AL_Release_Xmas2017-2

MAGAZINE XMAS 2017 RRP $4.00
Set the table
with delicious
Vegan treats
The rights
of research
animals
Why I am a
Vegan & an
Activist
Season's
Greetings!
Informative articles for animal activists
and advocates...

Dear Supporter,
Letter from...
The Editor
It has been another remarkable year for the work being done
by Animal Liberation on behalf of all animals.
This edition is packed with campaigns and actions to help
fight against the cruelty of the dairy industry, the meat
chicken (broiler) industry, the use of 1080 poison and the pig
industry.
There are also heart-warming stories like two brave activists
who were facing jail time for exposing cruelty to animals
having their court case thrown out. Also inside you will read
joyful dog and wild animal rescue and find delicious vegan
recipes.
Thank you for all that you do to keep the work of Animal
Liberation continuing. Wishing you a safe festive season
and for 2018 may the rights of all animals continue to be
progressed forward.
Thank you
Contents
Animal Liberation Meetings...........................................................2
Humankind: Busting the Myths About Animal Leather ..........4
Why I am a Vegan and an Activist.................................................6
The World’s First Plant Milk Day ..................................................9
Do Animals have a RIGHT to be Released from Research?.......10
Rescued is the New Breed .........................................................12
Broiler Message Testing .............................................................14
Coalition of Australians Against 1080 Poison..............................15
Book Review: Inspiration for Survive and Prosper......................16
Winter Magic ..............................................................................16
“The Nation That Stops The Day”................................................17
Volunteer Profile: Nadia Kiternas................................................18
Rabbis call on Jews to adopt a vegan diet .................................19
The Politics of Sight: How Seeing Can Stop Suffering ..............20
Cootamundra Piggery court case................................................22
Noah’s Ark Sanctuary .................................................................24
Friendly Frolics and Christmas Cooking......................................26
Animal Liberation
Meetings
Sydney CBD AL Meeting
2nd Tuesday of each month at 6.30pm at 506/89 York Street (near
King and York) except for the months of December and January.
Newcastle Meeting
First Saturday of month at 2.00pm at Family Support Centre,
Corner Scott and Pacific Sts. Newcastle. For more information
phone 02 49524121.
Central Coast Meeting
Second Wednesday of each month at Rhythm Hut, 135 Faunce
Street, Gosford – 7 .00pm until 9.00pm
Animal Liberation NSW is a registered charity
(CFN11637) ABN: 66002228328.
We rely on generous donations from our members and financial supporters.
We do not receive any financial support from the Government. Release is
the Animal Liberation NSW Magazine, published bi-annually (as of 2007).
Please note, not all articles published in this magazine represent the views/
philosophy of Animal Liberation NSW.
Editor: Lynda Stoner
Contributors: Susanne Briggs, Tammy Carlin, Anna Hall, Emma Hurst,
Bronwen Irons, Debbie Kertesz, Nadia Kiternas, Margie McCumstie, Hazel
Stephens, Lynda Stoner, Alex Vince, Sharron Woodward,
Layout Design: Leasa Duesbury, DueDesigns, www.duedesigns.com
Advertise in Release
Contact: sydneyhq@animal-lib.org.au
Release Advert Pricing:
An anonymous free-call number
1800 751 770
For witnesses of animal cruelty
Quarter Page - $100
Half Page - $175
Full Page - $320
(Please note payment
is required in advance)
Photo above: Sunday Session with Gunner’s Dear Friend, Nikki
RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 3

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Humankind: Vegan
Bags, Shoes and
Accessories Helping
to Bust the Myths
About Animal
Leather
by Debbie Kertesz
It is extremely exciting and heartening for animal lovers to
witness the rise of veganism around the world. Veganism is
said to be the fastest growing food movement worldwide, as
people turn to a plant-based diet for health, environmental
and animal welfare reasons. Despite this, many people still
don’t consider wearing animal products a problem. Even
many vegetarians who won’t eat animals don’t seem to have
an issue with wearing them. This is at least in part due to the
many myths associated with the animal leather industry.
Probably the biggest myth of all is that animal leather is a byproduct
of the meat industry. According to this myth the animals
would be killed for their meat anyway, so it is a good thing to make
use of their skins by turning them into leather products, such as
bags and shoes. This, however, is simply not true. Animal leather
in itself is extremely valuable and should be considered more of a
co-product of the meat industry, increasing the demand for more
animals to be raised and killed. In some cases the leather is more
valuable than the meat and countless numbers of animals, including
crocodiles, alligators and snakes, as well as an estimated 2 million
dogs and cats in China each year, are killed solely for their skins.
Another myth is that animal leather is a more environmentally
friendly option than vegan leather or leather alternatives. The truth
is the environmental impacts of animal leather can be devastating.
In order for animal skins to be treated, so they don’t decompose
and can be turned into leather, they need to be chemically treated,
a process called tanning. There are 3 methods used to tan animal
skins and each have negative impacts on the environment. The
majority of the world’s leather is produced in countries that lack
adequate environmental protection standards and the waste
products from tanneries are often dumped untreated into waterways
with disastrous consequences. According to Scientific American,
the tanning of leather is one of the top 10 contributors to pollution
worldwide.
There is also the myth that animal leather is associated with quality
and vegan leather products are inferior. This is also false. There
are an ever-increasing number of companies now producing vegan/
faux/non-leather bags, shoes, wallets and other products that are of
an extremely high quality that you can expect to be comparable to
animal leather in terms of comfort and durability. The alternative
leather industry, said to worth US $85 billion globally, is evolving
quickly and new materials are being developed that are both high
quality and animal-friendly.
On the topic of alternative leathers, it is necessary to address
concerns about their environmental impacts. In the past most
vegan leather was made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a synthetic
plastic polymer that results in the production of dioxins, which have
negative effects on both our health and the environment. These days
polyurethane microfibers, which despite still being a type of plastic
made from fossil fuels are said to be a greener alternative and are
much more commonly used. Research and development into more
natural alternatives to animal leather, such as materials made from
mushrooms and pineapples, as well as the recycling of polyurethane,
is producing cleaner, greener leather alternatives.
So, what can be done to help dispel the myths associated with
the animal leather industry and raise awareness of the cruelty
involved? Of course education is important, as many people are
simply unaware of the issues. Increasing the availability of leather
alternatives is also key to making ethical, animal-friendly choices
easier for cons
The idea for Humankind, an online store selling vegan bags, shoes
and accessories, came from a desire to raise awareness about the
mistreatment of animals by the animal leather industry and to
prove that you don’t need to sacrifice style or quality just because
you choose not to wear animal leather. Compared to a decade ago,
there are now so many fantastic leather alternatives available and
our goal is to showcase the very best of these, sourced from across
the globe, and make them to accessible to people who don’t wear
animal leather here in Australia. We also personally road-test all of
our products for quality
At Humankind we want to support those working tirelessly to
prevent animal cruelty and promote animal rights and we donate
10% of our profits to animal charities. There are many amazing
organisations doing this work and we are very proud to support
the incredible work of Animal Liberation, who have been at the
forefront of the animal welfare movement here in Australia for
decades.
As the vegan movement continues to gain ground and the myths
surrounding the leather industry continue to be exposed, hopefully
more and more people will realise that we shouldn’t be exploiting
or harming animals for any purpose. Just as you can have a healthy
diet without eating animals, you can now have beautiful, highquality
products without wearing animal skins.
www.humankind.net.au
www.facebook.com/humankindvegan
www.instagram.com/humankind_vegan
4 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 5

Why I am a
Vegan
and an
Activist
Why I am a Vegan
and an Activist
by Sharron Woodward
Chris Delforce, Bronwen Irons, Catherine Kelaher, Dori Kiss, Mark
Nestor, Kay Podmore and Alex Vince. All vegan. All activists. All
fighting for the liberation of animals.
I have, at one time or another, worked with these seven amazing human
beings. Some of us have walked through egg farms together feeling our
hearts pounding through our chests whilst liberating hens from cages.
We have filmed, or supported the filming, of cows, chickens, ducks, pigs
and turkeys in factory farms where they live in squalor and suffer day in
and day out until they are taken to their deaths. We have sat on the roof
of a Victorian slaughterhouse that kills pigs by using carbon dioxide
which causes the pigs to burn from the inside out. We have taken a
stand against animals in circuses. We have been abused by patrons at
rodeos where we have protested the use and abuse of horses and bulls.
We have entered a hatchery where they throw day old live male chicks
into a macerator because they are useless to the egg industry. We have
rescued dogs from lives of isolation, loneliness and boredom and we
have freed birds from small oppressive cages.
Where did it start? What happened to us that made us vegan? Dori
decided to go vegan once she learnt the truth about ‘production’ animals
and so could no longer contribute to their suffering. Chris believes that
being vegan is one of the easiest and most effective ways of combating
animal cruelty/exploitation and climate change. He believes that we
can’t talk about being opposed to animal suffering or environmental
degradation while literally paying for it. Gary Yourofsky’s ‘Best Speech
Ever’ made Kay cry for three full days and she swore she would become
a vegan overnight. Kay says that ‘what you know you can’t unknow’
and that’s why she’s vegan. Catherine recalls going to the Viva!
Incredible Veggie Roadshow in London where she attended a talk called
The Dark Side of Dairy. Whilst the speaker talked, footage was shown
of calves being separated from their mothers. The mother cows bellowed
in desperate grief and pain. Catherine watched the footage of downed
cows being chained and dragged by a tractor. She saw the transport and
slaughter of old dairy cows. Catherine walked out of that talk changed.
She realised she was either vegan or she was actively hurting animals
and paying others to do so.
Like renowned Abolitionist, Professor Gary Francione, Mark believes
that veganism has to be your moral baseline if you want to end the
suffering of animals. He believes he doesn’t have a choice. Anything
less and you are participating in their exploitation. Bronwen is vegan
because it’s right and Alex is vegan because it’s who he is.
Veganism is both easy and overwhelmingly difficult. Not eating animals
is easy. Not wearing their bodies, putting them on your face or using
them for entertainment is also easy. What is overwhelmingly difficult
is knowing what is happening to the animals. What they are enduring.
Their suffering, their torture, their pain, their fear, their deaths.
Is being vegan enough? Is the moral baseline enough? Clearly it isn’t
for these seven. Not eating animals is simply not enough. There
is always more a vegan can actively do to help end the suffering.
Catherine says that veganism is the very least we can do. She believes
that to bring about real change we need to become activists. Catherine
feels an urgent need to do something now and that is because every
second we delay our activism, millions of animals suffer and die.
Photos on opposite page: (Clockwise from top left) Alex and Bron; Kay;
Dori and Catherine; Mark and Sharron.
A lot of Alex’s friends believe that activism on behalf of other animals is
our form of paying a fee for existing on a planet that produces so much
suffering. To Alex, activism is more than what we owe other animals.
It’s what we would do for any other life, regardless of species, or the
presence of fur, fin, feathers or fingers.
The scale of suffering that animals endure every second of every
day affected Mark in a way that he could not just be content to hope
someone else would fix it. He was drawn to activism for the same reason
he became vegan; he didn’t have a choice.
Dori also says being vegan isn’t enough. That’s why she became an
activist. She has been a part of many protests, yelled from megaphones
in defence of animals and demanded justice. She’s spoken at rallies,
signed countless petitions, rescued animals and helped expose
horrendous cruelty to the public. Without activism, there isn’t a chance
of change. People must get out there and tell the truth. She says we are
up against a huge machine that churns up animals and that their abusers
have a lot of power. Dori says that each one of us can make a difference
if we join forces and become an army that fights the abusive industries
and that we must not be afraid to stand up and fight for the animals.
Like Dori, Bronwen believes that we have to do it together. Bronwen
believes the adage ‘united we stand, divided we fall’ so she is one
more to add to the collective of people working toward a much-needed
change.
Kay is the newest activist of the group. She had her epiphany at fiftynine
years old and she hasn’t looked back. She started slowly with
marches for the sharks, the closing of all slaughterhouses and protests
against the circus. Now she is a volunteer foster carer with NSW Hen
Rescue, helping them to save more hens from cages. She also takes part
in Cube of Truth video activism and is an organiser and active member
of her local vegan activist community.
When Chris came to understand the scale of the horrific things
happening day after day in farms and slaughterhouses across our
country, the cold mercilessness of an industry so focused on profits at
the expense of everything and everyone else, veganism alone didn’t
seem enough. He knew that we were up against something so powerful,
so vastly resourced, backed by our government and firmly cemented
in our society as an almost-unquestionable norm, a part of our national
identity. He says we need to be doing everything we can to oppose
it. Despite all this power, they have one clear weakness; they are built
entirely on secrecy. They’re dependent on it. All we need to do is show
people the truth, because that is something we’ll always have on our
side.
As a vegan activist, I like knowing who other activists find inspiring
within our movement. I certainly wasn’t surprised by any of their
answers. Catherine, admires Patty Mark from Animal Liberation
Victoria. Catherine, founder of NSW Hen Rescue, stated that Patty
pioneered the open rescue movement and has dedicated her life to
liberating animals and drawing attention to their plight. Patty enters
factory farms without covering her face and is not afraid or ashamed to
break the law to help animals. Patty saves lives and shares the footage of
what she has witnessed which in turn helps others make the connection
and go vegan. She has risked her liberty time and time again and has
inspired many other people to be brave and become active for animals.
It was comforting to see that within the seven, admiration is flourishing.
Chris is an activist who both Dori and Mark admire. Dori says that
Chris, founder of Aussie Farms, is a powerful force in the movement
who has fearlessly exposed some of the worst cruelty inflicted on
animals that the world has ever seen. His bravery gives her the courage
to keep fighting for the animals. She once asked him ‘Is there anything
you can’t do?’ to which he responded, ‘I can’t fail’. Mark says of
Chris that no matter what the cost to him or his personal liberty, he
has relentlessly exposed the holocaust of animal agriculture. Chris, in
Mark’s opinion, is one of the most important animal rights activists that
this country has produced in the last decade. Most of us would agree.
cont’d...
6 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 7

...cont’d
Why I am a
Vegan
and an
Activist
Mark also admires Alex and says that he is an articulate, compassionate
and intellectual young activist who gives him confidence in the future
progression of the animal rights movement. Anita Kranjc from Toronto
Pig Save is another activist who Mark admires. He says she formed the
Save movement, based on the principle of bearing witness, which he
believes is a very potent and important awareness raising form of animal
activism. Cristina Corales from Peru Street Dogs has Mark’s admiration
for her devotion to the dogs and for caring for them under the most trying
of situations.
Catherine’s strength to continue to rescue and rehome abused hens (and
any other animals they can get their hands on) is truly astounding says
Dori. She has compassion for every single being she comes across. A
true gentle soul. With Catherine by her side, Dori has literally crawled
through a pool of chook faeces to rescue hens that would have drowned
had they not gotten them out.
Kay couldn’t narrow down the people who she admires. So many
activists have inspired her. She cites Gary Yourofsky, Kip Anderson,
Shaun Monson, Joaquin Phoenix and Moby as well as ordinary folk like
Chris Delforce, Patty Mark, Jill Phipps, Bede Carmody, Pam Ahearn and
Earthlings Ed.
The people who have been around for decades like Patty Mark, who
refuses to give up or be silent despite what must have been an oftendebilitating
lack of progress is someone who Chris admires. Then there’s
the newer generation, people like James Aspey, who in a short amount of
time have done so much by dedicating themselves entirely to something
they realise is much bigger than themselves. Chris says there’s also a
huge number of people working behind the scenes who will never get the
spotlight and generally never get thanked for the incredible work they do.
Alex has met the most inspirational and determined people working
within this movement. His friends are some of the most resolute and
stubborn people whose beliefs run as deep as their bones. He doesn’t
have any idols or heroes. He only has friends.
First and foremost, the animals inspire Bronwen. She says animals aren’t
driven by greed, ego or vengeance. She adds that within the human
section of the movement she couldn’t say any one person inspires her
over another. Every single person is an inspiration to her for many and
varied reasons and then there is ‘the movement’ as a collective that is
truly inspirational. Bronwen says there isn’t anything more inspirational
than attending or watching a protest or a vigil or a gathering and knowing
that you are a part of something that is honourable and walking us in the
right direction.
I am inspired by the people who put themselves in harms way to get
animals out of harms way. I am inspired by Lynda Stoner and Patty
Mark, the matriarchs of the Australian movement.
Each activist has had experiences in their lives that have shaped their
view and has determined how they want to affect change for the animals.
Some years ago, Mark witnessed the conditions of a particularly vile
piggery. Before leaving, he was handed a piglet to carry. As he held her/
him close, squirming and squealing in the pitch dark, he felt very nervous
and he’s sure s/he could sense he was scared as well. He was told by
a fellow activist to just breathe and be calm and the piglet would calm
down. He remembers looking up at the starlit sky and thinking that,
unlike the thousands so sadly left behind, this scared little bundle in his
arms was going to be able to live a life where s/he could look up at the
sky, see the sun and the stars, breathe the air and be free of what was
inevitably going to have been a short life of suffering, despair and a cruel
and unnecessary death. Whenever Mark feels like it’s all for nothing, or
that he never really makes a difference, he thinks that at least he was able
to help give this particular animal a chance at life.
Catherine, author of Amanda the Teen Activist, says that she places a
huge value on an individual life and she often thinks of the NSW Hen
Rescue motto, ‘saving one animal may not change the world, but it will
change the world for that one animal’. Reaching into a cage and holding
a tortured animal close to her, taking her to freedom, giving her love and
care then ensuring she is safe and loved for the rest of her life.
The moments Alex recalls most are the long seconds that come after
rescue. Coming face to face with an ex-battery hen whose entire life has
been one of captivity and cruelty, knowing that what comes next is unlike
anything they have ever experienced. To share that moment is a joy for
him. One moment he remembers vividly is running across an open field,
with day old baby male chicks chirping in a box in his hands. Without
direct action, those boys would have died that day.
There was the one and only time that Dori cried as an activist. She was
inside a piggery. She was bent down, filming sows inside their ‘crates’
and as she backed up the aisle, she felt a nibble on her butt. She quickly
stood up straight to rescue her butt from being bitten. She swung around
to see this beautiful sow looking up at her. She realised there was no
malice in her nibble and she gave her a scratch on her face. Dori spent
a few minutes with her, patting and scratching her on her face and side.
All she wanted was to be touched and loved and it broke Dori’s heart to
see her trapped inside that cage, inside a huge building filled with other
trapped pigs, on a massive farm that continuously breeds and kills pigs,
over and over again. She couldn’t stop the tears that night and she walked
over to a wall and just sobbed until she could regain control of herself
enough to keep filming.
Being vegan is the single most important thing you can do for the
animals. If you want to take it one step further and get active, just do it.
Join a group and go to their meetings, go to a protest, go to a march, meet
like-minded people. Save an animal. Don’t be afraid. They need you.
They need us all. We are all they’ve got. It is crisis time for the animals.
Please help them.
Dori says that slavery was abolished and women gained their rights
because of activism, because there were enough brave souls that stood up
and acted, that demanded change, that risked their lives for the sake of
others. We as vegans, need to do the same for animals.
Here’s to the liberation of all animals.
The World’s First Plant Milk Day
by Anna Hall
The world’s first ever celebration of World Plant Milk Day was held
right here in Sydney. This was closely followed by the events in Europe
especially the UK where it initiated and then the USA. Overseas
organisations such as PETA, Animal Aid, Mercy for Animals, VIVA and
the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine were all heavily
involved.
This event was designed to celebrate the benefits of plant based
milks (including to human health and the environment) as opposed to
focusing the negatives of dairy milk most prominently naturally for
Animal Liberation the price cows and other animals pay, so humans can
consume the milk designed for their calves / infants.
Thanks to the team of dedicated animal activists who travelled from as
far as Katoomba to support the event, we were able to hand out a lot of
information. This covered not only the benefits of plant milks but also
included information as to how to optimally use the different types. A
highlight of the event was an array of plant milks for those interested
to try. This resulted in a few venturing into the Cruelty Free Shop (the
outside of which Jessica had kindly let AL use for the day), to buy
themselves vegan milks and many others saying in future they would.
Photos: (Above left to right) Mark and Alex at World Milk Day; Gordon and
Alex at World Milk Day.
It is vital for activists to not only protest against issue but to offer
positive solutions. People are drawn to and energised by positive people
and campaigns. Although we provided links to information about the
treatment of animals in the dairy industry, the emphasis was on how
beneficial plant milk is for the individual and the world.
An emphasis on positive campaigning and optimism can be beneficial for
animal advocates on a personal level too. Optimism and altruism have
been demonstrated to increase resilience and the ability to cope with
stress. These are qualities we all need to maintain long term dedication
for the animals.
If you are interested in becoming involved in future celebrations of this
event so we can grow bigger and better, please contact AL to volunteer.
PS as with the Cruelty Free Festival this year we reinforced our
commitment to the environment and wildlife, in this instance by not
using balloons or other single use items.
8 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 9

Do Animals have a
RIGHT to be Released
from Research?
Banjo, a 2 year old beagle, spent his life in medical research.
Banjo was bred for one reason; to be used for medical research. He lives
in a university laboratory where he has endured pharmaceutical drug
testing involving long fasts, drug administration, and jugular puncture
blood sampling. He lives alone in a small pen with only an empty box
and a partly deflated basketball to keep him stimulated. Despite being
reasonably healthy, the research institution wants to take his life – simply
because they fear that releasing him will create awareness that cats and
dogs are still used in research.
Most of us consider cats and dogs to be extended members of the family.
For others they are bred for one reason- medical research. Hundreds
of cats and dogs are still used for medical experimentation in Australia
today.
For five years Animal Liberation has been attempting to talk with
research facilities and appeal to their better nature to allow these animals
the chance to find a loving forever home instead of facing death row.
After everything these animals have endured, it’s just too depressing to
think of their lives being taken.
During these five years we have been able to rescue hundreds of
guinea pigs, mice, and rabbits, but absolutely no cats and dogs have
been released. We’ve been given the same reason time and time again:
‘releasing cats and dogs from medical research will create community
awareness that cats and dogs are still used in experimentation and that
won’t reflect well on medical research institutions.’ This is simply not a
good enough reason to take their lives, so we are pushing for legislationto
give every one of these animals a chance.
A generous grant from Lush Cosmetics has given us 260 bus ads
throughout Sydney CBD and the Lower North Shore. The ad campaign
started on Monday 4th September along with an online petition and
registry for potential homes. If you would like to sign the petition or
register your home as a safe place for research animals (for fostering or
adoption) please visit www.Right2Release.com.au
Today we can give Banjo and hundreds of other dogs (and cats) like him
the chance to be released and live a happy life. The ‘Right to Release
Bill’ being tabled by the AJP in Parliament will ensure cats and dogs in
medical research are offered up for rehoming rather than killed.
A focus on re-homing cats and dogs in medical research may seem a
long way from what we really want to achieve- an end to the use of all
animals used in medical research. But consider this: research institutions
take the lives of hundreds of cats and dogs (even if they are healthy and
re-homable) simply because they fear community awareness about the
use of animals in experiments.
They are concerned that giving these animals faces, names,
and families may be the beginning of the end of all animal based
medical research. Similar Bills have passed throughout the
US including Illinois just recently. We can achieve the same in
Australia. Most importantly, legislation gets made from social
pressure- so we need to raise the heat on this issue. Join the
campaign at www.Right2Release.com.au
Photo on opposite page: Gunner dancing.
HUMAN GRADE
10 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017
INGREDIENTS
RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 11

RESCUED IS THE
NEW BREED
by Bronwen Irons
I have a story I’d like to share ... so please, get comfortable, grab
a cuppa, some chocolate and for those of you that don’t have a
molten mess of ice cold rock in place of your heart, a box of tissues
… for this tale has it all.
Dee and Ellie decided to start their road trip early. Due to fires burning
out of control and road closures, they had to take detours that would add
hours onto their trip, they were on a mission that HAD to be completed
by midday on the 15th or precious lives would be lost. So, at around
2pm on the afternoon of the 14th February they headed inland, unsure of
how they would reach their destination but sure of the success of their
task ahead. Little did they know of the part they would play in a great
love affair.
It was a late night and an early start but 7:30am on the 15th saw them
at the gates of a rural country pound, relieved that they had made the
deadline and jubilant that 6 souls would be leaving their old lives of
sadness, fear or betrayal behind and were about to embark on a brandnew
beginning. The rusty old gate was opened and as they drove
through they looked at each other with the same burning thought in their
eyes and merely nodded to the attendant.
While Ellie and Dee prepared the van, the motley crew were paraded
out … a shaggy little scruff ball, a confused young large breed pup, a
timid adolescent kelpie, an emaciated black dog with the tallest ears
you’ve ever seen, a tired Red Dog lookalike and a hopeful mixed breed
boy with a shy smile were their precious cargo. When they were all
settled in and ready to start their long journey to happiness they heard
... “Do ya want another one?” shouted another attendant from cages
adjoining a building behind a tall chain link fence “Don’t matter if ya
don’t” he added … Dee and Ellie looked at each other already knowing
the answer and while Ellie called the coordinator of the rescue, Dee
was told of how this one boy, a 6 year old Cattle x Kelpie x Rottie had
been dumped in the bush, found gaunt and scrawny then brought to the
pound. He had been ‘tagged’ by another rescue organization for pick up
the previous afternoon but upon arrival and seeing him, they didn’t like
the look of him and so he was left behind. His time was up and his one
chance was gone … he went from being tagged for rescue to tagged for
euthanasia at 9am the next morning in the blink of an uncaring eye.
It was 8:10am on the 15th February when the boy they named Graham
limped out of his pen on death row toward them … he was painfully
thin, his head hung low and his sweet face sported many scars. As Dee
helped him into the van he slowly lifted his head, their eyes met and his
sad dark soulful eyes seemed to say thank you. For the seventh time that
morning Dee whispered to herself “Oh I wish you could tell me your
story” as she stroked his head.
After a rowdy greeting with his travelling companions he settled quickly
and slept until he reached his newly found foster home but unfortunately
Graham showed an instant dislike to his foster sister and had to be
moved on. Many hours and phone calls passed and while everybody
else were settling into their new foster homes Graham was taken to a
boarding facility until a suitable carer could be found. With a heavy
heart Dee knelt down, stroked this broken boy’s face, told him she’d be
back and promised him that he’d get his very own people one day soon
then reluctantly handed him over to the caring staff.
During the next 8 weeks Dee visited Graham 2, sometimes 3 times
a week. He looked forward to her visits … she took him plant based
meals that he greedily devoured, they went on long walks together (even
though Dee suspected that Graham didn’t really enjoy walking and
that he only did it so he could be with her) they played ball, tug of war
and she laughed as she watched him while he threw a toy in the air and
caught it ... but mostly Graham just liked to sit with Dee and cuddle.
Dee silently wept as she sat with Graham for hours, stroking him while
he slept snuggled up on her lap wondering why nobody loved this boy.
Then one day, Graham met some new people, a young couple, the lady
knelt down, caressed Grahams face and told him that he was as beautiful
as his picture, Graham looked into her eyes with his heart melting gaze
that had been previously reserved for Dee, while the man told him he
was just perfect … that’s when his second true love story began and Dee
shed a tear of a much sweeter taste.
Just recently Graham walked with Dee down the ‘aisle’ in front of his
Mum toward his Dad where he then took pride of place as Best Man for
his Dad and ring bearer at his parents wedding. It was said many times
over that he was indeed the best and most handsome Best Man ever in
his red bow tie.
Dee still visits (whom she calls) Graham and her heart swells with pride
at the young man his Mum and Dad have helped him become. He has
lots of both doggy and human friends of all different ages and size. The
sad, lost look from his eyes has been replaced by joy and the feeling
of knowing he’s adored. His parents tell Dee that Graham has that one
special greeting that no one else gets, not even them and Dee likes to
think that it is because she is his very first true love.
So, if you’re looking for the perfect furkid for your family … Rescued
really is the very best breed.
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Photos: (Above from left to right) Graham in the beginning, Handsome in
his red tie, The wedding party, The best man.
12 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017

y Lynda Stoner
Broiler Message Testing
by Emma Hurst
There are many individuals and small groups who have been
fighting to raise awareness and ultimately bring about a ban on this
poison. Our President Anna Hall felt it would be possible to bring
groups together to fight this virulent and indiscriminate poison.
Earlier this year the Coalition of Australians against 1080 was
launched.
We already had the support of Senator Derryn Hinch and his
staff who once they heard 1080 was still legal in Australia were
committed to doing whatever they could to bring about a ban.
To date the following groups and individuals comprise the
Coalition: Animal Liberation, Animal Liberation ACT, Animal
Liberation QLD, Animal Liberation TAS, Animals Australia,
Australian Dingo Foundation, Choose Cruelty Free,Dingo CARE
Network Inc.,
Humane Research Australia Inc., PETA Australia, Sweet Shepherd
Rescue Australia Inc.,
Voiceless: the animal protection institute, WA Dingo Association and
the World League for the Protection of Animals. The Coalition also
has the support of Dr Bradley P. Smith, Durong Dingo Sanctuary,
Found Hearts, Mini Kitty Commune, No 1080 Baits in Tasmania,
Ocean Legal, Dr. Roger Meischke and the 1080 Action Group.
A dedicated Facebook page was created with posts often attracting
over 20,000 likes. We also requested people share their personal
stories with us and Senator Hinch. A staggering amount of people
kindly shared their heart breaking stories of losing their family dog
and witnessing native animals dying from 1080.
Because an individual’s personal story is potentially more powerful
and more likely to get petitions signed Animal Liberation tracked
down the creator of several powerful videos of companion dogs
dying horrendously from 1080. Paul Anderson agreed to work with
us and gave permission for stills of his dogs and videos to be used.
Paul has lost around ten dogs and puppies to 1080. He had some of
his dogs autopsied last year and Animal Liberation had two other
dogs of his autopsied. The results came back that they also had died
from 1080 baits.
We focused on a single dog, Paul’s beautiful Ben seen here before
and after 1080 took his young life.
The petition can be found at http://bit.ly/2wONAAT or just
type into Change.org - Coalition of Australians against 1080
addressed to Senator Derryn Hinch. Please encourage
everyone to sign. As at the time of writing this article we are
at almost 12,000 signatures but we need to get to 20,000.
As activists we have all been uncovering and exposing the truth in
Australian farming systems for decades. Some of our tactics work,
while others perhaps not so much. We are guided by feedback, what
we sense is working, or how we feel things should be framed. Some
go further by considering what has worked and currently works within
other progressive movements. Others use A/B testing (comparing
different approaches to find what works best). If this sounds a little
too theoretical, there’s a reason why. In reality, beyond the reach of
hypotheticals and bland statistics, there is very little reliable data out
there to let us know what works, what is most powerful for changing
people’s minds and what works best at creating behaviour change.
This year at Animal Liberation we asked ourselves a big question:
“What kind of advertisement would save the most lives.”
Working with much a smaller and far more restricted budget than the
meat industry, we often find ourselves paying for advertising that may
not be creating change. So we decided to find out which ads had the
biggest impact.
Australians are the largest meat consumers in the world, consuming
111kgs of meat per person each year. Of this, 46 kilograms is made up
of chicken flesh. While cow and lamb consumption is dropping, the
consumption of chicken flesh has continued to increase by 4% every
year. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) expects this pattern to
continue and increase over the next two years.
So we developed 24 Facebook ads and tested them to see which were
most likely to change hearts and minds. We tested three frames: health,
advocacy, and environment. We compared cute images to sad images
and tested ‘reduce’ messages against ‘eliminate’ messages (e.g., an
image of a fluffy yellow chick compared to an image of an adult broiler
in an intensive confinement facility). Then we developed two target
audiences drawn from data on the largest chicken meat consumers –
retirees and socially aware individuals.
We found that across all ads, those framed around and emphasising
health messages were most effective. For our ads, cute or sad images
made no difference. Nor did our text suggesting people reduce or
eliminate their chicken meat consumption. That is, the ads performed
the same. Interestingly, the retirees showed more interest in all our ads
compared to the socially aware group. Overall the best performing ad
was targeted at retirees talking about health with either image or text
variation.
We presented our results at this year’s American animal rights
conference in Washington, DC. There has been great international
interest in the project, assisted by the collation and publication of a
report that will be provided to other animal advocacy groups.
Our results emphasize the strength of emphasizing health in campaign
materials. They also question the assumption that cute images and
‘reduce’ messages are more effective in our advocacy work.
If you would like a copy of the report please email emma@
animal-lib.org.au and we will send you one once it is available.
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14 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 15

Review by Susanne Briggs
Winter Magic
by Anna Hall
Book Review:
Inspiration for Survive and
Prosper by Dr Tracie O’Keefe
On a bright but brisk winters morning animal activists, some of
whom set off before dawn, gathered to deliver the message that
Animal Liberation (A L) is changing the way we see animals. This
not only involves exposing the hidden animal agricultural industries
where activists at risk to their personal freedom film what goes on
in the factory farms all over Australia but also, changing the current
view of animals as property and commodities, to that of beings that are
subjects of lives with inherent value.
Some well-known local animal activists also joined in the march and
many in the crowd gave us an enthusiastic reception.
If you are interested in setting up a local Blue Mountain meeting or
group contact the staff at the A L headquarters and find out more.
“The Nation That Stops The Day”
by Margie McCumstie
I love a glass of bubbly
I love to wear a hat
I like to have a giggle
And to share a chat
But on the “day that stops the nation”,
I’m stopped for another reason.
I’m not stopped to join festivities
Of spring carnival racing season.
I’m stopped because I’m horrified
That horses will be killed
Shot behind a screen
While our glasses are refilled.
You hear people say
“It’s a shame they have to use the whip”
But with every bet or sweep
You’re supporting every jockey’s hit!
So as you attach your fascinator
And put your lippy on
Just know what you’re supporting
Make your mind up if it’s wrong.
There’s big money in the horses
With big stakes for trainers too
Stressed and pushed to breaking
And then what do they do?
We imagine that they then retire
To a lifetime in a country field
But the reality is different
The costs mean their fate is sealed.
18,000 racehorses
Who no longer can run fast
Are slaughtered each year in Australia
“Wastage”- because their racing time has
passed.
Melbourne Cup is just one race
Of many, many thousands.
But as this race stops the nation,
My wish is that there’d be flowers.
And tributes, and tears…
At our great national shame.
This is animal torture and cruelty
And we are all to blame.
We let it become normal
To drink and cheer and have a bet…
But when there is cruelty and killing,
This is a “sport”, I just don’t get.
The race that “stops a nation”
Will have me stop and think and know
That it is time for us to stand together
And collectively say “No.”
I read this book over just a few nights as it was very hard to put down.
Tracie O’Keefe is a qualified clinical hypnoåtherapist, psychotherapist,
counsellor, mental health professional and trainer who works from a
naturopathic perspective in Sydney. That is not all however, Tracie has
also been a family and couples therapist, a sex therapist and addictions
therapist for many years. I will also add she is a compassionate animal
rights advocate and vegan.
I first met Tracie through Animal Liberation and had the privilege of
attending a talk by Tracie O’Keefe. Her calmness and sensitivity are two
of her many great gifts. She dedicates her new book to her many clients
over the years who, she says, have taught her much about human nature
and the spirit of surviving the horrors of what life can throw at us and
against all odds, have come out the other end and prospered.
In her new book, Inspiration for Survive and Prosper, Tracie tells a very
honest story of her own life, one which is hard to imagine she survived.
Born in the north of England Tracie says she had a rocky start. Her
father had severe schizophrenia, which meant most of his life he was
locked away in a mental hospital so life for her mother had not turned
out to be the dream she had hoped. Money was scarce and later her
mother would leave the marriage. Tracie’s parents thought beating a
child was a form of education, just as their parents did.
Added to her difficult family life Tracie was born and raised as a boy but
was convinced she was female.
Traumatised by her life experiences, at the tender age of 11 she was
sectioned to a Dickensian mental hospital where she was drugged and
strapped to a trolley. She escaped through an open window and was
living in a brothel by the age of 12. At times suicide attempts became
Tracies’s only option. By 15 she was living alone but Tracie survived.
There is much, much more to her story . It does not end there of course
and the book traces her own life and how from humility she grew which
is the basis of her introductory chapter.
Surviving is one thing but prospering is what you do
after you have survived said Tracie. She had been good at surviving and
she has certainly mastered prospering.
Today Tracie runs a very busy and very successful therapy practice
in Sydney’s Surry Hills. It is through her practice that she has met
and indeed helped so many people ‘’survive and prosper’’ and it is
all through her own life experience that she has been able to do this.
She includes the stories of many of her clients in her book – they are
heartbreaking. The stories are not everyday stories – the lives of
her clients were tragic but each story had the same ending – through
Tracie’s help, empathy, counselling and patience – they all survived and
not only survived but went on to create meaning and purpose to their
lives.
I highly recommend this book –it reminded me of the Buddhist
philosophy. Her book is a reminder that it is indeed possible to survive
a crisis even at times when we cannot see a way through. Tracie teaches
us that if we take responsibility, we can transform and grow to have the
life we desire. That is up to us. Buddha would approve.
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16 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 17

Volunteer Profile:
Rabbis call on Jews
to adopt a vegan diet
by Simon Rocker September 2017
More than 70 rabbis from across the world and from across the religious
spectrum, including several from Britain, have signed a declaration
urging Jews to switch to a vegan diet.
Masorti Rabbis Jonathan Wittenberg and Jeremy Gordon, the principal
of the Leo Baeck College, Rabbi Deborah Kahn-Harris and Rabbi Natan
Levy, the Board of Deputies former interfaith officer, who is Orthodox,
are among UK supporters of the statement issued by the Jewish
Vegetarian Society in Britain and the American JewishVeg.
The rabbis call on their “fellow Jews to transition toward animal-free,
plant-based diets. This approach to sustenance is an expression of our
shared Jewish values of compassion for animals, protection of the
environment, and concern for our physical and spiritual well-being.”
Several also appear in a video which has been launched on the JVS
website today.
Rabbi David Rosen, the former Chief Rabbi of Ireland and now one
of the leading Jewish interfaith activists, advocates veganism as “the
new kashrut, kashrut for the 21st century. Any other form of kashrut is
problematic, highly problematic, so if you really want to be true to both
the letter of the law and the spirit of law of what kashrut is all about, you
should eat a plant-based diet.”
Rabbi David Wolpe, one of America’s prominent Conservative
rabbis, says “Tza’ar ba’alei chayim, not causing pain to another
living creature, is a central principle of the Jewish tradition and we
violate it every time we eat something that we know was factory farmed,
was debeaked, declawed, was treated cruelly.”
Other signatories include Rabbi Raymond Apple, the former senior rabbi
of the Great Synagogue in Sydney and the Israel-based Talmud scholar
originally from London Rabbi Daniel Sperber.
*first published in the Jewish Chronicle
Nadia Kiternas
How did you become involved with Animal Liberation?
I met Alex, an amazing member of the Animal Liberation team, when
he was doing a petition for banning greyhound racing at Macquarie
University. We ended up having a class together and after talking with
him, I realised Animal Liberation was the perfect organisation to donate
my time to. After I graduated I contacted Alex to see if I could volunteer
in the office on a weekly basis. I started shortly after and have loved every
minute of it! The office is such a wonderful place and everyone is so warm
and lovely!
What type of volunteering work have you done in this time?
During my short time at Animal Liberation, I have had the opportunity
to assist in a variety of ways. I have helped with research, mail-outs,
editing articles and the bi-annual magazine, data-entry, and making small
advertisements. I am also organizing the volunteers and raffle prizes for
the Cruelty Free Festival!
My sister and I are doing a Vegan Doughnut Tour around the United States
to raise money for Animal Liberation. The goal is 24 doughnut shops in
24 days! We both have a deep love for food and decided we should blog
about our travels to prove to people that vegan food is easy to find and that
being vegan doesn’t mean you have to miss out on delicious treats! To see
our journey visit the website www.thelittleherbivore.org.
Photos: (above left to right) Nadia with Archie, Scruffy and Max; Nadia at
Hart Acres; and Nadia with hen.
Are you vegan? If so, why?
I most definitely am! I became vegan because I wanted to live a life
full of compassion that was free from cruelty. I strongly believe that
all animals deserve to live their lives free of fear from humans, whilst
being able to exhibit their natural behaviours. When I was 13 I saw a
pamphlet on dancing bears in India, and it made me so upset that people
were treating these animals so horribly. This sparked my interest and I
began researching about other animals. I soon learnt that I was supporting
industries that are just as bad on a daily basis. From that moment that I
began cutting out animal products from my diet and started promoting
the vegan lifestyle.
How can someone become involved with volunteering for Animal
Liberation?
After volunteering at Animal Liberation for a few months, it is evident
that help in any way is greatly appreciated! Attending the monthly
Animal Liberation meeting is a great way to show your interest in Animal
Liberation. It is also a wonderful way to meet the team and express your
interest in helping out. You could also offer your help via Facebook or
email!
Do you have any advice for potential volunteers?
I wish I volunteered earlier, so my advice is that there is no better time to
start than now! Don’t be afraid to put yourself forward and take on new
challenges. Lastly, I believe it is important not to overwhelm yourself.
This means taking time for you and letting the team know if you ever
have too much on or need a break – I promise they will understand.
Nadia’s blog: www.thelittleherbivore.org
18 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 19

y Alex Vince
The sound of a pig screaming breaks your soul.
It enters your ears and gnaws at the heart.
Bearing witness to that sound can be life-altering.
Yet without it, suffering remains the status quo.
The first time I ever entered a factory farm, it was deserted. The
moonlight bit between the gaps in the door and the silence was
intimidating. It had been emptied of its sentience, this piggery without
pigs. But the smell lived on, seeming to blossom from beneath my feet
as I scaled the fence and returned to a world of the living. The silence
ricocheted around my mind as I walked the path I’d taken in. What
would it have been like when it wasn’t empty?
The first time I ever heard a pig scream was outside one of Australia’s
most prolific slaughterhouses. From within the bowels of this brutal
relic, suffering opens doors and enters our world. It knows no walls. It
tears through the space between you and the body it belongs to. And it
pierces you. This is why we usually find abattoirs in areas out of earshot,
in remote regions that work to place everything and everyone who enters
out of sight and out of mind. Now, that era is ending.
A decade ago, the telephone in your pocket might’ve been half the size
of some of the modern tablets today. It might’ve had the retro serpentinegame
Snake built into its wiry bones. But it couldn’t film. Today, your
telephone can do more than my laptop could only a few short years ago.
Today, it can allow you to enter entire new worlds. With the aid of stateof-the-art
accessories, you can step foot on new planets, invent entirely
novel universes, and even make-believe make love. There is, it seems,
no limit to the power of our tools.
Tech industry reports have noted the astonishing market-value of virtualreality
(VR), expecting it to push past $160 million by 2020. Within
this year alone, VR has been incorporated into professional training
systems, medical recovery applications, and even childbirth. This is only
the beginning, and animal activists have been at the forefront ever since
it was available. With the development of iAnimal, the animal rights
organisation Animal Equality have broken one of the last bastions of
silence the animal exploitation industries forcefully guard against: us
seeing what goes on behind closed doors. Thanks to the efforts they have
made to produce footage from within the bowels of these industries, the
secrets are starting to spill out every crack and crevice available. We can
enter unimaginable places, see the things we’ve been bullied, belittled,
or criminalised for caring about. And we can show it to the world.
When I first quit eating other animals, I thought the only way we could
help others see the suffering and discontinue their complicity was to
project it directly into their eyes. Who, I thought, would still refuse to
see? But there is always more to the story today than there was when
it began. And, as Ralph Waldo Emerson presciently said, you have just
dined, and however scrupulously the slaughterhouse is concealed in the
graceful distance of miles, there is complicity. No matter how many
walls or fences fitted with barbed-wire are erected between us and the
suffering, there is complicity. And no matter how many kilometres,
miles, or metres are mapped between us, there is a collusion that can be
traced as if the path were mapped out in bloody footsteps.
The Politics of Sight:
How Seeing Can Stop Suffering
With virtual-reality, we can step inside intensive piggeries and see the
sows eye. We can watch as her piglets are punished for being piglets. We
can witness the first moments of life, as a calf is torn from her mother.
These are moments that make it difficult to eat meat. They amplify our
empathy. They give us cause to question ourselves and our complicity in
one of the world’s most hidden and ongoing atrocities.
The distance. The gap between the knock-box, the killing cut, and the
kitchen is shrinking. Join us. Together we can be eyes for animals.
In collaborating with Animal Equality, Animal Liberation brings
never-before-seen vision to the eyes of the Australian public.
This project is funded via a Voiceless grant. To be involved in this
campaign, contact us at sydneyhq@animal-lib.org.au to register
your interest.
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20 | RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 RELEASE Magazine Xmas 2017 | 21

injured sows, and can be viewed at www.aussiepigs.com/piggeries/selko/
videos
9. *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming) obtained by surveillance
device* - from Grong Grong Piggery, near Narrandera NSW. This is a huge
farrow-to-finish piggery with a sow stall shed with 6 rows that seemed to go
on forever, while in the farrowing crate sheds, pieces of piglets and a trolley
full of rotting piglet tails were found. The footage can be viewed at www.
aussiepigs.com/piggeries/grong-grong/videos
10. *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming) obtained by surveillance
device* - from Culcairn Piggery NSW. Dead piglets, injured and confined sows
in sow stalls and farrowing crates - another typical Australian pig farm. The
footage can be viewed at www.aussiepigs.com/piggeries/culcairn/videos
Dori Kiss (2 charges under Section 8(1)a)
------------------
1. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld and hidden camera)
- entry without consent* - at the Rivalea Piggery & Abattoir, Corowa NSW.
Again, this is the largest pig farm and slaughterhouse in the country, and the
first ever public footage of the most common and “most humane” method of
“stunning” pigs at slaughterhouses in Australia and around the world. It can
be viewed here: www.aussiepigs.com/piggeries/corowa/videos
2. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld camera) - entry without
consent* - at Bungowannah Piggery, near Albury NSW. Again, this footage
showed typical farrowing crates where sows are kept in small cages for up
to 6 weeks after giving birth, and can be viewed at www.aussiepigs.com/
piggeries/bungowannah/videos
The Surveillance Devices Act 2007 is an important piece of legislation
with completely valid uses intended primarily to protect the privacy of
individuals in their own homes or going about their private business. To
use it to stifle the public’s knowledge about cruelty within the animal
agriculture industry, cruelty they otherwise unknowingly support when
they purchase animal products - to punish whistleblowers instead of
perpetrators - is beyond unacceptable and falls squarely within the
bounds of “ag-gag legislation” that the industry has been lobbying for in
Australia for several years after achieving some success with it in the US.
Animal abuse does not have a right to privacy or secrecy.
Representing Chris was barrister Peter Singleton. Peter undertook this
work pro bono. He also travelled on several occasions to Cootamundra
at his own expense. Dori was represented by solicitor Naomi Steinberg.
As Chris has outlined, over the years Mr. Singleton got several of Chris’s
charges dropped.
The case was heard in Cootamundra on 8th August at the Magistrates
court. Approximately 45 activists from around Australia came to support
Chris and Dori. The case was to have been heard over a 3 day period
but barrister Peter Singleton raised the issue of non-compliance with
prescribed police investigations and charging procedures.
The Magistrate dismissed the case after only an hour and a half and
awarded a total of $56,000 cost to the defense team. He also noted the
political motivations behind putting a large amount of police resources
into pursuing such ‘minor’ charges, in a way that would have caused
unnecessary stress to the activists and harm to their reputations over the
last two years.
Cootamundra Piggery
court case
Photo: (above) Chris outlisde the Courthouse, (right-top) Courthouse
supporters, (right-bottom) Chris and Dori.
Two years ago NSW and SA teams of police simultaneously raided
the homes of two animal rights activists Chris Delforce and Dori
Kiss. The action was known by police as Strike Force Schubach
and was led by NSW Cootamundra Local Area Command in
conjunction with local police. Police arrived wearing flak jackets
and riot gear.
At the time of the raids Chris posted “today a search warrant was
executed on my home by NSW & SA Police in relation to the publication
of footage of animal cruelty taken from a number of intensive pig farms
across NSW”.
Chris Delforce produced the remarkable documentary “Lucent” (to
shine the light) exposing the horrors of pig factories around Australia.
His website www.aussiefarms.org.au highlights the cruelty of factory
farming of all species. It was this website that triggered the raids.
Below in Chris’s words the charges for the court case are outlined
After an initial round of ‘break and enter’ charges that were dismissed,
a trial/hearing has finally been set for mid-August. The newer charges
that are going to trial, under the Surveillance Devices Act 2007, are as
follows:
Chris Delforce (4 charges under Section 8(1)a, 6 charges under Section 11(1))
------------------
1-2. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld and hidden camera) -
entry without consent* and *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming/
slaughter) obtained by surveillance device* - at the Rivalea Piggery & Abattoir,
Corowa NSW. This is the largest pig farm and slaughterhouse in the country.
The footage obtained here of the gas chamber was the first time anywhere in
the world that this process was revealed to the public, after occurring under
the label “humane” without oversight/scrutiny for over twenty years and
now accounting for well over 90% of pigs killed in Australia (over 15+ gas
chambers). Parts of the footage were viewed by over 15 million people. It can
be viewed here: www.aussieabattoirs.com/slaughterhouses/corowa/videos)
3-4. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld camera) - entry without
consent* and *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming) obtained by
surveillance device* - at Deni Piggery, Deniliquin NSW. This footage showed
pregnant pigs living in their own waste in small cages known as sow stalls, a
recently-farrowed pig with a large painful prolapse, and much more, and can
be viewed at www.aussiepigs.com/piggeries/deni/videos
5-6. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld camera) - entry without
consent* and *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming) obtained by
surveillance device* - at Bungowannah Piggery, near Albury NSW. This footage
showed typical farrowing crates where sows are kept in small cages for up
to 6 weeks after giving birth, and can be viewed at www.aussiepigs.com/
piggeries/bungowannah/videos
7-8. *Install/use optical surveillance device (handheld camera) - entry without
consent* and *Publish footage/photos of activity (pig farming) obtained by
surveillance device* - at Selko Piggery, Narrandera NSW. This footage showed
more standard farrowing crates with numerous dead and dying piglets, and
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Noah’s Ark
Sanctuary
by Hazel Phillips
Whenever I go on holiday, I always look forward to seeing some
beautiful animals as part of my trip. As an animal rights advocate,
finding an opportunity to see animals in an environment that does not
harm them can be challenging as so many tourist attractions exploit
animals. However, my recent trip to Atlanta presented me with one of
the most special and moving experiences of my life.
Noah’s Ark sanctuary is set on 250 acres of land, a half hour drive
from Atlanta. Caring for 1500 animals, it is a haven for a huge
variety of creatures who have been saved from the most harrowing of
circumstances. After reading about the sanctuary, I was excited and
curious to find out more as many of the animals were rescued from
circuses and laboratories, two forms of abuse that Animal Liberation has
campaigned against.
Inspired by her Christian faith, Jama Hedgecoth has rescued animals
all her life, Forty years ago she felt called to devote her life to this
mission. This is how Noah’s Ark was born. Jama’s religious beliefs
and memories of her own relatively poor childhood made her decide to
make her sanctuary available to all, hence there is no charge for visiting.
PETA’s research revealed that children gain very little educational
benefit from zoos because they spend an average of less than a minute at
each enclosure. A visit to a zoo is often a one-off activity and, given the
cost of tickets and the suffering of the animals, it seems sad that children
apparently get so little benefit. Families can visit Noah’s Ark as many
times as they like, making a small donation if they can afford it and my
personal observation was that children spent a much longer time at each
enclosure and got to learn what animals are like when they are relaxed,
content and in a near-natural environment.
Noah’s Ark is run entirely for the benefit of the animals: the number
of visitors is limited to a manageable number and the sanctuary is only
open for 4 hours in the afternoon so that the disruption to the luxurious
life of the animals is minimal. Each spacious enclosure has two fences:
one to keep the animals safe and a second, about two metres away from
the first, to stop humans getting too close to the animals. If you visit
Noah’s Ark, the animals needs come first.
The exception to the “two fences” rule is if you pay to do one of
the small group tours where one of the knowledgeable and friendly
volunteers guides takes you between the fences so you can get closer to
the animals, under strict conditions. I couldn’t resist: out came the credit
card and my partner and I were lucky enough to find ourselves the only
ones on the tour that day.
Our first stop was to meet the tigers. These beautiful big cats were
having a lazy day, enjoying the sunshine and occasionally wandering
over to see if I had a tasty treat for them (I hadn’t - vegan food isn’t
their thing). Most of them had started life in a circus then were
surrendered to Noah’s Ark when they developed health problems that
the circus couldn’t afford to, or didn’t want to, pay for. They spent their
whole lives making money for a business and then, when they needed
veterinary care, were dumped on a charity. The injustice and attitude of
the circuses burned within me. Looking at these gorgeous cats, I was so
angry that someone could care for them so little and view them purely as
money-making machines. They were all individuals with personalities,
families and feelings.
As they laid in the sun, our guide explained to me how all of the tigers
still bore the scars of their experiences: some had physical injuries
that would never fully heal and one, even though he had been at the
sanctuary for five years, was still fearful of humans and hid in his
shelter until we were out of the way. On his own, segregated from the
other tigers was something I didn’t expect to see: a white tiger. These
rare creatures are not natural and are a result of humans breeding them.
However, the breeders aren’t very successful and only one in fifty white
tigers that they try to breed actually comes out white. The fate of the
remaining 49 is best not thought about.
White tigers are smaller than normal tigers with inherent health
problems that condemn them to a life of suffering. This white tiger has
to be kept apart from the other tigers, although can interact with them
through the fence and mix with them under supervision, as the other,
bigger, tigers bullied him. However, after a lifetime of abuse in a circus,
he is happy to have some peace and quiet, socialising with the other
tigers when necessary.
Whilst the stories of how these animals came to be at Noah’s Ark were
sad, the sight of them living in a spacious environment, having friends,
playing and generally being spoilt rotten brought joy to my heart. They
have places to hide and sleep, land to explore and toys to play with. The
local fire service has to replace the tyres on their trucks very regularly
and discovered that these are perfect for tigers to claw at and chew so
they donate the used tyres to Noah’s Ark, where the volunteers are very
creative with the swings and climbing frames that they make with them.
The monkey enclosure also made my heart sing with happiness. I’ve
been a passionate anti-vivisection activist for nearly 30 years and the
loves of my life are my lab-rescued guinea pigs so I have particular
affection for animals that are saved from the horrors of laboratories,
which is where many of the monkeys came from. No longer in pain
and, amazingly, virtually all well adapted and enjoying life as part of a
family, these darling creatures were thoroughly enjoying swinging on
climbing frames, playing with groups and scratching their gorgeous little
fluffy tummies!
Animal Liberation has been campaigning against circuses for years and
frequently gets asked what would happen to the animals if they were
freed from having to perform. Those in favour of circuses assume we’re
utterly impractical and are planning to let exotic animals freely walk the
streets. However, animal advocates also often show concern over what
future circus animals could possibly have. Noah’s Ark confirmed to
me what I’d always known deep down: that circus animals can recover
from their experiences sufficiently to lead happy and fulfilling lives.
Equally, laboratory animals can, with the love and care Jama provides,
form foster families, make friends and learn to express their natural
behaviours. If anyone wants proof that Animal Liberation is right to
campaign against circuses and vivisection, Noah’s Ark is it.
The difference in the quality of life and natural behaviour of these
animals when they are away from abuse and exploitation is incredible.
They no longer live each day in fear and pain. The signs of mental
illness, such as pacing their tiny cage and rattling at the bars are no
longer happening.
Jama has developed partnerships with authorities such as the
Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Agriculture.
Noah’s Ark is now the first place they call when an animal is in
need. Bears found in the basement of a drug den, monkeys and pigs
that weren’t considered small and cute enough to be family pets and
alligators that spent their early life with their jaws forcibly held closed
so they could be passed around to tourists have all found a loving home
here with Jama, her remarkable family and team of volunteers.
We need to stop animal circuses in Australia and we need places like
Noah’s Ark for the animals to go to. Jama’s amazing work has inspired
me to support these two Animal Liberation campaigns to an even greater
degree. This is what we need to aspire to. The fact that it can be done
should give us hope and motivation to continue our work.
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Friendly Frolics and
Christmas Cooking
Margie met Tammy when she came to work at the same Early Education
Centre and it wasn’t long before the two became close friends. When the
chick hatching program came to the centre, Margie voiced her concerns
for the welfare of the chicks and this launched conversations between
the two about animal welfare issues. Margie shared about her passion
for veganism and then invited her animal loving friend to come along to
the Newcastle Animal Liberation meeting. Soon after Tammy embraced
a vegan diet too! Tammy’s partner is now also vegan and Tammy has
also spread further education at her workplace. Hopefully, the chicken
hatching program will now never return!
Margie and Tammy love preparing vegan meals and sharing recipes
and tips to an easy vegan lifestyle with each other and with Christmas
coming up quicker than we realise, they thought they would share a few
Christmas party plate ideas with you.
Here’s a perfect starter or finger food idea for parties where you need to
bring a plate to share-
When family members jib you about not being able to have the turkey,
you DO have a cruelty free turkey alternative that you can serve with the
vegies of your choice-
Margie’s Tantalising Tofu Turkey!
Serves 8-10 and takes about 5 hours to make. I know- that’s a long time
but it is totally worth it!
You’ll need the following Ingredients:
2kg extra firm tofu, crumbled
8 tablespoons sesame oil
1 onion, finely diced
3 celery sticks, chopped
300g mushrooms, chopped
½ cup cranberries
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
5 cups dried breadcrumbs- (make your own or check pack carefully
for hidden fish or dairy)
6 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons miso paste
5 tablespoons orange juice
1/2 teaspoon orange rind
1 teaspoon mustard
3 sprigs fresh rosemary to serve
Here’s how to make this yumminess:
Line a round medium sized colander with muslin or a clean tea towel.
Place the crumbled tofu in the colander. Place another tea towel or
sheet of muslin over the tofu and place a heavy weight on top. Place the
colander over a bowl to catch the liquid. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
Make the stuffing: In a large frying pan, gently fry the onion, celery
and mushrooms in the 2 tablespoons of sesame oil until tender. Add the
garlic, sage, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Stir well and cook for 5
minutes, then add breadcrumbs, cranberries and mix well. Remove from
heat.
Preheat the oven to 200 C. Grease a baking tray.
In a small bowl combine the extra sesame oil, soy sauce, miso paste,
orange juice, orange rind and mustard and mix well.
Remove the tofu and discard the liquid. Hollow out the tofu so there is
2.5cm of tofu still lining the colander. Place the scooped out tofu in a
separate bowl. Spoon the stuffing into the centre of the tofu case. Place
the leftover tofu on top of the stuffing and press down firmly.
Turn the stuffed tofu out on to the baking tray and gently press the
sides to form a more oval shape. Brush the tofu with half the remaining
sesame oil sauce, place the rosemary sprigs on top and cover with foil.
Bake for one hour, then remove the tofu from the oven and discard the
foil. Brush the tofu with the remaining sesame oil sauce (reserving 4
tablespoons), then return to the oven and bake another hour, or until the
tofu-turkey is golden brown. Place on a serving platter, brush with the
remaining oil mixture and serve hot with your favourite vegies.
Enjoy with your family and convert the omnis with this delicious dish!
Bring on dessert! So many delicious things we can make but we
couldn’t go past our favourite Rocky Road recipe-
Revolutionary Rocky Road
(revolutionary because it promotes a vegan cruelty free way of living!)
You’ll need a few hours and the following Ingredients to make 12
pieces:
50g Nuttelex
120g Sweet William milk chocolate chips
75g Sweet William dark chocolate chips
2.5 tbsp golden syrup or Joy as it is known in Margie’s home
60g Nice biscuits, roughly smashed
60g vegan marshmallows
50g glace cherries, halved
50g brazil nuts, roughly chopped
Here’s how you make it:
Line a baking tray or any rectangular dish with cling film.
Melt the nuttelex, 100g of the milk chocolate, all of the dark chocolate
and the golden syrup in the microwave, checking and stirring every 20
seconds until it’s all melted.
Fold the smashed biscuits, halved cherries, vegan marshmallows and
chopped brazil nuts into the melted chocolate mixture.
Pour into your prepared baking tray/dish and place in the fridge until set
(about two hours- try and be patient).
Once the rocky road has set, melt the remaining milk chocolate and
drizzle over the rocky road, then place back in the fridge to set again.
Cut into squares and serve!
Viva la Vegan Revolution!
Happy Christmas!
Love Tammy Carlin and
Margie McCumstie xx
Tammy’s Sensational Sausage Rolls
Here’s the Ingredients you’ll need:
1 onion
300g tofu
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
2 cloves of garlic
½ cup cashews
½ cup breadcrumbs (check brand or make own)
½ cup fresh basil
1 teaspoons dried sage
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
4 sheets of puff pastry
Non-dairy milk
Sesame seeds to decorate
How to create:
Drain tofu
Put all ingredients except puff pastry into blender. Blitz until combined.
Spoon mix onto pastry sheets and roll.
Brush with non- dairy milk to help the rolls brown.
Sprinkle sesame seeds on top to entice the omnis.
Cook in 180 C oven until golden brown and crispy.
Remove your 20 party sausage rolls and be a hit at the Christmas party!
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