With 2007 coming to a close, some significant strides were made on behalf of animals – but other very important issues continue to languish due to individuals and organizations profiting from the suffering of animals. As AWI enters its 57th year of fighting for animals, we are determined to protect animals, but we need help from you and everyone else who cares about all beings.

We are making plans to further our successes for the animals in the coming year.  In 2007, our Animal Welfare Approved farm animal program grew exponentially.  We have assembled a team of auditors who visit and review practices on the family farms using AWI’s standards and seal, as well as reach out to new farmers who may qualify for the program.  Thanks to overwhelming consumer interest, some farmers are receiving major media coverage for their commitment to high welfare.  The Good Shepherd Turkey Ranch’s Frank Reese, honored by AWI at an event in September, was recently profiled by The New York Times, NPR, Martha Stewart and others.

Laboratory Animal Advisor Viktor Reinhart is producing a prolific amount of publications to improve the lives of animals used for experimentation.  Earlier this year, he released Making Lives Easier for Animals in Research Labs, an edited compilation of discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum (LAREF).  While continuing to moderate LAREF, he is working on a new book entitled Taking Better Care of Monkeys and Apes: Refinement of Housing and Handling Practices for Caged Nonhuman Primates.  His next project is to update and heavily expand Environmental Enrichment for Caged Macaques: Photographic Documentation and Literature Review.  The strong interest in and need for Viktor’s publications was evident at the recent American Association of Laboratory Animal Science meeting, where we received an overwhelming response to our exhibit booths – distributing 16 boxes of our materials on the first of three days.

We have also increased our work to promote humane education.  AWI staffed a booth at the 2007 Annual Conference of the National Association of Biology Teachers and received a warm response to our exhibit.  This spring, we plan to exhibit at the 2008 National Conference of the National Science Teachers Association.  In addition to our work encouraging alternatives to dissection, representatives of AWI and Dr. Barbara Orlans of our scientific committee will attend science fairs in the Washington, D.C. metro area to assess the current projects and ensure that students are not causing animals to suffer.  Projects have changed significantly in the past half century, but close monitoring is still needed – and children, under adult supervision, have caused needless suffering that we hope to stem.

Heroes star Hayden Panettiere and brother Jansen of the "Save the Whales Again" campaign speak at press conference during the 59th annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Anchorage, Alaska.

Educating children was a large part of our renewed campaign to “Save the Whales Again” this year.  In the run up to the 2007 International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting, we supported a “human whale migration project” that traveled the gray whale migration route up the West Coast from Mexico to Alaska and collected postcards from children that were later presented at the IWC meeting in a celebrity press conference with stars of NBC’s Heroes.  Fortunately, there were no major victories for pro-whaling countries at the meeting, and the ban on commercial whaling remains intact.  In 2008, IWC member countries will try to work through an impasse between those who wish to conserve whales and those who wish to do them harm.  AWI is pressing the United States and other conservation-minded countries not to succumb to the whalers’ relentless demands, and to stand firm in defense of the moratorium – a measure that in two decades has saved tens of thousands of whales from death, and even extinction.

Sadly, other marine species are also at risk.  We are working to end the brutal drive hunts inflicted on the dolphins of Taiji, Japan, and again hosted the Washington, D.C. event of an international day of protest against this practice.  AWI also launched a nationwide campaign to end shark finning – we aim to stop restaurants in major US cities from serving shark fin soup, a “delicacy” that is responsible for the slaughter of over 70 million sharks each year. Fins are typically cut off while sharks are still conscious, and the animals are thrown back into the sea to die. Many of the species killed for their fins have slow reproductive rates and are vulnerable to extinction. A target list of offending restaurants is available here; we are asking consumers to distribute a card on the harms of shark finning to these establishments.

The Society for Animal Protective division has been further integrated into AWI this year, serving as our government and legal affairs division.  Currently, we are pushing for the adoption of several bills.  In keeping with our history of political advocacy for animals, we also created a legislative tracking system last year and continue to expand the project.  The Compassion Index (CI), available online at www.compassionindex.org, provides detailed data on the positions taken by Members of Congress on pending legislation, featuring a continually updated online tally system that rates their actions on key humane measures.  In addition to important bills that promote the humane treatment of animals, the CI identifies legislation that may be harmful to animals.  In early January we will have some news to announce regarding the expansion of the CI as a full service advocacy tool.

The Pet Safety and Protection Act was reintroduced in 2007 to prevent Class B dealers and unlicensed individuals from selling “random source” dogs and cats – many of whom may be family pets – to laboratories.  It passed in the House of Representatives in July as part of the FARM Bill, and this month, it was approved under the Senate FARM Bill.  When Congress returns from the Holiday Recess in January, House and Senate Agriculture Committee Members will go to conference to iron out any differences in the language of their respective bills.  More information about the bill and what you can do is available here.

In light of the Michael Vick dog fighting case, the Dog Fighting Prohibition Act was introduced to further strengthen the Animal Welfare Act and combat dog fighting.  While its occurrence was tragic, the Vick case has raised awareness regarding the abuse of animals and the importance of anti-cruelty laws.  Along with supporting this legislation, we are working with an assistant attorney general well-experienced in prosecuting animal fighting and cruelty cases to create a training module and related resource materials for prosecutors fighting these cases.  A professional association for district attorneys has already expressed interest in this effort.

There have been several victories for horses this year.  In the current legislative session, a measure to restore the prohibition against the commercial exploitation and slaughter of America’s wild horses was overwhelmingly passed by the full House of Representatives.  All US slaughter plants have been shut down as well, thanks to state-level victories.  However, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act’s passage is still essential to prevent horses from being shipped across the US borders for slaughter.  We will continue to press for a vote on the bill when Members of Congress return from their break.

AWI is already working with legislators in Illinois to expand on our victory in 2007 for horses.  We will be advocating for legislation banning outright the use of double-deck horse transports for any purpose in the State of Illinois.  Not only are double-deck trailers inhumane, they are dangerous due to their high center of gravity.  Numerous heart-wrenching and lethal accidents have occurred in recent years in which double-deck trailers were carrying horses to a middle-point along the route to slaughter.  The results were grisly and absolutely avoidable.

Willie Nelson’s daughters Amy and Paula, his granddaughter Raelyn, and their friend Johnny Irion sing the Rolling Stones’ "Wild Horses" on the steps of the US Congress.  The compassionate country music singer and his family have been big supporters of AWI's work and our campaign to protect America’s horses.

In addition to our determination to obtain adoption of the Act in the US Congress, we have offered to place horses in high-quality sanctuaries as an alternative to their sale for slaughter. Further, detailed standards are being developed for a sanctuary accreditation program by the Homes for Horses Coalition, of which we are a founding member.  AWI’s Liz Ross serves as the chair of the Standards Working Group.

Looking forward to 2008, there is much to be done, but we will work steadfastly to make further strides for animals.  With your help, we can make a lot of progress.  To stay informed on all of the latest news on our campaigns and important animal legislation, please click here to sign up for our “Dear Humanitarian” eAlerts.  If you currently receive our "Dear Humanitarian" letter via the USPS you can send an email to eAlert@awionline.org to be added to our eAlert and/or our paper mailing list.  Please be sure to include your mailing address if you would like to receive a hard copy of these alerts.  Note that email alerts are sent more frequently and allow you to help us on a timelier basis.

Have a Happy Holiday and see you next year for more advances on behalf of all animals!