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Animal massacre sparking
lawsuits
October 15, 2007 AP
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Animal welfare groups will help Puerto Rico housing
project residents pursue legal action after animal control workers seized their
pets and hurled them to their deaths from a bridge, an activist said yesterday.
Puerto Rico-based Friends of the Animals, will help the grieving pet owners
aggressively pursue claims of animal cruelty and civil rights violations, said
director, Elizabeth Kracht.
Animal control workers collected pets from owners under threat of eviction, but
later, dozens of animals seized were found thrown to their deaths from a tall
bridge in a nearby town.
Owners
sue over alleged pet massacre
October 21, 2007 AP
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Pet owners whose dogs and cats were thrown to their
deaths from a bridge have filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the
company that took the animals away and others they claimed were involved in the
killings.
The $22.5 million claim was filed in federal court against Puerto Rico's public housing director, the
municipality of Barceloneta, its mayor, the owner of a private animal control company and several
others.
The 45 plaintiffs -- whose pets were snatched this month when local authorities
enforced a no-pet rule in the island's public housing -- are seeking $500,000
each.
Animal control workers seized dozens of dogs and cats from three housing
projects in northwestern Puerto Rico on Oct. 8 and 10, beating, drugging and
then launching at least 50 of the animals to their deaths off a bridge, the
lawsuit claims.
The lawsuit says that the owners had to watch as their beloved animals were
taken, injected with "unknown chemicals" and slammed into vehicles.
"The family pets that survived the initial brutality were thrown from a bridge,"
it says.
Police have confirmed the involvement of Animal Control Solutions.
A telephone message seeking comment on the lawsuit from the office of the
company's owner, Julio Diaz, was not immediately returned.
Diaz earlier this week said the animals were taken to his offices near
San Juan, euthanized and placed in refrigerators,
not hurled from the Vega Baja bridge.
Barceloneta Mayor Sol Luis Fontanes, who is also named in the suit, told The
Associated Press yesterday that he had urged pet owners to file complaints with
the police.
"I understand that it's fair and reasonable that they proceed to a lawsuit,"
Fontanes said.
He confirmed that Animal Control Solutions, the municipality of
Barceloneta and the public housing administration were involved, but declined
further comment.
The investigation is ongoing and no arrests have been made so far.
Comment: Add your voice to the
petition
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/puerto-rico-pet-massacre
Hurricane Katrina animal massacre
lawsuit
2005: In the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina, while Pasado’s animal rescue team was in New Orleans, people were
forced to leave their pets behind. Some 33 dogs and cats were cruelly shot to
death at Beauregard Middle School in St. Bernard Parish, New Orleans. Pasado’s
offered a $10,000 reward for information on the killing
2008 update: Citing insufficient
evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, new state Attorney General
James "Buddy" Caldwell has dropped animal cruelty charges against two men
accused of killing stray dogs while working for the St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's
Office in the chaotic days after Hurricane Katrina.
Michael Minton, 44, a former sheriff's deputy, and Clifford "Chip" Englande, 36,
a sergeant who has been on desk duty for more than a year, were indicted on
charges of aggravated animal cruelty in November 2006.The owners of some of the
dogs have filed suit in federal court in New Orleans against the St. Bernard
government, former Parish President Henry "Junior" Rodriguez, the Parish
Council, Stephens and numerous deputies.
Japan rocked by huge earthquake
and tsunami
U.S. Department of State refusing to
allow people to evacuate with their pets
March 11, 2011
A powerful 8-9 magnitude earthquake
and tsunami struck the north-east coast of Japan, causing massive devastation
and killing thousands and leaving more homeless. Video footage shows the worst
affected towns being little more than piles of rubble.
The U.S. Department of State is
refusing again to allow U.S. nationals to take their animal companions to
safety, despite knowing for decades that in disasters like this, people faced
with imminent life-threatening danger, refuse to leave their pets behind.
Officials with the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as other
organizations like PETA have repeatedly asked that both people and pets be
included in evacuation efforts. Pets are part of families, with emotions just
like ours, and worthy of being saved, too.
PETA is asking that people contact
Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, asking that the State Department change its
official policy to allow pets to be evacuated simultaneously with their
families, and that those in Japan be allowed to take their pets with them.
Related:
The
Canadian
Disaster Animal Response Team (CDART) has two BC chapters, and has helped with
local situations and those further away. Rabbit Advocacy recommends that you
have plans and emergency kits in place to keep your animals safe and/or with you
in case of any emergency situation.
World animal Protection
https://www.worldanimalprotection.org/our-work/animals-disasters
When disasters hit, animals experience the same
terrible effects as people: injury, starvation, thirst, displacement, illness
and stress.
Read more:
Nature/Human Impact
“If all the insects were to
disappear from the Earth, within 50 years all life on Earth would end. If all
human beings disappeared from the Earth, within 50 years all forms of life would
flourish.” Jonas Salk, biologist
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