taking a stand against exploitation...

yet again i was proud to be one of the thousands of supporters around australia who turned out to support oscar's law - the movement forged to fight for the abolition of puppy factories...

meet oscar, the boy whose rescue created a movement...

hard to believe this is the same wee boy hey!

debra tranter (founder of oscar's law, member of animal liberation victoria and writer of the blog prisoners for profit) brought many of us to tears, as did trish burke (founder of pets haven animal shelter)... one other speaker that i found incredibly inspirational was elizabeth anile, founder of ataac (australian teens against animal cruelty) when she spoke of the moment she 'made the connection' and decided to give up all animal products and fight against animal enslavement - hopefully she will inspire a generation with her vision...

there were other speakers - politicians not worth the mention (i don't believe any of their crap no matter what party they belong to), and derryn hinch (it's good that he supports oscar's law but he is always one to 'push his own barrow' at the same time!)... the main rally finished with a couple of 'the northshore boys' performing the song they wrote, named - what else - 'oscar's law' and then it was a march and gathering in the treasury gardens for stalls full of information on different campaigns to end animal brutality...

the lack of major news coverage is extremely disappointing - channel 7 had a short tv news piece where they stated 2,000 supporters rallied in melbourne - yet now if you read the story online that figure has been 'downgraded' to 350 supporters - even more disappointing was the abc which had nothing on the tv news, but an online article touted the lie of 350 supporters - i would have estimated around 3,000 from the view i had - i will be interested to hear the 'official' figure... sadly i guess that shows the power and might of the industry and the vested interests involved...

then there's the complicity of silence of the many who 'turn a blind eye' - 'if i don't see it, don't read about it, don't listen, it doesn't exist'... until people stop ignoring the reality of cruelty and exploitation, get outraged, get political and get out there and demonstrate in large numbers,  nothing will change... we hold lives in our hands - help give voice to the voiceless!!

i was hoping there would be some clips uploaded of the rally by now - but no, not yet! but i did buy the wee petey an oscar's law bandanna and you can see her wearing it in this short, quick clip i uploaded when i got home - you also get an idea of how tiny she really is, standing next to the watering can - oh, the bandanna's quite large on her too - she's really not much bigger than oscar...

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
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saving sweet petey...

meet ex-inmate 919942 - ex because she is now part of my family, rescued from the lost dogs home last week...

scanned inmate picture

it's been a big day for a wee girl...

she is sweet, petite and the perfect addition to round out this family! 

we won't ever know her story, but she is around 5 years old, has had many litters of puppies, wasn't spayed or microchipped when she arrived at the lost dogs home as a 'stray' - both procedures have been 'performed' now though - she is similar in size to shadow-lad, but somehow next to the little girl he looks enormous!! (and he's only a wee feline boy!) - he of course has to keep a close eye on her at the moment and follow her everywhere! hmm, maybe stalk her is more to the point! but they seem to be working out a healthy (dis)respect for each other!

i will, of course, share more of this wee one in the following days, but now i have to get ready for the oscar's law rally in melbourne -hopefully it will be even bigger than last year's rally...

 

I WANT OSCAR'S LAW.... NOW!!!

i hope to see you there..........

it's gotta stop...

it's gotta end, this horror that is the puppy factory / farm / mill industry - it's gotta stop, this enslavement, brutality, abuse and neglect of imprisoned sentient nonhumans by humans...

"Large scale puppy factory rescue.

On Thursday 9 August 2012, five RSPCA Inspectors attended a property in the South Gippsland region of Victoria. What was found was later described by even our most seasoned Inspectors and Senior RSPCA Veterinarian as one of the worst living environments for animals that they had ever seen. Simply, our rescue team was shocked and appalled.

62 dogs, including puppies as young as two days old, were living in filth and squalor. Sadly, they were made to live in as much as 3-4 inches of their own waste, in tiny pens or cages - some without water. One particular dog that was rescued could not be identified by breed because its hair was that matted and caked in mud and waste...." read more

 

 

are you outraged?

 

then make your voice heard on sunday, september 16 at one of the

puppy factory awareness rallies in melbourne, sydney or adelaide

it's gotta stop - but it takes us to give voice to the voiceless - so come along and send a loud, clear message to the baillieu government - let them know what you want - countless lives are in our hands... 

i'll be at the melbourne rally - what about you?

heading in the right direction...

this was one of the few 'good news', welcome articles in my inbox yesterday... 

"MASSIVE new fines, jail terms and unprecedented powers to shut down illegal puppy farms will be introduced in Victoria in a crackdown on animal cruelty. 

 

Premier Ted Baillieu will announce the toughest dog and cat laws in Australia today, with legislation to be introduced in State Parliament next week." from "baillieu government gets tough on illegal puppy farms"...

it's one step closer to achieving 'oscar's law', and one step closer to a more sane, compassionate society, and proof positive that people-power can have an impact...

and how could i not share this from debra tranter, the passionate, committed, brave, strong and determined womon who has fought to expose the brutality of this cruel industry for 2 decades...

"Today was a good day. I still cried like I do most days, but today were tears of relief. Relief that they are listening. Relief for my team who have stood by me for years even when I almost gave up. Relief for the hidden dogs that I am always with where ever I go. Relief for the staunch loyal kick arse supporters of Oscar’s Law who believed “The power is in our hands".

Almost 20 years ago I was a lone voice telling people we factory farm our pets. No one believed me, it couldn’t possibly be true. Today we have succeeded in exposing the industry and it is hidden no more. This is the first time in 20 years that any Government has made a first positive move and listened to the communities concerns.

People have jumped on the bandwagon and I think its great

As I remember back to that day in 1993 and look at the journey so far, so many times we could of walked away, so many times we were ridiculed, attacked, belittled, humiliated and threatened and we never gave up. I am proud of the people who have chosen to take the journey with me, proud that all they see are the dogs, in the sheds, in the cages, in the dirt pens. They don't seek out the kudos and the limelight, they simply stand beside me and get the job done. They are heroes.

It’s a step forward in this long battle.

So I will still cry every day, and my soul will still be torn apart, and we will at times feel like we are on the edge of our sanity, the battle continues and I will remain in those sheds until they are empty.

But today, just one day, I will celebrate this moment of greatness with Oscar, the dog that changed my life, showed me the way and resolved my commitment to never give up. The power is in our hands! I want Oscar’s Law ” ... from deb's blog prisoner's for profit

i wept tears of joy reading that last paragraph - you celebrate sister, enjoy this moment with oscar because you've fought hard for it... thank you for your courage and strength - you are an inspiration and a hero debra...

why don't YOU - yes YOU! - join the movement, because we can't become complacent... it is only a small 'gain', there is still a long way to go...  the fight to abolish puppy factories will continue until the industry is eradicated... oscar's law needs to be 'enshrined in law' to end all companion animal factory farming - at the very least...

"never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world... indeed, it is the only thing that ever has"... margaret mead

the power and the passion...

i was proud to be part of the oscar's law rally yesterday on the steps of parliament house... thousands of concerned, compassionate people (and almost as many canine companions - and a few ferrets) turned out to express their outrage at the cruelty of puppy factories - that they exist is shameful, that the law supports their existence is more shameful...

there were some inspirational speakers, none more so than debra tranter who's commitment and perseverence has forged this movement - oscar was there too!! - shatha hamade from the barristers animal welfare panel spoke with feeling, as did philanthropic humanitarian philip wollen, who also donated $20,000 on the spot...

not so inspirational was the green's representative who didn't quite seem to get the point - puppy factories are cruel whether 'legal' or 'illegal' - they need to be abolished, not 'regulated' - $30,000 maximum fines won't deter the greedy or lessen the profit they stand to make, or change the fact that puppy factories only exist to churn out puppies for profit ensuring animals are cruelly exploited as nothing more than money-making breeding machines - at least she was there i guess, unlike the other political parties who were conspicuous by their absence!!!! ohh, and nelli scarlet's rendition of somewhere over the rainbow was beautiful...

thank you debra - without your passion these 'chambers of horror' would still be kept secret... unfortunately many are still hidden away from scrutiny... this cruel industry needs to be closed down to save all the 'other oscars' languishing in appallingly sickening conditions - 'people power' can change this world so please, take a stand now and visit the oscar's law website to see how you can stand up for the voiceless...

 

"Oh, the power and the passion
Oh, the temper of the time
Oh, the power and the passion
Sometimes you've got to take the hardest line"

from "power and the passion" by midnight oil