (Eeeek! !) go into the yard. They have settled down a bit now that they have more room and we don't have to squat down to their level to feed and water them, but they still do attack us at times. They did so the day we put them in there, but did not the 2nd and 3rd days when most of the good pics were taken.
Every bit of the building materials, except for the wire and nails, was scavenged, and we reused old lumber (pretty obvious, though, huh?). Even the tin wasn't new and had to be gooed very well to
prevent any leaks. But we managed to get it done. FINALLY!
Our next project (at least as far as the chickens go) now that everyone has temporary facilities that they are comfortable in is to build the huge facility down at the garden. The design we have in
mind will be such a MAJOR improvement over what we have right now for everyone and will allow for a much more natural free-roaming lifestyle. But that is going to take a lot of time and money we
don't have right now. I will explain all of that better later.
Anyway, I know that many of you have been wanting to know about the roosters, as I have been receiving emails from quite a few of you, asking for updates, so now you all know that they are happy and enjoying their new environment. I can hear them crowing right now as I type this.
Oh and before I sign off, Annie and Beau are doing beautifully. We built them a new, bigger house yesterday, filled it with fresh straw, and moved them down by Laura's mother's flower garden, where the worst of the ticks are. There is a lot of fresh greenery there, too. They will be moved just a few feet every day to keep progressing along, covering new ground, and eating up the ticks.
They are quite happy, too. Annie has even started laying eggs now.
Oh, and before I forget, we want the members of the groups to help us come up with names for these roosters. We purposely have not done so (using Laura's mother's word for them when referring to them - "the monsters" !), always intending to let the members of the groups decide on names as a fun and interactive exercise. If you are a member of the Care2 group, you can add your suggestion there, and if not, just email it to me. Then we will have a vote in both groups as to what to name them. When you consider what to name them, though, consider the fact
that they really have spirit! Sometimes even fighting spirit. Laura's mother suggested Attila for one, and I can't remember what for the other.
For those who have not joined our sister group and would like to do so to discuss this, here is the link again:
http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/AgainstFactoryFarming
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| Saturday, 28-May-2005 00:00 |
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Tortured by Tyson
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This appears to be a one-legger mutilated in the killing machine
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Same thing - mutilated thigh
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And another
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You may have read about this in other places by now, but in case you haven't here is a brief description to go along with the photos I am posting today. This information came from a new site, properly named, "Tortured by Tyson."
From December 2004 through February 2005, a PETA undercover investigator worked on the slaughter line of a Tyson Foods chicken processing plant in Heflin, Alabama. Using a hidden camera, he documented the treatment of the more than 100,000 chickens killed every day in the plant. Anyone would be horrified by what he saw: live birds who had their heads torn off by hand because workers couldn't be bothered to kill them by slitting their throats; birds who had their bodies mutilated by throat-cutting machines that didn't work properly, including one bird who had the skin torn entirely off her chest; workers who threw chickens around and were cruel to them just for fun; and chickens who went through the "scald bath" (a tank of scalding-hot water used to remove their feathers) while still conscious and able to feel pain. Watch the video and see for yourself the agony of these animals' last moments.
Animal-welfare experts agree that this sort of treatment is unacceptable. Dr. Temple Grandin of Colorado State University wrote, "This is a total FAILURE on animal welfare," and Dr. Mohan Raj of the University of Bristol wrote that "due to the lack of appropriate legislation to protect the welfare of birds at slaughter people seem to get away with [these] cruel and unethical practices." Indeed, chickens are not afforded any protection under any federal animal welfare legislation. The Humane Methods of Slaughter Act leaves chickens and turkeys out entirely. Read statements from these and other animal welfare experts.
As hard as it is to stomach, this sort of treatment is entirely too common in modern chicken slaughterhouses. Previous undercover investigations have turned up injured and dying birds left unattended during workers' lunch breaks and workers who ripped animals limb from limb, threw live chickens against walls, and stomped up and down on them on the ground.
Sadly, all these abuses were entirely preventable. In 2003, PETA first contacted Tyson about a new chicken slaughter technology known as controlled-atmosphere killing (CAK), a process that replaces oxygen in the air with an inert gas such as nitrogen—which already makes up 78 percent of the air we breathe—masking the lack of oxygen and putting the birds to sleep quickly and painlessly. CAK would have eliminated all the cruelty that took place in all these investigations, from mutilation by the cutting machine to live scalding, because the birds would have been killed much earlier in the slaughter process and would not have been handled by the workers until they were dead.
You can help. Please ask Tyson to adopt CAK immediately:
John Tyson, Chair and CEO
Tyson Foods, Inc.
2210 W. Oaklawn Dr.
Springdale, AR 72762-6999
479-290-4000
479-290-4061 (fax)
And just because their spokesman has been an arrogant pain in the butt since I came forward, infiltrating my group with the userid ederdn2 and being generally arrogant and insulting, as well as spreading lies abut me and events that happen at Tyson (just how any nights has he really stood there on that kill floor I want to know? Hmmm????? Has he even gotten one drop of blood on him, much less pulled clots of it out of his eyes like I did? I don't think so!) I think we should all include him in this campaign to show Tyson that even those who don't eat meat do not want the animals to be tortured first. So, you can also send a copy to ol' Ed Nicholson, Tyson's public relations manager, at 479-290-4591 and/or through his email at ed.nicholson@tyson.com
You can also sign a petition started by a group member at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/352097090
These photos, although quite graphic, are representative of what happens every single second of every single minute of every single hour of every single day in those hellholes we call slaughterhouses. I saw this regularly and have described it quite a bit in my writings and in my talks. And the only reason these poor birds suffer this way is so that people like the Tyson family can line their pockets and enrich themselves above and beyond what would be considered reasonable, even by the SEC, | Quote: | who decided that the perks Don Tyson received were striking even in an era of lavish executive compensation.
They included $464,132 for personal use by him and his family and friends of company-owned homes in the English countryside and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, $20,000 for oriental rugs, $18,000 of antiques, $84,000 in lawn maintenance at five homes where he and his family and friends lived, an $8,000 horse, and other jewelry, artwork, vacations and theater tickets. The company also paid Mr. Tyson $1.1 million to cover his personal income-tax liability associated with all these benefits.
The Arkansas magnate, who received $1.1 million in additional perks, some of which were improperly or not disclosed after he retired in 2001, had the company pick up the tab for numerous services used by his wife, daughters and three girlfriends, according to people familiar with the matter. While senior chairman, Mr. Tyson spent $46,110 to maintain nine automobiles, $15,000 on Christmas gift certificates and $203,675 on housekeeping services at five homes owned by Mr. Tyson, his family and three friends "with whom he had close personal relationships," the SEC said. |
Don't tell me that they can't afford to implement CAK!
Look at these photos, along with the others I have posted before and tell me that if they wanted to do better then they could. These poor hens are considered an acceptable level of collateral damage. To me though, they are innocent sentient individuals who feel pain, fear, and suffering the same as we do. They certainly deserve better than this!
You will be hearing more on this. That's a promise. I haven't even written the blog post to go with this yet, though I did post about it in both of my Activist Against Factory Farming Groups.
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| Tuesday, 26-Apr-2005 00:00 |
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More to go with the Lurch memorial post
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Well, it took a bit longer than I had thought to get the post written because of poor Chirpy. She hasn't been doing well, and lots of time has had to be spent with her. But now she is starting to perk up a little bit more, so we are hopeful. Any positive thoughts, healing energy, prayers, or whatever you have in your heart to send for Chirpy, would be greatly appreciated. She really is a sweet bird who obviously cared deeply about Lurch, too. You can plainly see the difference in her, too, from when she first arrived and how she feels now that he is gone.
Lurch will definitely be missed....
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