News About Animals - December 2, 2010

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December 2, 2010   Victories And Highlights For Animals In 2010 IDA’s accomplishments this year include our dramatic and life-saving rescue of 55 monkeys left to starve by a defunct laboratory; preventing the expansions of inhumane primate testing and breeding labs in Oregon and Washington; and halting the cruel practice of bow hunting to kill hundreds of deer in New York. And don’t forget our hands-on rescue of hundreds of animals at our Hope Animal Sanctuary in Mississippi, in Haiti after the devastating earthquake, in India at our shelters, and the orphaned chimpanzee and gorilla victims of the African bush meat trade - all testimony to your generosity and kindness. IDA recently received the coveted 4-star rating from Charity Navigator. The following quote is from their letter to IDA: “IDA executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America. This “exceptional” designation from Charity Navigator differentiates IDA from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.” Despite the economy, you will see from our 2010 Victory and Highlights that your generosity has allowed us to work on many fronts, making 2010 another year of precedent-setting accomplishments. Click here to view more of our 2010 highlights - and we hope you'll decide to continue your support in the coming year. Follow-up: Dead Elephant Dondi Had Tuberculosis The unexpected death of Dondi at the Southwick’s Zoo in Massachusetts in July raised a red flag. At age 36, she should have been in the prime of her life. So IDA filed a complaint with the USDA, urging an investigation into her death. We also demanded that the zoo publicly release Dondi’s medical records as a matter of public safety, as Dondi was in direct contact with the public while giving rides. Elephants can harbor diseases transmissible to humans, including tuberculosis (TB). IDA’s concerns were well-founded. The Orlando Sentinel just revealed that Dondi suffered “severe lung damage from chronic fibrosis and pneumonia, likely caused by tuberculosis.” TB in elephants presents a serious public health concern because it is very difficult to detect, and the elephants can transmit the disease to humans and other elephants. Dondi was in direct contact with the public for years. IDA is renewing our call to the two facilities that exploited Dondi to end the use of elephants for shows and rides because it is inhumane for the elephants and unsafe for the public. Please click here to read more and send a quick e-mail opposing the use of elephants for shows and rides. Submit Comments To Save Gray Whales Please help get proper protections for the gray whale under the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act. A marine mammal population must be listed as "depleted" if it is below its Optimum Sustainable Population. The California Gray Whale Coalition (CGWC), of which IDA is a member, submitted a petition to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to facilitate a long overdue status review of the population. Once this is completed, a Conservation Plan would be prepared and implemented to restore the population back to optimal levels. Please support our coalition's efforts to save the Eastern North Pacific gray whale from extinction. Your comments in favor of the petition must be received by NMFS by the close of business day on December 8, 2010. Click here to read more and to submit comments. Fur Free Friday Virtual Demo Shuts Down Nordstrom Facebook Page IDA’s first ever Fur Free Friday Virtual Demo was a dramatic success, as we (and you!) shut down Nordstrom’s Facebook page for most of the day. Our message asking Nordstrom to go fur-free was shared on Facebook 75,333 times. We used the Nordstrom discussion page to start a chat on fur that closed down their page for about an hour, at which time we began diverting Facebook traffic to Nordstrom’s customer service center - where many activists reported talking to agents in live chats. This lead them to reopen their Facebook wall sporadically and policing/deleting all comments - including comments that were pro-fur and others that reported problems with customer service because of the Fur Free Friday traffic. On Twitter, almost 900 people Tweeted to Nordstrom regarding fur. And IDA’s Fur Free Friday links were tweeted 11,230 times. Great job, folks! Next week we’ll tell you about all the other Fur Free Friday activities, including lots of photos! If you haven’t already sent us your photos, please send them to: Matt@idausa.org. Exclusive IDA Interview With NCIS Actor And Author David Dayan Fisher IDA interviews David Dayan Fisher (from the hit TV show NCIS) about his new children’s book Puppy School and his partnership with IDA. Fisher is donating 50% of his book sales to IDA through April! Click here to read the full interview. Here's an excerpt: "The content of this story [Puppy School] was given to me in a dream, but the inspiration regarding class could have come from my subconscious – be it growing up in a class-conscious country, seeing people talk down to waiters, hearing those with pedigree dogs speak down about mutts, or plain and simply watching a material-minded person coat themselves in the illusion of being better through what they own and wear." Click here to read the rest of the interview or to purchase Puppy School.   NCIS Fans - Scroll down or click here for an exclusive IDA interview with actor and Puppy School author David Dayan Fisher!        Buy this button and others for only $1!.    Great tax write-off - donate your car or other vehicle to IDA! We do all the legwork!      Click to enter our Vegan Activist All Star contest.    Be A Guardian Tote Bag from EcoJoia. This message was sent to sweetygirl2002@uol.com.br In Defense of Animals, located in San Rafael, Calif., is an international animal protection organization with more than 100,000 members and supporters dedicated to ending the abuse and exploitation of animals by protecting their rights and welfare. IDA's efforts include educational events, cruelty investigations, boycotts, grassroots activism, and hands-on rescue through our sanctuaries in Mississippi, Mumbai, India, and Cameroon, Africa. In Defense of Animals is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization. We welcome your feedback and appreciate your donations. Please join today! All donations to IDA are tax-deductible. In Defense of Animals 3010 Kerner, San Rafael, CA 94901 Tel. (415) 448-0048 Fax (415) 454-1031 idainfo@idausa.org To unsubscribe, please click here.

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