Sharkwater - the Documentary

"We’re just a conceited naked ape, but in our minds we’re some ‘divine legend’ and we see ourselves as some sort of god, seeing we can decide what will live and what will die, what will be saved and what will be destroyed, but honestly we’re just a bunch of primates out of control."
Paul Watson, Sharkwater

Just after coffee, i found myself signing one more petition against 'shark fin soup'. And then one more. So i said to myself "it's about time to talk some more about those beautiful and misunderstood water creatures". There was already an entry here at Animal Voice where the topic of shark finning had been covered some time ago, there you can still find some good information and useful links (some of the petitions are long closed but when you are interested in signing petitions - on all kind of topics - remember it's as easy as typing on your Google search "shark finning petitions", or "sharks petitions" or anything along that line, where there's a will there's a way so i'm sure the person that is truly interested in helping out will find a way, and remember you can always ask me any info or question and i'll try to be as helpful as i can). To get back to that first entry on shark finning just click this link "Stop Shark Finning" .





What i'd like to introduce you to this time is this great documentary from filmmaker Rob Stewart - SHARKWATER:

"In an effort to protect sharks, Stewart teams up with renegade conservationist Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Their unbelievable adventure together starts with a battle between the Sea Shepherd and shark poachers in Guatemala, resulting in pirate boat rammings, gunboat chases, mafia espionage, corrupt court systems and attempted murder charges, forcing them to flee for their lives.
Through it all, Stewart discovers these magnificent creatures have gone from predator to prey, and how despite surviving the earth's history of mass extinctions, they could easily be wiped out within a few years due to human greed." (from SHARKWATER)

You can watch the whole documentary "Sharkwater" here:




USEFUL LINKS AND PETITIONS

You can find more info on how to help these intelligent and beautiful creatures clicking through the following links (remember they are just a few links, when you wanna know more there's lots of information available out there, let Google help you in doing your homeworks...):

- Sharkwater - official website
 ( if you have a website, blog etc, you can use one of their banners to promote the documentary, you found them at this link --> http://www.sharkwater.com/banners.htm )
- Sharkwater - Facebook page
- "Stop Shark Finning" @ Animal Voice
- Stop Shark Finning
- Stop Shark Finning - Petitions page
- Stop Shark Finning - Facebook page
- Petition "We want a worldwide shark fin ban"
- Petition "Tell Dubai to stop hunting endangered sharks"
- Sharktrust
- Sea Shepherd

Stop Shark Finning

Shark finning is the practice of slicing off the shark's fins while the shark is still alive and throwing the rest of its body back into the ocean where it can take days to die what must be an agonising death. Some sharks starve to death, others are slowly eaten by other fish, and some drown, because sharks need to keep moving to force water through their gills for oxygen. Shark fins are used as the principal ingredient of shark fin soup, an Asian "delicacy". Demand for shark fin soup has rocketed in recent years due to the increased prosperity of China and other countries in the Far East. Shark fin soup, which can easily cost $100 a bowl, is often served at wedding celebrations so that the hosts can impress their guests with their affluence. Because there is such a high demand for shark fins, traders can make a lot of money from shark fin, but it is the restaurant owners who really "make a killing" in this foul trade.

Not only is the finning of sharks barbaric, but their indiscriminate slaughter at an unsustainable rate is pushing many species to the brink of extinction. Since the 1970s the populations of several species have been decimated by over 95%. Due to the clandestine nature of finning, records are rarely kept of the numbers of sharks and species caught. Estimates are based on declared imports to shark fin markets such as Hong Kong and China.

If you are concerned about the plight of sharks - an animal that has been around since before the dinosaurs - there are plenty of things you can do to help... keep on reading to know more.

(from http://www.stopsharkfinning.net/ )




10 THINGS YOU DO TO HELP STOP SHARK FINNING:

1. Don't eat shark fin soup! Don't eat in restaurants that serve it.

2. Boycott any product that uses shark.

3. Tell people about it! This is extremely important. Tell your friends and tell them to pass the message on to their friends. Grassroots communication is vital for causes like this.

4. Write to the press, TV stations. Send emails, make phone calls.

5. Step up the pressure on companies that trade in shark products. Write to them saying you will boycott ALL their products. If you know of a restaurant that has shark fin soup or meat on the menu tell them you will not eat there until they remove shark from the menu.

6. Support organizations that are fighting to save marine wildlife such as Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and Wild Aid

7. Visit Stop Shark Finning

8. Raise awareness on this issue creating a "Stop Shark Finning" account in networking sites as MySpace, Facebook etc

9. Buy a Stop Shark Finning T-Shirt and help raise awareness (all profits go to Sea Shepherd).

10. Go shark diving! The more money that can be made from seeing sharks in the wild, the more incentive there is for communities to conserve populations.


RELATED SITES

- Stop Shark Finning
- Stop Shark Finning - Videos
- Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
- Shark Friends
- Shark Attacks
- Shark Trust
- HSUS - Shark Finning
- Wild Aid
- Adopt a Shark
- Shark Water
- Shark Life News
- Stop Shark Finning .com
- Stop Shark Finning @ MySpace


PETITIONS:

- Stop Shark Definning
- Global Ban on Shark Finning
- Message to Alibaba
- Stop Shark Slaughter
- Stop Distribution of Shark Finns
- For a Strong Overfishing Rule
- International Trade Endangers Sharks - Take Action


This is how we like our friends.... FREE !!

Asia : hell on earth for dogs & cats

For dogs and cats, Asia is certainly not the best place to be.
In China these animals are killed in brutal ways for their fur (see here), and not only that.

The recent few cases of rabies have brought upon the local dogs a large scale extermination action, sponsored by the local governments.
Just to name few of these episodes, in the city of Cixi (in between the 10th and 16th October 2004) an unverified estimate of 40,000 dogs were slaughtered, followed by other killer waves in 2005, 2006 (where in Yunnan 50.000 dogs have been massacred) till the last bloody bath happened only a few days ago, on the 15th of March 2007, in the district of Wanzhou.
The tragic thing it's that not only strays are the target of these tragic raids, but also dogs that have an owner and that are vaccinated (read more here).


In Korea the situation isn't any nicer.
Many Koreans claim that eating dogs is a long tradition although others believe that eating dogs only began as a result of the Korean war, when starvation was rife.
The popularity today has come about because dog dealers and restaurants began to invent stories about the health benefits to be gained from eating dog meat.

In order to meet the demand for dog meat (estimated at 2-2.8 million dogs and cats per year),farms exist throughout the country to breed these animals for slaughter.
Dog meat, at £15 Sterling per kilo, costs more than beef and is eaten more than lamb.


Dogs can commonly be seen in Korean markets being killed (hopefully) by hammer blows to the head before being skinned.
Sometimes the dog is electrified instead, with electrodes fixed to the tongue.
Yet another favoured method is slow strangulation by hanging.
The flesh is then singed by a blowtorch to improve its appearance.
On some occasions, the animal remains alive throughout, eventually dying from shock.
This is all performed in full view of other dogs crammed in cages awaiting the same fate.

The Koreans actually believe that the adrenaline released into the dogs' bloodstreams by their sheer terror and agony will increase the sexual potency of the consumer.

Signing this petition may increase the chances to abolish this horrible and cruel habit.


Although cats are eaten in South Korea, it is more usual for them to be rendered into a "medicine" to treat rheumatism and arthritis. Unlike dogs, cats are not bred on specialist farms.
This would not be cost effective when there are always starving strays.
These are collected in sacks and, if lucky, are beaten to death with either a stick or hammer blows to the head.
More commonly, they are boiled alive with herbs (sometimes after having their limbs broken to reduce their ability to struggle) until their flesh liquifies.
The resulting "liquid cat" (known as "Goyangi soju") is then sold in small sachets.
An average size cat, when cooked with dates, herbs and chestnuts, will produce 20-25 of these sachets.


For all cats and dogs lovers these facts are simply heart breaking, to put it mildly.
I have had cats and dogs with me all my life, and knowing about this kind of cruel acts doesn't make it easy for me to find sleep at night...

If you are touched by this tragic facts, there are a few things that could be done in order to try to save a huge number of canine and feline lifes in Asia:
read more facts about these topics, sign petitions, write/fax/call chinese and korean institutions (like embassies, consulates etc.), contact local shops that sell products deriving from the infamous fur trade, etc.

In the following list you will find important links that focus on this issue (organizations, petitions etc.):

http://choimimi.com/zboarde/zboard.php?id=sign
http://www.koreananimals.org
http://www.oipa.org/campagne/koreameat_petition.htm
http://www.idausa.org/campaigns/korea/koreando.html
http://www.oozemagazine.co.uk/korea.htm
http://www.animalkorea.org/
http://www.admh.org/data/fifa.htm
http://www.buyhard.fsnet.co.uk/
http://www.byteland.org/boycottchina/index.html
http://www.petitiononline.com/savecats/petition-sign.html?
http://sirius.2kat.net/cixiguilin.html
http://ga4.org/campaign/china_petition
http://www.voice4dogs.org/takeaction.htm
http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/stop_china_cruelty
http://www.actionagainstpoisoning.com/
http://www.animalsmatter.org/
http://www.petitiononline.com/adaasbl/petition.html
http://www.petitiononline.com/HKDKP012/petition.html
http://infurmation.com/
http://ga0.org/indefenseofanimals/alert-description.html?alert_id=4086046
http://www.furisdead.com/
http://www.heathermillsmccartney.com/petition.php?
http://www.heathermillsmccartney.com/dogcatfur.php
http://www.oipa.org/
http://www.careforthewild.com/projects.asp?detail=true&I_ID=304&myPage=Reports
https://community.hsus.org/campaign/furfreepledge
http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/p2furfreepledge
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/131317412?ltl=1154945572
http://ga0.org/campaign/koreandogs_06?rk=e1_EuNn16mCMW
https://community.hsus.org/campaign/FED_2007_fur_labeling



(Related articles and links here and here)

Another Chinese Dog Extermination Day

It seems as China doesn't want to stop with its cruel, unethical and horrifing actions towards animals.

In the Wanzhou district, the local government has ordered that all pet dogs have to be put to death because a resident died of rabies.
The government has issued a directive asking residents in the central city area to have their dogs put down before March 15.
The institutions will cull the dogs, whether they are vaccinated or not, if the residents do not do so before the deadline.
Owners will be fined between 200 yuan and 1,000 yuan for every dog found after that date.

Please read the complete article here:
http://www.shanghaiist.com/archives/2007/03/07/chinas_campaign.php
and here:
http://www.peta.org.uk/feat/feat-chinakillsdogs.asp


Please join in with demanding a serious change from the chinese government:

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/china_UK
http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/p2chinadogslaughter?c=918
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/440348024?ltl=1173966228


Important related links:

http://www.peta.org.uk/feat/feat-china1.asp
http://www.buyhard.fsnet.co.uk/animalcruelty.htm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,1871089,00.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=407435&in_page_id=1770



I am publishing this today - and it's already probably too late for stopping this mass murder of dogs in China.
But it's not too late for You to know about this terrible fact, and to help preventing any future act like this. Don't hesitate to contact any institutions of the chinese government, go/call/write/email to your local chinese embassy and state that you are ready to avoid the purchase of any products coming from China (...and there are tons of them on the market) and remember them that You , Me and many other like us may think twice before to book our flight for the upcoming chinese Olympic Games 2008, where they will surely not hesitate to take the chance for a further large scale stray animals extermination.

Imagine how would it be if you were living in China - now - and you owned a dog....
Please don't close Your eyes on This!