Last month, 10 dogs rescued by our Humane Society International responders from a Korean dog meat farm arrived at a special animal shelter near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Pen Pals, Inc. is housed at the Dixon Correctional Institute in Jackson, and it is the only prison-based animal shelter in the world...
Just over five years ago, our teams rescued Douala along with more than 200 other wild animals from the St. Edouard Zoo, an unaccredited zoo in Quebec, Canada, which had a history of warnings and charges from the local government. This time, the operator of the zoo had been charged with two counts of criminal cruelty and neglect following an investigation by the Montreal SPCA, leading to the seizure of these animals and the closure of the zoo.
A canvas made of a whole elephant’s ear. Belts made with hippo skin. Elephant skin furniture. The annual Safari Club International convention in Reno, Nevada, had plenty on view that would shock and sicken the average person. But investigators for the Humane Society of the United States and Humane...
I was at the South Florida Wildlife Center yesterday when workers there released six pelicans back into the wild. The birds, who can be found wintering in South Florida this time of year, had all been brought in last month with injuries that need never have happened: they had each been hurt by fish...
It is a scenario that would be impossible to fathom anywhere other than with in the bizarre world of walking horse competitions. Last Saturday, at the annual Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration, the event’s top honor of World Grand Champion went to a horse, I’m Mayhem, trained by a man named Rodney...
This Friday, with the release of Disney’s “Black Beauty,” a new generation of moviegoers will be introduced to Anna Sewell’s beloved story of a horse who goes from a carefree life as a foal to one filled with troubles before returning home to peace and love. The book, narrated as an autobiographical...
We were pleased with today’s news that U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert of the U.S. Virgin Islands has reminded Virgin Islanders that animal fighting is now illegal there under federal law. Shappert’s announcement reflected not simply her strong grasp of the connections between animal fighting...
Cat declawing – the practice of surgically removing a cat’s claws -- is a cruel procedure that can be likened to having the last bone of each of your toes amputated. It is unnecessary because there are more humane ways to keep cats from scratching furniture. And for the animal the consequences last...
A beautiful story came out over the weekend in the Washington Post about an 11-year-old beagle named Hammy. Adopted in 2013 after living in a research laboratory for his first four years of life, Hammy became the beloved pup of journalist Melanie D.G. Kaplan. As often happens, both the human and the...
For human beings, the end of summer can mean squeezing in a few last trips to the beach or mountains before school begins and the pace of work picks up. But for bears, the end of summer is a vital life stage; it’s when they start a feeding frenzy called “hyperphagia,” which involves seeking food and...
As we worked toward the introduction of the Humane Cosmetics Act in the last Congress, one of our most important partners was the Personal Care Products Council, the leading industry trade organization that represents more than 90% of the U.S. beauty industry, including our Be Cruelty-Free partners...
Whenever I see social media posts by trophy hunters gleefully posing with the animals they’ve killed, I have a feeling of deep loss, for the individual animals slain, for those animals’ families and social networks, and for our planet. And I also feel a deep outrage, because to me those images stand...
So many of us were saddened this week to learn about the death of Beulah the elephant, who spent most of her 54 years in captivity and chains, working for a Connecticut-based traveling petting zoo. Beulah was just six years old when she was sold to the R. W. Commerford & Sons Traveling Petting Zoo...
