July 6, 2007

Hi everybody,

 
 
A) Next START Meeting 
B) Two Non-profit Classes
C) Crazy Bowl for Dogs
D) Bird Care Seminar  
E) Basic Parrot Care Seminars
F) Urgent Animal Law and Food Safety Alert!
G) Volunteer Opportunities 
H) Equal Justice Alliance
I) Relevant Articles
 
A) Next START Meeting
Harriet Cuddy from Petropolis will be our guest speaker at the July 10 START meeting.  She will talk with us about companion animal loss and dealing with grief.  This is a subject close to all of our hearts, especially since we all seem to be in the position of rescuing animals in addition to fighting for their rights.  Along with rescue inevitably comes loss, and I know several of us have lost animal friends within the past few months, so the timing could not be better.
 
We will also be having soy 'cream' cones as a treat, so if you thought you could never replace ice cream in your diet, here's your chance to experience the non-dairy version.
B) Two Non-profit Classes
A reminder about the two non-profit classes coming up.  Both will be held in the Central Library Meeting Room 1, at the St. Louis Public Library, 1301 Olive.  The first class is Tuesday, July 10, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm, and is entitled Financial Basics for Non-Profits.  The second class is Tuesday, July 24, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm, and is entitled Meeting Your Responsibilities as a Non-Profit Board Member.  Both classes are free, but pre-registration is required to reserve your seat.  You can call 314-539-0357, 10:00 am to 6:00 pm on weekdays, or 9:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturdays.  You can also e-mail kparks@slpl.org. 
C) Crazy Bowl for Dogs
Gateway Pet Guardians and Pound Pals Nooterville are sponsoring a fundraiser on Saturday, July 28, from 8:00 to 11:00 pm, at Show Me Lanes in South County.  For $150, a team of six can play three hours of crazy bowl.  Shoes and three pitchers of beer are included.  Doors open at 7:00 pm, and play begins at 8:00 pm.  They will also have a 50/50 raffles, cash prizes, and a silent auction.  Call Arlene at 314-623-0412 or 314-416-8081, or e-mail at kulade@earthlink.net to reserve a lane.
D) Bird Care Seminar
Nationally recognized animal behaviorist, Barbara Heidenreich, will be speaking at the Humane Society of MO, 1201 Macklind Avenue, on Saturday, July 29, at 6:00 pm.  The topic will be "An Introduction to Training with Positive Reinforcement."  The cost is $20 per person, and you can reserve a seat by calling Janet at 314-432-3019.
E) Basic Parrot Care Seminars
Whether you now have a parrot and need some help with behavior or diet, or if you would like to foster or adopt a parrot sometime in the future, this Basic Parrot Care class might be what you need.  Taught by Perfectly Precious Rescue & Adoption, this two-hour class is being held at three different times, so one should fit your schedule:
Sat., July 21, Noon to 2:00 pm;
Sat., Sept. 15, Noon to 2:00 pm;
Sat., Nov. 10, Noon to 2:00 pm.
You can reserve a seat by calling Janet at 314-432-3019.  The cost is $10 per person, and the classes will be held at the Humane Society of MO, 1201 Macklind Avenue.
F) Urgent Animal Law and Food Safety Alert!
It is still not too late to keep a disastrous provision out of the pending Farm Bill.  It is Section 123, and if enacted it would wipe out any state and local animal welfare statutes that are not on the federal books.  It would also do away with stricter state laws governing food packaging and labeling.  Many states and municipalities have their own, more stringent, animal cruelty and food safety laws.  Federal law is always more lenient where animals and food safety are concerned.  This is nothing more than an industry ploy to undermine states' rights for their own profits.  PLEASE, contact your US Senators and US Representative and strongly urge them to OPPOSE Section 123.  Call them, e-mail them, snail mail them.  You can find details and a pre-written editable letter on the HSUS website, the ASPCA website (look under "LOBBY FOR ANIMALS" for the link to the Farm Bill provision on the ASPCA site), and on the PCRM website (look under "ISSUES" for the link to the Farm Bill provision on the PCRM site). 
 
The PCRM link will also tell you about a new bill designed to encourage and support the production and distribution of healthy foods.
G) Volunteer Opportunities 
We are looking for some people who would like to take part in a couple of projects.  One is helping out at the Gasconade Animal Control Center.  They can really use volunteers to walk the dogs, play with them, and help brighten up the days a bit for these homeless animals.  The other opportunity involves keeping track of the elephant Pearl's whereabouts at the St. Louis Zoo.  She is not in good shape at all and seems to be absent in the outdoors.  We need people to spend an hour a day for one week, checking to see if she ever appears outside.  IDA is monitoring the situation and would like help.  If you can lend a hand for either of these opportunities, please contact us at info@start4animals.org or 314-851-0928.   
H) Equal Justice Alliance 
In case you've been wondering what happened with the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA), that horrendous piece of scare-mongering disguised as legislation, check out the Equal Justice Alliance (EJA) website.  The EJA is a group of organizations working together to battle the AETA.  
I) Relevant Articles
1) Mack sent us this one detailing what was found on Atlanta Falcons' player Michael Vick's property, including documents that clearly show dogfighting had been going on since at least 2002.  This article also points out the chummy relationships between dogfighting participants and local authorities.  They question why the feds are getting involved in a dogfighting case.  It should be clear by the end of the article exactly why the feds are involved and should make everyone question why local authorities did not take an interest.
2) Mack also sent this good news story about a cat surviving for 18 days inside a shipping container.
3) The Columbia Missourian newspaper had a great article about vegetarians and vegans this week.  It came out just before the 4th of July holiday.  Take a look, and be sure to contact the editors and thank them for printing such a positive perspective (especially coming from a Missouri paper!).