Imagine a time when the majority of people, including politicians and legislators accept high standards of care and protection for animals as the norm.
Imagine strong and practical animal welfare legislation in place nationally and supported by animal lawyers who defend mistreated animals, confirming high standards of animal welfare to the public.
Imagine an official public database providing access to procedures for delivering good animal welfare outcomes.
This vision is championed by Antione Goetschel, the world’s first lawyer for animals who will be speaking at venues around Australia in April and May. A specialist in human-animal relationships in Swiss and international law, Antoine has represented animal interests in cruelty cases and played a major role in Swiss animal law referendums.
He fought successfully to have the dignity of living beings protected by the Swiss Constitution.
Swiss laws set out, species by species, measures to protect the dignity and well-being of animals.
Antione Goetschel is speaking in Australia as part of an annual animal law lecture series hosted by Voiceless. Venues and dates are available at www.voiceless.org.au
We have a new and valuable ally in protecting our pets' long-term health. Disease WatchDog is a national surveillance system for tracking and mapping communicable diseases in companion animals. In a world first, this system is used by local vets to record cases of disease in dogs and cats at suburb level.
Pet owners can access this information and take action to protect their animal’s health. Disease WatchDog founder, Dr Mark Kelman, Technical Services Manager for Virbac Animal Health says the system increases community awareness around preventable animal diseases. By informing the public on outbreaks in their local area, the spread of diseases such as the highly infectious Parvovirus can be reduced. The key is vaccination - one simple vaccination can save your animal’s life.
With fifty percent of Australia’s registered vet clinics currently participating in the program, Disease WatchDog has logged 11,814 cases of disease in Australia since its inception two years ago, including 3,968 cases of canine parvovirus. Other recorded diseases include canine cough, canine distemper, canine hepatitis, feline calcivirus and more.
A new website launched this year enables the public to monitor disease outbreaks. By logging on with your email address at www.diseasewatchdog.org you can view maps of disease hotspots and access information on diseases.
We may live in an increasingly artificial world but we belong to the natural world. All life is inter-connected.
Anyone who owns a pet knows how animals can enrich people’s lives.
Although Valentine's Day is designed as a day to pamper that special person in your life, it’s also a good day to celebrate the unconditional love that companion animals can offer. People enjoy attachments that are oblivious to their faults and this is provided in the uncritical affection of pets.Then there are the health benefits which companion animals bring their human families. These benefits are well known by now - lower blood pressure, lower heart rate, less visits to the doctor and reduced anxiety levels to name a few.
In exchange for these benefits, our role is to keep companion animals safe, happy and healthy. Valentines Day is a good time to contemplate ‘having a heart’ and extending care to include vulnerable animals. If lifestyle and circumstances permit, adopt a homeless animal. If not, there are many other simple ways to support animals.
Choose humanely produced foods, stop and sign petitions designed to improve conditions for animals, send a letter or email to the relevant government minister on issues where animals are receiving unnecessarily harsh, cruel or inhumane treatment such as live export and intensive breeding practices.
By engaging with politicians on animal welfare issues, you are advocating on behalf of animals. Get involved - animals don't have a voice and they need you.
For as long as animals continue to be defined as ‘property’ and animal suffering is measured against political and economic interest, poor welfare outcomes for animals are inevitable. It is widely accepted that our current political and judicial systems do not deliver adequate protection for animals.
Government departments and ministers whose role it is to improve animal welfare outcomes also work closely with powerful stakeholders such as those involved in live export and large scale factory farming operations. An inherent conflict exists when animal suffering is measured against human interest – animal welfare needs to be managed independently of industry.
Now there's hope for an end to this conflict of interest with the federal government’s establishment of the Independent Office of Animal Welfare. A Live Animal Export Working Party aims to come up with a model to secure decent and humane animal welfare outcomes. The Working Party is expected to report back to caucus by the end of February, with a model for an independent office that would develop and enforce national animal welfare standards.
That the ALP recognise the importance of animal welfare by voting to establish an Independent Office of Animal Welfare, suggests that the relentless efforts of so many Australians to engage their politicians on animal welfare issues are finally paying off.
What’s needed now is on-going encouragement to ensure the IOAW does function effectively in the interests of animals. Contact your local ALP member to congratulate them on the establishment of the IOAW and request updates on IOAW working party outcomes.
After a firestorm hit Dunalley in Tasmania, a temporary vet facility provided treatment to wildlife and domestic pets. Vets united to provide free services for affected animals whether those animals were owned, lost, stray or abandoned.
Participating vets provided emergency treatment and then organised onward transportation to vet clinics or animal shelters. Where the suffering of animals was too great, vets relieved the pain through humane euthanasia. Vet Dr Tering Davies said the coming together of veterinary clinics, animal shelters, governing authorities, organisations such as Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary and Reptile Rescue and a whole bunch of animal lovers was a true representation of what animal welfare should be.
During the life of the temporary facility, vets, vet nurses and volunteers assisted dogs with burns to their feet, face and eyes, reptiles with burns to their backs and tails, numerous wallabies, echidnas with burnt spines and fire affected birds. A St John’s ambulance member provided early treatment to an injured 16 year old dog before vets arrived and heroic fire fighters extended themselves even further by taking time to bring injured and traumatised animals into the vet facility for treatment.
Many locals, despite their own trauma, were taking in misplaced pets until their real owners could be found. What would these vulnerable animals say, if they could? Thank you to all those who cared enough to act on their behalf. Thanks also to the compassionate leaders at temporary refuges who recognised pets are family and permitted misplaced persons and their beloved pets to bunk down together. The Rural Fire Service of NSW provide a useful fact sheet on fire safety for pets (www.rfs.nsw.gov.au).
A study led by University of Western Sydney’s School of Medicine is finding out how pet owners prepare for disasters so emergency services can improve communications regarding the responsibilities and actions of pet owners in times of natural disaster.To participate or find our more information visit the study’s online survey by clicking here
Animal Welfare League Australia is partnering with the team at Vetico, a new online Pet Health Community. The online veterinary information site for pet owners has been created by vets and members of the veterinary industry to provide reliable up to date content. Vetico’s Chief Veterinarian, Dr Nick Wonders recognises that pet owners often go online to supplement their relationship with their local vet and need to be able to ensure they are getting accurate information. While there is a lot of pet related content on the internet, vets in practice are concerned about some of the advice being given to pet owners online. Vetico aims to address this by providing quality information. Together, AWLA and Vetico also aim to increase the exposure of Australian pet owners to animal adoption from shelters and the nature of the human animal bond. Visit www.vetico.com.au
Several studies have suggested that animals in the workplace bring benefits to staff productivity and morale. Perhaps tradesmen have known this all along – it would explain why canines are unofficial supervisors on many a building site. The Australian Tax Office allows tradesmen to claim their dog as a tax deduction. Expenses like vet and pet food bills can qualify as a deduction for tradies whose dogs have a role in guarding tools or the work ute. But when it comes to pets in an office situation, pre-planning is the key. Not all pets are suited to spending time in the office. Highly social, well trained, relaxed animals are most likely to fit right in. Shy, anxious, nervous or high energy animals are not likely to enjoy a busy, noisy or confined office environment and may be happier staying on home base. Likewise, not all people are suited to working in an environment with pets - it’s just good manners to check it out with your colleagues first.
What would we miss if we didn't have pets? Answers vary, depending on why we chose to have pets in the first place. Mostly, when we interact with companion animals, our faces say it all – we smile a whole lot more when pets are around. In his book, Making the Rounds with Oscar, Doctor David Rosa tells of four cats who reside permanently at Steere House, a multi-storey nursing home in the US. A cat lives on each floor of this facility bringing cheer to residents, staff and visitors. One of these cats, Oscar, has become famous across the world for his sensitivity to those who are nearing the end of their lives and his ability to gently and reliably predict impending death. It’s a remarkable story told by an initially sceptical doctor, who while not claiming to understand how it all works, comes to value Oscar as an important part of his health-care team. At this facility, the benefits to the health and well being of patients, their families and staff far out-weigh the practical logistics of keeping four resident cats. With an informed approach to the selection of animals, along with good care and management, keeping pets does not have to be out of the reach of aged care facilities or anyone living in an apartment, unit or higher density living situation.
Jo has been walking her elderly friend’s dog on a daily basis for four years now. Jo and her own dog are an active team who enjoy the extra company. The arrangement works well because the friends live nearby and their daily connection supports both of them in a whole range of ways. A lasting bond of friendship has formed through their mutual love of dogs. A sense of belonging is a central need for humans and there’s no doubt that pets can bring people together. Dog clubs and groups, neighbourly exchanges involving pet care, dog walking and lost and found animals have people connecting on a daily basis. We know that pets increase feelings of well-being for people who live alone or the elderly or individuals facing significant stress in their lives. But what about people who don’t feel socially isolated or under stress – do they reap the same benefits from pet ownership? These were the questions that researchers in the US set out to test. Over three separate studies, the researchers concluded that everyday people benefit from their pets in much the same way they do from their friends. On average pet owners were less lonely, had higher self-esteem and exercised more than non-pet owners. They also found that fulfilment from pets was beneficial no matter how much support the owners were already getting from other people. Pets are a boost to well-being, regardless of human companionship. People can gain joy and meaning from their pets even when they already have other friends and family caring about them. The findings support the idea that pets complement other forms of social support rather than compete with them.
Source: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology July 2011
