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Alabama animal advocates look at IDA's Project Hope in neighboring Mississippi

From The Examiner: Normally, animal advocates in Alabama don't have the opportunity to come in contact, in an up-close and personal manner, with an admired international animal rights organization. Not until one of the most active and accomplished AR groups, In Defense of Animals (IDA) branched out, or rather - "came on down" -  to the Deep South, to Alabama's neighboring state, Mississippi, and ... Full story
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SUPPORT GROWS FOR TOMORROW'S WILD HORSE PROTEST IN SF

  • Wednesday, December 30, 2009, 5:02
  • Horses
  • 370 views
MEDIA ADVISORY EVENT COINCIDES WITH PRO-MUSTANG RALLIES IN CHICAGO, COLORADO, IDAHO AND LONDON San Francisco, California (December 29, 2009) - The American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign, a coalition of 50 conservation, horse advocacy and animal welfare organizations, and renowned author Terri Farley, whose Phantom Stallion book series for young readers has sold over a million copies worldwide,  will join In Defense ... Full story

Obama Administration Blasted for Secret Holiday Roundup of Thousands of Wild Horses in Nevada

Roundup Begins Today Despite Federal Court Advice, Pending Federal Environmental Complaints and Violation of BLM Promise for Public Transparency Washington, DC (December 28, 2009) . . . Public outrage is increasing as the Obama Administration  proceeds with a controversial Christmas week roundup of thousands of wild Nevada mustangs despite a federal court’s suggestion last week that the action be postponed. Today, the Interior Department's Bureau of Land ... Full story

Wild Horse Advocates to Hold Wednesday Demo in Bay Area

Rally outside Senator Feinstein's office aims to stop Nevada mustang roundups San Francisco, Calif. - Wild horse and burro advocates and In Defense of Animals (IDA) are organizing a Wednesday rally in San Francisco. The mustang defenders will gather at noon in front of Senator Diane Feinstein's office building (One Post Street at Montgomery) asking the senator to help halt the federal Bureau ... Full story

Lawsuit to Protect Wild Horses Continues Despite Denial of Injunction Against Massive Roundup

Advocates Call on President Obama to Give America's Wild Horses a Christmas Reprieve Washington, DC (December 23, 2009). . . . Wild horse advocates today celebrated a partial victory as U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Friedman ordered a lawsuit challenging a Bureau of Land Management roundup of thousands of wild horses in Nevada forward, but denied a preliminary injunction to stop the removal of horses, ... Full story

Nashville Zoo Death Stirs Controversial Elephant Debate

Kiba among youngest to die from degenerative joint disorder San Rafael, Calif. (December 21, 2009) - In Defense of Animals (IDA), an international zoo watchdog organization, says the unusual death of 26-year-old Kiba, an African elephant at the Nashville Zoo, provides yet another tragic example of why elephants should not be held in zoos. Kiba is the only elephant in the last ten years to die ... Full story

Middlebury, Vermont Radio Station, 92.1 WVTK-FM, Receives Prestigious Guardian's Voice Award

  • Monday, December 21, 2009, 11:12
  • In the News
  • 6,871 views
Morning show host Bruce Zeman and his dog Nathan to receive Guardian Superstar Awards for work on behalf of animals San Rafael, Calif. - In Defense of Animals (IDA), an international animal protection organization with 85,000 members, today announced that Middlebury radio station WVTK-FM has received the prestigious Guardian's Voice Award. WVTK's Morning Show host, Bruce Zeman, and his dog Nathan received the organization's Guardian Superstar ... Full story

I-Team: Injunction Filed to Fight Wild Horse Roundup

  • Friday, December 18, 2009, 21:43
  • In the News
  • 326 views
The fate of thousands of Nevada's wild horses was on the line Wednesday in the nation's capital. Advocates for the horses asked a federal judge to stop a massive roundup planned for later this month in northern Nevada. The focus of the court battle is the proposed Calico roundup. The Bureau of Land Management says it needs to remove 2,700 horses from an area larger than ... Full story

Alliance Submits Declaration to Copenhagen Climate Conference; Urges Dietary Changes To Save The Planet From Catastrophe

For Immediate Release Copenhagen, Denmark (December 17, 2009) - A major societal shift to plant-based diets is essential to avoid an unprecedented global climate catastrophe, according to In Defense of Animals (IDA) and a broad coalition of environmental, vegetarian, animal rights, health and other organizations. In an attempt to "turn Copenhagen into CopenVegan," the alliance presented a Declaration on Meat Consumption and Climate Change (copy available upon ... Full story

California Supreme Court Delivers Blow To Los Angeles Zoo

Taxpayer Lawsuit To Stop Controversial Elephant Exhibit Will Proceed Los Angeles, Calif. (December 17, 2009) - In Defense of Animals (IDA) is applauding today's California Supreme Court decision that assures a taxpayer lawsuit against the Los Angeles Zoo and its controversial $42 million elephant exhibit will go back to court for a full trial. The California Supreme Court denied a City of Los Angeles petition asking for ... Full story

Group urges closure of zoo's elephant exhibit

Wednesday, December 16, 2009 By Ben Bauman Topeka - Zoo watchdog organization In Defense of Animals (IDA) is urging the city of Topeka to close the Topeka Zoo's elephant exhibit. IDA recommends the closure as a necessary part of the city's efforts to improve animal welfare at the highly troubled institution, where several animals have died in recent years. In a letter sent ... Full story

Topeka Zoo Urged to Close Elephant Exhibit

Zoo controversy continues as elephants suffer in inadequate display San Rafael, Calif., December 16, 2009 – Zoo watchdog organization In Defense of Animals (IDA) is urging the city of Topeka to close the Topeka Zoo’s elephant exhibit. IDA recommends the closure as a necessary part of the city’s efforts to improve animal welfare at the highly troubled institution, where several animals have died in recent years. ... Full story

To Avert Global Climate Catastrophe, Coalition Urges Copenhagen Conference Delegates to Stress Importance of Dietary Changes

San Rafael, Calif. 8- In Defense of  Animals (IDA) and the Veg Climate Alliance (VCA) today urged Copenhagen climate change conference delegates to recommend shifts to plant-based diets as essential to avert an unprecedented global climate catastrophe. The organizations cite recent scientific reports from the United Nations, World Bank scientists and other leading climate experts concerning the environmental benefits of a plant-based diet.. The livestock sector ... Full story

Renowned children's author joins lawsuit to save wild horses

D.C. hearing Wednesday on injunction against Nevada mustang roundup Reno, Nevada (December 14, 2009) . . . Renowned children's author and Nevada resident Terri Farley, whose famous Phantom Stallion book series has sold over more than a million copies world wide, has joined a lawsuit to stop a Bureau of Land Management (BLM)roundup of almost 3,000 mustangs in northwestern Nevada scheduled to begin Dec. 28. A ... Full story

ZOO BOARD URGED TO SHUT DOWN TORONTO ZOO ELEPHANT EXHIBIT

In Defense of Animals Cites Unprecedented Death Toll in Letter to Board San Rafael, Calif. (December 10, 2009) - The international zoo watchdog group In Defense of Animals has sent a letter to the Toronto Zoo Board of Management calling for an end to the Zoo's ill-fated elephant exhibit in which four elephants have died prematurely in less than four years. At today's meeting, the Board ... Full story

Opposition grows to Salazar'’s wild horse plan

Dozens of wild horse advocates plan to go before a federal advisory panel here on Monday to try to persuade public land managers to change their plan to relocate thousands of free-roaming mustangs from the West to preserves elsewhere. By MARTIN GRIFFITH Associated Press Writer SPARKS, Nev. — Dozens of wild horse advocates plan to go before a federal advisory panel here on Monday to try to persuade public ... Full story
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Monday: Thousands Urge BLM Advisory Board to Halt Wild Horse Roundups

Lawsuit aims to stop removal of 2,500 wild horses in northwestern Nevada Reno, NV (December 5, 2009) – On Monday, December 7, In Defense of Animals (IDA), horse advocacy organizations and private citizens will gather in Reno, Nevada to urge the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board to recommend an immediate moratorium on all wild horse and burro roundups and a ... Full story
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Spate of premature elephant deaths prompts INTERNATIONAL watchdog group to call for closure of Toronto Zoo elephant exhibit

San Rafael, Calif. (December 2, 2009) - The fourth elephant death in less than four years - and the third since September 2008 - has placed the Toronto Zoo at the forefront of a zoo industry plagued by elephant tragedies and premature deaths, the international zoo watchdog group In Defense of Animals (IDA) said today. IDA is calling on the City of Toronto to close ... Full story

Hope Bohanec interview on Fur Free Friday 2009 on KPFA Radio

Listen to Hope Bohanec's interview regarding Fur Free Friday 2009 on KPFA Radio in San Francisco. Full story

Nevada Mustangs Given 28-Day Reprieve - IDA Lawsuit Postpones Huge Wild Horse Roundup

Washington, DC (November 24, 2009) - The U.S. Department of Justice announced tonight that the massive roundup and removal of thousands of horses from public land in northwestern Nevada will be delayed until December 28 as a direct result of the filing of a lawsuit by In Defense of Animals and renowned ecologist Craig Downer on November 23. Tomorrow, IDA and Mr. Downer plan to file ... Full story

Lawsuit Filed to Halt Huge Wild Horse Roundup

Mass roundup of Nevada Wild Horses Inhumane and Illegal, Suit Charges Washington, DC - In Defense of Animals (IDA) and ecologist Craig Downer today filed suit, in the federal U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to stop the Bureau of Land Management's proposed massive roundup and removal of more than 2,700 wild horses from public lands in Nevada. The roundup, slated to begin in ... Full story

In Defense of Animals Urges Holiday Shoppers to Go Fur-Free

  • Monday, November 23, 2009, 14:45
  • Fur
  • 332 views
Fur Free Friday Will Once Again Be World’s Largest Animal Rights Demo San Rafael, Calif. – On November 27, the day after Thanksgiving, Fur Free Friday will take place once again as shoppers worldwide will be greeted by images of fur-bearing animals, and activists urging them to avoid buying items with fur or fur trim. In Defense of Animals (IDA) coordinates this annual event, expected to ... Full story

A Discouraging Word Isn't Enough to Control Catalina's Fertile Buffalo

  • Friday, November 20, 2009, 9:52
  • Buffalo
  • 494 views
November 20, 2009 The Wall Street Journal By Sarah McBride Island Conservancy Tries Contraception to Cull Herd Popular With Tourists but Tough on Plants AVALON, Calif. - Conservationist Carlos de la Rosa still likes to see buffalo roaming Southern California's famed Santa Catalina Island. Just not so many of them. His employer, the Catalina Island Conservancy, has taken hardcore positions with all kinds of other nonnative animals, including ... Full story

Catalina bison going on birth control

November 20, 2009 LA Times By Louis Sahagun The Catalina Island Conservancy has been rounding up the herd so females can get a reversible contraceptive vaccine. The goal: Control the size of the herd to keep it and the environment healthier. Reporting from Avalon - Half a dozen men with walkie- talkies and cattle prods set out on foot at sunrise Thursday to coax a ... Full story

Catalina bison to get birth control

  • Friday, November 20, 2009, 9:32
  • Buffalo
  • 303 views
11/19/2009 08:05:58 PM PST Contra Costa Times By Kristin S. Agostoni, Staff Writer The Catalina Island Conservancy is introducing a contraception plan for its female bison with a vaccine that will control the buffalo population. Bison wait in a holding pens before the vets and scientists can draw DNA samples and give the females the contraceptive vaccine. In 1924, a film crew moved 14 bison onto ... Full story

See ZNSPCA’s Zimbabwe Elephant Release

See ZNSPCA's Zimbabwe Elephant Release
In October 2008, ten elephants in Zimbabwe were brutally caught, beaten and chained for training for elephant-back safaris. Six months later, on a routine inspection of the “training facility” where they were being held, the Zimbabwe National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ZNSPCA) observed a litany of abuse: •    Elephants chained by one leg straining to reach food - the chains inflicted deep and ... Full story

San Diego Protest Against Dogfighting And Michael Vick

NFL urged to add animal fighting to “Prohibited Activities” list for players. San Diego, Calif. – Members of In Defense of Animals (IDA) and other pro-animal activists will hold a peaceful and powerful protest against Michael Vick’s San Diego appearance this Sunday. IDA’s message for the demonstration, which will be held at Dog Beach: we have not forgotten Vick’s actions, and we oppose his weak punishment, ... Full story

IDA APPLAUDS INDIA’S DECISION TO BAN ELEPHANTS IN ZOOS AND CIRCUSES

San Rafael, Calif. (November 12, 2009) . . . In Defense of Animals (IDA) today hailed the recent ruling by India's Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to completely ban the keeping of elephants in zoos, circuses and private collections throughout the country and ordering of the release of 140 such elephants, who will be “rehabilitated” to live in semi-free ranging conditions in forest camps and facilities ... Full story

Group says zoo mistreats lone elephant

Group says zoo mistreats lone elephant
Web Posted: 11/06/2009 12:00 CST Zookeeper Mike Huff sprays water on Lucky, the San Antonio Zoo's only elephant. A complaint filed with the USDA says the animal is being mistreated, but zoo officials say she is healthy and content. By Brian Chasnoff - Express-News A nonprofit animal-rights organization based in California filed a complaint ... Full story

Animal rights group files complaint against San Antonio Zoo over elephant treatment

07:38 AM CST on Monday, November 9, 2009 San Antonio Express-News SAN ANTONIO – A nonprofit animal-rights organization based in California filed a complaint last week with the U.S. Department of Agriculture against the San Antonio Zoo, claiming the zoo's treatment of its only elephant violates federal law. "We are alarmed that Lucky is living in woefully inadequate conditions," said Catherine Doyle, a member of ... Full story

Matt Rossell on Orwell Today

IDA's Matt Rossell discusses Elephant abuse in circuses on Orwell Today, which aired October 7, 2009. Click here to listen. Full story

Zimbabwe Update - Nine elephants cruelly captured in Zimbabwe

  • Sunday, November 8, 2009, 22:50
  • Elephants
  • 323 views
Zimbabwe Update : Nine elephants cruelly captured in Zimbabwe (November 6, 2009) - Nine elephants cruelly captured in Zimbabwe for the elephant back safari trade and abused during the training process have been rescued and released to a national park by the Zimbabwe National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Against Animals (ZNSPCA).  IDA is pleased to financially support the worthy project to repatriate these elephants, ... Full story

Elephant in Oklahoma SUV Collision has History of Spooking/Breaking Loose

  • Thursday, November 5, 2009, 17:36
  • Elephants
  • 1,528 views
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Elephant in Oklahoma SUV Collision has History of Spooking/Breaking Loose; Owner facing federal charges for similar elephant rampage IDA Calls for Confiscation of Elephants Enid, Oklahoma (November 5, 2009) - The elephant who escaped from a circus last night in Enid, Oklahoma and was involved in a collision with an SUV has a history of breaking loose, according to In Defense of Animals (IDA). In ... Full story

World Go Vegan Week a Success!

World Go Vegan Week a Success!
World Go Vegan Week, October 25 – 31 2009 World Go Vegan Week for 2009 was an incredible success. We had 42 events in 10 different counties. Grassroots volunteer activist organized events to celebrate World Go Vegan Week with activities like tabling, leafleting, film screenings, vegan food samplings, vegan potlucks, Halloween parties and more! Countries holding ... Full story

Veterinarians Decry San Antonio Zoo Elephant Plan at Thursday Press Conference

  • Thursday, November 5, 2009, 5:07
  • Elephants
  • 1,982 views
MEDIA ADVISORY San Antonio, Tex. (November 4, 2009) - A former San Antonio Zoo veterinarian will be joined by a wildlife veterinarian and Asian elephant expert at a press conference to call for permanent closure of the San Antonio Zoo's impoverished elephant exhibit. The experts will also advocate sending the zoo's surviving elephant, Lucky, to a sanctuary and bar the zoo from acquiring any new elephants. WHAT: ... Full story

IDA UNVEILS CONTROVERSIAL BILLBOARD URGING MAYOR VILLARAIGOSA TO RELEASE L.A. ZOO ELEPHANT

  • Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 0:33
  • Elephants
  • 926 views
MEDIA ADVISORY Los Angeles, Calif. (November 2, 2009) - Tomorrow, In Defense of Animals will unveil a new billboard at a major intersection in Los Angeles that calls on citizens to urge Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to free Billy, the only elephant at the L.A. Zoo, and send him to a spacious sanctuary. WHAT: Official "unveiling" of the "Free Billy" billboard with IDA representatives and elephant ... Full story

The Story Behind National Geographic’s Viral Chimp Funeral Photo

The Story Behind National Geographic's Viral Chimp Funeral Photo
From Huffington Post: Guest post by Jeremy Berlin from National Geographic's Pop Omnivore Blog The November issue of National Geographic Magazine features a moving photograph of chimpanzees watching the burial of one of their own. Since it was published, the picture and story have gone viral, turning up on websites and TV shows and in newspapers around the ... Full story

World Go Vegan Week in the Press

Check out IDA's World Go Vegan Week news stories: Lynn Pauly: Good time to try a vegan lifestyle Free vegan lunch in Pioneer Square today World Go Vegan Week Means Wine, Too Vegan week salutes animal-free diet Meatless Mouthful: Woody Harrelson “World Go Vegan Week” And blogs: Kickoff World Go Vegan Week at Blue ... Full story

In Defense of Animals to give away—not just a free lunch—but a cruelty-free lunch!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 28, 2009 Contact: Matt Rossell, (503) 890-5151, matt@idausa.org... Full story

USDA Files Charges

In Defense of Animals (IDA) the organization that has worked for two years to rescue three circus elephants named Tina, Jewel and Queenie, announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has filed formal charges against the elephants' handler, Wilbur Davenport (dba "Maximus tons of Fun") for multiple ... Full story

Vegan week salutes animal-free diet

UF and the rest of the world is celebrating World Go Vegan Week from Oct. 25 to Oct. 31. Created by the animal rights organization In Defense of Animals four years ago as a global effort ... Full story

World Go Vegan Week

October 25th through 31st is World Go Vegan Week! Declared by In Defense of Animals (IDA) this week leads up to World Vegan Day on November 1st. Full story

HOPE BOHANEC of In Defense of Animals talks about WORLD GO VEGAN WEEK and a fun Halloween party for it in San Francisco.

Full story

Wild horse plan rekindles cattle grazing debate

The Associated Press Saturday, October 17, 2009 RENO, Nev. — A new federal proposal to manage wild horses is rekindling debate over another fixture of the Western range: cattle. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar last week proposed moving thousands of mustangs to preserves in the Midwest and East to protect horse herds and the rangelands that supportthem. Interior Department officials had warned that slaughtering some of the 69,000 wild horses ... Full story

USDA files charges in elephant abuse case; IDA urges agency to rescue abused elephant from circus handler

Leggett, Texas (October 22, 2009) In Defense of Animals (IDA) the organization that has worked for two years to rescue three circus elephants named Tina, Jewel and Queenie, announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has filed formal charges against the elephants' handler, Wilbur Davenport (dba "Maximus tons of Fun") for multiple violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA). The charges state that ... Full story

Press Coverage of Michael Vick Protest and Change in NFL Personal Conduct Manual

IDA to protest Vick in Oakland Animals rights activists dog Michael Vick Michael Vick Protesters Flock to Oakland Coliseum for Eagles-Raiders Game Animal rights group plans Vick protest in Oakland Animal rights group plans protest of Vick before Raiders game Fans Have Mixed Emotions Toward Vick Animal rights group plans Vick protest in Oakland Animal rights ... Full story

Radio coverage of the Vick Protest

  • Monday, October 19, 2009, 10:55
  • In the News
  • 181 views
Listen to coverage on the Vick protests on KPFA: The KPFA Evening News (Weekend) - October 18, 2009 at 6:00pm Click to listen (or download) Full story
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Meat vs. Carbon

There's one simple thing an individual can do to greatly reduce their carbon footprint: eat less meat. Another current trend in the efforts to counter industrial agriculture is grass fed beef and cage free poultry. That may result in healthier and tastier animals, but Hope Bohanec is not persuaded that it's a practical response to the need to feed the planet.... Full story

IDA, PETA CALL ON STATE TO PULL RINGLING'S LICENSE

Direct Contact Between Elephants and the Public Reveals Clear Violation of License Terms, Say Groups Albany, N.Y. - Today, PETA and In Defense of Animals (IDA) sent an urgent letter to Pete Grannis, commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), calling on him to deny an Endangered/Threatened Species License to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus or to revoke the ... Full story

FIVE MONTHS AFTER AFFIE'S DEMISE, IDA CHALLENGES BROOKFIELD ZOO TO PUBLICLY RELEASE FINAL ELEPHANT DEATH REPORT

San Rafael, Calif. - Thursday will mark five months since the unexpected death of Affie at Brookfield Zoo, and In Defense of Animals (IDA) is calling for the release of the elephant's medical records and final necropsy report in a letter sent to zoo director Stuart Strahl today. IDA's previous request for this information was unanswered by the zoo. "Having just turned 40, Affie should have ... Full story
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