Pangolins, pigeons, puppy mills, politics, plus a catch-up 6/17/2025

It’s been a few weeks since folks on this main list have heard from me. Life threw some curveballs, and I apologize for the silence.  I’ve also taken some time to reflect on effective advocacy and will soon share some exciting changes to DawnWatch. Meanwhile, I have sent out some local alerts over these weeks and will share gratifying results below. Plus, today the New York Times has two animal stories noted on its front page – looking at pigeons and pangolins – to which some of you may wish to respond. A new Washington Post op-ed rails against puppy mills.  And I will share a score of animal stories I have posted to social media over these weeks, for you to catch up on.

Let me start by thanking all of you who sent letters to the Los Angeles Times in response to the coverage I sent out of elephants Billy and Tina having been whisked away in the middle of the night to the Tulsa zoo, rather than to the sanctuary life for which so many of us had been fighting. The paper published two letters in response, the first by me, which I will share here in full:

To the editor:

It is disheartening to learn that Billy and Tina are now at the Tulsa Zoo, stuck in quarantine, rather than at one of the many sanctuaries eager to rehome them (“Elephants Billy and Tina whisked out of L.A. Zoo by night amid protests, arrive in Tulsa,” May 21). My frustration upon learning that Mayor Karen Bass chose not to intervene compounds my frustration with animal advocates who engage in partisan politics and expect Democrats to help animals. Animals need more reliable friends.

I lived in Pacific Palisades from the time the Rick Caruso development opened there and saw Caruso regularly, always with his beloved dog by his side. I have appreciated his support of the Santa Barbara Humane Society. And I can’t help but wonder whether he would have spoken out for the two elephants who’ve already spent decades in zoos and deserve a true retirement on hundreds of acres. Animal advocates should learn his stance on that, and his willingness to get involved in animal welfare issues, before the next election cycle.

Karen Dawn, Santa Barbara

This writer is the director of animal advocacy nonprofit DawnWatch.

(We will see more on animals and politics below.)

The second letter, from Paul Robert Coyle, reminded us of a similar act but Marineland in LA in 1987, when the institution shipped out orcas Orky and Corky in the middle of the night to avoid scrutiny, to SeaWorld in San Diego. Orky died the next year but Corky is still trapped there.

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Thanks also to Angelenos who responded to an alert about Los Angeles Times front-page weekend stories on wolf killing and on the broken animal shelter system. The paper ran a full letters page in response, under the fabulous headline, “Don’t Let Ranchers Kill the Wolves,” which I have displayed on X and on Facebook, so you can see how great the page looked, or you can read them on Yahoo at this wolves letter link or this shelter letter link.

And, as always, I thank Elaine Livesey-Fassel for her commitment to keeping an eye on the LA Times for us.

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Mark Thompson and I discussed the wolf-killing issue at length on his podcast. I share that here in the hope you might check it out, mostly hoping you will enjoy it, and also hoping you might take a second to give it a thumbs up, or take a couple of minutes to leave a comment. YouTube algorithms show segments that garner more responses to more people.

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Today’s, Tuesday June 17, New York Times front page announces, in animal news

“Fighting for Pangolins: US officials say the mammals, which are trafficked for their scales and meat, should be protected. Page A16”

And

“Big Day for a City Bird: The High Line hosted a Pigeon Fest, inspired by a sculpture and a fondness for the oft-maligned bird. Page C1”

The Pangolin story on page A16 is titled, “Pangolins Should Receive Protections of Endangered Species Act, U.S. officials say.”

It tells us:

“The proposed U.S. listing would tighten restrictions a bit further, ending an exemption that allows for the sale of some older pangolin parts within the United States. It would also send a message to China, which continues to have a fairly active domestic market for pangolin scales, said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director with the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the groups that petitioned and sued for pangolins to be listed.”

DawnWatch can provide this gift link to the full article.

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The gorgeous pigeon spread about the on Page C1, about the High Line Pigeon Fest, is titled,  “Rats With Wings? Here They’re Kings.” And here’s a gift link to that one, (compliments of Teresa D’Amico).

Both of those stories provide great opportunities to lend animals your voice on the New York Times letters page.

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The superb op-ed piece on puppy mills, by Jennifer McCartney, was released online by the Washington Post titled, “The ‘puppy farm capital of Europe’ changed a cruel practice. So can the U.S.: Selling puppies in malls is cruelty masquerading as cuteness.” Ain’t that the truth!  It is yet to appear in print, but I can share this gift link with you and urge you to join the discussion in the comments section and/or, better yet, send a letter to the editor that speaks for animals.

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Now here’s that score of stories posted to the DawnWatch X Feed and/or DawnWatch Facebook page:

• News on 6 in Tulsa aired balanced coverage of Billy and Tina’s arrival there, showing their new living conditions.

• The BBC covered an Animal Justice Project investigation of a pig farm, surely likely to make viewers wonder if the pleasure of Mmmm bacon is worth the cost.

• MSN reminded us that at least sometimes humans try to do the right thing by other animals, sharing a story of humans, dressed as bears, caring for an orphaned bear cub.

• Also on the theme of humans doing right by wildlife, KTLA showed us progress on the wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway.

• Journalist Chas Newkey-Burden, a “self-described preachy vegan” penned a piece for The Spectator titled “We need more animal cruelty on TV.”

• The Washington Examiner ran the story, “Trump cheered as the best friend of animals after research grants nixed.”

• While the Examiner is conservative, The very liberal Guardian also brought us good news re Trump and animals: “Trump pardons two divers convicted of theft for freeing sharks off Florida coast.”

• Meanwhile, PETA’s Ashley Byrne wrote a terrific and widely run op-ed titled,  “Empathy for animals should cross the party divide.”

• The Guardian also brought us the kind of feel-good story everybody loves: In Birmingham, UK, a bull escaped the slaughterhouse and earned retirement at Hillside Farm Sanctuary. That one comes with video of the bull trotting down the city streets.

• I hate to share the far sadder New York Poststory, which also comes with photos, “Cow attempts fruitless escape from livestock auction by scaling bleachers”

• We saw a nice write-up in the Orange County Register and elsewhere, from the So Cal News Group, of Katie Bo Lillis’ book, Death of a Racehorse.

• From Psychology Todaywe got a compelling write-up, by Marc Bekoff, of John Sanbonmatsu’s new book, “The Omnivore’s Deception”: The Case of Conflicted Carnivores.”

• We said goodbye to beloved MASH actress and animal advocate Loretta Swit, with the Hello Magazinestory being one that noted her ambassadorship for Farm Sanctuary and PETA.

• Wyoming’s Wyofilebrought us “BLM decides over 3,000 wild horses can be eliminated from Wyoming’s ‘checkerboard’ starting July 15: Appeal process, litigation and a possible injunction still loom, but otherwise roundups culminating in the complete removal of two herds, and a portion of another, will begin within weeks.”

• KATU News shared the story of rescued chimp George settling into his new home at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest.

• MSN brought us the great news that A major pet retailer has banned the sale of live animals at all of its stores across Australia.

• Similarly beautiful news of progress came from The Gazette in Colorado: “Elephants, part of Colorado Renaissance Festival show for decades, won’t appear this year.”

• The Spanish environmental news organization Noticias Ambientales ran a thoughtful piece on issues around swimming with wild orcas.

• The Times of India (and many other outlets) covered an important Nature Journal report under the headline, “Fish endure intense pain up to 24 minutes when killed, study reveals.”

• The Hill ran an op-ed piece on Congress’s “war against small farmers” which recommended, “What we should do is drop the charade and end or dramatically reduce the crony-capitalist corporate welfare system when it comes to Big Agriculture.”

• A distressing story from Malaysia’s The Star, of a dog being dragged behind a motorcycle, included some enlightening information on Malaysian animal cruelty laws as compared with those in most US states:  “Under Section 29(1) of the Animal Welfare Act 2015, those found guilty can be fined up to RM100,000 or jailed up to three years, or fined and jailed.”

• Let me end with a bittersweet CNN  report on the death of a groundhog at the Canadian Grand Prix, which made me an instant Lewis Hamilton fan as it told us, “The impact with the animal..” resulted.. “in a sixth placed finish. But speaking after the race, Hamilton – a vegan and animal rights activist – appeared more upset by the collision than the result.

Sent with profound appreciation to all of you who I know would feel the same way.

Yours and all animals’,
Karen Dawn of DawnWatch