July 23, 2009

The Saddest Show on Earth

Elephants have the largest brains of any mammal on the face of the Earth. They are creative, altruistic and kind. They use tools to sweep paths and even to draw pictures in the dirt and scratch themselves in inaccessible places, and they communicate subsonically at frequencies so low that humans cannot detect them without sophisticated equipment. Imagine, then, what it must be like for them to be told what to do, courtesy of a bullhook--a rod resembling a fireplace poker with a sharp metal hook on the end--at every moment of their lives. Yet this is what life is like for elephants used in circuses, who are constantly beaten and kept chained, sometimes for days at a time.

It takes a lot to get circusgoers to see beyond the headdresses and glitter to that metal-tipped bullhook sinking into an elephant's soft flesh behind her ears and knees. But I hope that PETA's new undercover investigation of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will help open some eyes.

PETA's investigator caught Ringling employees digging sharp metal bullhooks into the sensitive skin behind elephants' knees and under their trunks. Eight employees--including an animal superintendent and a head elephant trainer--used bullhooks and other objects to strike elephants on the head, ears and trunk. Employees whipped elephants and a tiger, including on or near the face. One elephant, Tonka, repeatedly exhibited signs of severe psychological stress but was nevertheless forced to perform night after night. The footage can be seen at www.PETA.org.

All of this was going on while Ringling was already on trial in a federal court in Washington, D.C., answering charges that its elephant-handling practices violate the federal Endangered Species Act. In their natural homes, elephants live for more than 70 years; their average life span in captivity is just 14 years. Because of stress, travel in boxcars and time spent stabled in damp basements, many captive elephants have arthritis, lame legs and tuberculosis.

Left to their own devices in their homelands, elephants are highly social beings who enjoy extended family relationships. Aunts babysit, mothers teach junior life skills such as how to use different kinds of leaves and mud to ward off sunburn and insect bites, babies play together under watchful eyes, lovemaking is gentle and complex and elephant relatives mourn their dead.

In captivity, elephants are deprived of all these experiences. Life under the big top means "pay attention to your trainers, feel the bite of their implements in your flesh, don't stumble or falter even if you feel tired or ill, obey, obey, obey." It means leg chains between acts, the loss of all comfort and warmth from your father and mother and no long-term friends.

Behaviorists tell us that elephants can and do cry from the loss of social interaction and from physical abuse. Yes, cry. If you wonder how these magnificent beings keep from going mad--waiting in line night after night, eyes riveted on the person with the metal hook, ready to circle to the music in their beaded headdresses--perhaps the answer is, they don't. PETA's investigator at Ringling documented stereotypic behavior, which is typically seen in animals who are suffering from extreme stress caused by a lack of anything to do, the inability to move around, severe frustration and desolation.

Sometimes, elephants stop behaving like wind-up toys and crush the bones and breath out of a keeper, make a break for it, go berserk or run amok. But most simply endure. Their spirits were broken during their capture and, later, God help them, when they were trained for the ring. Otherwise, they would all use their immense strength to fight back against the human hand of tyranny. They would refuse to be kept chained between performances like coats on a rack, refuse to be backed up ramps into railroad cars and trailers like so many cars being parked out of the way.

Ringling and other circuses have made it clear that they have no intention of stopping their abusive practices. And the law--which provides minimal requirements for cage size and little else--does not protect animals in circuses. It's up to us to say "enough is enough."

November 26, 2008

And the OCMAD tour continues...

I tell everyone that a book is a great investment: you can read it, trade it, win friends by lending it out, and, if the fuel prices go through the ceiling, you even can burn it!

I'm on a short break from the tour (if you consider wading in gum boots through the work on a creaking desk, a break). After stuffing a fabulous Tofurkey dinner with all the trimmings down my gullet this Thursday, I'll be a road warrior again. The highlight of the last leg was Portland, home of the wonderful Powell's books, where I picked up a used book by the old Sunday Times travel writer, A.A. Gill. Gill, like Michael Specter of the New Yorker, is well traveled and well educated, and is moved by AIDS and interested in fashion week in, but there's something else they have in common: an old-fashioned male failure to relate to animals they want to eat. Gill has "the boys" lug an old "stubborn" goat up a granite rock face in the Kalahari, so that he can remove 'its twitching haunch" with his penknife;Specter unashamedly sits with Mr. Prada (yes, that one) to savor steaks cut from, no doubt, some poor twitching cow. Why doesn't the part of their brains that registers empathy light up when they see fear and suffering or the product thereof unless it involves a human being?  Don't you think that's mostly, but not all, a male generational thing, fast fading?

I used to love English bookstores best, but, hands down, Powell's is the best book store on earth, the people are terrific and so is the selection of books, used and new. Paige Powell, Andy Warhol's muse and now a vegetarian and animal activist, attended the signing and, refusing to buy my latest book on the grounds that it contained celebrity writing and she's sick of celebrities, graciously found two other of my tomes in the racks and bought those instead. Three wonderful PETA members gave me vegan jellies and Christmas tea, and someone else, whose name I didn't get - are you out there? - left me a lovely pendant, the second necklace I've received on my tours. PETA scored a $100 check, too! Thank you all. What wasn't that hot was being accosted in the dark as I walked back to my motel, high on the hill, by two young men who were even higher. They stepped out of a dark corner door, one of them demanding: "Hey, give us 97 cents for a bus ticket. It was a fascinatingly precise (or imprecise, actually) amount, but I wasn't about to stop and take out my wallet at night, there not being a living soul around but the three of us. The homeless humans situation in Portland Eugene and Seattle is growing. You know what that means for dogs and cats.

November 05, 2008

Answering Your Questions

I was asked to respond to 10 commenters' questions on PETA's blog, The PETA Files. I thought I'd share these with you. Check out my responses below.

Question from Sasha: When will a movie about your life be made, and who will take your place in PETA when you retire?

In a way, the HBO special I Am an Animal was about my life, but beyond that I do not know. As for "succession," a few years ago, when my plane almost crashed, I had time to reflect on my legacy at PETA, and it was exciting to think about what good hands PETA is in. We each have our talents, and there are plenty of stunningly talented leaders at PETA and the PETA Foundation who each make a mark in their own areas, from marketing and youth outreach to IT and law, and from rounding up stars and making heartbreaking videos to going undercover - and, of course, raising and bringing in money so that we can hire more staff and help more animals. The multitalented Tracy Reiman is my right-hand person, and I feel confident that she would lead the team when I pop off.

Question from Aneliese: How supportive is your family on your views of animal rights and welfare? Do they agree with you on such matters?

I don't have much of a family; my mother is the only one left, and she is wholly supportive. She has a "Proud PETA Member" bumper sticker on her car, puts copies of our "Vegetarian Starter Kit" in people's hands, and makes sure animal rights books are on the library shelves. She also makes great vegan cakes! In fact, her recipe for almond tarts is in the PETA cookbook.

Question from Ben: Was there a particular life-changing experience or event that led to you become an animal rights activist?

I've told many of my personal stories in my books, such as Making Kind Choices and my latest book, One Can Make a Difference. I was a slow learner, and my late father and I basically ate our way through the animal kingdom before I met a pig who had been cruelly treated. That's when I stopped eating all animals. As I say, I was a slow learner, so before that I had stopped eating lobsters (one wiggled his antennae at me when I chose him from a platter to be broiled alive) and snails (I let a bag of them go at the bottom of my garden rather than cook them). It wasn't until I found a fox and a squirrel in steel traps that had been set for fun by some youngsters that I stopped wearing fur! Oddly enough, those were the very two types of animals whose furs had been used to make the first fur garments I owned: a suede coat with a collar made of silver-fox fur and an artsy coat made from the bodies of about 100 squirrels. I also inspected laboratories for the government, and what I saw inside them convinced me that animal experimentation is crude and cruel and can easily be replaced with sophisticated non-animal research.

Question from Mitch: What was the most exciting campaign or event - a specific demonstration, press conference, undercover investigation, arrest, etc. - that you have worked on with PETA?

It's all exciting when you know that animals are being rescued and that people's minds and hearts and eyes are being opened. And stopping car-crash tests on animals, getting men who beat pigs on factory farms convicted on cruelty charges, seeing an elephant who has spent her entire life in chains be retired to a sanctuary - it's all exciting. But if I have to pick one, I think the very first lab case, the Silver Spring monkeys case, in which PETA got the police to serve a search warrant - the first in U.S. history - to take those monkeys out of the hellhole in which they lived - that would be it.

Question from Brielle: If someone truly wants to make a difference for animals, how do they choose the cause that will have the most impact for animals and spreading awareness? What is the most crucial step now in the cause - promoting veganism? Saving animals? Fighting big KFC-like corporations?

I believe in personal activism and that every single thing we do makes a difference - the more we do, the more difference we make and the more quickly animal liberation from exploitation and torment will come. Because everyone eats, washes their hair, puts on clothes, finds amusement in life, and buys stuff, it is vital to start setting an example and encouraging others to follow. Eat a vegan diet and shun animal skins in all their forms - they are all stolen and/or animals have been killed for them. Cook for friends and give vegan cookbooks and cruelty-free toiletries as gifts. Leave copies of Animal Times in the doctor's office and at the bus stop and put Free Vegetarian Starter Kit cards on every bulletin board. Hand people literature and engage in conversation to spread the word - and never, ever be silent in the face of abuse. When you speak up, others listen, and people who felt confident getting away with cruelty are shaken - perhaps not visibly, but shaken on the inside all the same. If you want to help with one particular campaign in addition to all this, then just jump in and do your best - it all counts.

Question from Sharon: What are your opinions on what happens to the "fighting dogs" who are rescued from dogfighting, and what is the proper way of evaluating a fighting dog to determine if rehabilitation would work for the animal?

With so many homeless dogs being killed for lack of homes, I would rather the time, effort, money, and work that goes into trying to rehabilitate a fighting dog be used to help the ones who don't need such an evaluation. It just makes more sense. Also, if you find homes for cocker spaniels or Chihuahuas or mixed terriers, there is no likelihood that, even if they go nuts, they will kill a child or a cat, but the same can't be said for the ex-fighter who is likely too strong to control and can have a fighting mindset. It isn't the dog's fault, but we have to make choices. The most sensible choice is to put our money and time into sterilization programs as well as combating fighting and making fighting breeds unpopular so that people do not breed more of them.

Question from Kathleen: I wanted to know - how do you keep a positive attitude after all the horrible things you have seen while working at PETA?

I look back at how far we have come: Silk soy milk in the supermarkets, veggie burgers too. Faux "chicken" at most KFCs in Canada. Students able to say "no" to dissection. Medical schools having abandoned the use of animals in training. Pleather, faux fur, the great youth movement. Many circuses, such as Cirque du Soleil, getting out of the animal business. That means that our work pays off, so we must keep doing it!

Question from 4 The Animals: I read that you believe having "pets" is keeping them in captivity. Is this true?

I prefer the term "companion" to pet, as that is more respectful, don't you think? Semantics can be important in how we view others. It drives me wild to see Britney Spears and Paris Hilton acquiring dogs as arm candy, which is why I wrote a book called Let's Have a Dog Party! I wanted to draw attention to the fact that these dogs are individuals with needs and wants. They aren't fashion accessories; cigarette smoke, loud music, and being left alone to stare at the apartment walls bothers them - it isn't a real life. I ask that people stay clear of pet shops and breeders, who exacerbate the dog and cat overpopulation crisis. But if a person has enough love, patience, understanding, time, and money for veterinary care, I would ask him or her to go to the animal shelter and get two dogs or cats so that the animals can keep each other company when their guardians are at work or play.

Question from Dan: I will be turning 70 years of age in a few years, and my wife is in her 50s. We are guardians of two dogs - one of whom is a puppy. My wife and I have no immediate family. I don't mean to sound maudlin, but if anything were to happen to my wife and me, I would like to set aside some money in our will for the lifelong care of our dogs. Do you know of any organizations that have been "approved" by PETA that would be able to take in our dogs and treat them in a loving manner in the event of our demise? We reside in the Southern California area (but we would be willing to send them anywhere if the organization is "top notch").

Please be very careful and always visit the place you might leave your animals to. You have to be very sure that they are right for your dogs. I have seen many "sanctuaries" where animals are miserable. Caged for life and patronized, they have lost the spark of joy that animals should have. Many of these places are warehouses, really - you can't call them much more. If you get stuck, please write to the PETA Foundation's Tim Enstice in our office, and we'll see what we can do to help you find the right place.

Question from Liz: If you could make a magic wish to banish something immediately and forevermore, what would it be? The fur trade? Vivisection? Factory farming? What kind of abuse has the most pressing urgency above all others?

If I had a magic wish, it would be that human beings would put themselves in the place of all "others," and then they'd really live by the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." In other words, I would wish for empathy. And studies show that some people have a very poorly developed part of their brain - the mirror neuron. This means that they can't extend much beyond their own selfish interests. But if I could influence only one area of animal abuse, that's a very hard call. It might be "pest control," as billions upon billions of mostly little animals - raccoons, beavers, mice, birds, insects, etc. - are poisoned with gut-wrenching chemicals or drowned in underwater snares, or their backs are broken in traps, or their faces get stuck in glue boards - and so on.

October 24, 2008

When an Animal Needs Your Help

I'm distraught. A wonderful long-time member wrote to me about three incidents she had witnessed where animals in need sought human help-and unfortunately did not always receive it. There were so many lessons in these stories that I wanted to share them with you.

In one of the stories, a duck with a severely mangled beak walked up to the PETA member and pressed himself against her leg, "looking for help." Not knowing what to do, our member left, went back to where she was staying and called an agency, asking it to send someone to the park to help the duck. When I read this, my heart sank. Who knows whether the agency actually went out, and if it did, whether it found the duck and did anything to help him?

The second incident was a bit better: A duck had approached our member while she was in a park, again "clearly looking for help," a hook stuck through her bill. The duck, although wild, had allowed herself to be picked up and held. Our member enlisted someone with a toolkit to help and the duck waited patiently while the hook was cut out before waddling back to her brood on the lake.

In another case, our member found herself in a rather difficult situation. While traveling in Africa, a bull entered a mud hut in the village that she was visiting. He had come there seeking human help, the owners said, because he had eaten something he shouldn't have, and his stomach was painfully distended. Such a condition can be fatal for cattle. The villagers didn't know what to do, and there was no vet around. In this tragic case, the animal did not receive the care that he needed.

In each of these cases, the animals not only needed human help but also clearly asked for it. Are you prepared if an animal in need asks you for help?

Please remember this: Always stay with an animal in need, or plant someone else's feet there while you go for help. You should never drive or walk away, just as you would never leave a lost child, hoping that someone else will answer your call later and find this distressed being. Often, that does not come to pass. When animals come to us looking for help or when we happen upon an animal in need, we must do all that we can, appointments be damned and obligations no mind, to live up to their expectations. If you aren't sure what to do and how to help, use this guide on PETAPrime.org, or call PETA any time at 757-622-7382 and dial 2 if you cannot find a solution.

Thanks.