World News Roundup: July 1, 2017

Failure to Vaccinate Puts 6 Million Pets at Risk (Express)

Nearly 25% of dogs and 33% of cats in the United Kingdom “missed out on the life-saving jabs when they were puppies and kittens.” According to the 2017 PAW Report (People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals [PDSA] Animal Wellbeing Report), 2.3 million dogs, 3.6 million cats, and 550,000 rabbits in the country have not been vaccinated. The head of pet health and welfare for PDSA, Nicola Martin, said, “The decreasing number of dogs, cats and rabbits receiving vaccinations is a great concern for the health and welfare of the nation’s pets.”

Mental Health Foundation Campaigns for Pets in the Workplace (New Zealand Herald)

Due to the health benefits associated with animal companionship, the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand is backing a campaign that strives to get more pets into the country’s workplaces. “[The foundation’s] Chief Executive Shaun Robinson has announced the foundation will support calls by pet food company Purina for more organizations to become pet-friendly as studies showed having pets in the office reduced workers' stress and increased productivity.”

US Bans Brazilian Beef Imports Over Safety Concerns (Cattle Network)

Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that the country has halted imports of fresh beef from Brazil “after a high percentage of shipments failed to pass safety checks.” This threatens the reputation of meat from Brazil. Even though the United States is not a top importer of Brazil’s beef and poultry, this move could boost U.S. domestic sales.

Bear Rescue Center: An Exemplary Sanctuary (Animals Asia)

Animals Asia’s China Bear Rescue Centre in Chengdu is being hailed as an example of how sanctuaries should be educating the next generation about the importance of the natural world. Animals Asia Founder and CEO Jill Robinson said, “We believe education is vitally important, not only to save bears in China, but also to create the modern Chinese society we all wish for—a country where animals and humans live in harmony. This award shows that there are many in China, including government, who have the same dream and are willing to walk that road with us.”

Study Shows Most Dog Bites Provoked By People (Times of India)

According to a city-based survey about dog bites in Chennai, India, more than half of the animals involved were pets provoked into attacking their owners. “Alarmingly, around 60% of these dogs did not receive anti-rabies shots or were pets whose owners did not keep a tab on their vaccinations.” Also, half of the owners surveyed did not know their pets’ vaccination status, and 13% did not inoculate them at all.

Veterinarians Reveal List of Danger Items (BBC)

“Painkiller tablets, lilies, and chocolate were among the biggest causes of accidental pet poisoning in the home last year,” veterinarians in the United Kingdom have revealed. Of the nearly 11,000 poisonings reported by the UK’s Veterinary Poisons Information Service, e-cigarettes resuted in 113 cases. “Fatal poisoning cases are known to have involved insulin, baby wipes, bleach, morphine pesticides, and antifreeze.”

Singapore Makes Strides Toward Animal Welfare (Channel News Asia)

The Agri-food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore recently released a code of conduct for pet owners specifying minimum standards for pet care. “Judging from how common it is to see some pet owners keeping too many animals or chaining their animals up for long periods of time, educating them on the minimum they must provide for their pets is a welcomed move.” The code covers accountability, animal housing and environment, and animal management and care.

Indian Women Don Masks to Make a Point (BBC)

A project from a Delhi-based photographer has gone viral for asking a politically explosive question: In India, are women less important than cattle? The photographer said, “I am perturbed by the fact that in my country, cows are considered more important than a woman, that it takes much longer for a woman who is raped or assaulted to get justice than for a cow which many Hindus consider a sacred animal.”