Thanks to you: WSPA successes for 2008
Dec 23, 2008
© WSPA
Our work is made possible by you. WSPA’s successes are shared with every supporter. Here are just some of the great things that you helped us achieve for animals in 2008:
Disaster management
WSPA’s disaster management team improved the welfare of over 195,000 animals this year, supplying desperately needed food, veterinary supplies and expertise across Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. When Myanmar and Cuba were ravaged by storms, we were the only organisation able to assist their animals, working in Myanmar at the request of the UN.
Bear baiting in Pakistan
We moved closer to ending bear baiting in Pakistan and therefore the world, for good. 15 bears were rescued from the danger and pain of illegal baiting and taken to Kund Park. The bears received expert veterinary treatment at this WSPA-funded lifetime care facility and can now rest in the pools and long grass of the sanctuary.
Whaling
WSPA scored a victory for whales this year. At the 2008 International Whaling Commission meeting in Chile, we proved that ‘aboriginal’ hunts in Greenland also turn a commercial profit, giving Commissioners the information they needed to block the country’s plans to hunt humpback whales.
Farm Animal Welfare
The Model Farm Project took off in China – 10,000 chickens that would have been caged have experienced life outside, climbed trees and basked in the sun. This project has benefited humans too; shoppers in Beijing are now able to buy humanely reared chicken and eggs for the first time.
Companion Animals
Our work with companion animals and their owners spans four continents. In 2008, this reach helped WSPA and our partners secure the long-term safety of thousands of dogs. We convinced government authorities in Colombia, Sierra Leone and Sri Lanka to give up cruel methods of stray control and commit to humane ways of managing local dog populations.
Romanian bear sanctuary and Borneo orangutan survival
Rescue and rehabilitation work continued with the Romanian bear sanctuary’s new enclosure, providing life-long safety for nine more abused and neglected bears. Our funding also kept the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation’s forest sanctuary open to care for injured and orphaned animals. WSPA’s commitment to these vital havens will carry on in 2009 and beyond.
Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare (UDAW)
The governments of Sweden, New Zealand, Fiji, the Seychelles and Cambodia all made animal welfare an issue of national importance by supporting WSPA’s campaign for a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare. Each nation’s backing was a significant step towards bringing animal welfare principles to the United Nations. In the UK, over 200 MPs showed their support for UDAW by signing an Early Day Motion and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) showed its support of this initiative in answer to a Parliamentary Question.
Long distance transport of animals for slaughter
The WSPA-led Handle with Care coalition campaign launched across nine countries in a blaze of publicity, which included a public event in London’s Trafalgar Square, calling for an end to the long distance transportation of animals for slaughter. Later in the year a peaceful protest was staged outside the Australian High Commission in London to highlight the four million sheep that undergo long distant transport every year to the Middle East. One of 2008’s significant successes was an 11% drop in the number of pigs being transported to Hawaii from the US mainland, saving almost 2,000 animals from a horrific journey by land and sea.
Global animal welfare movement
We have continued to build a global animal welfare movement by collaborating with, funding, and sharing learning with our member societies. Over 130 groups joined us in 2008, allowing WSPA to work with local organisations in Cambodia, Myanmar, Guam, Palau, Kosovo and Palestine for the first time.
Worldwide campaigning
To highlight the links between animal welfare, food security, the environment and human livelihoods, WSPA briefed the ambassadors of 41 developing countries on how good animal welfare can benefit the world’s poorest people. From 2009, we will encourage them to be active in calling for a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare.
Legislative change
In Canada, lobbying activity by WSPA and member society the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals resulted in strong new legislation to protect animals. Animal care standards were established in law for the first time, with greater powers granted to SPCA officers and serious penalties for those who commit animal cruelty.
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