Animal Abuse - "What fault is there in loving my pet?"

This article is from La Region newspaper of Iquitos, Peru.  Translation by Molly Mednikow.

-Animal Abuse

 "What fault is there in loving my pet?"

Friday, 29 of January, 2010

Liber Rios, who is the owner of "Robert", has filed a complaint with the police in Morona Cocha (a poor area near Iquitos, Peru).  His complaint is in reaction to abuse of his dog, who was brutally beaten to near death, "Robert has been our dog for 10 years.  We raised him since he was a puppy.  I feel very hurt and even want to cry when I think of the words "Your dog has been beaten."   "The day of the attack I sat in front of my house and my dog was wandering in and out.  Then my neighbor's son told me that my dog was inside of his house, bleeding and dying.  We assumed that somebody had poisoned Robert,  I went and found him bathed in blood, and realized that he had been beaten, not poisoned.      Liber Rios took his dog to his house where he gave him first aid, "We took him to the vet after two days and learned that Robert's skull was fractured.  Veterinarian Marcial Aviles had to intervene after finding a bone embedded in the dog's brain. the doctor found a bone Avilés embedded in his skull brain.  "Now my dog is better but he is recovering slowly." said Rios.   "I know there is a law on animal protection, which is why I decided to go to the police station of Morona Cocha where police are investigating this case.  My neighbor says that he refuses to pay anything because Robert is just an animal.  I want to see justice served because I consider my dog to be a member of my family.  I am completely disturbed by my neighbor's attitude."  The official complaint is pending. (MI)

PetTalez: a great community for you & your pet!

PetTalez was created by Linda Horowitz of California, in May of 2008. http://www.PetTalez.com is an online community of pet lovers who create profiles for their pets and themselves. They add friends, share photos and videos, and blog about their experiences in the fulfilling world of pet ownership.

Your pet’s profile includes his or her name, breed, gender, age, hometown, about me, arrival story, pet peeves, best tricks, favorite toy, favorite foods & treats, etc. Arriving at MyPetzPage shows you other users’ recent activity, a place to edit your profile, a link to list your friends, applications you can add, a link to your inbox, and a search field, and many other features. Chloe, my chocolate lab, now has her own profile and sent Molly’s beloved Marilyn a friend request just a while a go! This is too much fun.

Some great features of the site include groups that you can join with topics like: Pet Food – What Do You Eat?; Around the World, Recipes, Your Favorite Pet Quotes, and PugHug. You can even start a new group related to your specific interest. Or your dog’s interest!

Aside from the pure fun of social networking for your pet, the site also features some very useful resources for pet owners:

• PetzFriendz is a directory of pet-related businesses, products, shelters, and charities
• Lost and Found is an area that aims to reunite pets and owners who have become separated
• Blogs give information and news that pet owners need to be aware of
• Site Veterinarian Dr. Carol Osborne has an area for questions and answers related to your pet’s health. Dr. Osborne has pioneered the exploration of new therapies for the treatment and prevention of age-related degenerative disease, as well as promotion of optimum health and performance for pets.

PetTalez also realizes that not all domesticated animals have a loving, warm home. Doing their part to address this issue, they feature a shelter of the month. Between Jan. 15-Feb 15m 2010, Amazon CARES was honored to be the featured shelter. We wanted to know more, so we recently asked Linda Horowitz a few questions:

AC: Why do you feature a shelter of the month?
LH: PetTalez tries to help the plight of our furbabies by featuring a different Non Profit, Shelter of the Month. It is PetTalez way of helping  our defenseless furbabies. There is not a day that goes by when we dont read, or hear, another horrific story about abuse of our precious animals. Hopefully, by getting the word out of all the selfless acts by the countless volunteers across the globe, we can change this.

AC: How do you decide which shelters to feature?
LH: Answering this question is not as easy as it would seem, as there are countless shelters that PetTalez could feature each month. PetTalez often features shelters that are recommended by PetTalez memberz, and others come from people we meet on other social networking sites. The criteria that PetTalez looks for when featuring a shelter are selfless acts and endless dedication the shelter exhibits.

Thank you, PetTalez, for featuring shelters and giving pets a place to express themselves online. We’d like to express our deepest gratitude for spreading the message about Amazon CARES and the animals of the Peruvian Amazon Region.

- By Brandi Pool

Brigitte Bardot Saves Animal Shelter and More!

The majority of this article, including photographs, are from the Brigitte Bardot Foundation newsletter, which is written in French and located at http://www.fondationbrigittebardot.fr/site/monde.php?Id=385.


The Brigitte Bardot Foundation has approved funding to aid Amazon CARES in the sterilization of 600 dogs. CARES is located in the Amazon, wich is known for its exceptional biodiversity and is home to the largest variety of plant species in the world. The region is under constant threat by predation of all kinds; from the trafficking of wild animals to domestic abuse.

The people of the Amazon also live in a precarious situation with significant health and social concerns. The prevalence of endemic diseases (malaria, dengue, diarrhea, parasites...) is severe, especially in marginally urban areas and in Indigenous communities.

Conditions in Iquitos are no better. Iquitos is home to 60,000 domestic animals, "street dogs," approximately 70% of which suffer from abuse and neglect. Street dogs carry infectious diseases that are contagious to humans. These factors make Iquitos seem dangerous and unsanitary to tourists, which causes the local economy to suffer further.

Amazon CARES has provided ongoing support to sick an abandoned animals since 2004. Drawing on the expertise of its members and foreign volunteers, several projects have already emerged and mobile clinics in remote forest areas have been established. CARES also organizes educational programs, prevention campaigns and shelters rescued animals suffering from ongoing needs in the Amazon region of Loreto, Peru, until they are healthy enough to be adopted. CARES enjoys the support of local and national authorities (Municipalities, Region of Loreto, Ministries of Health and Agriculture) and international (Worldwide Veterinary Service, WSPA, Animal Medical Care Foundation).

In addition to sterilizing the 600 dogs mentioned above, The Brigitte Bardot Foundation has elected to donate much needed funds to CARES to repair their shelter damaged by severe flooding in 2009.

Amazon CARES is extremely grateful for the grant which enabled us to survive the flooding catastrophe during 2009.

 

Fondation Brigitte Bardot - 28 rue Vineuse 75116 Paris - tél: 33 (0)1 45 05 14 60 - fax: 33 (0)1 45 05 14 80