Animal

Bonjour ma belle hop ! Malheureusement, le doc m'a bien expliqué que ça ne règlerait pas tous mes problèmes, car mes douleurs et engourdissements aux épaules et aux bras proviennent principalement de mes hernies cervicales (pour lesquelles je refuse d'être opérée) et de bursite et capsulite chroniques (épaules) mais ces opérations aux mains me permettront peut-être de retrouver un peu plus de force au niveau de mes doigts, un peu moins de douleurs et de raideurs, et peut-être aussi un peu moins d'engourdissements à ce niveau. Le nerf médian se trouve entre deux os donc il faut les écarter puis enlever les petits morceaux d'os qui appuient sur ce nerf. C'est un peu le même problème avec mes hernies cervicales qui compriment des nerfs et la moëlle épinière. Après un mois ou deux, je devrais déjà avoir une bonne idée à savoir si ça a changé quelque chose ou pas. La seule chose que je souhaite, c'est que ça ne soit pas pire que ça l'est maintenant! Bonne fin de journée ma chère hop, XXXX Je viens de passer plus d'une heure au téléphone avec une vieille copine qui vit en Allemagne ... Il faut maintenant que je travaille un peu sur les feuillets à refaire (contre la chasse au phoque) pour notre petite rencontre à Québec le 12... Je me croise les doigts pour que ma petite opération ne se fasse pas le jour avant et que je sois obligée de tout annuler ou remettre ça à plus tard. C'est déjà tellement difficile de trouver quelques militants disponibles pour une date en particulier

La terre est devenue un dépotoir à ciel ouvert ! Je suis très très pessimiste quant à son avenir J'ai aussi vu une émission récemment, sur des tonnes de déchets hospitaliers, pharmaceutiques, biomédicaux, toxiques, provenant de pays riches qui sont littéralement «dompés» en Afrique

J'espère que ce documentaire sera aussi présenté au Québec

c'est pas vegan mais c'est mieux que rien... Avec tous les produits vegan disponibles sur le marché aujourd'hui (substituts de lait, fromage, oeufs), il y aurait sûrement moyen de véganiser les recettes de ce livre

Pauvres éléphants !

Merci Sea Shepherd !

De retour...

Allo tofu si ça leur rend leur vie moins difficile, tant mieux, mais je crois que personne ne sait vraiment quel effet le vin peut avoir sur leurs estomacs, leur vessie, etc. ni comment elles se sentent après avoir bu du vin

Le Parti vert demande aux députés de ne pas tolérer l’importation de fourrure de chats et de chiens 10 Février 2011 - 10:51am OTTAWA – Contrairement à nos voisins des États-Unis et à l’Union européenne, le gouvernement canadien refuse d’interdire officiellement l’importation de fourrure de chats et de chiens. Chaque année, des millions de chats et de chiens sont brutalement abattus et écorchés, notamment en Chine, pour les industries du vêtement et du jouet. Pire, le gouvernement du Canada a trouvé le moyen de faire entrer ces produits discrètement en adoptant une politique de non-étiquetage pour le commerce du textile sur l’ensemble de son territoire. Chaque fois que la question a été soulevée par des citoyennes et des citoyens préoccupés par la situation, les ministères se sont renvoyé la balle l’un après l’autre pour éviter d’en assumer la responsabilité. « Je sais que lorsqu’il s’agit des animaux, la seule question posée est pour savoir si les populations et l’espèce sont en santé; nos députés devraient aussi faire preuve d’éthique lorsqu’ils signent des accords commerciaux. Je les invite à prendre connaissance des conditions dans lesquelles vivent les chats et les chiens élevés sur les fermes à fourrure, puis à expliquer en quoi ces animaux sont différents de nos animaux domestiques », a dit Sameer Muldeen, porte-parole des verts pour le bien-être des animaux. En 2000, les États-Unis ont donné l’exemple, suivis de l’Europe en 2008, en légiférant pour éliminer le commerce des produits en fourrure de chats et de chiens. « Notre gouvernement rechigne à imiter ce geste simplement parce qu’il souhaite éviter tout débat sur la délicate question de nos lois sur le bien-être des animaux. La chasse au phoque inutile et coûteuse, par exemple, lui fait craindre de créer un précédent en matière d’éthique animale. Depuis 1982, aucune réforme juridique importante n’a été enteprise par nos dirigeants successifs en matière d’exploitation et de protection des animaux. Il est grand temps qu’on examine la question », a ajouté Muldeen. « Parce l'étiquetage n’est pas obligatoire, les Canadiennes et les Canadiens risquent d’acheter des jouets ou des vêtements avec de la fourrure sans réaliser que cette fourrure est peut-être celle d’un chien ou d’un chat élevé en Chine dans des conditions horribles. Même si nous n’avons pas encore réussi à nous entendre sur la question de la chasse au phoque, nous pouvons certainement admettre que les chats et les chiens, que plusieurs d’entre nous considèrent comme des membres de notre famille, ne devraient jamais être utilisés de cette manière », a dit la chef du Parti vert Elizabeth May. « Imaginez un peu quelle serait votre réaction si vous appreniez que le jouet de votre chien est fabriqué avec de la fourrure de chien. Faites savoir à votre député que c’est inacceptable. » ni les chats, ni les chiens, ni les renards, ni les ratons-laveurs, ni les vaches, ni les cochons, ni les phoques, ... ni aucun animal .... -30- Renseignements : Debra Eindiguer Attachée de presse Parti vert du Canada media@partivert.ca c : 613.240.8921 http://greenparty.ca/fr/node/16776

Contente de savoir que dans l'ensemble, tout va bien pour toi et tes petites Ma petite grosse va bien... Elle est sur une petite diète depuis quelques semaines mais a date, elle n'a pas encore perdu un gramme. Je crois qu'il va aussi y avoir une manif a Montréal, organisée par d'autres groupes. Cé doit donner une conférence dans une école (a cette meme date) donc elle ne fera pas de manif a Montréal.. Pour l'instant, pour Québec, je n'ai reçu qu'une seule confirmation. Je me croise les doigts pour qu'il y en ait d'autres. Je reviendrai sur le forum dans le courant de la soirée car il faut que je me prépare pour un rendez-vous avec un orthopédiste A+ ma belle hop Bonne journée toutes les deux

Non surtout ne t'inquiètes pas ma belle hop! J'aurais dû préciser qu'il était prêt mais pas encore envoyé ... On avait accumulé du retard pour la préparation des textes et en +, il y en a eu aussi pour la correction du bulletin, à cause d'un problème de serveur. Je crois qu'il va être imprimé dans les jours qui viennent, donc, il ne sera pas posté avant encore un petit bout de temps. Pour te rassurer et te dire de prendre ton temps,,,,,, Je n'ai pas encore du tout commencé à préparer mes nouvelles pour le bulletin qui viendra après celui-là, et pour les semaines qui viennent, je vais m'occuper de préparer une petite manif à Québec contre la chasse au phoque (mi-mars), donc recherche de bénévoles (disponibles....( pas facile)...), préparation de tracts, etc. Je regrette de ne pas avoir assez de temps pour venir discuter avec toi plus souvent, mais j'espère que tout va bien pour toi et ta petite famille... Je t'embrasse très très fort ma chère hop

Oui c'est terrifiant! Et dire qu'après tant d'années, cette catastrophe continue de faire des dégâts! Contente de te revoir terrienne... ça faisait longtemps que tu n'étais pas venue faire une petite saucette ici

Incroyable mais vrai !

Canadian Blog by Barry Kent Mackay, Senior Program Associate Born Free USA's Canadian Representative Barry is an artist, both with words and with paint. He has been associated with our organization for nearly three decades and is our go-to guy for any wildlife question. He knows his animals — especially birds — and the issues that affect them. His blogs will give you just the tip of his wildlife-knowledge iceberg, so be sure to stay and delve deeper into his Canadian Project articles. If you like wildlife and reading, Barry's your man. (And we're happy to have him as part of our team, too!) ------------------------------------------------------------------ You Want Dumb? Read This. Seal-Hunt-Supporting Senator Struts Her Ignorance Published 02/14/11 OK, before I tell you just how ignorant Sen. Hervieux-Payette is on a wildlife slaughter she strongly supports, some non-Canadian readers will require a brief word of explanation. Lest you think Canada is a full democracy, well, no — there are some vestiges of imperialistic elitism, most particularly including the Senate. This is a body of non-elected, supposedly distinguished and decidedly mature individuals appointed as favors bestowed by the current or previous governing federal parties. They are supposed to provide a sober, second thought on legislation enacted by a Parliament that actually is elected, thus more or less accountable to the public. The Senate is, in short, a group of our elite supposed superiors; you can’t trust the rabble to make the right choices. Canadian Sen. Céline Hervieux-PayetteOne such senator, Céline Hervieux-Payette, is an adamant supporter of Canada’s internationally notorious East Coast annual spring commercial slaughter of mostly young harp seals. She naturally welcomed the news, last month, that China had reached an agreement to import seal hunt products. “Besides fur,” she reportedly said, “China will experience our excellent Canadian seal meat and oil.” Yeah, right. It’s been a good 30 years since friends of mine set up a hidden camera in a St. John’s, Newfoundland, outdoor market, aimed at a stall selling, or really not selling, seal meat. No one wanted to buy it and only one old-timer even showed interest, albeit very little, despite its cheap price. And it’s been at least a couple of decades since a representative of a sealing association, prior to a televised debate, proudly showed me some non-fur-seal products my tax dollars helped to create by funding research and development. These included a seal-skin leather necktie, with a zipper (the leather is not flexible enough to be knotted, like an ordinary necktie) and a can of seal meat. The latter was heavily diluted with other types of meat, and even so one sniff was more than I would ever want to experience of the stuff. And through the years I’ve been told and sometimes seen first hand how seal meat, artfully adulterated to obscure its rank flavor, has been served as canapés by Canada at home and during various diplomatic functions. It’s a bit of a private joke, off the record, among diplomats. And no one is told that the meat derives only from the shoulder blade (inexplicably called “seal flipper”). Even those down-east stalwarts with a taste for “flipper pie” don’t utilize meat from the entire animal. But last month Hervieux-Payette reached a new plateau of absurdity not just by urging more Canadian tax money be squandered promoting sales in seal products (latest wrinkle in that department is to use seal heart valves in heart valve surgery — seriously) but that seals must be killed for their own sake. “Pretending that it would be ethical to let a herd of seals grow exponentially, leaving animals to die of hunger or disease, is irresponsible,” she said. “At the top of the food chain, humans have a responsibility to take resources sustainably and to waste as little of them as possible. This is the spirit of the Universal Declaration of the Ethical Harvest of Seals.” No species, other than humans thus far (and even for us there must be an ultimate end to our population increase) has ever sustained exponential growth. The laws of physics prevent it. As my good friend, Dr. Ronald Orenstein (who, unlike Hervieux-Payette, has dedicated his life to the study of wildlife and ecology), put it, “Gosh, how does the senator feel about deer mice, or porcupines, or American Robins, or all the other animals we do not cull because they have no economic value? Think how unethical we are being by not having a culling program in operation for every species on the planet, so that no animal ever starves to death again.” Sen. Céline Hervieux-Payette and her ilk mindlessly repeat a dogmatic rhetoric. There is no understanding of the interrelated complexity of nature, thus no acknowledgement that seals and other predators serve important ecological functions that can benefit prey species, and certainly don’t wipe them out. The world, Canada, and Canadian wildlife deserve better. The senator is not a fool, except when it comes to the seal hunt. Then she is sadly ignorant. Blogging off Barry http://www.bornfreeusa.org/weblog_canada.php?p=2710&more=1

http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/2011/superbugsinthesupermarket/ Le poulet bio contient presqu'autant de bactéries résistantes aux antibiotiques que le poulet provenant des gros élevages...

Des centaines d'animaux rares saisis en Thaïlande 11 février 2011 Un boa (illustration)Serpents, araignées et tortues, comptant parmi les espèces les plus rares du monde, ont été saisis à l'aéroport de Bangkok. C'est dans les valises d'un Indonésien que les animaux sauvages ont été découverts par la douane. La valeur des centaines d'animaux découverts à l'aéroport a été estimée à 18.000 euros. Poursuivi pour possession illégale et trafic d'animaux sauvages, l'homme risque une peine maximum de quatre ans de prison.

Animaux à placer le 11 Février 2011/ Animals to place on February 11, 2011 Voilà la liste des animaux ayant besoin d'un foyer temporaire en ce moment. Nous aimerions vous rappeler que nous fournissons un échantillon de nourriture pour le départ et que nous avons un vétérinaire que vous pouvez consulter pour 5$ en cas de besoin. SVP TRANSFÉREZ CE MESSAGE À TOUS VOS CONTACTS. Nous savons que plusieurs d’entre vous sont déjà occupés avec des animaux venant d’ici, mais peut-être que vos amis, collègues et parents pourraient nous aider. Si un de ces animaux vous intéresse, communiquez avec nous le plus rapidement possible au 514-735-2711, poste 2237 ou via courriel à pfa_fp@spcamontreal.com. Merci et bonne journée! En espérant vous voir bientôt! http://foyerdaccueil.blogspot.com/2008/01/english-will-follow-cette-semaine-se.html

Chicken: Are you concerned about bacteria in store-bought chicken? February 11, 2011 By CBC News Chicken bought at major supermarkets across Canada is frequently contaminated with superbugs -- bacteria that many antibiotics cannot kill -- an investigation by CBC TV's Marketplace has found. Marketplace researchers -- along with their colleagues at Radio-Canada's food show L'Epicerie -- bought 100 samples of chicken from major grocery chains in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. The chicken included some of the most familiar label names in the poultry business. The 100 samples were sent to a lab for analysis. Two-thirds of the chicken samples had bacteria. That in itself is not unusual -- E. coli, salmonella and campylobacter are often present in raw chicken. Do the CBC Marketplace findings make you concerned about the chicken you buy at the grocery store? What are your tips on handling raw meat? « Tell us below. Thank you for voting! Yes 73.19% (1,013 votes) No 22.9% (317 votes) I'm not sure 3.9% (54 votes) Total Votes: 1,384 http://www.cbc.ca/news/pointofview/2011/02/chicken-are-you-concerned-about-bacteria-in-store-bought-chicken.html

Les porcelets sont nourris avec un lait artificiel et leur mère est dans une cage, sous ses petits avec lesquels elle n'a aucun contact! De cette façon ils peuvent entendre leur mère et cela les incitent à boire... Quelle cruauté! Piglet Feeding Systems have become more and more Established in Pig Industry. (Feb 11, 2011) Feed companies have been selling sow milk replacers for many years and all breeding units have a bag tucked away in case a sow goes down with agalactia and is unable to suckle her pigs. Over the years, equipment companies have designed and sold artificial sow/milk machines, some of which have done the job well, some of which have not. It is a well known fact that pigs that are heavier at weaning can handle the stress of weaning much better than lighter offspring and, importantly, get to slaughter more quickly. Any way of getting milk into a piglet – whether it comes from the sow or out of a bag – has to be good. The size of litters has been gradually increasing, such that the Danes are now talking about 40 pigs/sow/year. However, one disadvantage of sows farrowing larger litters is that the average birth weight drops - and smaller piglets tend to be less viable. Tackling difficulties Giving milk by hand using a small trough is acceptable for the odd litter or two, but very time consuming, and, additionally, the stockman moving from pen to pen increases the possibility of the possible transfer of scoured dung from one litter to another. In light of the above, several companies have developed equipment to supply milk to piglets automatically. The concept is based around a milk tank and pump, pipeline and milk cups placed in the farrowing pen, with the cups being fitted with a piglet- activated valve/nipple. More than simple provision Kari Farming GmbH is a German equipment company that produces its version of the pipeline system. This has a tank to hold the milk, which is distributed through a narrow gauge pipe to cups that are positioned in the farrowing pen, near the creep area. The Kari system differs from others in that the cups are connected with stainless steel piping. As far as milk delivery is concerned, piglets push down with their snouts on a button shaped spring loaded valve, thereby allowing the milk to flow into the cup. Provimi’s system goes by the name of RescueCup. Cleanliness of these systems is vital. Provimi state that its system only needs cleaning once a week, not daily. RescueMilk, Provimi’s piglet milk, is fed from two days to 14 days, along with HeavyPig prestarter diet. Commercial data is shown below in Table 1, showing the obvious benefits of this system. Provimi has data showing use of its RescueCup resulted in heavier weaning weights, a higher number of weaned piglets per litter, an overall higher litter weight, and lower mortality rates. With larger litters, any way of getting milk into a piglet has to be good. Provimi also markets the RescueDeck, which is an incubator to raise weak or excess piglets. Each RescueDeck houses 12 piglets from day 3 up to weaning and is fitted with two rescue cups, one of which supplies Rescuemilk (until 4 days before weaning) and one which provides water. The Deck is best positioned directly over the sow’s crate to ensure that vocalisation by the sow stimulates milk intake by the piglets, and that the climatic conditions are suited to the requirements of the piglets. Boerries GmbH, based in Lindern, Germany, markets its milk line system in association with Supp-Le-Milk of Iowa and UK based creep feed manufacturer Primary Diets. This system has been on the market since 1989, and up to 80 litters can be catered for with one system. Plastic tubing is used to connect the cups together, with a single cup being fixed to the slats, near to the creep. Piglets push a valve to release the milk. The milk tanks come in two sizes, 56 litres and 122 litres, and a small pump circulates the warmed milk round the line. The pump works “on demand” so saving electricity, and individual cups can be switched off. This is important as, if it did not occur, stale milk could build up in a cup, and freshness naturally is the key to good milk intake. http://farms.com/FarmsPages/ENews/NewsDetails/tabid/189/Default.aspx?NewsID=38812 As litter sizes increase, piglet feeding systems gain in importance Date: 2010-12-09 By Stuart Lumb Piglet feeding systems have become more and more established in pig industry. Larger litters and a reduction in average birth weights means that piglets may need additional support to better handle the stress of weaning. Feed companies have been selling sow milk replacers for many years and all breeding units have a bag tucked away in case a sow goes down with agalactia and is unable to suckle her pigs. Over the years, equipment companies have designed and sold artificial sow/milk machines, some of which have done the job well, some of which have not. It is a well known fact that pigs that are heavier at weaning can handle the stress of weaning much better than lighter offspring and, importantly, get to slaughter more quickly. Any way of getting milk into a piglet – whether it comes from the sow or out of a bag – has to be good. The size of litters has been gradually increasing, such that the Danes are now talking about 40 pigs/sow/year. However, one disadvantage of sows farrowing larger litters is that the average birth weight drops - and smaller piglets tend to be less viable. Tackling difficulties Giving milk by hand using a small trough is acceptable for the odd litter or two, but very time consuming, and, additionally, the stockman moving from pen to pen increases the possibility of the possible transfer of scoured dung from one litter to another. In light of the above, several companies have developed equipment to supply milk to piglets automatically. The concept is based around a milk tank and pump, pipeline and milk cups placed in the farrowing pen, with the cups being fitted with a piglet- activated valve/nipple. More than simple provision Kari Farming GmbH is a German equipment company that produces its version of the pipeline system. This has a tank to hold the milk, which is distributed through a narrow gauge pipe to cups that are positioned in the farrowing pen, near the creep area. The Kari system differs from others in that the cups are connected with stainless steel piping. As far as milk delivery is concerned, piglets push down with their snouts on a button shaped spring loaded valve, thereby allowing the milk to flow into the cup. Provimi’s system goes by the name of RescueCup. Cleanliness of these systems is vital. Provimi state that its system only needs cleaning once a week, not daily. RescueMilk, Provimi’s piglet milk, is fed from two days to 14 days, along with HeavyPig prestarter diet. Commercial data is shown below in Table 1, showing the obvious benefits of this system. Provimi has data showing use of its RescueCup resulted in heavier weaning weights, a higher number of weaned piglets per litter, an overall higher litter weight, and lower mortality rates. With larger litters, any way of getting milk into a piglet has to be good. Provimi also markets the RescueDeck, which is an incubator to raise weak or excess piglets. Each RescueDeck houses 12 piglets from day 3 up to weaning and is fitted with two rescue cups, one of which supplies Rescuemilk (until 4 days before weaning) and one which provides water. The Deck is best positioned directly over the sow’s crate to ensure that vocalisation by the sow stimulates milk intake by the piglets, and that the climatic conditions are suited to the requirements of the piglets. Piglets that are heavier at weaning reach slaughter weight more quickly. Boerries GmbH, based in Lindern, Germany, markets its milk line system in association with Supp-Le-Milk of Iowa and UK based creep feed manufacturer Primary Diets. This system has been on the market since 1989, and up to 80 litters can be catered for with one system. Plastic tubing is used to connect the cups together, with a single cup being fixed to the slats, near to the creep. Piglets push a valve to release the milk. The milk tanks come in two sizes, 56 litres and 122 litres, and a small pump circulates the warmed milk round the line. The pump works “on demand” so saving electricity, and individual cups can be switched off. This is important as, if it did not occur, stale milk could build up in a cup, and freshness naturally is the key to good milk intake. Cleanliness is vital as with all milk line systems, and the system has to be rinsed daily, automatically of course, with sanitizer. After weaning/between batches the system is programmed to undergo a thorough 15 minute chlorinated wash. Piglets on the system are given Primary Piglet Choice creep from 8/9 days through to weaning. With the milk, creep intake is increased by 20%, leading to better weaning weights and naturally stronger piglets at weaning. In addition, piglet mortality rates are reduced. Boerries stresses that the system allows piglets to remain on the sow and so they do not have to be fostered on to nurse sows, which is time consuming and needs extra crates in each farrowing room – not a cheap option. When carrying out trials it is vital that large numbers of pigs are involved, to achieve accurate meaningful results. Boerries has data on over 4,500 pigs, used in a trial to show the significant benefits of Supp–Le- Milk. The milk group grew faster than the control pigs, which received no supplemental milk (634gms vs 587gms) and hence achieved slaughter weight 17 days earlier (181 days vs 198 days). This means that pigs can be slaughtered at heavier weights resulting in more meat, or more pigs can be put through the same buildings due to the faster growth rate, reducing the building charges per pig finished. Various advantages With all these milk line systems, it is vital that the milk is formulated to prevent digestive upsets in piglets. Consequently, these artificial milk products often contain acidifiers which help to keep the pH of the gut of the young animals low. The sows of today are piglet producing machines, and with these hyper-prolific lines producing massive litters, anything that can be done to help has to be a bonus. Milk lines have a place in modern pig husbandry by boosting weaning weights, liveability and growth rates in later life. Larger litters and a reduction in average birth weights means that piglets may need additional support to better handle the stress of weaning. Piglets that are heavier at weaning reach slaughter weight more quickly.

January 4, 2011 HSI Canada Calls for Cancellation of the 2011 Commercial Seal Slaughter Warming temperatures and low sea ice formation off Canada’s East Coast threaten seal populations Humane Society International/Canada A dead seal pup in 2010. HSI With reports of harp seals giving birth on Labrador beaches three months too early, Humane Society International/Canada is calling upon the Canadian government to immediately cancel the 2011 commercial seal slaughter. "In 2010, a record low sea-ice cover forced mother seals to attempt to give birth on shore, where predation and starvation caused the helpless pups to perish,” said Rebecca Aldworth, executive director of Humane Society International/Canada. “Currently, we are seeing a major disruption in the seals’ whelping cycle and more land births. Until the scientific community fully understands the implications of this new phenomenon, its relation to climate change and the future impacts on the harp seal population, no responsible government can allow a commercial seal slaughter to occur.” The CBC reported that Simon Kohlmeister, a conservation officer with the Nunatsiavut government in Labrador, had warned of a possible “environmental disaster,” noting that warming temperatures are causing seals to give births months earlier than expected. He said that elders in Nain, the administrative capital of Nunatsiavut, had never witnessed seal pups born this early in Canada. As ice-dependent animals, harp seals need the sea-ice platform to give birth to their pups, and they need the ice to remain intact until the pups are strong enough to survive in open water. Following last year’s disastrous lack of sea-ice cover, Environment Canada now predicts that above-average temperatures will delay onset of sea ice formation in 2011 off Canada’s east coast, and that the ice will break up earlier than normal. Independent scientists warn that the reckless kill levels authorized by the Canadian government, paired with the impacts of climate change [PDF], pose a serious threat to the survival of harp seal populations. In recent years, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans has estimated up to 100 percent mortality for seal pups in key whelping areas as the sea ice melted too soon. At the same time, the DFO has consistently authorized the highest commercial seal kill levels in half a century. -30- Humane Society International/Canada is a leading force for animal protection, representing tens of thousands of members and constituents across the country. HSI Canada has active programs in companion animals, wildlife and habitat protection, marine mammal preservation and farm animal welfare. HSI Canada is proud to be a part of Humane Society International—one of the largest animal protection organizations in the world, with more than 11 million members and constituents globally—On the Web at hsicanada.ca. http://www.hsi.org/world/canada/news/releases/2011/01/cancel_canada_seal_slaughter_010411.html

Group faults UW use of ferrets in medical training Originally published February 9, 2011 at 7:56 PM | Page modified February 10, 2011 at 12:35 AM A national animal-welfare group has filed a complaint against the University of Washington for using live ferrets to train pediatric residents to insert breathing tubes in premature babies. By Carol M. Ostrom Seattle Times health reporter Complaint filed against UW by Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PDF) A national physicians group has filed a federal complaint against the University of Washington, saying its use of ferrets to train medical residents in emergency procedures on babies and children violates a federal animal-welfare law. The residents, who are learning to insert breathing tubes in premature infants, practice on anesthetized ferrets, confirmed Dr. Dennis Mayock, a professor of pediatrics and medical director of the UW's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The complaining group, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, based in Washington, D.C., says only about 13 percent of the pediatric-residency programs in the United States use animals for such training. The UW is "using an educational method that, in our view, is not justifiable," said Dr. John Pippin, a Dallas cardiologist who helped write the complaint. The nonprofit Physicians Committee, which promotes preventive medicine and alternatives to animal research and animal testing, filed its complaint Wednesday with the federal Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), alleging that the UW has violated the federal Animal Welfare Act. That law requires consideration of alternatives to procedures that cause more than momentary or slight pain or distress to animals used for research or educational purposes. The UW's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee must approve the use of animals for training purposes. In documents to that committee, Mayock said he needs to be able to train students to insert breathing tubes in very low-birth-weight infants, and that simulators — plastic models with realistic anatomical features — are "quite limited" for such babies. In an interview, Mayock said that while some simulators are able to duplicate a baby at term or age 2 to 3 months, "the airway issue in extremely small infants cannot be duplicated or simulated well enough with any of these current models." Mayock said the UW, which treats high-risk maternity patients from a five-state area, has a higher percentage of very low birth-weight preemies than many other medical centers in the country. Some of these babies barely weigh a pound, he said, and doctors must be trained to intubate them quickly and carefully or they could die or suffer brain damage. The UW has been cited in the past for deficiencies in animal research, including allowing a monkey to starve in 2009. In 2008, it had to return $20,000 in federal research grant money after a finding that it had allowed unauthorized surgeries on primates. Inspectors found serious deficiencies in animal-care facilities in 2006 and put the UW on probation. Since then, however, the UW has spent millions to upgrade animal-care facilities and is now fully accredited by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care, hospital spokeswoman Tina Mankowski said. The UW keeps four ferrets for pediatric training and brings in four to six others for a larger training session each year. Mayock said the ferrets are well cared for and do not appear to suffer. "They're watched very carefully." Mayock has told the UW's animal-care committee that ferrets provide a "hardy model" for such training. They are anesthetized and can tolerate six to eight intubation attempts with minimal airway irritation, Mayock said. He said they recover quickly from anesthesia and can be used again in two weeks. When the ferrets reach age 6 or so, workers find private homes for them, Mayock said. "We do not euthanize them." The complaint by the Physicians Committee also criticized the UW's use of euthanized rabbits in training residents to insert chest tubes, an emergency procedure that involves inserting a tube directly into the chest wall. The UW stopped using rabbits for this training a couple of years ago, Mayock said, after trainers found that poultry from groceries worked just as well. Along with residents, the UW trains emergency-transport workers and doctors from local community hospitals. The Physicians Committee works with medical schools, residency programs, school districts and other training programs to improve teaching methods without use of animals, according to Pippin. It focuses on the scientific case for non-animal training methods, he said, rather than only on ethical issues. Pippin said the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association have endorsed the use of simulators for training pediatric residents. The complaint by his organization likely will trigger an unannounced inspection by the Agriculture Department's APHIS. If the UW is found to be out of compliance with federal law, it will be given a deadline and a reinspection. "We're not belligerent or holier-than-thou," Pippin said. "We just try to keep abreast of the best practices. Literature has made the argument for us: Using the non-animal methods is a superior approach." But Mayock said no one yet has compared animal versus simulator training to see which prepares residents better for procedures on newborn babies. The dispute with Pippin and the Physicians Committee, he said, boils down to a disagreement as to the best way to train doctors and emergency workers to do the procedures. "They think we're in violation of animal welfare laws. They're entitled to their opinion, but I don't think we are," Mayock said. "The spirit of the law is to clearly demonstrate there are better alternatives," he said, but at this point, those alternatives are "not to the level of sophistication we need for these very tiny infants." Carol M. Ostrom: 206-464-2249 or costrom@seattletimes.com http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/health/2014178603_uwanimals10m.html

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