Wildlife SOS on Nat Geo WILD!
We are so excited for this new Nat Geo WILD series! The 6-episode series is called “Jungle Animal Rescue” in the UK, Europe, USA and “India’s Jungle Heroes” in India, Southeast Asia and other locations. Please check your local listings for time and date.
We all are truly excited about the show! If you have always wanted an up-close look at the lifesaving work of Wildlife SOS, this is your unique opportunity to see us in a way never before possible. This episode highlights the reunion of a mother leopard with her tiny cub. Invite your friends and have a watch party!
Tell Pittsburgh Zoo to Nix Cruel Breakup of Elephant Friends
We recently revealed Pittsburgh Zoo's heartbreaking plans to separate a female African elephant named Seeni from her long-time companion of as many as 25 years. Though Wisconsin's Milwaukee County Zoo is in “no rush” to bring Seeni to its facility, please join us in urging the zoos to nix this cruel plan altogether and send the elephants to sanctuaries instead!
After their families were ruthlessly slaughtered in Botswana, Seeni,Thandi, and Sukiri, were kidnapped from the wild as babies and had lived together since the 1990s. In 2011, the three elephants were shipped to the Pittsburgh Zoo's International Conservation Center, an African elephant breeding facility in Somerset, Pennsylvania.
The bonded trio was first broken up last year when Thandi was sent to a zoo in Quebec, Canada where temperatures regularly drop below freezing. If Seeni is also sent away, Sukiri will be left alone and heartbroken in Pennsylvania. While this inhumane plan has been put on hold, the Pittsburgh Zoo must hear from people who care about animals so this plan is never revived in the future.
The Pittsburgh Zoo has been included on our list of Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants four times.
In 2017, the Zoo was listed for impregnating Seeni who produced an unhealthy calf, who was tragically separated from her and euthanized shortly after birth. In 2019, the Pittsburgh Zoo was shamed as the number 1 worst zoo due to Seeni's planned separation and the decrepit conditions in its elephant exhibit, including peeling paint and concrete floors which cause severe foot problems, which can lead to crippling, lameness, and eventual death.
Our investigator also saw elephants engaging in constant pacing and they were visibly frightened by the dogs stationed in close proximity.
Pittsburgh Zoo and its International Conservation Center (ICC) earned the #1 spot on our 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants list in 2019. Our investigator found a number of troubling issues in the enclosure of the Zoo.
Elephants paced around their tiny enclosure for hours, pressing their trunks against a series of small holes in the wall that were the only visible water sources in that confined area. Dogs were observed within close proximity to the elephants, despite a previous USDA citation highlighting the possible "undue stress" caused by the dogs and their aggressive behavior toward the elephants at the direction of Zoo staff. Peeling paint was photographed on the enclosure's bars.
Making matters worse, the Pittsburgh Zoo apparently has no qualms about breaking up elephants who have been together for decades. Social bonds are extremely important for the health and wellbeing of this highly social species. https://www.idausa.org/campaign/eleph...
The Pittsburgh Zoo should close down its cruel exhibit and elephant breeding center and send all its elephants to accredited, warm-weather sanctuaries.
To take action, click here. https://www.idausa.org/campaign/eleph...
Elephant hunting season starts in 2 weeks in Botswana. But Nicole isn’t going to let the bloody elephant slaughter take place without a fight. She wants the U.S. Congress to ban trophy hunting imports from crossing American borders. She needs your help to get lawmakers’ attention before the first elephant is shot dead by an American hunter in April.
U.S. Congress - Ban trophy hunting imports and end elephant slaughter.
Nicole Rojas started this petition to U.S. House of Representatives and it now has 9,004 signatures. Sign now with a click
U.S. Congress - Ban trophy hunting imports and end elephant slaughter. Support the CECIL and Protect Acts
The Botswana government announced it will restart elephant hunts this year. A quota has been issued of 272 killings starting in April and will go through September during their dry season when the bush is thinner and elephants are easier to locate.
Foreign hunters will be allowed to kill 202 of the elephants and 70 will be reserved for local people. Most of the hunters that go to southern Africa are from the U.S. The average cost for a foreign trophy hunter the right to shoot an elephant is anywhere between $21,000-$60,000 or more.
Now is the time to pressure the U.S. government to take action to prevent the pending elephant slaughter.
CECIL Act H.R. 2245; Conserving Ecosystems by Ceasing the Importation of Large Animal Trophies
This will restrict the import and export of trophies of any species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Protect Act, H.R. 4804; Prohibiting Threatened and Endangered Creature Trophies
Prohibit trophy hunting of ESA species in the US and import of any trophy of a species listed under the ESA.
Lastly there is an Appropriations Bill For Fiscal Year 2021
The appropriation bill is a spending bill that authorizes the expenditure of government funds. We would like to see language for the Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2021 to defund U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s trophy import permits of elephants from Botswana.
To help make a bigger impact, you can call your House of Representative asking him/her to support the Cecil and Protect Acts as well as the Appropriations Bills for Fiscal Year 2021.
To find your House of Representative, go to www.house.gov. How did we get here?
One hundred years ago, the global elephant population was approximately 3-5 million. After decades of poaching and hunting, the current elephant population is estimated at 415,000. Elephants are critically endangered and protections for them in certain regions, like Botswana, has recently diminished.
In 2014, the government of Botswana put a trophy hunting ban in place. Due to this ban, elephants from bordering countries such as Namibia and Angola came to Botswana seeking refuge. Today, one third of the African elephant population reside in Botswana.
In 2019, the government made another decision to lift the hunting ban on elephants. Last year, there were 358 elephant hunting permits allotted and a further 386 elephants were poached. Such a large- scale loss of bull elephants in what was once their greatest refuge is unsustainable.
Elephant hunting only hurts us in the big scheme of life. In fact, since the elephant is a keystone species that actually supports ecosystems, their sheer existence helps to maintain biodiversity that supports the health of our planet. We actually benefit from the elephants’ presence without even realizing it.
Elephants contribute more to the ecosystem per capita than we do. Elephants are known as the Gardeners of the Forest. Elephants spread the seeds from the plants they have eaten which helps to disperse the plant life to other areas.
This new plant life gives off oxygen for us to breathe. Elephants dig water holes in dry river beds that other animals use as a water source as well as creating trails that serve as fire breakers.
To take this one step further on how detrimental commercial elephant hunting and poaching is, we are currently in the world’s sixth mass extinction. The first 5 mass extinctions were all-natural phenomena. This current extinction is almost exclusively due to humans. Dozens of species are going extinct every day and it is predicted by 2050, 30-50% of all species will be extinct. Losing species at this rate will break down ecosystems that we rely on for the health of the planet. This is another reason why it is critical we help conserve and protect the elephants and all wildlife.
Elephants also help the local economies through eco-tourism. According to an article by All Africa research indicates eco-tourism is a $2 billion-dollar industry and reintroducing hunting contributes to only 1.9% of tourism.
Stand with us to pressure the U.S. government to take action. Sign and share this petition to help end trophy hunting and protect elephants and other incredible wildlife. With heartfelt gratitude, Nicole @WildForChange.
The Internet is full of glossy websites showing off photos of fun-loving, smiling vacationers interacting with "happy" elephants at tourist attractions. But these images are a fantasy that tourism providers want you to believe in.
Behind the pachyderms' apparent jovial expressions hides the actual truth about elephant-focused vacations in Asia.
What these advertisers don't want you to know is that elephants aren't doing crowd-pleasing things because they want to. Elephants are doing these things because they have no choice — because they know they will be hurt if they don't.
No wild elephant displays the behaviors one witnesses in these ridiculous exhibitions. To make the animals perform for crowds, trainers use cruel techniques. Handlers often start with the youngest calves, separating them from their mothers and subjecting them to a training process known as "phajaan," or "the crush." During phajaan, trainers beat the animal into submission in order to break their will. This process leaves them so traumatized that they will do anything their captors say.
But that isn't where the torture ends. For the rest of their lives, these captive elephants are held in appalling conditions with little room to roam. They are overworked, often forced to entertain or carry humans around for hours on end, all while being poked and prodded with hooks and spikes to make them "behave."
The conditions are so grim, the British Travel Association has even ruled these holiday packages unacceptable — yet some British holiday providers continue to sell these unethical encounters to unsuspecting tourists anyway.
Luckily, some in the British government want to make it illegal for any British holiday provider to sell such encounters.
British tourism companies still think it's "fun" to send vacationers to snap photos with tormented elephants who perform out of fear of pain. This must stop now!\
Please sign and share a new petition to U.S. Congress asking to ban trophy hunting imports!
Elephant hunting season in Botswana starts in April and will go through September. 272 elephants have been slated for this hunting season.
The time is now to tell the U.S. government to protect elephants and other precious wildlife.
Please click on the link below to sign the petition to the U.S. Congress asking members to support the Cecil and Protect Acts.
Both of these bills will restrict the import of trophies of species listed under the Endangered Species Act which includes elephants.
Please sign and share this petition: https://www.change.org/p/u-s-house-of-representatives-u-s-congress-ban-trophy-hunting-imports-and-end-elephant-slaughter
Imagine 272 elephants gone in just five months who are already critically endangered.
Then compound this loss with poaching and wildlife trafficking of other elephants and wildlife.
We do not have time to waste and we cannot give up on this fight.
Elephant in The Room
"Corporations Are People Too My Friends."
Our companies are known for creating products that enhance people's lives. Through Sunset Corporation of America and its companies, we’re equally dedicated to improving lives. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.
Our companies are known for creating products that enhance people's lives. Through Sunset Corporation of America and its companies, we’re equally dedicated to improving lives. Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.
Activism and Sustainability:
Gun Safety & Gun Laws
Cruelty Free
Death Penalty
Demand Action
Sustainable Action Network
Fairness and Equality:
Privatization
Voters Issues & Gerrymandering
Private Prisons & the War on Drugs
Finance, Housing & the Economy Corporate Responsibility:
Candidates, Bills, Laws & Protections
Wildlife & Oceania
Labeling & Transparency
Comprehensive Captivity & Hunting Results Databases
