Critical insights at the intersection of animals and politics
We are in disaster mode as a nation — sheltering in place, deploying FEMA and the National Guard, filling hospital beds with those showing the worst symptoms, and delivering food and other services to those in need. There are more than 60,000 Americans infected with the coronavirus, and 800 dead. Those numbers are sure to … Read more
Washington, D.C. — This week, the United States, Animal Wellness Action (AWA) and the Animal Wellness Foundation (AWF) submitted their respective arguments to the U.S. District Court in Guam and urged the federal judge presiding in the case to reject the arguments that the law extending animal fighting to the territories is unconstitutional as argued … Read more
“The Trump administration should consider a travel ban on China until China has verifiably shut down its exotic animal markets, at the very least,” wrote author and pundit Ben Shapiro this week. “The current crisis will cost millions of American jobs, millions more of Americans’ savings and thousands of American lives.” He’s right. And it’s … Read more
Gambling Company Spends Tens of Thousands Lobbying Against Anti-Doping Legislation that Would Save Equine Lives Louisville, Kentucky — Today, Animal Wellness Action took aim at Churchill Downs, the parent company and operator of The Kentucky Derby, for its self-serving announcement to delay the famed event while it quietly lobbies to block federal anti-doping legislation that … Read more
Press Release The animals were all placed for adoption by the Bureau of Land Management’s adoption programs, which put federally protected equines at risk of slaughter Washington, D.C. — The global health crisis caused by the Coronavirus should not be allowed to trigger a wave of pet companion relinquishment, according to the Animal Wellness Foundation … Read more
Washington, D.C. — Today, Bob Baffert, American horseracing’s best-known figure, endorsed the Horseracing Integrity Act, a measure to ban race-day doping of horses in American racing. Baffert’s endorsement was released in an essay published in the Washington Post. The legislation collectively has 275 Congressional cosponsors and is led by lawmakers representing major horseracing states and … Read more
My alarm didn’t need to wake me this morning. Instead, it was rapid-fire buzzing from a flurry of incoming calls before the sun rose. It was news of the FBI’s surprise raids at a racetrack and horse training facility in Florida around 5:00 A.M. I reached out to my contacts at the FBI, and U.S. … Read more
Washington, D.C. — In response to the FBI raiding multiple horseracing facilities across the U.S. and federal prosecutors charging racehorse trainers, veterinarians and drug distributors for involvement in a corrupt scheme to rig race outcomes, Animal Wellness Action lauded federal authorities for treating the problem seriously and renewed its call for lasting reform by passing … Read more
I wrote a week ago how the coronavirus may have started in Wuhan and unevenly radiated to now 77 nations throughout the world. The virus almost certainly infected its first human victim by jumping the species barrier in a “wet market” — open-air shops that are mixing bowls of people, animals, blood and other bodily … Read more
Press Release First Case of COVID-19 in a Pet Transmission Suspected from Infected Person to Dog, but the Animal is Asymptomatic Washington, D.C. — Policy makers should act with restraint and with a common-sense, science-based approach in dealing with cases where pets contract COVID-19, according to veterinarians and other experts from the Animal Wellness Foundation. … Read more