PROPOSED COLONY CAGES A CRUEL JOKE

SAFE director Hans Kriek and campaigns officer Sacha Dowell recently visited Mainland Poultry's battery cage operation to view their proposed new colony cages. Hans reports on why colony cages are not an option.

Mainland Poultry is New Zealand's largest producer of battery eggs. Their Waikouaiti ‘farm' alone houses over 400,000 hens. Mainland Poultry is also running a trial of the new colony cages.

After two years of trying, I finally gained permission to view for myself the conditions on New Zealand's largest battery hen farm. I was particularly interested in the new colony cages and my worst fears were confirmed.

Let me be clear, I did not enter this farm with an open mind. I have seen enough battery hen farm operations to hate them with a vengeance. The research I read on colony cages gave me no confidence that these systems were any better. I wasn't wrong.

The first shed we were allowed to view contained a standard cage system. In this shed 45,000 hens were housed five to a cage with only 500 square centimetres of space per bird (an A4 sheet of paper is 623 centimetres). The cages were stacked eight high. One stock person looks after two of these sheds, meaning that one person is expected to look after the welfare of 90,000 hens in a normal workday. This amounts to 0.3 seconds of attention per bird if they are viewed only once per day. How anyone can check on the welfare of any animal in 0.3 seconds is beyond me. The dark conditions and the height of the stacked cages further prevented any meaningful observation of the birds.

We then proceeded to another shed containing 47,000 hens in colony cages. At first glance these cages looked very similar to the standard battery hen cages. These colony cages (called furnished colony systems by an industry desperate to avoid the word ‘cage') are approximately 3.5 metres long, 1.3 metres wide and only 45 centimetres high. They were stacked six high. 60 hens are housed per cage. They have 750 square centimetres each for space, only marginally larger than an A4 sheet of paper. Colony cages contain a nesting area, perches and a scratching area. The nesting area however is just a small piece of rubber matt on the wire netting with a few rubber flaps hanging down from the roof of the cage. All 60 hens have to share this space. The scratching area is another rubber matt on the other end of the cage. A few pellets are dropped on this area from time to time to encourage scratching. We saw no birds engaging in this behaviour during our visit. Four perches run the length of the cage, only seven centimetres from the floor. While I believe these perches will provide the hens with some relief from the sloping wire floor at night, they are mere obstacles during the day and make moving around in the cage more difficult.

According to the industry representatives accompanying us at the visit, the hens in colony cages had a lower mortality than hens in standard cages and were also more relaxed. All I could see were hugely overcrowded cages with birds jostling for space.

The fact is that colony cages do not allow hens to express their normal behaviour, something that is required by law. The hens cannot fly, dust or sun bathe or scratch in the soil. The additions to the cage (nestbox, perch and scratch pad) are of such basic design that they do not provide any meaningful improvements for the hens.

After our visit we had a meeting with the Poultry Industry Association's and Mainland Poultry's CEO's. They had hoped to convince us that colony cages were a vast improvement on the old cages and an acceptable alternative. They failed. Colony cages are nothing more than modified battery hen cages and cannot provide the hens a quality life.

It would have been clear to the egg industry that NAWAC could no longer avoid phasing out the standard cages as they are in breach of our animal welfare legislation. Bringing in these so called ‘improved' cages is nothing but a ploy by the egg industry to avoid having legislation forced upon them that would ban the caging of hens in favour of free range or barn systems. They may be shooting themselves in the foot though. Spending millions of dollars on yet another cage system that will be rejected as cruel by consumers may cost the industry dearly. If they are hoping that consumers continue to be apathetic to the plight of battery hens and continue to buy their cheap battery eggs they will be sorely mistaken. Growing awareness means that consumers will be increasingly shifting away from cage eggs. SAFE will be at the forefront of growing that awareness and we will not stop until the last hen is liberated from her cage.

Click here to view a promotional video that attempts to promote colony cages as a good thing for hens.

Click here to find out more about why colony cages are wrong.

MOTHER EARTH'S FURY LEFT US FLAT

SAFE education officer Nichola Kriek is lucky to be alive after the quake. She shares that terrifying day that haunts us all.

February 22nd started as a fairly typical day at the SAFE office in Christchurch. Hans, my husband and SAFE's director, and Sacha Dowell, our volunteer coordinator, were travelling to Dunedin to meet with the Dunedin SAFE coordinators.

The weekend before the quake, SAFE Christchurch had coordinated a massive mailout to our members and supporters, so Hans had left early to drop the mail off at the mail centre before he and Sacha left. This left Amanda Broughton, our fundraising coordinator, and I at the office.

At 12.40pm I headed to OfficeMax around the corner on Colombo Street to pick up some stationery supplies. I was walking past an antique shop on the way back when the quake struck. I quickly dove off the footpath into the traffic because the shaking was so intense that I was afraid the shop verandas might collapse. Thank goodness I did because seconds later the entire veranda came crashing down with an almighty ‘whomp'. I stood between a bus and car, covered in dust. The man from the antique shop asked if I was okay. I just stared blankly at him. He asked if I needed a hug. Still nothing. "I'm going to give you a hug," he says, and gives me a reassuring hug.

We hear a woman screaming because her daughter is trapped in the shops behind the collapsed verandas. It dawns on me that Amanda is alone in the office so I ran back as fast as I could. There are large cracks and chaos everywhere.

Thankfully Amanda has managed to flee the office and is waiting at our emergency meeting point. There are shocked and crying people everywhere. Phones are down. Power is off. We just want to get out of the city immediately and we begin to worry about our friends. We leave a note on the office door explaining that we are both okay and where we would go next in case anyone came looking for us. Then we fled.

The devastation was horrifying. The PGC building is directly across the river from the SAFE office and as we walked past and saw that it had pancaked, the blood drained from our faces and we both felt sick. It was very hard to walk past as no one had arrived to help at that stage. St Luke's Church on the corner of Manchester and Kilmore Streets had been reduced to rubble. We picked up my yoga teacher on the way home and a number of my neighbours had congregated in the street. Once at my house (which is fortunately very close to town), Amanda headed off to find her partner. We were locked out of the house as my bag and keys were in the office. I managed to text Hans to come back which was a huge relief.

As we waited on the street, a couple of stray dogs wandered past. I grabbed them both and fashioned leads out of a cabbage tree fronds. One dog I knew belonged to my neighbour. The dog had managed to escape their garden. We were able to reunite her with her family shortly after - but the other dog (who we later found out was called ‘Jake') ended up staying with Hans and I for four days before we were able to reunite him with his family.

It was about a week before any of the SAFE staff in Christchurch were able to even think about returning to work. Most had problems with power, water and sewerage, chimneys coming down, broken hot water cylinders, houses in shambles and liquefaction. Hans and I were without power or water for four days and slept in our tent until we were able to get our chimneys removed and house checked.

While we were out of action in Christchurch, the Auckland SAFE office swung into action. SAFE executive director, Anthony Terry, quickly established the online social media site, Animal Aid, to help coordinate relief efforts for rescued and abandoned animals. Once we had power, our Christchurch team was able to start assisting at the coalface. SAFE volunteers were mobilised and sent out into areas where animals had been reported as abandoned.

Thousands of people had fled the city in the days after the quake and calls from concerned neighbours and community workers came flooding in. Fortunately, in most cases, people had arranged for others to feed their animals - but as always there were cases where the animals were simply left. SAFE forwarded these cases onto the SPCA who were able to provide food, water and assistance to those who were struggling or needed help. Other volunteers put up posters at emergency shelters, water stations, supermarkets and petrol stations around the city, with advice on who to contact if their animals were missing. Outside Christchurch, SAFE supporters from around the country did their bit to reunite people with their missing animals by matching lost and found listings on TradeMe and Pets on the Net. For the first two weeks, SAFE Christchurch operated from our kitchen with my personal laptop. The SAFE Christchurch office is inside the red zone of the cordon and no one was allowed in.

Hans tried to enter to the restricted cordon area on numerous occasions, to gain access to the SAFE office, but to no avail. He then approached the Animal Rescue Unit (ARU) who were responsible for rescuing animals within the red zone. Hans and I had worked with the ARU when we worked for Wellington SPCA and they very kindly agreed to help us get our computers and server from our office. Fortunately they also took photos and we were relieved to discover that our building was green stickered and the damage inside was not serious. Only one computer was damaged when a bookcase fell on it.

With our computers acquired, our next priority was finding a temporary office. Once again, luck was on our side, and we managed to secure a small office in Sydenham. It's a squeeze but since we don't actually have anything other than computers we seem to be coping. We remain limited in what we can do but we are all feeling very fortunate that we have gotten through this disaster relatively intact. We have a new appreciation and respect for the fragility of life.

We are taking things day-by-day, week-by-week. It's good to have a little bit of normality in our lives and to see people and animals settling back into our new reality.

The Christchurch team and I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has sent messages of support and love, and to those who have made donations or helped us in some way. We are extremely grateful. Nature might have dealt us a cruel blow, but human nature has risen up to the challenge with a kindness, compassion and spirit of cooperation that has, like the earthquake itself, left us speechless and in awe.

THANK YOU

SAFE would like to extend its appreciation to the following businesses who have donated goods and services to help Christchurch.

Media promotions
The Star, Sunday News and Sunday Star Times made efforts of reunite lost or found animals with their human families.

Animal supplies
Optimum Pet, Purina, Chef, Nutrience and Royal Canin kindly donated pallets of cat and dog food to the stricken area.

Volunteer aid
To help support the local volunteers, SAFE asked companies to lend a hand. Whittaker's donated chocolates, Chevron Caltex donated petrol vouchers and Island Coffee provided freshly ground coffee.

Fundraising
The Body Shop, Mistral Photography, Pets and Pats, VetCare Grey Lynn, Cyberpets, Oasis Beauty, Animates, Vegan Society, New Zealand Vegetarian Society, HUHA, The Tattooed Heart, Albany Animal Doctors, Whittakers, Pet magazine and Vegetarian Delights/ Fry's.

CAMPAIGNING AGAINST CAGES - 25 YEARS ON!

Twenty-five years ago, a young and naïve Dutchman began speaking up against battery hen farming. Now a leading animal rights campaigner for SAFE, Hans Kriek takes a look back at the progress made.

It is hard to believe that it is 25 years ago that I started campaigning against battery hen cages in New Zealand. As a new immigrant to this country, I could not believe how low the level of public awareness was on this issue. Coming from Holland where debate on the cruelty of cages was well in the public domain, as well as on the political agenda, I strongly felt the need to get the message out.

As a novice animal rights campaigner, I believed change would be coming fast once people realised how cruel battery cages were. I was wrong. Twenty-five years later, and once again I am urging people to make submissions to the Government to ban battery cages.

I feel frustrated that despite all these years campaigning, hens continued to suffer in deplorable and completely unnecessary cages. I am angry that successive Governments have so easily dismissed the suffering of these animals and that a large portion of the public continues to buy battery eggs despite being well aware about the cruel conditions the hens are farmed under.

Change seems to be coming slowly for battery hens everywhere. Even in Europe, where debate on the issue has been ongoing for more than three decades, conventional cages will not be banned until next year. It's any ones guess when New Zealand will follow.

Despite my frustration, I remain hopeful. Progress has been made over the years. Many New Zealanders no longer buy battery eggs, resulting in over 500,000 hens no longer having to suffer in cages. Opinion polls show that eight out of ten New Zealanders are opposed to battery hen cages and many retailers are moving away from using battery eggs. A significant breakthrough is that factory farming issues are now firmly on the political agenda and are being taking seriously.

SAFE's campaign against sow stalls has shown that we can get cruel systems banned. I believe that this year's code review of the layer hen code will be the best chance we have to finally see an end to battery hen cages - but only if we all speak out. I believe that the Government will phase out conventional battery hen cages, but will allow them to be replaced with another type of cage. We must not let that happen. If we do, hens will be caged up for decades more to come.

I am asking you to help the hens by making a submission opposing all caging of egg laying hens.

We must let the Government know that enough is enough and that battery hen cages have no place in New Zealand. Please... do it for the hens, but also do it for me, as I can't bear the thought of having to campaign against cages for another 25 years!

Sign the ecard submission to have your say against cruel cages.

DON'T BUY A GOAT THIS XMAS!

Christmas shopping and festivities are well and truly upon us. As we think about what gifts to give our loved ones, SAFE Campaign Officer Mandy Carter reflects on the growing popularity of ‘ethical gifts'.

Over the last few years, several aid agencies and organisations have been offering alternative gifts for the caring consumer or the person that has it all, in the form of a donation which will provide something for those desperately in need - solar panels for the eco warrior in your life or a symbolic 'urine bottle' for those into activism. In New Zealand, there is Oxfam's ‘Unwrapped' scheme which tenders gifts for ‘Animal Lovers', effectively offering an animal's life as a present. You can load the gift basket with goats, ducks and donkeys! On sale are piglets for $40 each or a pair of chickens for $14. The idea is that these animals will be farmed or eaten in third-world countries, providing both an income and food for impoverished communities. Handily, the animals pictured on the website are also dressed in funky clothing just so we know they're having a good time too!

Although these schemes may seen a great idea at first, behind the bright colours and friendly theme is a more serious issue that raises many questions. Such as, what type of situation does this pose for the animals? Are we placing the animals at risk in an attempt to help poor communities? Does this form of donation really help solve the issues? And what about the way the animals are pictured dressed up?

Of course many thoughtful shoppers will happily purchase these ethical gifts in the belief they're doing some good at a time when most people are buying their least favourite uncle yet another pair of unwanted socks. However there are some important issues you should consider before hitting that ‘buy now' button.

Quite simply, these schemes cannot offer animals a life that meets all their needs. Absolute essentials to animals are space, correct diet, water, shelter and an ability to exhibit their natural behaviour. Resources are in desperately short supply in many third-world countries, exactly the reason why aid agencies are actively trying to help, so it is unreasonable to expect impoverished communities to be able to provide adequately for the animals in their care.

SAFE as an animal advocacy organisation will always speak up for our furry (and not so furry!) friends but this is not all about animals, this kind of gift doesn't help people either. Livestock farming uses up agricultural land, water and other resources that could be far more efficiently used for growing food for people to eat directly. One example is it takes over seven kilograms of grain to produce less than 500 grams of edible animal flesh, making meat consumption a very inefficient use of grain. A recent report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) states that a global shift towards a vegan diet is vital to save the world from hunger and the worst impacts of climate change. Yet another reason not to encourage meat eating is the growing evidence that it can cause serious diseases such as cancer.

There is something demeaning about picturing the animals dressed up also. Not only do we potentially fate them to a life of suffering, but they are humiliated at the same time - dressing up the very serious issue of dealing with world hunger in a funny wig and sunglasses. With organisations like VegFam doing a fantastic job of providing food for third world countries without exploiting animals it is time for these kind of schemes to end. Charities must work together to make a better world, and campaign on issues which will benefit humans, animals and the environment for the betterment of all.

So what's the alternative to ‘the alternative' present for the ethically-minded person? I suggest still donating to your favourite charity, just check that your money is going to the campaign you want it too! Be really in-keeping with that Christmas spirit and do something positive and proactive, but costs little, such as planting a tree with your family (try Google for schemes near you, or Aucklanders visit volunteer in parks. Another alternative is the Karori Sanctuary Trust. Why not think about New Zealand's own animals this Christmas and pledge to go veg? Check out SAFE's new Go Veg Starter Kit. This helps not only animals and your own health and wellbeing, but also reduces the pull on the world's resources.

And it's always worth sending a polite e-mail to agencies you see offering these kind of schemes to let them know that whilst you appreciate and support the work they do you'd prefer them to help humans without exploiting animals. Write to oxfam at oxfam@oxfam.org.nz

Have a very Happy Christmas and a wonderful new year!

PS. If you have some spare time to give this Christmas too, please consider signing up to be a collector during SAFE's annual appeal in December!

ANIMAL WELFARE BILL BRINGS HOPE

Green MP Sue Kedgley has defended animals in Parliament for many years. SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek explains why her recently drawn Private Members' Bill could ban battery hens and sow crates.

Ms Kedgley first became involved with animal issues after she met me when I was the animal welfare manager for the Wellington SPCA. Ms Kedgley was doing research for a book on healthy eating and was interested to find out how animals reared for food were treated. I highlighted to her the level of cruelty involved with factory farming. She spoke out against these cruel practices in her book.

When Ms Kedgley entered Parliament as a Green MP, she continued her support towards animal welfare issues and became the (often lone) voice for animals in Parliament. Ms Kedgley's ongoing animal advocacy work reached new heights when her Animal Welfare Amendment Bill was pulled from Parliament's ballot this month. This Bill will ensure that practices that breach key sections of the Animal Welfare Act, but are still permitted in a Code of Welfare, be phased out.

"The present Animal Welfare Act contains a series of loopholes which allow practices that clearly breach the purposes of the Animal Welfare Act, such as sow crates, to continue to be used indefinitely," says Ms Kedgley.

"My Bill closes these loopholes and requires that any practice which breaches key provisions of the Animal Welfare Act be phased out within five years."

The Bill also gives the Minister of Agriculture power to amend any code of animal welfare to prevent the suffering of animals and widens the definition of what constitutes the physical needs of an animal to include freedom of movement.

"The Minister of Agriculture, David Carter, has argued that he is powerless to intervene and amend the Code of Animal Welfare for Pigs, to phase out sow crates, for example," says Ms Kedgley. "Under my Bill, he will have all the power he needs to intervene and stop cruel and inhumane practices which breach the principles of the Act."

Sue and I are delighted that this important Bill is now in front of Parliament but we are aware that factory farming industries will lobby hard to see this Bill fail. We must not let this happen! All SAFE members and supporters will receive SAFE's new MP postcard in the mail over the next week to send to their local MP. Please send this card as soon as possible.

Ms Kedgley's Bill may well be the best opportunity factory-farmed animals have to be freed from their miserable lives. So if you care about battery hens and sows kept in crates, now is the time to act.

What you can do

1) Sign one of SAFE's ‘Say No to Factory-Farm Cruelty' postcards and send to your MP. To order additional MP postcards please email samantha@safe.org.nz.

2) Make an appointment or write to your local MP and urge them to personally support the Bill and lobby their party to get behind it as well.

3) Email Prime Minister John Key at john.key@national.org.nz, and opposition leader Phil Goff at phil.goff@parliament.govt.nz, to call on them to put party politics aside and support this important Bill.

Click here to view the Animal Welfare Amendment Bill.

TOUGHER ANIMAL CRUELTY PENALTIES INTRODUCED

SAFE is pleased that the Animal Welfare Amendment Bill was unanimously passed in parliament. This bill will see fines for animal cruelty double and also increase jail time for offenders.

SAFE is especially pleased by the introduction of a new offence of reckless ill treatment. This offence will make it easier to prosecute people for serious cruelty to animals. Before, serious offenders could only be prosecuted under a wilful ill-treatment offence, but this required for intent to be proved, something that was often impossible to do. This then resulted in lesser charges to be laid.

"The introduction of the reckless ill-treatment offence could result in sentences of three years in jail, and fines of up to $75,000 for an individual, or $350,000 for a body corporate," says SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek.

"The reckless ill-treatment offence should be a warning to farmers who neglect and starve their stock, as they will be the ones most likely to be prosecuted under this new offence," says Hans.

SAFE hopes that the New Zealand judiciary will pay attention to these new penalties and hand out tougher sentences.

"There is no point having increased penalties if judges continue to order measly and pathetic sentences," says Hans. "Despite countless cases of horrific animal cruelty before the courts, only ten people have been jailed for animal cruelty offences in New Zealand. Most fines have been little more than a token ‘slap on the wrist'."

While SAFE applauds the new laws, the group is mindful that the increased sentences will not stop any of the institutionalised cruelty that is rife in New Zealand.

"Practices like factory farming, vivisection and the use of animals in entertainment are not deemed offences under our animal welfare legislation, despite the fact that they cause more suffering to animals than all so-called illegal offences combined," says Hans.

TAKING CRUELTY SERIOUSLY?

A number of cases of serious animal cruelty have recently hit the media. SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek examines the call for tougher sentences for animal cruelty.

Live kittens fed to a pit bull, a caustic substance poured over a dog's back, a kitten having her head pulled off and a farmer starving his stock to death are all cases that show there are some sick individuals amongst us. It is good to see that there is now an increased focus on the inadequate sentencing that has been taking place in this country for many years.

New Zealanders want the penalties for animal cruelty increased, and organisations such as Paw Justice, and National MP Simon Bridges, seek harsher punishment for those who ill treat animals. Simon Bridges is seeking multi-party support for a private member's bill he is putting in the ballot at Parliament to raise the maximum penalty for wilful ill-treatment of animals from three to five years imprisonment.

SAFE unconditionally supports increasing penalties for animal cruelty, but I believe that the problem does not lie in the penalties themselves per se, but more in how our judiciary view animals. The present maximum penalty of three years for wilful ill-treatment has never been handed out in New Zealand. In fact, jail terms for animal cruelty are extremely rare, with judges preferring to hand out small fines or community service based sentences. Comments from judges such as "let's not forget we are only talking about an animal, not a person," are far too common. Increasing penalties will only have an effect if judges no longer view animal cruelty in the same light as shoplifting or other minor offences.

It is also interesting to see that most of those who campaign for harsher penalties are focused on cruelty towards companion animals, whilst in reality the worst animal suffering takes place on our farms. For example, the case of Rotorua farmer Mark Spitz who let a number of his stock slowly starve to death, and who was sentenced to 250 hours of community service, attracted little public attention. I would expect if a similar sentence was handed out to the man who fed the five kittens to his pit bull, there would be a huge public outcry with the public demanding a tougher sentence! Yet, if we look at the level of suffering inflicted, the dozens of cattle slowly starving to death over many days, if not weeks, appears to me far more severe than the much quicker, albeit horrific, death of the kittens.

My call goes out to our judges to step up and hand out more appropriate sentences for animal cruelty, but I also call on the public to drop the double standard and demand sentences that reflect the crime, and not the type of animal.

LOOKING BACK ON 2009

It appears we have finally broken into the consciousness of the nation and I can't help but feel proud of SAFE's achievements. SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek reports.

After building up SAFE's profile and raising awareness of animal cruelty issues in New Zealand for many years, it appears we have finally broken into the consciousness of the nation.

Enlisting Mike King to help fight against the factory farming of pigs proved a tipping point for SAFE's factory farming campaign. Very few people can now say they are not aware of the cruel treatment of factory farmed animals, and change has become inevitable. Another significant development occurred when McDonald's announced their intentions to move away from battery eggs. Over time, this will see others following their example and thus reduce the numbers of hens kept in cruel battery hen cages.

After a year of continuous protests outside the Loritz Circus, it is also gratifying to see that Jumbo the African elephant has now been passed into the care of the SPCA. This means that there are no more exotic animals in New Zealand circuses, and that Jumbo can finally be relocated to a sanctuary where she will be able to enjoy the company of her own kind for the first time in over 30 years.

I am hopeful that 2010 will reap further benefits for SAFE and the animals after so many years of hard work. This year both the layer hen and pig welfare codes will be reviewed, and it is crucial that meaningful change is introduced, as these codes may not be reviewed for another ten years. Furthermore, I hope that the New Zealand public will get more actively involved with animal advocacy issues by using their consumer power to force through change for the better. I also hope that public support for SAFE will increase.

Our recent achievements belie the fact that we are still a small and under-resourced organisation. We could do so much more for animals if only we had the means. 2010 will be a year full of challenges, and SAFE needs your support more than ever. You can help by becoming a volunteer, or making a financial contribution, but most of all you can help by making sure that the choices you make in your everyday life do not negatively impact on animals. If you haven't made a New Year's resolution, it's not too late... Join the thousands of New Zealanders who have given up animal products for the good of themselves, the animals and our planet.

Happy New Year!

CALF DEATHS INEXCUSABLE

Recent media reports about the severely neglected dairy calves have once again highlighted MAF's inability to act. SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek gets angry.

The death of many calves on New Zealand's biggest dairy farm, owned by Allan Crafar, served as a shocking eye opener for many people. The media attention exposed the fact that dairy calves in New Zealand are treated as mere waste products with little or no attention given to their welfare.

Letting the calves die slowly of starvation because the farmer could not be bothered to teach them to drink properly was criminal negligence. For the farmer to stand by and see these helpless animals deteriorate, and do nothing to end their suffering, there is only one solution - jail time and a lot of it.

There can be no excuse. The farmer made a conscious decision to let these animals starve instead of dealing with the problem. At the very least, the animals could have been destroyed humanely or help could have been sought, but the farmer did nothing.

A subsequent investigation by MAF not only exposed the extent of the animals' suffering, but also the appalling incompetence of their own department. Over the years I have spoken out against MAF's ineffectiveness with regards to the investigation of animal cruelty cases. The Crafar farm case confirms that little has changed. The fact that MAF made an appointment to investigate an animal cruelty case, and showed up days after a complaint was made should be enough to spark an internal inquiry to see who messed up. Making an appointment with a potential offender is akin to the police making an appointment with a suspected burglar, and politely asking if it is convenient to come and check his house in a few days to see if any stolen goods are present! What was MAF hoping for? That the evidence of animal cruelty would be removed so that they did not have to act?

In this case the farmer killed more than 30 of the sickest calves before the MAF inspectors arrived, undermining the potential of a prosecution case for MAF. It appears that MAF decided that this was a case of mismanagement rather than animal neglect or cruelty. Tell that to the animals that slowly starved to death!

I am disgusted that MAF allows farmers to get away with, literally, murder. To me this was a case of deliberate cruelty, a complete disregard for the wellbeing of the calves, by a farmer who did not give a damn. The people responsible need to be held accountable as the severity of the case demands time spent in jail. I suggest that they should be joined by those in MAF whose actions caused the unnecessary prolonged suffering of the calves.

What you can do?
Write to Minister of Agriculture, David Carter, and call for a transparent investigation into MAF's handling of the Crafar case. Ask for an explanation as to why MAF investigators make appointments when they investigate animal cruelty cases, and demand that farmers who neglect their animals be prosecuted. Write to: David Carter, Minister of Agriculture, Parliament Buildings, Wellington.

Collectors' Thoughts

SAFE appeal assistant Shanti Ahiuwalla arrived in New Zealand not knowing anything about SAFE. He shares his experience with collecting.

One of my personal goals for when I arrived in New Zealand was to help animals.

I did some research online, but did not find anything that suited. Then I saw the poster in a restaurant. ‘Collectors urgently needed' it declared, with a picture of an adorable dog and the SAFE logo. From my research online, I knew SAFE was a great organisation, and here was a chance to get involved, so I decided to sign up online.

On the day, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. But I showed up, eager to do my part. I was greeted by a charming woman who explained the process and directed me to the costume room. On the way, several more people waved hello.

The costume room was great, with heaps of costumes available. I was a bit overwhelmed but the helpful assistant helped me decide. I ended up picking a bird costume. I was excited! Next stop were instructions and then off onto the street I went, totally amazed by how many people were out collecting. Just like me, the collectors wanted to help animals. If ever I felt cynical about humanity, the time I spent collecting for SAFE was enough to restore my faith! Of course, since I was in costume, I got a lot of laughs. Many told me they were donating just because I was brave enough to wear a costume. I felt silly but it was also kind of fun!

I set myself a goal of collecting around $100 in two hours. I worked hard the whole time, and thankfully received heaps of donations. Some people even gave notes, which was absolutely amazing.

Eventually, I called it a day and returned to the office where I received a very warm welcome once again. I was also interested in doing other voluntary work so the campaign officer had a chat with me and took my details.

A few weeks later I received my thank you pack from SAFE: a great reusable LovePigs shopping bag and a lovely letter. The letter informed me that I had managed to collect $90! For a university student, raising $90 for such a great organisation was amazing! I didn't quite reach my goal, but there's always this year!

A compassionate New Zealand

As we come close to the election, campaign officer Eliot Pryor wonders out loud what kiwis really think about animals.

humane

c.1450, variant of human, used interchangeably with it until early 18c., when it began to be a distinct word with sense of "having qualities befitting human beings." The Royal Humane Society (founded 1774) was originally to rescue drowning persons.

We're such a schizophrenic lot. We're a nation of ‘animal lovers,' with one of the highest number of companion animals in the world, and yet on the other hand we're an agricultural country made rich by our use and promotion of animal products.

Kiwis are not awful people, but we do allow awful things to happen to animals. If we really are animal lovers, it is our actions that need to be the real test of this. We should be leading the world in the abolition of cruel farming practices such as sow crates for pigs and battery cages for chickens. These are issues that everyone can agree upon and it should be only a question of when they will be banned.

I can't believe there's a majority of us who agree that it's morally OK to inflict unnecessary suffering on animals, to cause them harm for our convenience, habit or profit.

Violence is violence however it happens, and we are all responsible to some degree for the violence done to animals behind closed doors.

It's not farmers who are the backbone of our country, it's the animals, and nobody asked them! Does any political party today have a real strategy for creating a real ‘knowledge economy'? How will New Zealand survive economically without the exploitation of animals? This would mean we use our intelligence and ingenuity and make the effort to create successful cruelty free industries!

We always have a choice to act humanely or inhumanely. There is a sense in kiwis of fairness - we feel inside us that it's important that everyone gets a fair go. This applies to animals too. The very innocence and vulnerability of animals give us a huge opportunity to do the right thing and to be compassionate. Each animal, no matter whether it's a dog, lamb or calf, deserves to have a name and not just a number. It's the act of compassion (rather than the talking about it) that makes us compassionate people.

When speaking out on behalf of animals we sometimes get seen in the negative light of being judgmental and ‘against' things, like banning duck hunting or stopping people's fun at rodeos. What we are really doing is developing compassion in people - we want kiwis who are more caring and growing in awareness. We want to spread the love!

Is humanity really a part of being human? Only if we choose it to be.

Are we insane to accept GE?

SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek speaks frankly about genetically engineered animals and the associated welfare problems in response to AgResearch's GE applications currently before ERMA.

Having worked in the animal protection movement for over 20 years, nothing much surprises me anymore with regards to humanity's unkindness towards animals. The suffering of animals is immense, even in our small and otherwise kind-hearted country.

Fortunately, efforts to improve the quality of life for animals in New Zealand are gaining momentum and many New Zealanders are starting to see animal welfare and rights issues for the important issues that they are.

Against the flow of this enlightened awakening come several applications by government research institute AgResearch. AgResearch wants to start the wholesale genetic engineering of a dozen species of animals, including cows, sheep, horses, pigs and chickens.

Genetically engineering animals means inflicting more suffering. The last decade has provided ample evidence that genetically engineered animals suffer birth defects, stillbirths, deformity, illness and early deaths.

I am appalled that as a country we would even entertain the thought of allowing genetic engineering of animals. Mixing genes from different species is insane. Aside from the cruelty to the animals there are no guarantees about the possible creation of new diseases, and widespread environmental pollution. New Zealand's reputation as clean and green will become, if it not already is, a fallacy.

I despair at the arrogance we humans display towards animals. What gives us the right to factory farm, abuse for entertainment, torture for experimentation and now genetically engineer, other sentient creatures? When will we finally get it that animals are not here for our purposes but for their own? The AgResearch applications must not be approved. I urge you to make a submission and voice your strongest opposition against these unethical proposals. It is time to stand up for the animals. There is no better time than now.

Cruel behaviour

Humane education officer Nichola Kriek attends a seminar by a leading New Zealand animal researcher and shares with us her thoughts as to what she learnt.

Yesterday I had a lesson in human behaviour. I attended a psychology seminar by Professor Susan Schenk called "What have we learned from self-administration experiments in rat subjects? A focus on MDMA (Ecstasy)."

I learned in order to understand human drug dependency Professor Schenk and her colleagues take rats and implant inter-jugular catheters into their heads so the rats can be dosed with drugs.

I learned that it took some time before they found the correct dose to give the rats. That they initially gave 20mg per dose, which caused the rats to overdose and die. They now give between 1mg - 0.5mg per dose.

I learned that Professor Schenk trains the rats to push a lever that will administer a dose of ecstasy directly into the blood supply through their catheter.

I learned that Professor Schenk could ‘set her watch' by the rats who would ‘self administer' the drugs every five minutes.

I learned that in order to find out what would happen if they cut the supply of drugs Professor Schenk:

- Allowed the rats unrestricted access to the drugs on Monday and Tuesday.
- Replaced the drugs with saline on Wednesday and Thursday.
- Reinstated the drugs on Friday.

What were the results? The rats went back onto the drugs and the reason? It's all about dopamine.

I learned that it is not possible to conduct behavioural studies on human bodies because there are too many variables.

I learned that it's okay to conduct behavioural studies on rats because ‘they are so similar to humans.'

I learned that Professor Schenk has been given hundreds of thousands of dollars to conduct her experiments on rats over many years.

I did not learn about how her experiments on rats have helped human drug users nor how much time she has spent conducting human studies with actual drug users. I did not learn when she planned to stop her lucrative experiments on animals.

I wondered how the study of solitary rats kept in bare Perspex boxes with catheters permanently implanted in their heads and unrestricted access to drugs could tell us about human drug dependency.

I learned that if I want to understand the ‘behaviour' of the ‘experts in human behavioural studies' then the best method would be to lock rats in small boxes and train them to torture and abuse mice.

A visit to an animal sanctuary

SAFE Auckland campaigns and office manager Eliot Pryor recently organised a group of SAFE volunteers and friends to visit an animal sanctuary in Matakana, an hour's drive north of Auckland. Eliot reports on the enlightening excursion.

Sanctuary owner Shawn Bishop gave up valuable time to show us around the property and introduce us to many of the inhabitants including a talking tui, healthy former battery hens, pigs, donkeys, ducks and goats. She had even managed to bake us some vegan muffins!

The Sanctuary has been operating for eight years and only accepts animals that have had a hard time in their former homes or animals needing rescuing. Each animal has their own distinct personality and unique story as to how they arrived in their new home.

Not all are fortunate. While showing us around Shawn discovered a recently rescued morepork had died during night. In contrast, Shawn says she has been surprised by the progress made by Cassidy, the talking tui, who remains in the main house due to the severity of his injuries. Shawn says each time she has thought he wouldn't improve anymore, he has.

"Cassidy is coming closer to leading a normal, natural life," she says. "He is now flying and almost ready to be returned back into the wild. He has also developed the art of mimicking human speech in a deep voice."

Visitors from different countries apparently swear it sounds like he is talking in their own language!

My personal favourites were the very friendly and gentle-natured Jerusalem donkeys, Solomon and Bartholomew (named for the cross-like markings on their shoulders). They were in the barn as one was recovering from surgery. They loved all the new attention from us.

It was a great to actually spend time with animals since we spend so much of our time and energy working for the animals. It was a refreshing trip and reminded us of why we do it.

To find out more visit sanctuary

In addition to working as SAFE's campaign officer Sacha Dowell is founder and person-in-charge of Cat Rescue. Sacha aids in the rescue and rehoming of stray cats in Christchurch. Cats like Dempsey.

Disposable animals?

What is it with people? Humans keep all sorts of animals in tiny cages, kill ‘useless' male chicks soon after birth, kill animals for sport and take the lives of thousands every day for food. Where does the cruelty stop? More....

Most people these days view companion animals such as cats and dogs as worthy of our compassion, unlike, in their view, the animals that they use for sport, entertainment, clothing, science or food. But do they? The number of stray companion animals in New Zealand, especially cats, is phenomenal.

Every year tens of thousands of companion animals are needlessly killed in shelters because they were abandoned or lost and, with no identification, unable to be reunited with their human friends. Far too many people allow their animals to breed because they are unaware that many more babies are born than the number of people wanting to adopt them, therefore the ‘excess supply' are killed. Also rather depressing is seeing the number of ‘free to a good home' ads online and in newspapers, signifying the disposability of our furry ‘friends'. Once they become inconvenient we rid ourselves of them by rehoming, surrendering them to shelters or worse.

Dempsey was one of those disposable animals, well to the heartless person who abandoned him anyway. The 2-day-old kitten was just last week dumped in a rubbish skip, which was then transported to a refuse station. He was completely helpless. Luckily a worker discovered him amongst all the rubbish and called me for help (as I am currently catching stray cats to be neutered and returned to their current ‘home' where they will be fed and watched out for by myself and my helpers, as they are too unused to people to be rehomed). I arranged for a helper to go and pick the kitten up, one who is very experienced raising orphan kittens in the US. She named him Dempsey, after a dumpster company. She is now bottle feeding him until he's big enough to eat solid food then he'll be coming to my place until he's old enough to be desexed and a good forever home found. He's one of the very few lucky ones who has a chance.

If you or anyone you know is considering letting their companion animal breed, even "just one litter," please think of Dempsey and those thousands of ‘surplus' animals, and have your animal desexed. And please give a forever home to a rescued companion animal rather than buying one from a pet shop or breeder.

Veteran campaigner Hans Kriek shares his thoughts on the state of animals in society.

Having been involved in animal rights for nearly three decades, nothing much surprises me when it comes to the many ways people manage to abuse animals. I have read dozens of books, hundreds of magazines and thousands of articles and seen many videos about human oppression of animals.

I have seen positive changes over all these years but I am also aware that animal exploitation today is greater than it ever was. In New Zealand and much of the Western world animal rights is no longer seen as fringe or extreme. With awareness has come some sort of acceptance and very slow change. On the other hand, animal use is increasing at an enormous pace in many other parts of the world, especially in Asia. With little or no animal protection laws in place, the suffering of animals in research, entertainment and especially in farming is mind boggling. The numbers of mistreated animals here and overseas is so huge that most people feel overwhelmed and helpless. In large numbers animals become anonymous and are easier to ignore. The challenge for animal advocacy groups is to make people see the individuals behind the numbers. This was reinforced to me the other day when I was looking for a quote. I come across these words from Christian Barnard, the surgeon who carried out the world's first heart transplant.

"I had bought two male chimps from a primate colony in Holland. They lived next to each other in separate cages for several months before I used one as a heart donor. When we put him to sleep in his cage in preparation for the operation, he chattered and cried incessantly. We attached no great significance to this, but it must have made a great impression on his companion, for when we removed the body to the operating room, the other chimp wept bitterly and was inconsolable for days. The incident made a deep impression on me. I vowed never again to experiment with such sensitive creatures".

In a few weeks SAFE will be in Napier to highlight the plight of companion animals in research. Come and join us. For more info click here.

A new feature where you get to read the views, news and personal ramblings of key SAFE personnel. Bravely putting her hand up to kick off this new feature is humane education officer Nichola Kriek.

Nichola has worked as a humane educator in New Zealand for over a decade working for the Wellington SPCA before joining SAFE in 2004. Nichola has developed successful outreach school programmes, children's magazines and resources as well as implementing an animal-assisted therapy programme. Last year she launched SAFE's ‘Animals & Us,' a humane education programme for secondary schools which is one of SAFE's proudest achievements. Nichola is married to Hans, SAFE's campaign director.

What did I want to be when I grew up? A teacher, a nurse or a movie star? Certainly, working for an animal rights organisation wasn't on my list. Don't get me wrong, I liked animals when I was young, but the definition of liking animals at my house was a dog and cat in the garden, a budgie in a cage and lambs, cows, pigs and chickens on the BBQ.

If I had been able to peer through the cosmos to see my future self I'm sure I would have been quite shocked and surprised. Within my family and circle of friends there were no vegetarians, let along vegans. People didn't concern themselves with animals or animal rights, they were too busy thinking about whether Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue would get together on Neighbours or if Duran Duran was better than Spandau Ballet (showing my age here!). Over the years things changed - for me anyway.

How did it happen? It was like Monday morning when the alarm clock goes off. At first I tried to convince myself that this wasn't really happening, animal abuse wasn't my problem. The ‘leave me alone, I want to go back to sleep,' hit the snooze button phase. Then as the facts became clearer and harder to ignore, I started to see how my lifestyle affected animals. I entered the grumpy ‘alright, alright I'm getting up,' stumble out of bed phase. Finally, the real transformation and ‘wake-up call' happened in the shower. Like a cold shower reality hit me in the face and I knew there was no turning back.

Animals matter, their lives are just as important to them as mine is to me. They don't wake up in the morning, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed just so they can become a fur-trim fashion accessory. They don't want to wake up in a laboratory or a battery cage and they certainly don't want to be turned into breakfast sausages.

Growing up is hard, and sometimes there are still days I wish I could pull up the covers and imagine animals live in a peaceful and compassionate world. It's usually at about this time that the cat decides to exercise his claws on my neck. So, in reflection maybe I didn't become a nurse or a movie star, but I'm not losing any sleep over those dreams failing to come true. Working for animal rights is not what I expected to be doing with my life, but then I'm sure pigs don't expect to become pork chops! I'm pretty happy with my alternative.
Nichola Kriek
Education officer

If you wish to contact Nichola email her at: nichola@safe.org.nz