AltWeeklies Wire
The San Diego Zoo Hopes to Help Companies Mimic Naturenew
The biomimicry unit would connect educational institutions and companies with the zoo's vast collection of plants and animals, along with the zoos expertise. Zoo CFO Paula Brock sees biomimicry as both a way to help the world move toward a greener future and bring a different kind of green into the zoo's coffers.
San Diego CityBeat |
Eric Wolff |
07-09-2008 |
Animal Issues
Is California Witnessing the Return of the Abalone?new
The culture of abalone diving saw its heyday in the 1970s, and even though sea snail searching will never again be the same, a San Miguel Island fishery may be in the works.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Alastair Bland |
06-30-2008 |
Animal Issues
The Untold Story of the Michael Vick Scandalnew
Vick's journey to federal prison began on March 2, 1999, when he was 18 years old, when cops stopped a Ford Econoline van with Virginia plates and a dangling pinetree air freshener and found two kilos of cocaine and a half kilo of heroin. Michael Vick had no connection with this bust, nor with the three men in the van. Yet the stop would have everything to do with the fate of the young star.
Port Folio Weekly |
Joe Jackson |
06-18-2008 |
Animal Issues
Tourists Can't Wait to Get Next to Sharks, Even if They Are Eating Machinesnew
The world's love-hate relationship with sharkdom has created a sprawling, often bizarre industry of shark adventures, from vicious killing expeditions to face-to-face encounters designed to debunk the animal's scary image. Even legitimate scientists are getting in on the act by turning their facilities into entertainment venues for wide-eyed diving tourists hungry to rendezvous with the creatures.
Miami New Times |
Amy Guthrie |
06-17-2008 |
Animal Issues
Have Money Pressures Forced San Francisco's SPCA to Lower the Bar for Euthanasia?new
Many think that the SF/SPCA has fundamentally changed its "no-kill" principle, which had made San Francisco the safest city for cats and dogs in the country and served as a model for hundreds of shelters.
SF Weekly |
John Geluardi |
06-11-2008 |
Animal Issues
Pigeon Carnage in a Downtown Santa Fe Buildingnew
A landlord's efforts to keep pigeons out of a fire escape end up trapping many in, leading to a pile of carcasses and a bureaucratic mess.
Santa Fe Reporter |
Dave Maass |
06-05-2008 |
Animal Issues
Colony Collapse Disorder is Putting Honeybees and Our Food Supply at Risknew
Since November 2006, there have been reports of honeybees flying away from their colonies and disappearing. Beekeepers are reporting losses of between 30 and 90 percent of their hives. No one seems to know exactly why the bees aren't returning to the hive. But the phenomenon is more than alarming -- it's being called a global crisis.
Boulder Weekly |
Dana Logan |
05-27-2008 |
Animal Issues
Protesters Decry UVM's Use of Live Pigs in Surgeons' Training Programnew
Advanced Trauma Operative Management offers practicing surgeonsa quick yet intense refresher in basic trauma-surgery techniques. But animal-rights advocates, as well as medical students and faculty around the country, believe live-animal training sessions have no place on college campuses.
Seven Days |
Mike Ives |
05-27-2008 |
Animal Issues
Are Chicken Farm Cages Humane?new
Although the egg industry says the cage systems are science-based and humane, animal welfare activists say they are cruel and restrict natural behaviors. In November, voters will decide whether to ban the cages in California, thanks to a six-month signature-gathering effort sponsored by the Humane Society of the United States along with other animal welfare groups.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Alex Felsinger |
05-22-2008 |
Animal Issues
San Fran's Animal Welfare Commission Wants to Outlaw Cruel Artnew
Still fuming over a recent exhibition of videos showing six different animals being bludgeoned to death, the commission is proposing a law -- the Humanitarian Art Ordinance -- that would treat art that abuses animals like child pornography: If an animal is harmed for the purpose of making art, it would be a criminal offense to display or possibly even keep in San Francisco.
SF Weekly |
Benjamin Wachs |
05-14-2008 |
Animal Issues
Wild Cougars are Moving into the Midwest -- and They May Be Here to Staynew
The numbers are not huge, but they do indicate an increase in cougars making their way back into the nation's corn and soybean belt, areas from which they were exterminated long ago. Now the Midwest is going to have to decide what to do about them.
Chicago Reader |
Stephen J. Lyons |
05-05-2008 |
Animal Issues
Poisoned by Purina: The Case of the Alpaca Massacrenew
Jerry Forstner's farmhands found alpacas bleeding from the eyes and shrieking in pain, as a result of eating feed from Purina Mills that was dosed with salinomycin -- a chemical used to kill parasites in pigs and chickens, but which is deadly to alpacas.
Cleveland Scene |
Denis Grollmus |
05-02-2008 |
Animal Issues
Foreclosure Pets: Household Animals Get Left Behind When Owners Are Pushed Outnew
"Generally, the people that leave the pets don't care enough to call us," says the public relations director for the Houston Humane Society. "Oftentimes we'll see a bag of dog food ripped open. They'll leave a bag of dog food and say a prayer and good luck. It's really upsetting."
Houston Press |
Paul Knight |
04-29-2008 |
Animal Issues
Rescue Groups Are the Answer to the Pet Industry's Dark Underbellynew
The Shih Tzu and Furbaby Rescue fosters and finds homes for abandoned small dogs, who often come out of puppy mills.
Charleston City Paper |
Stratton Lawrence |
04-23-2008 |
Animal Issues
Hog Wildnew
Feral pigs are ugly, destructive and mean. Some people in Texas just love to trap, stab or shoot them. Or put them in rodeos. With dogs.
Houston Press |
Todd Spivak |
04-21-2008 |
Animal Issues
