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Animal Welfare Institute
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Latest News
Wild Horse Advocacy Groups Urge Haaland to Promote Safe Management Methods
Monday, February 22, 2021
On the eve of US Rep. Deb Haaland’s historic confirmation hearing for Secretary of the Interior, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), the American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC), and several other leading wild horse advocacy groups...
House Revives Legislation Banning Unsafe Horse Transport
Tuesday, February 09, 2021
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends Representatives Steve Cohen (D-TN), Dina Titus (D-NV), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) for reintroducing the Horse Transportation Safety Act (HTSA) on Monday. The HTSA, which has already attracted an additional...
House Renews Effort to Protect Children and Animals from Abuse
Wednesday, February 03, 2021
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) endorses the Child and Animal Abuse Detection and Reporting Act, reintroduced today by Representatives Ann McLane Kuster (D-NH) and John Katko (R-NY), along with 22 original cosponsors.
Court Rules for Rare Wild Red Wolves against USFWS
Monday, January 25, 2021
The US District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina ruled on Friday that the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) must develop a plan by March 1 to resume its longstanding and successful...
AWI Applauds Reintroduction of Big Cat Public Safety Act
Monday, January 11, 2021
The Big Cat Public Safety Act, which passed the US House of Representatives by a strong bipartisan majority last month, was reintroduced today by Representatives Mike Quigley (D-IL) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA). This bill gained...
Fish and Wildlife Service Weakens Migratory Bird Protections
Thursday, January 07, 2021
Today, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) published a new regulation that weakens the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) by no longer penalizing individuals and corporations for the “incidental” killing of birds protected under...
Ohio Governor Signs Bill Requiring Cross-Reporting of Animal and Child Abuse
Wednesday, January 06, 2021
Today, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law HB 33, a bill to expand the cross-reporting of abuse of both animals and people. The legislation requires veterinarians, social service professionals, and counselors who encounter abused...
AWI Welcomes Swift Reintroduction of Legislation to Curb Wildlife-Human Disease Transmission
Monday, January 04, 2021
Sunday, on the first day of the 117th Congress, the Preventing Future Pandemics Act was reintroduced in the House of Representatives to address the spillover of emerging infectious diseases from wildlife to humans.
Omnibus Spending for Fiscal Year 2021 Includes Gains for Animals
Wednesday, December 30, 2020
Thanks to the hard work of the many members of Congress who support animal welfare, the $1.4 trillion omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2021, which was signed by the president on Sunday, includes some...
Congress Passes Historic Legislation to Protect Racehorses
Tuesday, December 22, 2020
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds the passage of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (H.R. 1754/S. 4547) late Monday. This bill, approved by Congress as part of the fiscal year 2021 omnibus spending package...
Report: Tokay Gecko Among 10 Species Threatened by Wildlife and Plant Trade
Friday, December 18, 2020
Wildlife trafficking and the unsustainable wildlife and plant trade is a multibillion-dollar industry and a major threat to species in the United States and worldwide, according to a new report released today that highlights 10...
In Waning Days, Trump Administration Releases Another Rule Undermining ESA
Thursday, December 17, 2020
Only two days after finalizing a rule undermining the protection of critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has published another final rule further weakening implementation of...
Trump Administration Finalizes New Rule that Weakens Endangered Species Act
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
Tomorrow, the Trump administration is slated to finalize a rule that further erodes the Endangered Species Act (ESA), one of the nation’s most effective and most popular laws. Under the new rule, the administration has...
1.6+ Million Farm Animals Died in Barn Fires in 2020
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
More than 1.6 million farm animals, including nearly 1.3 million cage-free hens, have perished in potentially preventable barn fires so far this year, according to an Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) analysis of media reports released...
House Passes Big Cat Public Safety Act to Limit Possession of Dangerous Big Cats
Thursday, December 03, 2020
In the wake of the Netflix docuseries “Tiger King” and heightened public attention to the exploitation of captive big cats, the US House of Representatives passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act today by a...
AWI Endorses Legislation to Ban Archaic Body-Gripping Traps
Thursday, December 03, 2020
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) welcomes the reintroduction of the Public Safety and Wildlife Protection Act yesterday by Representatives Alma Adams (D-NC) and Nita Lowey (D-NY). This bill would prohibit the import and export of...
New Report: USDA Continues to Tolerate Poultry Abuse at Largest Slaughter Plants
Friday, November 20, 2020
The US Department of Agriculture’s inadequate, haphazard oversight of the treatment of chickens and turkeys at slaughter has led to the widespread mistreatment and suffering of birds at some of the nation’s largest plants, with...
Lawmakers to BLM: Stop Barbaric Surgical Sterilizations of Wild Horses in Utah
Thursday, November 19, 2020
Today, 58 lawmakers in both the House of Representatives and the Senate sent a bipartisan letter to the Department of the Interior condemning the Bureau of Land Management’s plan to perform unsafe and inhumane surgical...
Help AWI Donate Books to Underserved Children on #GivingTuesday
Tuesday, November 17, 2020
Giving Tuesday, a global day of giving on December 1 this year, offers an opportunity for people around the world to stand together in unity—to use our individual power of generosity to remain connected. This...
Conservation Groups Sue USFWS to Save Wild Red Wolves
Monday, November 16, 2020
On behalf of the Red Wolf Coalition, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Animal Welfare Institute, the Southern Environmental Law Center today sued the US Fish and Wildlife Service in the US District Court for the...