Girl Who Couldn’t Speak Uttered First Words to Donkey: ‘I Love You’ | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

by Leigh Scheps of Inside Edition

Feel Good Sunday

The first thing Amber Austwick ever said out loud was “I love you” to a donkey. The 6-year-old is a twin who was born prematurely at 26 weeks. She suffered from complications at birth that forced doctors to perform a tracheotomy. Amber never said a word until she met her four-legged friend at this donkey sanctuary. Her time there is therapeutic, and since her introduction to the donkey, Amber’s become a lot more confident.

Source: Girl Who Couldn’t Speak Uttered First Words to Donkey: ‘I Love You’ | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Answers in art « Outside the Reality Machine

By Jon Rappoport

 

“Logic is a mirror of how the physical world operates.  It is a vital tool.  Imagination is the capacity to make new and different worlds, an unlimited number of them, which can operate on no particular basis at all.”  (The Magician Awakes, Jon Rappoport)

Here is an interesting statement from Dane Rudhyar (1895-1985), about his painting.  Rudhyar was a world-famous astrologer, and also a philosopher, painter, and composer.

“It does not seem important to me that people seeing my paintings should know what I felt, why and how I produced them. The essential thing is the viewers’ response — what the paintings do to them, what arises in them as a result of their seeing the paintings, of their relationship with the painting. It is, I believe, a matter of relationship: ‘something’ in the painting meets ‘something’ in the spectator; what is important is the character and quality of this meeting.”

“…These youths are also often greatly impressed by my paintings, yet at the same time they are puzzled by them. I am repeatedly asked what the paintings mean, how the evident symbols in them are to be understood…”
“When facing my paintings, a person’s reaction is often that I must have used such geometrical or biologically suggestive symbols deliberately, knowing exactly why I used them. People frequently are shocked when I tell them that I did not have precise intentions and did not think of traditional meanings. Then they often want to speak of ‘the Unconscious’ — my personal unconscious or the ‘collective Unconscious’…”

“They are even more puzzled if I tell them that they should forget the traditional system of knowledge and simply try to experience the drawing and allow it to speak to them and communicate a ‘mystery’ which perhaps transcends or has meaning besides the traditional knowledge.”

“Nearly twenty years ago while in Paris, I attended meetings and lectures at a well-publicized Congrés du symbolisme in the elegant and ultramodern UNESCO Building. At the close of the sessions I vividly realized that the lecturers always spoke of symbols in the past, referring almost exclusively to ancient cultural epochs and traditions. A very intelligent woman I had met who was enthusiastic about all that had taken place asked about my reaction to the Congress. I expressed my deep interest in the proceedings, but added that I felt the talks had been almost entirely, about the past. She looked at me with a puzzled expression and said, ‘But the past is all we know. We do not know the future!’ To which I replied, ‘Of course we do not know the future, but we are creating it!’ The lady gave me a strange look; she could not grasp the meaning of what I had said, and our conversation ended very soon.”

If you say the voyage of imagination is spiritual, people immediately want to know which spiritual system you are talking about, or which principles.  They want art and creation to be an expression of that which is already understood.

But art is not a descriptive sign hanging on the entrance to the cosmos.

Every piece of art is its own cosmos.

It needs no myth structure or origin-story or cultural precedent.

Art is the great exception to every rule of the universe.

If this isn’t magic, nothing is.

Source: Answers in art « Outside the Reality Machine

A Mustang murder mystery in northern Nevada – Tuesday’s Horse

WILD HORSES NEVADA (Warning: Graphic Image) — On May 10, 2017, Tuesday’s Horse received an email from the Professor and Chair of the Geological and Environmental Sciences Department of a California University stating he was leading a student field trip in Northumberland Canyon south of Austin, Nevada the previous weekend and they discovered the following:

We came across six horse carcasses, all missing their heads. This was very disturbing to the students and I am trying to figure out what happened. Was there planned culling of wild horses? Why would the heads be removed?

The headless remains of a Mustang found in northern Nevada taken by a student while on a geological field trip in the Austin area. May 2017.
The headless remains of a Mustang found in northern Nevada taken by a student while on a geological field trip in the Austin area. May 2017.

The Professor had not been able to reach the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) so reached out to us for assistance.

At long last I tracked down the right BLM office thanks to the coordinates the Professor provided.

After several email exchanges and a few phone calls with a BLM agent in that office, we made little progress figuring out what had happened to these Mustangs or why.

Here is a summary of those exchanges:

• It is highly likely these Mustangs were shot and killed. Although rare in the area, other wild horses have been shot and killed and left on the side of the road in much the same manner.

• The heads were either removed by trophy hunters or for use in local rituals. It is also possible someone discovered the carcasses and removed the skulls much later and cleaned them to use as relics. The heads are not missing because of scavengers.

• Due to the vastness and remoteness of the area it is close to impossible to find any witnesses. Investigators often have to rely on hearsay such as “someone bragging” about the kill.

My BLM contact agreed to talk with other field agents plus get in touch with the U.S. Forestry Service for their input.

A few days later my BLM contact reconnected to tell me that wild horses killed in suspicious circumstances do fall under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Forestry Service and they would determine whether or not to investigate.

An agent of the U.S. Forestry Service contacted me with the following:

• They had discovered carcasses like these the previous year, perhaps even as early as Spring 2016, and they were “probably the same ones”.

• Due to the condition of the carcasses and the amount of time elapsed they have little to nothing to go on and did not feel it warranted the time and expense of an investigation. No one offered an explanation why they took no action at the time they first found the dead horses other than “it’s too hard”.

• They have come across dead Mustangs before where they suspected foul play and occasionally seen heads removed like this.

• The missing heads were not the result of scavenging.

It was never quite clear to me when coming across something like this, how they determine when it is worth investigating and when it is not.

The BLM and USFS were not the only ones. I also contacted a noted investigative reporter who also declined.

So Now What?

The agents I dealt with were responsive. Perhaps it ended the way it did with me at the direction of higher ups.

Yet wait a minute. Any way you look at it, murdering a Mustang is a federal crime. Murdering six. Leaving the six dead horses at the side of the same road. Removing their heads. Surely that warrants at least some looking into.

Something must be done or these murders, even if only committed sporadically, will continue.

I offered a reward for the arrest and conviction of these Mustang Murderers. The response?

I appreciate knowing about the reward and I will see how that might be promoted.

End of story? I thought so until a few minutes ago. We’ll let you know. Stay tuned.

Source: A Mustang murder mystery in northern Nevada – Tuesday’s Horse

Special Report: KPVI Investigates Cyanide traps and the USDA | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

story by as broadcast/published on KPVI.com

“This is not the first time the USDA had a run in with the Gate City…”

It’s almost been two months since a Pocatello family lost their dog and almost their son to a cyanide trap set 300 yards behind their house. Since then the USDA says they’ve taken all the traps out of the Gem state. But that hasn’t changed anything to investigators who say they were never notified of the deadly chemical, meant to kill predators, planted around Bannock County.

The incident began in the Buckskin area back in March. Canyon Mansfield says, “I panicked and sprinted down to get my mom.” The 14-year-old and his dog Kasey were 300 yards away from their house. He describes, “Suddenly there’s like a pop and then orange gas spews out.” The Mansfield family dog died and they almost lost their son as well. Theresa Mansfield, Canyon’s mother says, “We didn’t want to believe it was from Cyanide poisoning, but deep down it scared the crap out of us.”

The Cyanide trap was placed on BLM land with no warnings in sight. Investigators found a second trap not far from the first. Bannock County Sheriff Lorin Nielsen says, “We’re not Alaska. There are wilderness places where people go. I don’t care what the purpose is. If it’s endangering public it shouldn’t be there.”

Since the death of Kasey there’s been a worldwide outcry. The Bannock County’s Sheriff’s office has launched their investigation. The city has also stepped in. In March Pocatello’s Mayor Brian Blad wrote a letter to the USDA asking them to stop manufacturing Cyanide Traps, or M-44’s, in the city. Since then the agency reached out to the mayor. He says he toured the facility, learned about their safety precautions and products “They’re going to continue to do their practice until congress acts,” said Blad.

This is not the first time the USDA had a run in with the Gate City. Seven years ago the agency was responsible for illegally setting “Quick Kill” traps, meant for Rock chucks within city limits. Obtained by KPVI in an incident report by Pocatello’s animal control, an elderly woman called them after finding a cat trapped alive in a “quick kill” trap or Conibear trap in her backyard. She admitted to the city she requested the traps from the USDA. She says at least three cats had been killed before and they were removed by the local USDA representative Todd Sullivan. Sullivan is the same man involved in the Mansfield investigation. In 2010 the charges against Sullivan were dismissed by a federal judge.

The city and USDA came to an agreement that they would not place Conibear traps in Pocatello without notifying the city first. The USDA declined to speak to KPVI on camera, but gave us a written statement answering our questions. They told us, the incident involving the Mansfield Dog is still under investigation and can’t comment. But claimed they had “107 M-44’s set on 16 properties in the state and all have been removed.” Our request to tour the Pocatello manufacturing facility was denied, they say because of security concerns.

The agency tells us the Pocatello location has been manufacturing M-44 deceives since 1969. And also handles, “Gas cartridges for fumigating rodent burrows, rodent grain baits…, predator lures, and repackages other products such as order control products and animal immobilization drugs.”

The sheriff’s investigation is now left in the hands of county prosecutors to find if any state laws were violated. In the meantime, the sheriff says this to residents, “We now have to be aware of our surroundings. If there is something that is out there that is not part of… leave it alone, leave it alone,” Nielsen said.

Source: Special Report: KPVI Investigates Cyanide traps and the USDA | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Update: Status on Massive Former Wild Horse and Burro SD Rescue | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Source: Wild Horse and Burro Sanctuary Alliance

It has been a long and difficult journey for the 907 horses that the State Attorneys in South Dakota found to be suffering from serious neglect last  October. From freezing temperatures and soupy mud, all of the unadopted horses healthy enough to make the journey have been relocated to a safe staging area in Colorado. (or to a new adoptive home.) We’ve come so far and we couldn’t have done it without you!

But we aren’t done yet! There are still 170 horses waiting to be adopted  and transported to their new adoptive homes, the Wild Horse and Burro Sanctuary Alliance members and partners continue to work hard to raise the $8,000.00 a week still needed to complete one of the largest horse rescues in U.S. history (bolded) as soon as possible.
Alliance members have been providing support to Fleet of Angels and its ground team by doing our part to raise funds for feed and care. With your help, and the support of the citizens and ranchers from Faith, S.D., 312 horses were relocated at the end of March to a well-equipped adoption hub in Ft. Collins Colorado.
Since last October, 712 of the 907 horses have been adopted minus some 24 horses that had to be euthanized due to medical reasons (like broken bones, cancer and other irreversible conditions). The numbers are staggering. It has been a challenge to get this far and it could not have been done without everyone’s help- every contribution and ‘share’ with friends has made a lifesaving impact.
The Wild Horse and Burro Sanctuary Alliance will continue to do what we can to raise funds to help cover feed and labor until all the horses reach new homes. Weekly costs for board, feed and laborare over $8,000.00. Thanks to contributions from the ASPCA, all Coggins costs have been covered and thanks to Shirly Puga/National Equine Resource Network and The Unwanted Horse Coalition, all gelding fees have now been covered! 
This is a team effort and without the support of The Griffin-Soffel Equine Rescue Foundation, The Humane Society of The United States, the ASPCA, the Wild Horse and Burro Sanctuary Alliance, Victoria McCullough, Best Friends, and every individual or group that has contributed, more than 600 horses would have been sold at auction last December, with most winding up hauled to Mexico or Canada for slaughter.
Since October, when a ruling of neglect was made against the International Society
for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros (ISPMB), an outpouring of generosity (has) made it possible to feed the horses and reimburse costs incurred by two South Dakota counties.
That allowed the counties to call off a planned public auction of the ISPMB horses at which many would have fallen into the hands of kill buyers, and feed the horses and ground crew. At the same time, adoptive homes were found for over 270 of the estimated 907 horses originally found on the ISPMB property, and the health of most of the others began improving. Since then, all but 170 horses have been placed with safe homes- but we need help. Every dollar helps make this possible.
Now, we need your financial contribution to cover the remaining cost of housing and care for the 170 horses who are still in need of adoptive homes. We need to cover costs for hay, facilities and labor this week.
We are grateful to EVERYONE who has chosen to be part of this effort and remain committed—with your help—to leave no horse behind.
On behalf of the Wild Horse and Burro Sanctuary Alliance, please help us in this final stretch of reaching that goal.
Thank you and please help today,

Source: Update: Status on Massive Former Wild Horse and Burro SD Rescue | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Wild Horses Misinformation and Bad Science: Corrupt Government Agency and Non-Profits ~ Photojournalist ~ Journalist

By John Cox

john-cliffs-blog-post

“The fact that we live at the bottom of a deep gravity well, on the surface of a gas covered planet going around a nuclear fireball 90 million miles away and think this to be normal is obviously some indication of how skewed our perspective tends to be.” ― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time

Why do we take issue at the lack of good science data with what is called today, Pesticide PZP? Because subjectivity and science remain two separate situations. The dynamics of each very different. Many of us find Pesticide PZP nothing more than subjective rhetoric – the results on our Public Lands of this endeavor remains quite negative, with no good potential results foreseen in the future. Wild Horses are going extinct! False science, misinformation, ignoring of Ecological demands, and corruption the reasons why . . .

The wild horses on America’s Public Lands is falling victim to what many of us simply refer to as bad, and incompetent white-paper gibberish. As history shows us time and again, government agencies seem to attract this type of research, calls it science, and as history shows us, time after time, until we see the outstanding negative results, in this case a species going extinct, do we finally realize the mistake.

But only over time is the burden of responsibility taken to task, the fingers point to those who cannot defend themselves, and these elements of destruction, these non-profits and BLM who promote this Pesticide PZP scam, simply move-on to other schemes and scams to obtain taxpayer money differently, is all . . .

Well, as taxpayers and American’s it is time for all of us to Stand Up and say no to any further Pesticide PZP use —

Spotted Owls in the Cascades

For explanation reasons, I am using the Spotted Owl within the Nooksack River watershed, as well as the Skagit River Valley, both in the Cascade Mountains. It shows us, overtime, the dynamic also involved within the wild horses, even though separate ecological zones, separate species for sure, yet similar in population encounter and census.

The biology, when all the variables considered, show situations that remain overlooked, or even ignored, by Pesticide PZP research. Many define, categorically, Pesticide PZP as questionable subjective reasoning of combined-information only, merely passed-off as science –

“If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?” ― Albert Einstein

Many of us accept this fact of facts, as there simply exists too many variables left unexplored from the Pesticide PZP data gathering, to be any type of acceptable science what so ever. Way too many significant data situations ignored or even not thought about what so ever, which would show beyond a doubt Pesticide PZP, a questionable situation at best, and non-useful. The reasoning why significant variables left unexplored? Well, let’s take a look at some of the more obvious, and viability of our wildlife in general.

A census of the Spotted Owl may show twenty-five owls exist, but perhaps only seven are of a reproductive age, and only five sexually active. The outcome of this, within a good biology context, would likely be five-owls, not twenty-five. To assimilate across the board a 20% to 38% increase, as they do with wild horses, is simply bad management, untruthful, and no good-science or biology would back up such claims what so ever – as variables do exist on this planet, always.

When we refuse to consider significant variables, that do exist and apparent should not be ignored, then we have to question the supposed science involved. On the same scale of research, if we ignore the habitats, or Ecological Zones that exist, deduction through subjectivity only, and as if Pesticide PZP unharmful within any circumstance – but never explored, through due diligence and good data gathering, we never find out if harmful or not in Ecological Zones of any type. . . Used on something like Wild Horses, we become very concerned at this monumental error in judgement, that certainly lacks scientific responsibility, and one can also attest, irresponsible within an ethical or humane context as well . . . – John Cox, The Cascades

Source: Wild Horses Misinformation and Bad Science: Corrupt Government Agency and Non-Profits

BLM’s Wild Horse & Burro Program in a Death Spiral | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Open Letter by Author Terry Farley

“BLM’s wild horse and burro math is statistically bizarre…”

As a journalist, I first interviewed BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program staffers in 1976, shortly after I moved to Nevada. Since then, I’ve followed the program’s death spiral.

Those who say wild horses and burros ruin the range claim there are too many of them, and yet there’s little agreement about how many wild equines remain on America’s public lands.

BLM’s wild horse and burro math is statistically bizarre. Even the National Academy of Sciences, charged by BLM to analyze the program (2013) concluded: “The Wild Horse and Burro Program has not used scientifically rigorous methods to estimate the population sizes of horses and burros …”

NAS warned “continuation of business-as-usual practices will be expensive and unproductive for BLM and the public it serves.” Worse, NAS pointed out that BLM’s lack of science has actually backfired on its stated goal of protecting the range.

BLM’s reaction? Keep paying independent contractors to chase, trap and corral the West’s remaining wild horses and offer $10 million to anyone who found a new means of mustang birth control.

BLM asked for a new method because PZP “didn’t work,” ignoring recent science and BLM personnel who admitted that — counter to instructions – contraceptives are not always kept frozen or even cold in the field.

Band dynamics: During round-ups, family bands are shattered, routinely divided into stallions, mares and contractor-determined weanlings. Horses are prey animals. They know safety is with the band and the resulting cacophony and blood of these separations is haunting. Fewer than 2 percent are ever reunited.

Injury: Compare injection site abscess to BLM documentation of a single round-up in which 113 mustangs died. Death from shattered pelvises, broken necks, skulls and spine were sometime attributed to natural causes or pre-existing conditions. Those diagnoses would strain my credulity even if I hadn’t been there.

If you still oppose contraception, please consider this: Proponents of selling wild horses without limitation have made in-roads at BLM and those who’d destroy mustang captives as they stand in government pens have visited the White House.

The extermination of a Western icon is near, and your choice can hasten or slow its approach.

PZP is reversible. Death is final.

Source: BLM’s Wild Horse & Burro Program in a Death Spiral | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

Euthanasia drug found in dog food « Jon Rappoport’s Blog

By Jon Rappoport

From WebMD (4/28/17): “Party Animal is recalling dog food that tested positive for a pet euthanasia drug…The voluntary recall affects the company’s Cocolicious dog food brand…The affected products include 13-ounce cans of Cocolicious Beef & Turkey dog food (Lot #0136E15204 04, best by July 2019) and 13-ounce cans of Cocolicious Chicken & Beef dog food (Lot #0134E15 237 13, best by August 2019)… Party Animal is working with distributors and retailers to find out if any other beef-flavored foods are still being sold, and if so, to recall them immediately, the company said.”

KDVR (FOX) reports: “Party Animal is recalling two lots of its Cocolicious dog food because it might contain pentobarbital.”

CNN: “Party Animals, a California-based pet food maker, is recalling two lots from its line of Cocolicious dog foods after some cans in Texas tested positive for pentobarbital — a chemical that’s used to euthanize animals. In a statement on its website, Party Animal said a customer in Texas had given Cocolicious samples to a lab and the dog food tested positive for pentobarbital. Party Animal is asking for those test results, and ‘out of an abundance of caution’ is recalling the two lots of dog food sold nationwide. The company is also sending cans of its dog foods to an independent lab for testing.”

How would this drug, used to euthanize animals, find its way into pet food? The suggestion is: the pet food contains meat from previously euthanized animals (not cows).

Concerning a previous recall by another company, Evanger’s, the Detroit Free Press stated: “In researching the supply chain, Evanger’s learned that ‘pentobarbital is very highly controlled, and that, if an animal is euthanized, it is done so by a veterinarian. Once this process has been done, there is absolutely no regulation that requires the certified vet to place any kind of marker on the animal indicating that it has been euthanized and guaranteeing that product from euthanized animals cannot enter the food chain’.”

If this is true, we would be talking about euthanized dogs and cats somehow entering the pet-food manufacturing process—and pet dogs would end up eating dog and cat meat.

Veterinarians are selling euthanized animals to middle men, who in turn supply meat to pet-food manufacturers?

There is another possibility. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) states, on its website: “Approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year… Each year, approximately 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized (670,000 dogs and 860,000 cats).” Are shelters selling the euthanized animals? Do a few (or more than a few) animals end up in pet food?

Knoji.com states: “Cremation allows for the shelter to burn the bodies of pets. However, not all animal shelters can afford this so many send the bagged bodies of animals to a special part of the city landfill (garbage dump). The third option is not as common as it use[d] to be, and generally not done in the charity run shelters, but more common in city run ‘pounds’ – this is when the bodies are sold to research labs, dissection supply companies, or rendering facilities where they may actually be rendered down and put into pet food.”

“It might surprise some dog owners to know that dog meat has been used in dog food. This practice was relatively common until the late 1990’s. Even today there are no laws preventing man’s best friend from ending up in dog food.”

“Please note the below information on dead dogs being used in dog food is true to the United States but may also occur in Canada and possibly other countries.”

“At some time or another pet food companies realized there was a cheap source of meat available… Dog Meat, and it could be purchased cheaply from animal shelters and the dog pound. These were places where dogs were euthanized weekly and there was always a need to dispose of the bodies. Nobody said anything and there were no laws preventing such from happening.”

“However what started to tip the scales was that the veterinarians who performed the euthanasias at the animal shelters started noticing it was taking more and more drugs to put these animals to sleep. They realized that somehow pets in animal shelters were building up an immunity to the medications used to end their lives. Typically veterinarians are called to shelters every week to euthanize between 10 and 200 animals (or more in larger centers) so this was where they saw the problems develop quite easily.”

“As such several investigations were launched to see how pets were building up immunities to the drugs. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) launched an investigation. They found that sodium pentobarbital (the drug often used to euthanize pets) passed through the rendering process and ended up in pet food. They admitted finding the drug in some pet foods and stated ‘several retail feeds were confirmed for the presence of phentobarbital which could only have come from euthanized animals.’ Most of these investigations were exposed by television news groups such as Seattle’s King 5, and KMOV in St. Louis, Missouri.”

“What they exposed was something that many people already knew – dead dogs were being used to make dog food. Many animal shelters are government run. These poorly funded shelters found a way of generating extra income and disposing of the animal bodies all at once—Sell them cheaply to a [pet food] rendering plant. You will note your local SPCA probably does not do this.”

This account suggests that the FDA already knows dog meat in dog food is an ongoing problem, and the FDA also knows that euthanized dogs, whose bodies contain the euthanasia drug, are used for dog food. This is not a new discovery or a puzzling problem.

If the FDA is scratching its collective head and trying to solve a mystery, that would be a pose.

It would be like saying, on a human level, “Well, we know several companies have been polluting the water and soil of a town for years, and the chemicals are exceedingly toxic and dangerous, but we’re not sure where the cancer clusters are coming from. Much more investigation is needed.”

It appears we’re looking at a situation where all the parties—government animal shelters, veterinarians, pet food rendering plants, pet food companies, and the FDA—know exactly what’s going on…and say nothing, or pretend surprise when a new case of dogs eating drug-poisoned dog meat shows up.

The FDA is famous for ignoring their own responsibility, when a medical drug they’ve approved, as safe and effective, starts killing people.

Apparently, this same know-nothing attitude applies to pets and the euthanasia drug they’re ingesting.

I wonder how many humans, living on the extreme margins, eating pet food, have succumbed…

Source: Euthanasia drug found in dog food « Jon Rappoport’s Blog

Feel Good Sunday: Home Sweet Home for Donkey Survivors of the Skin Trade | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

By the

The National Council of SPCAs in South Africa is delighted to report a positive, uplifting and heart-warming outcome relating to donkeys rescued from the horrific trade in their skins.

We report that five donkeys have arrived at a beautiful property in Bethlehem in the Free State where they will live out the rest of their lives. The donkeys were adopted according to the standard procedure, which involves a formal application to adopt an animal, including demonstrating that one is able to afford private veterinary fees and committing to looking after the animal for the rest of its natural life.

A further 14 donkeys will travel shortly to a new home. Their adoptions have been approved as all the required administrative procedures have been undertaken.

These donkeys were rescued in the Sani area in early 2017. They were initially cared for at the Sani SPCA, but since their operation is not far from the Lesotho border post, it was feared that the donkeys might be stolen. Their welfare and safety were top priorities, so a decision was taken to move the donkeys to other SPCAs.

The journey to their temporary homes started early on the morning of 24 February 2017, when they were safely loaded into trucks and their journey to the Benoni SPCA and the Kloof and Highway SPCA began. No issues were encountered. Several stops were made en route to Johannesburg to provide water and facilitate checks by our inspectors and veterinarian.

The end of the story is a very uplifting one not only for the donkeys, but for all the dedicated staff involved who worked tirelessly to ensure their safety and to secure their future.

Donkey hide contains a gelatine which is claimed to carry medicinal properties. The gelatine is a key ingredient in China’s ejiao industry, which produces tablets, tonics and a sweet syrup. Donkeys from all over the world are slaughtered, often illegally after being stolen, and their hides exported to China to fuel demand for ejiao.

The “donkey skin trade” continues, but so do our efforts to monitor situations, respond to information received and to take whatever steps may be appropriate when necessary. Criminal charges have been laid in several instances, cases brought before the Courts and convictions obtained. The National Council of SPCAs commits to combating the scourge of the donkey skin trade tirelessly and steadfastly.

http://animalpeopleforum.org/2017/04/22/home-sweet-home-for-donkey-survivors-of-the-skin-trade/

Source: Feel Good Sunday: Home Sweet Home for Donkey Survivors of the Skin Trade | Straight from the Horse’s Heart

SSRI antidepressants increase risk of intracranial hemorrhage « Jon Rappoport’s Blog

From healthline.com: “Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) refers to acute bleeding inside your skull or brain. It’s a life-threatening emergency. You should go to the emergency room right away or call 911 if you think you or someone you know is experiencing ICH.”

By Jon Rappoport

The public has learned about the increased risk of suicide and violent behavior (including murder) stemming from the use of SSRI antidepressants. Now there is more:

Psychiatric News reports (4/7/17): “A study published in February in JAMA Neurology has found that patients taking antidepressants that are strong inhibitors of serotonin reuptake (SSRIs) may be at an increased risk for intracranial hemorrhage, particularly during the first month of use…”

“The results showed that compared with patients taking [the older] tricyclic antidepressants, patients being treated with SSRIs had a 17 percent increased risk of experiencing an intracranial hemorrhage. The risk was highest during the first 30 days the patients were taking the medications.”

SSRIs include: Celexa; Prozac; Paxil; Zoloft; Lexapro; Luvox.

Here are quotes from other Psychiatric News articles about SSRI use and bleeding:

“Physicians prescribing selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) should make patients aware of the possibility of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially if they have pre-existing risk factors or are taking other drugs that increase risk, said a University of Pennsylvania psychiatrist.”

From a January 2014 study in the American Journal of Psychiatry—“Short-term SSRI use—even as little as 7 days—elevated the risk of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, especially in male patients. Just as with NSAIDs and aspirin, physicians should carefully monitor for this side effect.”

Note: Suddenly withdrawing from these drugs can be very dangerous. Psychiatrist Peter Breggin publishes this warning: “Most psychiatric drugs can cause withdrawal reactions, sometimes including life-threatening emotional and physical withdrawal problems. In short, it is not only dangerous to start taking psychiatric drugs, it can also be dangerous to stop them. Withdrawal from psychiatric drugs should be done carefully under experienced clinical supervision. Methods for safely withdrawing from psychiatric drugs are discussed in Dr. Breggin’s new book, Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal: A Guide for Prescribers, Therapists, Patients and Their Families.”

rug Withdrawal: A Guide for Prescribers, Therapists, Patients and Their Families.”

Source: SSRI antidepressants increase risk of intracranial hemorrhage « Jon Rappoport’s Blog