Royal Caribbean: Cut ties with cruel global trade in monkeys for experimentation

On November 14, a Wamos Air plane carrying 720 monkeys packed into small wooden crates departed Cambodia on a nightmare 30+ hours journey to the USA. Tragically, several of the monkeys died en route. The surviving monkeys will be sold to a laboratory where they will suffer and die in experiments.

Wamos Air is a subsidiary of Miami-based Royal Caribbean Group, the world’s second-largest cruise line company.

You Can Help
Please contact Wamos Air and Royal Caribbean and urge them to refuse to transport monkeys destined for research, and to instead join the long list of airlines that refuse to be a part of the cruel global trade in monkeys for research.

Enrique Saiz, CEO
Wamos Air
Email: charter@wamosair.com, cargo@wamosair.com

Richard Fain, Chairman and CEO
Royal Caribbean Group
Email: corporatecommunications@rccl.com, royalpr@rccl.com

Sample text:

“Wamos Air, owned in part by Royal Caribbean, should not be involved in transporting monkeys destined for the research industry. Nearly every major airline in the world has made the decision to no longer be involved in the cruelty and suffering of the international trade in monkeys by refusing to transport monkeys to laboratories. Please make a similar commitment.”

Please share with ARFF any responses that you receive.

South Florida Fair: Stop cruel and exploitive animal acts

The South Florida Fair has announced that it will hold a scaled-back event in January 2021. Unfortunately, the fair will feature a depressing sea lion act and a “racing” pig show.

Pigs are intelligent, sensitive animals. Pigs used in racing pig shows often endure mishandling and are stressed by constant travel, noise from fairground crowds, and blaring music.

Sea Lion Splash is a frequent performer at county fairs in Florida. Serious problems have plagued the company in recent years. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has found numerous violations of the Animal Welfare Act, including sea lions confined in a pool that did not meet minimum size requirements, inadequately trained employees, and sea lions suffering from painful eye conditions.

You Can Help
Please contact the South Florida Fair and let them know there’s no fun in seeing animal abuse and that you won’t go to the fair because it is upsetting. Contact:

South Florida Fair Board of Directors
Vicki Chouris, President & CEO
Dennis Grady, Chair
Robert Weisman, Vice Chair
Rebecca Isiminger, Secretary
Paul Grose, Treasurer

Phone: (561) 793-0333
Email: vicki@southfloridafair.com

Post a comment on the fair’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/southfloridafair

A quick phone call or email is all that is needed, such as:

“I was disappointed to learn that the 2021 South Florida Fair will feature a traveling sea lion show and racing pigs. The USDA has found serious problems with animal care at Sea Lion Splash, including failure to provide veterinary care to sea lions suffering from painful eye conditions. Please reconsider including Sea Lion Splash, racing pigs or other cruel and exploitive animal acts in the fair.”

Airline cuts ties with cruel primate trade

In May, ARFF joined with Action for Primates and One Voice to alert our supporters about a pending shipment of monkeys from Mauritius to Miami. As many as 1,200 monkeys were to be exported for use in experiments or toxicity (poisoning) testing. We urged people to ask Skybus Jet Cargo, who had been hired to fly the monkeys on the extremely long-distance journey, to reject the shipment. The response we received to our action alert from people around the world was overwhelming, demonstrating the widespread public concern there is on this issue. However, despite this, Skybus did not respond to our concerns, so we feared that the shipment had gone ahead as planned.

Last week, we learned of a breach of contract lawsuit filed against Skybus Jet Cargo by a company called International Logistics Support. When we read the complaint, it was clear that the lawsuit was about the shipment of monkeys in our action alert. Skybus Jet Cargo had cancelled the shipment, in part because of “certain political activist organizations.” On behalf of the monkeys, we are happy that Skybus chose not to get involved in the cruel primate trade.

The surprise victory reminds us of a quote attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: “You may never know what results come of your actions, but if you do nothing, there will be no results.” We are grateful to everyone who contacted Skybus Jet Cargo in response to our action alert!

The court files also revealed that Matt Block, an infamous primate dealer who we’ve written about before on this blog, is an owner of International Logistics Support.

Bambi the cow deserves a better life!

Update (October 2020)
Thank you to everyone who contacted the First Baptist Church of Southwest Broward about the solitary cow on church-owned property in Cooper City. We know that the church received many, many emails and phone calls from people like you who were concerned about the cow.

A Broward Sheriff’s Office sergeant visited the property in response to ARFF’s complaints and determined that, although not ideal, the cows are provided with what is legally required (food, water, minimal shelter). ARFF will continue to push for additional shade structures and other improvements to the property. We will update you again if conditions change.

Switching to a VEGAN diet is the most important thing you can do to stop the suffering of cows, as well as chickens and other animals on farms big and small in Florida. ARFF’s “101 Reasons to Go Vegan” video is a great place to start to learn about the benefits of a vegan diet for our health, the environment, and the welfare of animals.
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On a small field surrounded by homes and businesses in Cooper City, Bambi the cow lives a lonely life. Her only shelter from the hot sun is a small bush and a strip of fabric.

Cows can suffer from heat stress in Florida’s high temperatures and humidity. Excessive heat stress can be deadly. In addition, cows are social animals who do best with the companionship of other cows. Bambi deserves a better life!

The property is owned by the First Baptist Church of Southwest Broward. Keeping a cow or two on a property is a well-known method of lowering your tax bill. By claiming the property is a commercial cattle operation, the church saves thousands of dollars each year in taxes.

You Can Help
Please contact the First Baptist Church of Southwest Broward and ask them to relinquish the cow to a sanctuary. The church could continue to receive tax benefits if they used the property for other agricultural activities, such as growing crops. Contact:

Pastor Thomas Odom
First Baptist Church of Southwest Broward
2700 N Palm Avenue
Cooper City, Florida
Phone: (954) 404-7706
Email: pastor@fbcbroward.com

Sample text:

“I urge the First Baptist Church of Southwest Broward to relinquish Bambi, the lonely cow living on church property on Palm Avenue, to a sanctuary where she can enjoy life with other cows and receive the care that she deserves. It would be wonderful if the church used the property instead to produce fresh fruits and vegetables that could be provided to food pantries or other charities that help people in need in Broward County.”

Please share with ARFF any responses that you receive.

King, the solitary gorilla who hasn’t been given a second chance

The One and Only Ivan,” a new movie now streaming on Disney+, tells the true story of a gorilla who was captured in the wild in Africa and then put on display inside a shopping center in Tacoma, Washington, where “Ivan” spent 27 years living by himself in a barren cage. In 1994, following a campaign led by the Progressive Animal Welfare Society, Ivan was moved to Zoo Atlanta where he lived among other gorillas in a more natural environment. Ivan died in 2012 at the age of 50.

Inspired by the “Free Ivan” campaign, in 1997 the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (ARFF) launched a similar effort on behalf of King, a gorilla who lives a cruel, solitary existence at the roadside zoo Monkey Jungle in Miami. (Monkey Jungle has been closed to visitors since March.)

ARFF urged Monkey Jungle to also send King to Zoo Atlanta, where he could live out the remainder of his life with companionship and dignity. But despite Zoo Atlanta’s invitation and pleas from primatologist Jane Goodall, TV personality Bob Barker, and thousands of Florida residents, Monkey Jungle refused. (photo: Bob Barker led a march to Monkey Jungle in 1998)

Of the approximately 350 gorillas in zoos in the United States, King is believed to be the only one who lives alone. King has lived without companions since 1989, when a female gorilla at Monkey Jungle died.

Gorillas are intelligent animals with complex social and emotional lives. King, now 50 years old, deserves to spend his final years with other gorillas.

Fur farms and PETA, foie gras and Tofurky — The Paycheck Protection Program and animals

More than 5 million businesses and charities across the country have received loans as part of the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program, a program intended to help small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic and keep employees on the payroll. In early July the Small Business Administration (SBA) released a list of businesses that received potentially forgivable loans ranging from $150,000 to $10 million (businesses receiving less than 150K were not named). The SBA disclosed a range for each loan, so we do not know exact dollar amounts. Many of the businesses that received large loans may make animal lovers question the government bailout:

The bad

  • The Zimbal Minkery in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, which may be the largest mink farm in North America, received a loan between $150,000 and $350,000.
  • Hudson Valley Foie Gras, the largest foie gras farm in the U.S., received between $1 million and $2 million. Another foie gras producer, La Belle Farm, received at least $350,000. Both farms are located in Sullivan County, New York. According to SBA data, neither farm stated that the money would preserve a single job. (The purpose of the Paycheck Protection Program is to help businesses retain employees.)
  • Hillandale Farms, one of the largest egg producers in the country, received a loan as large as $1 million.
  • Petland, the nation’s “largest retail supporter of puppy mills,” according to the Humane Society of the United States, received between $2-5 million (0.5% of all loans were between $2-5 million, according to the SBA). Smaller pet stores that sell puppy mill dogs also received loans, such as the TeaCups, Puppies & Boutique store in Davie, Florida (between $150,000-350,000).
  • SeaQuest, a company with a history of poor animal care at its aquariums inside malls across the country, received a multimillion-dollar loan.
  • Monkey Jungle, a roadside zoo outside Miami that has long attracted controversy, received between $150,000-350,000. Monkey Jungle has been closed to visitors since March.
  • The UniverSoul Circus and Carden International Circus, two circuses that pre-COVID were traveling with elephants and other wild animals, received between $350,000-$1 million each.
  • The St. Petersburg Kennel Club (known as Derby Lane), one of only a few greyhound tracks still operating in Florida, received as much as $5 million. Live greyhound racing in Florida must end by December 31, thanks to a 2018 referendum approved by voters to ban the cruel industry.
  • World Wide Primates, a Miami-based laboratory animal supplier owned by a twice-convicted felon, received between $350,000-1 million, even though the company has also been awarded over $4 million in federal contracts since the beginning of the year. Marshall BioResources (North Rose, NY) and Ridglan Farms (Blue Mounds, WI), two companies that breed and sell beagles and other animals for research, received $2-5 million and $150,000-350,000 respectfully. Envigo, a notorious animal testing lab that used to be known as Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS), received $5-10 million, the maximum loan amount.
  • Safari Club International Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the trophy-hunting organization, received between $150,000-350,000 from the loan program.

The good

There is good news for those despairing over this use of taxpayer dollars! The Paycheck Protection Program also benefited businesses and organizations that are making the world a better place for animals:

  • Hundreds of animal shelters and rescue groups across the country benefited from the loan program, such as the Humane Society of Greater Miami and the Humane Society of Broward County, which each received more than $350,000.
  • PETA and the International Fund for Animal Welfare, two leading animal rights organizations, each received loans between $2-5 million.
  • Mercy for Animals, an organization dedicated to protecting farmed animals, received a loan between $350,000-$1 million.
  • Vegan Outreach, the National Anti-Vivisection Society, the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society each received between $150,000-350,000 to support their education and outreach efforts, care for rescued animals, and keep their boats in the water.
  • Plant-based food manufacturers received help from the Paycheck Protection Program. Turtle Island Foods (Tofurky) received $2-5 million to support its 200+ employees. JUST, makers of egg and mayo alternatives, received $2-5 million. Miyoko’s Creamery, known for their delicious vegan cheeses and butter, received $1-2 million to support the growing business.
  • Vegan restaurant chains Veggie Grill ($2-5 million) and Real Food Daily ($350,000-$1 million) were among many plant-based eating establishments that received funding.