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“Welfare-driven conservation” of the endangered Scottish wildcat: https://www.thedodo.com/scottish-wildcat-endangered-1548912260.html?utm_source=The+Dodo+Newsletter&utm_campaign=0011219654-01_13_2016_NL&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_4342b46fc5-0011219654-142312137

There Are Only 35 Of These Fierce Little Animals Left In The WorldFor the love of animals. Pass it on.

https://www.change.org/p/u-s-food-and-drug-administration-horseshoe-crabs-are-important-stop-bleeding-them-dry-find-the-solution-to-synthetic-lal-now?source_location=petition_footer&algorithm=promoted

U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Horseshoe Crabs are important, stop bleeding them dry: Find the Solution to Synthetic LAL Now!I am known on Tumblr for my post about the importance of the Atlantic horseshoe crab--100,000+ shares strong.  But the importance of these incredible creatures cannot be captured in a few words on a social media website. The Atlantic horseshoe crab (Limulus Polyphemus) is considered by scientists to be a "living fossil," it is one of the only organisms that has survived without evolving since the age of the dinosaurs, 450 million years ago. They are also known as helmet crabs, and they are actually not all that closely related to crabs at all--they are genetically more closely related to spiders and scorpions, and they crawl around the surface of the ocean when they're not spawning on the shores of the East coast--most prominently on the Jersey Shore, Long Island, and Delaware, and even in the Gulf of Mexico.  Aside from their entire existence and history being prehistoric, so are their immune systems! Horseshoe crabs bleed blue (no, literally) because their blood is mostly made of copper--unlike that of humans--our blood is composed mostly of Iron.  Their blood, along with their really neat prehistoric immune system, contains a substance called LAL (Limulus amebocyte lysate), which coagulates around endotoxins and bacteria, detecting their presence. Since 1970, every pill, medical instrument or other tool used and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has undergone testing using horseshoe crab blood, which costs around $15,000 per quart.  These critters are super important to our health, but what about their health? When we extract their blood, we take around 1/3 of their blood cell count, and due to the old-fashioned nature of their circulatory system, it can take around 6 months for a single horseshoe crab to restore itself to its normal blood cell count levels. During the process of their "donation" to American medicine, it is estimated that 18% of horseshoe crabs die from blood loss and other complications related to the extraction process. While it is technically illegal to bleed the same crab twice (which is why they are often tagged by medical companies, to ensure that they don't re-collect that same crab,) it is still cruel to be taking these animals away from their homes and habitats, bleeding them out and leaving them to re-adjust their blood cell count. Their prehistoric immune systems and body processes cannot handle this, and because of this, their population remains in great danger.  Our scientific research and advancements in technology could certainly afford to find a synthetic solution to LAL. The health industry  knows the chemical composition of horseshoe crab blood, so why can't they make a synthetic version? If they can afford dozens of quarts of copper-based blue blood, they can afford a synthetic alternative to bleeding these friendly, awesome creatures dry.  I am urging you to sign this petition to ask the FDA and the EPA to work together to minimize the amount of horseshoe crabs who are bled annually, and to work more quickly and efficiently toward finding a synthetic alternative to horseshoe crab blood/LAL. Horseshoe crabs are not only a really cool connection to our prehistoric past, but they are friendly and wonderful animals who contribute great things to our aquatic ecosystems.  For more information, please visit the sources below. Sign and share!  Thank you,  Caitlin O'Connor   Sources: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/crash-a-tale-of-two-species-the-benefits-of-blue-blood/595/ http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/04/health/this-crabs-blood-could-save-your-life/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20593268 http://www.horseshoecrab.org/med/med.html

DAVID Bowie is being hailed as the ultimate animal hero after allowing one of his classics to become the battle hymn of whaling protestors. http://www.express.co.uk/news/nature/633817/David-Bowie-heroes-animal-hero-Taiji-dolphin-slaughter-The-Cove

David Bowie hailed as 'ULTIMATE animal hero' for support of illegal whaling protestorsDAVID Bowie is being hailed as the ultimate animal hero after allowing one of his classics to become the battle hymn of whaling protestors.

According to a Canadian news source, factory farms “can’t find enough Canadians willing to work on the kill floor” and that new workers “walk away after a couple of hours.” http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do?pageId=7378&catId=1

Canadians Refuse to Work at SlaughterhousesMeat production facilities report a shortage of Canadian workers applying to work on the kill floor.

Monofilament lines and nets kills our Ocean: On Saturday morning, a dead juvenile green turtle was found dead and entangled in a fishing net near Pui O Wan on the south of Lantau Island.
http://hongkong.coconuts.co/2016/01/11/young-sea-turtle-found-dead-and-entangled-fishing-net-south-lantau-island

Young sea turtle found dead and entangled in fishing net south of Lantau IslandOn Saturday morning, a dead juvenile green turtle was found dead and entangled in a fishing net near Pui O Wan on the south of Lantau Island.

http://hongkong.coconuts.co/2016/01/11/hong-kong-stall-owner-stopped-selling-dog-furs

Hong Kong stall owner stopped from selling dog fursThe stall owner apparently claimed the furs were from Tibetan mastiffs raised in Beijing.

The report adds that “animal products cause more damage than [producing] construction minerals such as sand or cement, plastics or metals.” Plus, livestock raised for meat consumes a large portion of the world’s crops and a lot of freshwater. Currently, agriculture, “particularly meat and dairy products,” account for 70 percent of the world’s…[Read more]

5 minutes of touching wisdom from Jane Goodall. Its gonna worth your 5 minutes more than anything else. Of course she is the wisest of all (-1.30) , but one thing strucks me most is she actually enjoys her time on earth (-4.30) . With all those knowledge she bears, she enjoys her time and she wants more. That is insane.…[Read more]

Cat: different look, different attitude http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/veterinarians-study-cat-coat-patterns-discover-attitute-in-certain-cats-trending/

Veterinarians Study Cat Coat Patterns, Discover Attitude in Certain CatsA new study showed that cats with tortoiseshell and calico coat patterns challenge their owners more often than cats with other coat patterns.

Issues to consider surrounding the TNR practice: https://www.facebook.com/notes/animal-people-inc/trap-neuter-return-projects-may-bring-conflicts-over-euthanasia-by-kim-bartlett/959742070714880

Jonathan: We also want the journal to have a strong emphasis on the application of our understanding of animal sentience to advances in human-animal relationships. To that end, we will not publish studies that harm animal subjects; and where animals are studied, we encourage authors to use rewards as positive motivators, and not punishments or…[Read more]

The Science of Sentience: An Interview about Animal FeelingsAnimal sentience is everywhere and a new journal shows just how widespread it is

Any animals currently in captivity that would not survive in the wild will be cared for in rescue centers and wildlife sanctuaries. No new zoos will be opened. http://www.higherperspectives.com/costa-rica-is-shutting-down-all-zoos-and-freeing-every-animal-in-capti-1429975510.html

Costa Rica Is Shutting Down All Zoos And Freeing Every Animal In CaptivityCosta Rica has announced that it will be the first country in the world to shut down its zoos and free the captive animals they hold. Costa Rica is an especially biodiverse country, holding about 4% of the world's known species. Sadly, the country is contractually obligated to keep two of its zoos o...