SUMMER 2021 / VOLUME 70 / NUMBER 2 But we can’t help animals without you! Thank you so much for your past donations, and we are grateful for any continued support you may be able to provide. However, I also hope you A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT will assist us by responding to our requests for action. Pages 4 and 5 describe much-needed legislation pending in Congress Dear Members and Other to help primates, sharks, companion animals, and a host of Friends of AWI: other species, and you can make a difference by reaching out to your members of Congress to request their support for It has been nearly a year and a half since our lives were these measures. In addition, farm animals can benefit if you changed in so many ways by the pandemic. Nonetheless, contact Agriculture Secretary Vilsack and urge him to finalize AWI’s advocacy has continued in earnest as animals across a rule that will mandate animal welfare requirements within the nation and around the globe remain in critical need of USDA’s organic standards (see page 10). And while we are protection and conservation. making progress to stop wildlife killing contests, we can only succeed by working in partnership with you, our grassroots In this issue of our magazine you’ll read about our work, advocates; on page 16, we offer some actions you can take. including the progress we are making to end brutal and senseless wildlife killing contests in the United States, the We appreciate your concern for animals and hope you will assistance we provided in response to the massive oil spill continue to help them via whatever means you can. off the coast of Israel, and our successful effort to make thousands of USDA records readily available to the public, With warm regards and heartfelt gratitude, thereby identifying instances of inhumane treatment of animals at slaughter operations. — Cathy Liss FOUNDER David Fraser, PhD Allie Granger Naomi Rose, PhD Farm Animal Policy Associate Marine Mammal Scientist Christine Stevens Rich Reading, PhD D.J. Schubert Viktor Reinhardt, DVM, PhD Joanna Grossman, PhD Equine Program Manager and Wildlife Biologist DIRECTORS Robert Schmidt, PhD Senior Advisor Zack Strong Cynthia Wilson, Chair Johanna Hamburger, Esq. Senior Staff Attorney, Jill Carey INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE Director and Senior Staff Attorney, Terrestrial Wildlife Terrestrial Wildlife Program Erin Sutherland, Esq. Caroline A. Griffin, Esq. Aline S. de Aluja, DVM, Mexico Sydney Hearst Staff Attorney, Farm Animal Mary Lee Jensvold, PhD Juan Carlos Cardenas, DVM, Chile Program Digital Advocacy Manager Alan E. Kessock, CPA Ambassador Tabarak Husain, Regina Terlau-Benford Bangladesh Dena Jones Executive Assistant Cathy Liss Director, Farm Animal Program Angela King, United Kingdom Dave Tilford Chris Miller, DVM Agnes Van Volkenburgh, DVM, Poland Eric Kleiman Writer/Editor William S. Stokes, DVM Researcher Animal Welfare Institute Animal Welfare Allison Ludtke STAFF AND CONSULTANTS For subscription inquiries or other OFFICERS Policy Advisor Nadia Adawi, Esq. information, contact: Cathy Liss, President Executive Director/General Counsel Joanna Makowska, PhD Laboratory Animal Advisor Animal Welfare Institute Cynthia Wilson, Vice President Alexandra Alberg 900 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE Senior Graphic Designer Susan Millward Alan E. Kessock, CPA, Treasurer Director, Marine Animal Program Washington, DC 20003 Nancy Blaney (202) 337-2332 Caroline A. Griffin, Esq., Secretary Director, Government Affairs Carly O’Beirne [email protected] Membership Coordinator Kate Dylewsky awionline.org SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE Senior Policy Advisor Kate O’Connell ISSN 1071-1384 (print) Sue Fisher Marine Animal Consultant Frank Cipriano, PhD ISSN 1930-5109 (online) Marine Animal Consultant Cristina Eisenberg, PhD Mary Lou Randour, PhD Marjorie Fishman Senior Advisor, Animal Cruelty Tax ID# 13-5655952 Roger Fouts, PhD Public Relations Manager Program CFC# 10474 17 LN AWI QUARTERLY SUMMER AWI NEWS WILDLIFE 2 A Message from the President 12 BLM Drops Surgical Sterilization Plan for Utah Wild Horses 6 AWI Welcomes New Scientifi c Committee Members 12 Wildlife Services Kills Less (but a Lot) in 2020 12 Traps and Poisons Prohibited on New Mexico Public Lands ANIMALS IN LABORATORIES 13 USFWS Recommends Continued 11 Playpen Time Benefi cial to Mice Protections for Grizzly Bears in Laboratories 13 Red Wolves Released into Wild in North Carolina FARM ANIMALS 13 IUCN O ers Grim Assessment of 8 Court Pulls Break on USDA’s Speedup African Elephants of Pig Slaughter Lines 14 Aiming to End Wildlife Killing Contests ABOUT THE COVER 8 Egg Association Promotes 17 “Dog-Proof” Traps Don’t Shield Animals A pair of Atlantic spotted dolphins Emergency Planning from Su ering hone their synchronized swimming 8 Feds Urged Not to Upend FDA Oversight 18 An Island of Misfi t Tortoises: Providing of GE Farm Animals skills in the Bahamas. AWI actively Sanctuary for Waif Gopher Tortoises While participates in the workings of the 9 Suez Canal Blockage Highlights Recovering Wild Populations Plight of Farm Animals at Sea SPAW Protocol—a UN agreement to 10 New Push to Include Animal Welfare protect wildlife and habitat in the GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS Standards to Organic Program Caribbean. This spring, AWI sta 4 Ringing Up No Sale on Shark Fins 24 USDA to Make Slaughter Records members attended the ninth meeting Available to Public 4 Improving Animal Welfare Enforcement of the SPAW Protocol Scientifi c 4 Ending Abuse of Show Horses and Technical Advisory Committee. MARINE LIFE 5 Prohibiting Primates as Pets Unfortunately, the meeting—held 19 AWI Provides Support for Israel Tar Cleanup 5 Protecting Pets from Shady Dealers virtually and hampered by technical 19 Ship Strike Fells Mother and Calf Fin Whales 5 Get Active for Animals! di iculties that severely delayed 20 “Virtual” Standstill at Caribbean progress on key initiatives—produced Conservation Meeting REVIEWS underwhelming results. Nonetheless, 21 Dubious Ocean Noise Study Seeks to 22 Saving America’s Amazon a few positive outcomes emerged. To Corral Wild Whales 23 Animals’ Best Friends learn more, see page 20. Photograph by 23 A Shape in the Dark Chase Dekker/Minden Pictures. facebook.com/animalwelfareinstitute @AWIonline @AWIonline GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS Results from such unannounced inspections will be ignored in license renewal determinations. Under the AWEIA, dealers and exhibitors would have to renew their licenses annually after passing an unannounced inspection. Businesses that are noncompliant with the AWA’s minimum care standards or ones that have repeatedly violated the AWA or local, state, or other federal laws related to animals, would be denied licenses. Further, the USDA could permanently revoke a license (following a hearing) when a dealer or exhibitor has committed multiple animal welfare violations. The bill would also require FINS REMOVED FROM SHARKS, ANTONI HALIM ANTONI SHARKS, FROM REMOVED FINS animal dealers and exhibitors to improve their veterinary care standards and would empower citizens to file RINGING UP NO SALE IMPROVING ANIMAL lawsuits to enforce the AWA, similar to ON SHARK FINS WELFARE ENFORCEMENT what is provided for under some federal environmental laws. The Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act The Animal Welfare Enforcement (HR 2811), a bill that would prohibit Improvement Act (AWEIA; HR 3277), the sale of shark fins, was reintroduced introduced May 17 by Representative in the House of Representatives this Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), would end past Earth Day with 104 members US Department of Agriculture licensing ENDING ABUSE OF signing on as original cosponsors practices that allow chronic violators SHOW HORSES (twice the number from last Congress). of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) to A coalition of 114 representatives and This bipartisan legislation, led by escape accountability. 48 senators recently urged Agriculture Representatives Gregorio Kilili Camacho Secretary Tom Vilsack to finalize a Sablan (I-MP) and Michael McCaul (R- In the past, the USDA routinely rubber- Horse Protection Act (HPA) rule that TX), passed the House last Congress but stamped license renewals. Under a would significantly curb the pernicious was not taken up by the Senate. new regulatory scheme instituted practice of “soring,” which involves last year, animal dealers, breeders, the deliberate infliction of pain on a The Senate version of the bill (S 1106) and exhibitors—including puppy horse’s hooves and legs to create an is led by Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) mills, traveling circuses, roadside exaggerated high-stepping gait for and Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV). On zoos, petting farms/zoos, animal acts, certain competitions. The rule was May 12, the Commerce, Science, and animal rides, and marine mammal nearly finalized in 2017 during Secretary Transportation Committee voted 22–6 facilities—are required to obtain a Vilsack’s prior tenure at the USDA, but to include that bill as an amendment, new license only every three years was subsequently withdrawn by the offered by Senators Brian Schatz (D- after passing a pre-announced USDA Trump administration. It would mirror HI) and Capito, to the Endless Frontier inspection, and they will be given up many of the goals of the Prevent All government affairs government Act (now known as the US Innovation to three chances to pass. This system Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, which passed and Competition Act). By the same allows habitually out-of-compliance the House of Representatives during margin, committee members defeated licensees to clean up just long enough the last Congress