Digital Commons Network^™

An Hsus Report: Human Health Implications Of U.S. Live Bird Markets In The Spread Of Avian Influenza, The Humane Society Of The United States

Impact of Animal Agriculture

After millions of years of existing as a harmless infection of aquatic birds, some strains of avian flu have developed the ability to mutate into highly pathogenic forms that may not only be deadly for birds, but potentially more dangerous for humans as well. Experts from the World Health Organization, the World Organization for Animal Health, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations have joined leading scientists in implicating industrialized poultry production for providing fertile ground for the transformation of benign bird flu into highly pathogenic strains.

Live bird markets can be the conduit by which waterfowl …

The Case Against Dog Breed Discrimination By Homeowners’ Insurance Companies, Larry Cunningham

State of the Animals 2007

Breed discrimination by insurance companies is on the rise in the United States. Insurers are refusing to write homeowners’ policies for people who own breeds that the insurance industry considers to be dangerous. Their decisions are based solely on the breed of the animal, not the individual characteristics of the particular dog. Dog bites are certainly a public health concern. However, the insurance industry’s approach to the problem is based on faulty assumptions and improper use of dog-bite statistics. The insurance industry has prejudged entire breeds of dogs as being “too risky,” instead of taking a more reasonable dog-by-dog approach …

Canada’S Commercial Seal Hunt, Rebecca Aldsworth, Stephen Harris

State of the Animals 2007

Like efforts to end the commercial hunting of whales, the campaign to stop the slaughter of seals in Canada has become a major focus for animal and environment protection groups and governments the world over. For decades the face of the harp seal pup has been a symbol—to many, the symbol—of environment and animal advocacy. But as much as the campaign to save the seals has become an icon for those who would protect wildlife, the campaign to continue the hunt has become a focus for those who would block the progress of the animal protection and environmental movements.

The Role Of Economics In Achieving Welfare Gains For Animals, Jennifer Fearing, Gaverick Matheny

State of the Animals 2007

The demand for animal products and services is a powerful economic force in society, and multibillion-dollar industries are organized around this demand. These industries often face increased costs by improving animal welfare and are quick to use economic arguments against proposed welfare reforms (see sidebar on page 169). These arguments, while often specious, can influence consumers, voters, and policy makers. Citizens are less likely to support animal welfare reforms they’ve been told will double their shopping bill or impoverish family farmers.

Animal welfare advocates cannot respond to these economic arguments with moral rhetoric alone. Instead, non-governmental observers (NGOs) must challenge …

Dolphin-Assisted Therapy: More Flawed Data And More Flawed Conclusions, Lori Marino, Scott O. Lilienfeld

Animal-Assisted Therapy Collection

Dolphin-Assisted Therapy (DAT) is an increasingly popular choice of treatment for illness and developmental disabilities by providing participants with the opportunity to swim or interact with live captive dolphins. Two reviews of DAT (Marino and Lilienfeld [1998] and Humphries [2003]) concluded that there is no credible scientific evidence for the effectiveness of this intervention. In this paper, we offer an update of the methodological status of DAT by reviewing five peer-reviewed DAT studies published in the last eight years. We found that all five studies were methodologically flawed and plagued by several threats to both internal and construct validity. We …

Enforcing Wildlife Protection In China, Peter J. Li

Animal Welfare Collection

Since China enacted the Wildlife Protection Law in 1988, its wildlife has been threatened with the most serious survival crisis. In the prereform era, wildlife was a neglected policy area. Serving the objective of reform, the Wildlife Protection Law upholds the “protection, domestication, and utilization” norm inherited from past policies. It establishes rules for wildlife management and protection. This law provides for penalties against violations. Yet, its ambiguous objectives, limited protection scope, and decentralized responsibilities have made its enforcement difficult. Political factors such as institutional constraints, national obsession with economic growth, shortage of funding, and local protectionism have made the …

Naturalizing Anthropomorphism: Behavioral Prompts To Our Humanizing Of Animals, Alexandra C. Horowitz, Marc Bekoff

Human and Animal Bonding Collection

Anthropomorphism is the use of human characteristics to describe or explain nonhuman animals. In the present paper, we propose a model for a unified study of such anthropomorphizing. We bring together previously disparate accounts of why and how we anthropomorphize and suggest a means to analyze anthropomorphizing behavior itself. We introduce an analysis of bouts of dyadic play between humans and a heavily anthropomorphized animal, the domestic dog. Four distinct patterns of social interaction recur in successful dog–human play: directed responses by one player to the other, indications of intent, mutual behaviors, and contingent activity. These findings serve as a …

Animal Ethics And The Law, Bernard E. Rollin

Animal Law and Legislation Collection

Everyone reading this Article is doubtless aware of the woeful lack of legal protection for farm animals in the United States. Not only do the laws fail to assure even a minimally decent life for the majority of these animals, they do not provide protection against the most egregious treatment. As both a philosopher who has helped articulate new emerging societal ethics for animals, and as one who has successfully developed laws embodying that ethic—notably the 1985 federal laws protecting laboratory animals—I will stress the direction we need to move in the future to enfranchise farm animals. I have seen …

Profile: Citizens Of The World, University Relations

Profile (1996-)

The theme of this edition of Profile is "Citizens of the World," and our focus is on the many international and global experiences available here for University of Minnesota, Morris students. The examples you will encounter as you read through this are involved as learners, teachers, observers, and performers in some of the most creative and adventurous international activities currently found in higher education.

--From Chancellor Johnson's Message

Epv Op. 02-71 Lot Forms 2007, Ellen Bell

Four Valleys Archive

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Epv Op. 02-73 Lot Forms 2007, Whitney Goodwin

Four Valleys Archive

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Epv Op. 02-74 Lot Forms 2007, Erlend Johnson

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Epv Op. 02-75-Lot Forms 2007 (1), Thomas Gonyea

Four Valleys Archive

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Epv Op. 02-77 Lot Forms 2007, Erlend Johnson

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Epv Op. 02-78 Lot Forms 2007, Thomas Gonyea

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Epv Op. 02-80 Lot Forms 2007, Whitney Goodwin

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Epv Op. 02-81 Lot Forms 2007, Whitney Goodwin

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Epv Op. 02-82 Lot Forms 2007, Whitney Goodwin

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Epv Op. 03-22 Lot Forms 2007, Clarissa Cagnato2

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Epv Op. 03-23 Lot Forms 2007, Clarissa Cagnato

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Epv Op. 03-25b Lot Forms 2007, Clarissa Cagnato

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Epv Op. 03-24 Lot Forms 2007, Clarissa Cagnato

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Epv Op. 03-24 Lot Forms 2007, Clarissa Cagnato

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Epv Op. 03-25a Lot Forms 2007, Mary Hostenske

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Epc Op. 03-26 Lot Forms 2007, Pamela Geller

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Epv Op. 03-28 Lot Forms 2007, Mary Hostenske

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Epv Op. 03-25 Lot Forms 2007, Mary Hostenske

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Epv Op. 03-31 Lot Forms 2007, Roberto Ramirez

Four Valleys Archive

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Epv Op. 03-33 Lot Forms 2007, Roberto Ramirez

Four Valleys Archive

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Epv Op. 05-14 Lot Forms 2007, Santiago Escobar Morales

Four Valleys Archive

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