Maria Daines-- "Rock for the Voiceless"

Happy Monday, everybody!
Today I'd like to introduce you to Maria Daines' music. Maria Daines is a singer and songwriter living in the UK. The songs that she and her guitarist/producer Paul Killington write and perform are all centred around animals and animal welfare/rights. They span a number of genres: rock, country, folk, blues and soul.
You can listen to her music for free on her website: http://www.maria-daines.com/.

Maria Daines and Patch (photo from http://www.puppylovecampaigns.org/support.shtml)

Have a nice day!

The New Movie "Noah" is Animal-Friendly!

Director Darren Aronofsky's new movie "Noah" is coming out in theatres on March 28th, 2014. It's a creative adaptation of the story of Noah's ark from the book of Genesis. You probably already know the story-- two of every animal are taken onto a large boat to be saved from the great flood that God has sent to kill off humanity.
Many movies are filmed using live animals-- and this often has very negative effects for the animals. For example, animals have been harmed in the making of Pirates of the Carribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, The Life of Pi, and the Hobbit, among others. You can read more about this from the Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2513407/How-Hollywood-animals-repeatedly-harmed-movie-TV-production.html.
Happily, the new movie "Noah" did not use real animals in the filming of the movie at all! All of the animals are computer animations. Not only this, but the storyline of the movie also has a large focus on the importance of caring for animals and the environment. The director, Darren Aronofsky, has even advocated for animal rights in the past, according to Joan Reddi on Ecorazzi.
Here's the trailer:


I'm definitely going to go see it-- are you? ;)

Taking Action for Animals 2014!

Hello everyone,

On June 27-30, 2014, the Humane Society of the United States will be hosting its Taking Action for Animals (TAFA) conference in Washington, D.C. The conference is geared towards animal advocates of all stripes-- from "seasoned advocates to newcomers TAFA has something for everyone." It would be a great opportunity to learn new things, be inspired, network with others, and learn new advocacy skills! The conference homepage is at https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/default.aspx?EventID=1297443. Please check it out!

Image from https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/default.aspx?EventID=1297443.

At the conference, there will be workshops, speakers, an exhibit hall, a movie screening, and even an opportunity to meet U.S. lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Monday "Lobby Day"! The full schedule can be seen here: http://takingactionforanimals2014.sched.org/.

It costs only $65.00 (not including accommodations or optional Friday workshops) to attend. For all the details on pricing, please see their "Registration Rates" page: https://classic.regonline.com/custImages/300000/301954/TAFA%202014%20Images/2014TAFARegistrationRates.pdf.

Now, many of you fellow animal-rights people might be thinking, "Hmph! They're probably going to serve lots of meat and spend a lot of time ranting on about "humane" animal farming, etc." That's kind of what I assumed at first, too. But no!-- all the food served by the HSUS will be vegan, and the restaurant at the hotel where the conference takes place will make sure to provide vegan options for the length of the conference. From what I can see on the website, the conference doesn't seem to "take sides" with either animal welfare or animal rights-- it simply is a place where animal advocates can meet up, learn, and make a difference.

If you can make it, it would be a great way to renew your focus on helping animals!

Health Charities That Do and Don't Test on Animals

With Spring just around the corner, many people are registering for upcoming charity running races and starting to train for these events. If that's you, great-- but please, before signing up for an event, consider where the money is going and how it will be used.
There are still many health charities that test on animals as part of their research. These experiments include sensory deprivation, physically hurting the animals, and separating infants from their mothers, among other cruel practices. Not only that, but animal testing doesn't give scientists a good sense of how the human body works anyway, since humans and animals have different body chemistry and physiology. If you were to fundraise for or donate to a health charity that funds tests on animals, you may think that you'd be helping your cause, but in fact, you'd be supporting cruelty to animals and bad science.

Happily, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has set up a Humane Charity Seal of Approval website, which notes which health charities do and don't fund tests on animals. With so many charities listed, you should be able to find charities for each major health condition that are humane-approved. Here are some examples of charities listed on the website:

Charities that DO fund animal testing, according to PCRM:

• The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
• The American Cancer Society
• The Alzeimer's Society of Canada
• and a great deal more...

Charities that DON'T fund animal testing:

• The Breast Cancer Society
• Canadian Red Cross
• The Leukaemia CARE Society (in the UK)
• and many more!

For the complete list, please go to http://www.humaneseal.org/search.cfm?ap=y.