The 57-year-old allegedly threw a silkie bantam chook known as Betty White into alligator pen, shocking onlookers at Oakvale Farm and Fauna World
A man accused of throwing a chicken known as Betty White into an alligator pen in front of shocked families at a popular NSW wildlife park has indicated he’ll plead not guilty to animal cruelty.
The case against Peter William Smith, 57, of Singleton, was briefly mentioned in Raymond Terrace local court on Monday.
Continue reading...State-owned railway company RZhD apologises as conductor faces calls to be sacked and potentially prosecuted
A cat has died in Russia after being thrown off a train in freezing temperatures by a conductor who has faced calls to be sacked and potentially prosecuted.
The state-owned railway company RZhD has apologised to the owners of Twix, the ginger-and-white cat who was dumped into the snow in Kirov on 11 January.
Continue reading...More than 200 animals abandoned by farmers after the eruption have not been fed or watered for days
A daring operation is being launched to rescue more than 200 sheep left to their fate by farmers after a volcanic eruption near the evacuated Icelandic town of Grindavik.
With molten lava setting homes ablaze and the ground surface cracking, rescue teams are seeking to bring out an estimated 270 animals from their fields and indoor pens.
Continue reading...Animal welfare campaigners hail decision as ‘historic victory’ after years of pressure at home and abroad
South Korea’s parliament has voted to ban the production and sale of dog meat, in a decision campaigners hailed as a “historic victory” for animal welfare.
The country’s national assembly voted overwhelmingly to ban the breeding, butchery, distribution and sale of dogs for their meat on Tuesday, after years of pressure at home and abroad.
Continue reading...Two Siamang gibbons rescued from the illegal pet trade have been rehabilitated in a new Indonesian centre
The forest chorus of South Sumatra in Indonesia has some of its finest singers back: a pair of rare Siamang gibbons, rescued from the illegal pet trade, have been released into the wild.
Siamang gibbons (Symphalangus syndactylus) are known for their distinctive large throat sacs. But their powerful, haunting voices, used for communication and marking territory, are a blessing and a curse.
Continue reading...The conservationist compares ITV reality show to pursuits that are ‘the sad preserve of psychopathic criminals’
Chris Packham has written a letter to Ant and Dec, accusing I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! of exploiting animals.
In the missive, released on X (formerly Twitter), he states that this is not the first time he has tried to engage with the show’s presenters about animal welfare standards on the reality show, but that his previous “polite, reasonable and constructive” attempts were ignored so “this time I’ll be a little more frank and forthright”.
Continue reading...Use of cattle from country free of mad cow disease means product is safe, experts say, and patients can still donate blood
Bone cows, specially bred in mad cow-free Australia, are being used instead of human donors for dental and medical bone grafts.
While bovine grafts have been tested for spinal fusion, foot reconstructions and to fix skull traumas, the Australian versions are predominantly used in dental work to strengthen degraded jaws before tooth implants.
Continue reading...New draft of animal care and protection act may make Victoria first state to explicitly recognise animal sentience
The Victorian government will follow the ACT and could become the first Australian state to recognise that animals are sentient beings, under a draft overhaul of cruelty laws to be released in the coming weeks.
Guardian Australia understands a long-awaited draft of the new animal care and protection act will be released for public consultation next month, before a final bill is tabled in parliament in 2024.
Continue reading...Animal welfare groups urge retailers to switch to slow-growing birds in face of record deaths last year
More than 80 million chickens died before reaching slaughter weight in the UK last year, with mortality rates the highest for at least a decade, reveal official figures.
Animal welfare organisations say the fast-growing chicken breeds that dominate production have higher mortality rates, lameness and muscle disease than slower-growing breeds. They are calling on retailers to switch to slower-growing breeds and provide more space for the birds.
Continue reading...Indigenous people’s parliament says action required including lower speed limits and more fences
Sweden’s Sámi parliament is calling for more protection for reindeer after more than 10,000 were killed by motorists in the last five years, turning roadsides into “animal graveyards”.
According to police, between October 2018 and October 2023 there were more than 10,000 road accidents in northern Sweden involving at least one reindeer, meaning the number killed is likely to be far higher.
Continue reading...Only 11% of respondents to survey say they have ‘high interest’, down five points from before last year’s race
Punters are switching off the Melbourne Cup, with a majority of Australians reporting they have little or no interest in what was once “the race that stops the nation”.
According to the latest Essential poll of 1,049 voters, just 11% reported a “high interest” in the Melbourne Cup, down five points from when the question was asked before the 2022 race.
Continue reading...YouTube star Augusto Deoliveira – who also cancelled trips to the UK and Italy – stands by his tough approach to training canines
The controversial US-based dog trainer known as the Dog Daddy says he cancelled his planned visit to Australia after a backlash from animal rights activists and is now taking a break from global touring.
But YouTube star Augusto Deoliveira insisted he would not be abandoning his tough approach to training. He said his techniques have worked for thousands of fans who wanted to curtail aggressive behaviour in their dogs.
Continue reading...Charity says fund set up in late ambassador’s honour has raised £480k, with other charities to benefit
The new veterinary hospital at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home will be named after Paul O’Grady, the charity’s ambassador who died in March.
The announcement on Monday came on what would have been O’Grady’s 11th anniversary in the charity role, with the organisation saying a tribute fund set up in his honour would go towards “life-saving and transformative medical procedures” for dogs and cats that need specialist care and treatment.
Continue reading...The dogs at Paris Puppies Paradise, who were underweight and living in their own feces, were housed with a rescue organization
Iowa authorities rescued nearly 100 dogs from a puppy mill over the weekend, many of whom were living in their own excrement.
On Friday, a deputy from the Boone county sheriff’s office was conducting a welfare check on a missing woman and came across what appeared to be a puppy mill, the sheriff’s office said in a press release.
Continue reading...Visitors to Gower urged to maintain distance after spate of incidents, including newborn foal falling off cliff
Visitors to a Welsh beauty spot have been warned not to go close to ponies to take selfies after a newborn foal fell to its death from a cliff.
In another incident a woman was injured when she was kicked by a gypsy cob pony on the Gower peninsula in south-west Wales, while ponies have also been injured or killed by cars and disturbed by drones.
Continue reading...Exclusive: James Norbury says he is fulfilling pledge made after his debut book landed him a six-figure deal
The self-taught artist and writer James Norbury was living below the poverty line and volunteering with a cat charity when his self-published book was snapped up by a leading publisher in 2021.
After repeated rejection by literary agents, the six-figure deal was all the more astonishing for him being a debut author and he vowed to invest money he earned in creating a sanctuary for animals.
Continue reading...Tulane university researchers accused of ‘serious’ violations that breached international protocol over animal deaths
An animal rights group is demanding the firing of researchers at a Louisiana university who killed laboratory rats with scissors and a blunt blade – and used out-of-date anesthetics for pain relief.
The episodes are detailed in separate, self-reported notices of violation to the federal Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (Olaw), which were sent by Tulane University in New Orleans and obtained by the Stop Animal Exploitation Now advocacy group.
Continue reading...In a change to the online safety bill, tech firms will have to proactively prevent material that facilitates animal torture from being posted
Social media firms must remove animal cruelty content from their platforms or face the threat of substantial fines under the latest change to the online safety bill.
Ministers said causing unnecessary suffering to an animal will become a priority offence in the bill, which means tech firms will have to proactively prevent such material from reaching users. Failure to do so could result in a fine of £18m, or up to 10% of a company’s global revenue.
Continue reading...Conservation officers believe animal was shot and dragged into Squamish River in British Columbia
Conservation officers in Canada are asking the public for help after the body of a grizzly bear was discovered floating in a British Columbia river.
This week, the province’s conservation service said it was investigating the illegal killing of the bear, after remains were discovered near the town of Squamish.
Continue reading...Humane alternatives to killing rampant creatures such as wild boar, deer and grey squirrels are being developed
Conflicts between humans and wildlife are triggering growing numbers of disease outbreaks, road accidents and crop damage. And the problem is likely to get worse unless new, humane measures to curtail animal numbers are developed in the near future, say scientists.
It is a critical environmental issue that will be debated this week at a major conference in Italy where experts will discuss how best to limit numbers of grey squirrels, wild boar, deer, feral goats, pigeons, parakeets and other creatures that are causing widespread ecological damage in many countries.
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