Petition: Stop the Dolphin Slaughter at Mirage Hotel and Casino – ForceChange

forcechange.com

Victoria Paige

Target: Joe Lupo, President of the Mirage Hotel & Casino

Goal: Demand the Mirage release its remaining captive bottlenose dolphins after a third dolphin died at their facilities within a 6-month period.

K2, a bottlenose dolphin who spent his entire life at Las Vegas’ Mirage casino died in early October, making him the third dolphin to die at the Mirage within the last past 6 months. While dolphins in the wild have an average life expectancy of 20 to 30 years—with a maximum ranging upwards of 65 years—the three who died were all between the ages of eleven and nineteen. The exhibit is temporarily closed so that experts can investigate the deaths; however, ticket sales are expected to resume on October 9th, just a few days after the incident.

Dolphins are highly social, free-ranging animals and being isolated from their friends and kin has damaging effects on their physical and psychological health. It has long been known that dolphins in captivity suffer stress and depression, resulting in appetite loss, ulcers, and increased susceptibility to various diseases. In fact, within the last 31 years, 16 dolphins have died at the Mirage alone.

Sign this petition to demand that the Mirage casino dedicate their efforts towards preparing the remaining dolphins to be released into the wild. No more dolphins should suffer this grim fate for their profit.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Mr. Lupo,

Early this October, an 11-year-old bottlenose dolphin died at the Mirage Hotel and Casino, making it the third to die at this particular facility within the past 6 months. Over the course of the 31 years that the Mirage has been running, a total of 16 dolphins have died. Clearly, this is not an adequate setup for the dolphins–which can live up to 65 years in the wild. When in captivity dolphins grow extremely stressed, which can make them more susceptible to appetite loss, ulcers, and various diseases.

We are asking you, Mr. Lupo, to prevent any future acquisition of dolphins at your facility and work towards rehabilitating and releasing the dolphins currently in the Mirage’s possession.

Sincerely,

Photo Credit: marcp_dmoz

https://forcechange.com/609856/prevent-more-deaths-at-facility-where-three-dolphins-died-within-6-month-period/

Petition: End Starvation and Abandonment of Teacup Pigs – Animal Petitions

animalpetitions.org

Tiffany White

Target: Tom Vilsack, Secretary of U.S. Department of Agriculture

Goal: Ban breeding and marketing practices that cause suffering and death of countless teacup pigs.

A pig who was once the pet of social media influencer Logan Paul was discovered in dire condition by a California animal rescue organization. The group posted that the pig, named Pearl, “came to us with tattered ears and a potentially life-threatening infection in her uterus that has since been healed. She’s clearly been through so much trauma that we can’t begin to imagine.” Another deceased pig was found alongside Pearl. Paul claims he had rehomed the animal before she was found abandoned, but the tragedy highlights an increasingly dangerous trend.

Pearl is a so-called teacup pig: a potbellied pig bred and marketed for her small size. Individuals who take in these animals are often falsely led to believe that they will maintain their tiny stature. Supposedly cute photos and videos feed this belief. When the pigs grow to their normal size, however, caretakers are overwhelmed, leading to the type of horrific incident that nearly cost Pearl her life. Worse yet, breeders routinely utilize inhumane practices like malnourishment and inbreeding to stunt the growth of these animals. As a result, the lifespan of teacup pigs on average is half the lifespan of a typical pig.

Sign the petition below to demand the Department of Agriculture crack down on these cruel and deadly breeding practices.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Secretary Vilsack,

The discovery of a badly hurt and suffering teacup pig recently attracted national attention because of the pig’s association with a well-known social media personality. But Pearl’s plight is representative of an all-too-commonplace reality for these exploited animals. Tragically, many are never saved from their lifetime of misery and suffering.

The lives of teacup pigs often end at abandonment and death, but they begin with inhumane breeding and neglectful care. Behind the “cuteness” is a legacy of starvation, inbreeding, and social isolation for these highly social animals. Please be an advocate for these vulnerable living beings.

Work for a ban on the breeding and heinous marketing of this animal cruelty.

Sincerely,

Photo Credit: Jiri Mikolas

https://animalpetitions.org/1206082/end-starvation-and-abandonment-of-teacup-pigs/

Petition: Save the Snow Crabs From Disappearing Forever – ForceChange

forcechange.com

Tiffany White

Target: Simon Kinneen, Chair of North Pacific Fishery Management Council

Goal: Prolong ban on harvesting of snow crabs in Bering Sea.

They once numbered eight billion in the Bering Sea. Within just three years, their population plummeted to one billion. Now the Alaskan snow crab’s ultimate fate is perilous and unknown.

Overfishing has contributed to the plight of these animals. A greater toll, however, has been exerted by the rapidly defrosting Arctic region, which is warming at an alarming four times the rate of the rest of the world. Because the snow crab thrives in cold waters, its quickly changing habitat has left a dangerous and inhospitable home.

The dwindling numbers so alarmed fishery officials that they called off the Alaskan snow crab harvest. Juvenile crabs recently spotted in the region may have a chance to replenish populations as a result. But these animals need multiple years to reach maturity, and they need a safe haven to do so.

Sign the petition below to urge leaders to extend the moratorium on snow crab harvesting indefinitely.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Mr. Kinneen,

The Alaskan snow crab is in dire straits: a reality you recognized when you canceled the harvest for this year. The road to recovery will be long but not impossible if these animals have the time and the room to resurge. Juveniles currently in the sea need years, not months, to bolster the population.

Please think about the long-term and extend the prohibition on harvesting. Give the snow crab a fighting chance.

Sincerely,

Photo Credit: Visviva

Sign the Petition!

https://forcechange.com/610501/dont-let-snow-crab-disappear-from-seas-forever/

SIGN PETITION: Tell University of Minnesota to NEVER AGAIN Conduct Deadly Experiments on Kittens!

ladyfreethinker.org

Lady Freethinker

PETITION TARGETS: University of Minnesota, National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH), Minnesota Members of Congress

Kittens had their skulls drilled open and their brains jolted with electric currents and light rays by researchers at the University of Minnesota, who then killed the tiny animals at the end of the cruel tests.

The experiments’ protocols, obtained by Lady Freethinker through a public records request, said they aimed to better understand the human brain but used kittens as young as 10-weeks-old who were small enough to fit into the researchers’ brain scanners.

Several groups of anesthetized, temporarily paralyzed kittens underwent craniotomies, in which researchers drilled holes into their skulls and implanted electrodes or probes. Another group of paralyzed kittens had their brains scanned while researchers presented “visual stimuli” — including videos of mice — to the immobilized and defenseless animals, according to monitoring records.

While the studies were planned to be terminal — meaning no kittens would survive — records show that kittens also prematurely died from complications and suffered for days before researchers “euthanized” them.

Kittens suffered bruises, vomiting, muscle weakness, punctured veins, inflamed tracheas, and hypothermia. In 2021 alone, at least four kittens also died suddenly or suffered such severe complications from the experiments that researchers chose to kill them.

Casualties included April, a 3-month-old kitten who likely suffered organ damage after a researcher gave her a paralyzer at 4.5 times the approved dose — in alleged violation of the federal Animal Welfare Act — and Casey, an 11-week-old kitten whose tongue turned blue after repeated, failed attempts to intubate him and who had five veins blown during a single session.

Titan, an 11-week-old gray kitten, displayed muscle shakiness, low oxygen levels, a swollen face, and a seizure following a scan and suffered for at least 44 hours before researchers chose to kill him, according to his monitoring records.

Tammy — a 1-year-old kitten who had been anesthetized at least 15 times for experiments, starting when she was a 10-week-old kitten — died suddenly on a morning when researchers planned to drill into her skull. Zeus, a 10-week-old brown tabby kitten, also died on his own after suffering from an inflamed trachea and strained, raspy breathing for two days following a procedure.

The kitten experiments consumed at least $9 million of taxpayer-supported funding and years of precious research time without yielding any direct clinical applications for humans or cats.

The University of Minnesota also told Lady Freethinker the experiments had to be suspended and an “entirely new protocol” created that required researchers to “reexamine all procedures including anesthesia methods and to put in place enhanced monitoring.” That new protocol was approved, but thankfully researchers have not yet started their deadly experiments on kittens back up again — and it’s critical that they never do. 

It’s time for the University of Minnesota to permanently end experiments that kill kittens and find a more compassionate way forward.

Sign our petition urging the University of Minnesota to officially shut down deadly kitten experiments for good and to allow any surviving kittens to be adopted into loving homes. We’re also asking for the National Institutes of Health to never again fund experiments on kittens at this university and for legislators to demand answers about why taxpayer dollars were used to fund these experiments.

Then read our full story here. 

https://ladyfreethinker.org/sign-tell-university-of-minnesota-to-never-again-conduct-deadly-experiments-on-kittens/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email