September 23, 2007

Hi all,

 
A) Upcoming Events
1. Leafleting for the CVA
2. Mastiff Day at the Dog Museum
3. Canine Carnival 
4. START Monthly Meeting for October
5. Hands/Paws on Kirkwood
6. Halloween Costume Party for Dogs
7. Trivia Night for Weimeraners 
8. An Evening for the Animals Silent Auction
 
B) Mars Candy Involved in Vivisection
C) New PETA Campaign
D) Make Your Community Coyote-Friendly
E) Alicia Silverstone Too Hot for Houston!
F) US Court of Appeals Upholds Illinois Ban on Horse Slaughter
 
 

 
1. Leafleting for the CVA
The Christian Vegetarian Association will be leafleting at three Theatre of the Word shows at the Cardinal Rigali Center, in Shrewsbury.  There will be an 8:00 pm show on Friday, September 28, and Saturday, September 29; and a 2:00 pm show on Sunday, September 30.  If you have an hour to spare, give Joe a call at 314-616-7375, or e-mail him at joe_b_stephen@yahoo.com.
 
2. Mastiff Day at the Dog Museum
Booths and presenters with information on properly caring for large and giant breed dogs.  Information on rescue and adoption of Mastiffs and similar breeds, with booths from some unusual breed rescues.  START will be there.  Sunday, September 30, 1:00 to 4 or 5:00 pm (to be determined), at the Museum of the Dog in Queeny Park.
 
3. Canine Carnival
Hosted by the APA, this annual doggy event will take place in Tilles Park on Sunday, October 7, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  There will be games, contests, information booths, and rescue groups.  START will be there.  Let us know if you'd like to help with our booth. 
 
4. START Monthly Meeting for October
Tuesday, October 9, 7:00 pm, at the Brentwood Community Center.  Humane Investigator, Bob Baker, will talk about his former undercover work while a member of the Humane Farming Association.  He will also discuss his work investigating puppy mills for the ASPCA.  Please bring an Auction item to donate to our two theme baskets.  See #7 below.
 
5. Hands/Paws on Kirkwood
Bring your canine companion for an off-leash social and pet blessing!  This free event is open to the public and will be held at the Kirkwood Baptist Church, at the corner of Adams and Woodlawn.  It takes place on Saturday, October 13, from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm.  (The blessing of the pets will be from 10:00 to 11:30 am.)  For all the details, be sure to check http://www.kirkwoodbaptist.org/_events.  (Details like, no puppies under four months, no unaltered dogs, no pinch collars, etc.)
 
6. Halloween Costume Party for Dogs 
Booths with information and games for the dogs.  Prizes for best costume.  Hosted by the Gateway American Pit Bull Terrier Club.  Sunday, October 14, 3:00 to 5:00 pm, at the Museum of the Dog in Queeny Park.  Cost is $5 per dog.  Games are free.  START will be there.  Let us know if you'd like to help with our booth.
 
7. Trivia Night for Weimeraners
The Heartland Weimeraner Rescue is hosting a Trivia Night, Saturday, October 20, at Assumption Church, 4725 Mattis Road, in South County.  The doors open at 6:30 pm, and the trivia begins at 7:00 pm.  The price is $18 per person, $144 per table of eight.  To reserve a seat/table, call Lesley Hunt at 314-275-2124, evenings and weekends; or 314-485-6412, workdays.
 
8. An Evening for the Animals Silent Auction
Saturday, October 27, 6:00 to 9:00 pm, at the Regional Arts Commission (6128 Delmar).  START's biggest annual fundraiser is a lot of fun, but also a lot of work.  Soooo, WE NEED PEOPLE.  The following is our Wish List for the Auction.  We need:
# Volunteers to help decorate and to set up the tables with the auction items and their bid sheets
# Volunteers to staff the admission table
# Volunteers to help serve the food and clean up tables as needed
# Volunteers to help clean up at the end 
# Donations of gift certificates, gift cards, gift baskets, etc.  Gift certificates, cards, and baskets could be from restaurants, grocery stores, sporting events, hair stylists, dog groomers, gyms, movie theaters, video rental, pet supply stores, maid service, etc.  We have a tax-exempt letter you can give to the businesses if they need one.  Just let us know and we can e-mail/mail it to you or directly to the business.
# Donations of one item relating to either theme: "A Night at the Movies" or "Companion Animals."  START will put together two theme baskets to auction, and we'd like members (and non-members) to donate some item that fits any aspect of these themes.  It could be a DVD or package of popcorn or box of Raisinettes for the movie night.  It could be a dog chew or a bird toy or a bag of cat litter for the companion animal basket.  Use your imagination; it needn't be expensive.  Please bring your item to the October 9 Monthly Meeting. 
 
There will be a buffet dinner and dessert, drinks, prizes for best costume, trick 'r treat goody bags, and a whole range of auction items to fit any budget.  Tickets are $15 in advance, or $20 at the door.  Call or e-mail START to reserve your tickets.  

B) Mars Candy Involved in Vivisection
Just when you thought animal testing couldn't get any more asinine (remember the juice companies testing their products on animals so they could make health claims?), I think we may have hit an all-time low: Mars Candy Company torturing rodents for who knows what inexplicable reason.  Mars -- the makers of M&Ms, Mars bars, Snickers, and a host of other candy -- performs outlandish and perverse experiments on mice and rats.  When you give it even a cursory thought, there can be no rationale for a confectioner to be involved in vivisection.  Go to the PETA alert page to tell Mars what you think of them. 

C) New PETA Campaign
PETA has launched a new website for a new campaign: ABC -- Animal Birth Control.

D) Make Your Community Coyote-Friendly
The API (Animal Protection Institute) continues to campaign on behalf of coyotes.  Their website has resources to help communities cope with coyote "problems."
E) Alicia Silverstone Too Hot for Houston!
A hot new veggie ad featuring Alicia Silverstone in the imagined buff is apparently too much for the cattle state to handle.  (I guess they're not so tough after all.)

F) US Court of Appeals Upholds Illinois Ban on Horse Slaughter
If we're lucky, this will be the end of it.  See the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) website.