Category: Press Release

43 countries have stopped animal testing for cosmetics and more bans on the way

Humane Society International / Europe

mustafagull/iStock.com 

EUROPE—This Saturday marks the 10th anniversary of the European Union’s ban on cosmetic animal testing and trade, and the climax of a decade-long campaign by Humane Society International, its affiliates and partners to extend the cruelty-free cosmetics model across the globe. Humane Society International and other non-governmental organizations, together with a growing number of forward-looking beauty brands, have been instrumental in securing more than two dozen national and state animal testing or sales restrictions. Now, they are calling on countries around the globe to follow suit.

Aviva Vetter, senior manager of Humane Society International’s global cosmetics campaign, said: “We are immensely proud of how far the beauty sector has evolved since launching our #BeCrueltyFree campaign, and the life-saving impact it has had for untold numbers of animals in countries that outlawed animal testing for cosmetics, or that have moved away from such testing being mandatory. Our aim is to build on this progress by securing similar national measures in additional key markets, including Canada, Brazil, Chile, South Africa and Southeast Asia, over the coming year. It’s time to consign cosmetics testing on animals to oblivion once and for all.”

Since its 2012 launch, Humane Society International’s global campaign has produced a wave of national bans or restrictions on animal testing for cosmetics—from India, South Korea, Taiwan, New Zealand, Australia, Guatemala, Mexico, and just this past week, Brazil. China, long the only country to expressly require animal testing for cosmetic products as a condition of sale or import, has gradually relaxed its requirements since 2014. With 43 national bans currently in force an end to this needless and cruel practice is finally in sight.

The most iconic feature of HSI’s campaign is its charismatic spokesbunny Ralph, who became a worldwide sensation in 2021 following release of the stop-motion film Save Ralph. This docu-style film shines a poignant light on the plight of animals in testing labs through a creative collaboration between HSI, Hollywood filmmakers and animators, and a star-studded, multilingual voice cast featuring Oscar-winner Taika Waititi, Ricky Gervais, Zac Efron, Olivia Munn, Tricia Helfer, Pom Klementieff Denis Villeneuve, George Lopez Rosario Dawson, Wilmer Valderrama, ,Rodrigo Santoro , Diem My Vu and H’Hen-Nie, who brought Ralph and his friends to life in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Vietnamese. The film’s viral popularity led to more than 825 million #SaveRalph tags and homages on TikTok, more than 150 million film views on social platforms, and inspired more than 5 million people to take action to help by signing HSI petitions. Save Ralph has gone on to win numerous prestigious awards, including the Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Good award  and two Webby awards.

Leadership by European lawmakers, NGOs and other stakeholders in pioneering a cruelty-free innovation model for the cosmetics sector inspired not only Humane Society International’s transformative global campaign, but the creation of a new generation of scientific tools for making safety decisions without animal testing—a true win for everyone.

Facts:

  • Humane Society International launched its global #BeCrueltyFree campaign in 2012 in partnership with the Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society Legislative Fund and Lush Cosmetics.
  • Since 2019, other industry leaders have teamed up with Humane Society International through the Animal-Free Safety Assessment Collaboration to advance cosmetics animal testing bans in key global beauty markets, including Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Avon Products Inc., L’Oréal and Johnson & Johnson.
  • These and other Animal-Free Safety Assessment Collaboration members have also developed a state-of-the-art Master Class in Animal-Free Cosmetic Safety Assessment to build confidence, capacity and global use of non-animal science in safety decision-making.
  • Humane Society International would like to express its heartfelt thanks to all our #SaveRalph collaborators, including writer/director/editor Spencer Susser; producers Jeff Vespa and Lisa Arianna; puppet-makers and set designer Andy Gent and the team at arch Film and Arch Model Studios; lead animator Tobias Fouracre, DP Tristan Oliver, and our incredible voice cast of Taika Waititi, Ricky Gervais, Zac Efron, Olivia Munn, Pom Klementieff, Tricia Helfer, Denis Villeneuve, George Lopez, Rosario Dawson, Wilmer Valderrama, Denis Villeneuve, Rodrigo Santoro, Diem My Vu and H’Hen-Nie, who donated their time and talent to bring Ralph and his friends to life in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Vietnamese.

ENDS

Media contact: Emily Ehrhorn: 202-779-1814; eehrhorn@humanesociety.org

Captive-bred lion hunts for sale against convention rules; potential violations of state law; hundreds of hunts targeting rhinos, leopards, elephants; practices that violate hunting ethics; custom products made from skin and claws

Humane Society International

The HSUS

WASHINGTON—A shocking undercover investigation released today by the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International exposed the hypocrisy that the trophy hunting industry uses to promote the killing of imperiled species. The Safari Club International convention in Nashville, Tennessee Feb. 22 through 25, hosted over 850 exhibitors from more than 140 countries peddling trophy hunts and products made from animal skins and claws. The event brought in about $6 million in revenue for SCI to further its lobbying efforts to roll back laws and regulations that protect vulnerable species from trophy hunting, including Endangered Species Act protections.

Trophy hunts were offered in at least 65 countries with the majority in South Africa, Canada, Namibia, Zimbabwe and New Zealand. Almost 100 outfitters offered elephant hunts, at least 115 offered leopard hunts, 98 offered lion and giraffe hunts, 89 offered hippo hunts, and 39 offered rhino hunts. On exhibitors’ websites, critically endangered animals, like the forest elephant and the black rhino, were also available to hunt, as well as captive animals such as scimitar oryx, a species classified as extinct in the wild and bred almost exclusively for trophy hunting.

The investigation revealed hunting trips sold from $2,500 to $143,000 with menus so hunters could “add-on” animals in addition to their primary targets. Most African carnivore hunts were advertised to include baiting—a practice that uses carcasses of other animals, like impala and zebras, or other items to lure the target species, which violates fair chase ethics and causes conservation issues by drawing out animals from protected areas into hunting zones.

Among the most revealing investigation findings is a recorded conversation with an exhibitor who encouraged the investigator to schedule a white rhino hunt before it is too late as the species is on the brink of extinction. They stated: “The one that’s gonna be closed down the soonest to import to the United States because of the numbers going down is the rhino… and if you want something Africa[n], you have to get the rhino as soon as possible.”

Outfitters were also vocal about “bending the rules” and broke policies to make a sale. One vendor violated the convention’s own policy against promoting captive lion hunts—a cruel, senseless practice condemned by the South African and U.S. governments and many others. He told the investigator, “You can hunt…captive bred lions in South Africa, cause this way you’re not impacting the wild lions…but they…catch their own animals; they’re as wild as can be.” Another told the HSUS/HSI investigator, “…we’ve got hunters that really can’t walk at all…we do bend our own rules a little and we shoot them from the truck…we don’t have a problem with it.” Hunting from a vehicle is illegal in many places because it violates fair chase ethics and invites numerous safety hazards.

Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, said: “Despite the public’s growing disdain for trophy hunting, Safari Club International’s convention celebrates the senseless killing of animals, putting their deaths up for sale around the world, all to be turned into nothing more than trinkets and stuffed trophies. Make no mistake: This is an industry that threatens our most imperiled and ecologically important wildlife. As one of the world’s largest consumers of hunting trophies of imperiled species, the United States government has the responsibility to end hunting trophy imports.”

Jeff Flocken, president of Humane Society International, said: “Iconic species like elephants, rhinos and leopards play critical roles in their respective ecosystems, with many other species dependent on the delicate balance they provide. Sadly, these same animals are also highly coveted by trophy hunters. And as they often target the largest individuals of a species, they weaken the gene pool and can even cause collapses of small populations. In the midst of this biodiversity crisis in which over one million species face extinction, the global community must strive to protect wild animals by eschewing cruel practices like trophy hunting.”

Hundreds of luxury items were offered at the convention and for custom order including elephant skin luggage sets ranging from $10,000 to $18,000 and jewelry made from leopard claws. Both African elephants and leopards are listed under the Endangered Species Act. Exhibitors also offered lynx coats for $14,000 and purses made from zebra for $2,350. Multiple vendors displayed or offered for sale items made from imperiled species in potential violation of state law. At one booth, for example, a taxidermy company advertised its services by displaying horns from an endangered black rhino. Tennessee state law prohibits the commercial use of federally endangered species.

Among the hunting trips up for auction were a lion, leopard and plains game hunt in Zambia valued at $143,000; a hunt for a brown/grizzly bear, Dall sheep, moose, black bear and caribou in Alaska valued at $100,000; a white rhino hunt in South Africa valued at $100,000; a canned hunt for a bongo antelope in Texas valued at $41,870; and a polar bear hunt that sold for $100,000.

“Trophy hunting is an archaic and abhorrent practice that we must no longer tolerate,” said Sara Amundson, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund. “It is unthinkable that endangered and threatened species are killed just to have their parts put out on display. Congress has been urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to look into its trophy import program for years and this convention is another reminder that the Biden administration must take a hard look at trophies coming into the U.S. so that species are not further pushed to the brink of extinction. We must continue to fight to end this egregious display of blatant disregard for the future of these imperiled species.”

Media Contact: Rodi Rosensweig, 202-809-8711, rrosensweig@humanesociety.org

Humane Society International

Claudio Ramirez for HSI

CHILE—Humane Society International is providing critical supplies to aid animals affected by the wildfires plaguing Chile. Oxygen concentrators, food and veterinary medical supplies were provided by the HSI team to animal rehabilitation centers and veterinary hospitals to support hundreds of wild, companion and farm animals impacted by the fires in the Ñuble and Bio Bio Region.

After three weeks, the forest fires remain active and have further spread into the Maule, La Araucanía and Los Ríos regions. The area affected by the fires is over 436,000 hectares (over a million acres)—three times the size of the Greater London area.

“We are seeing how fires are becoming more common each year in many parts of the world, destroying communities and habitats for millions of people and animals. Chile is now experiencing one of the worst fires in decades and we are sending resources to provide as much emergency treatment to animals affected as possible,” says Kelly Donithan director of animal disaster response for Humane Society International.

The situation is critical, many animals have died, and others remain severely burned. As a first estimate over 16,000 farm animals have died and over 2,000 are still receiving critical veterinary care. Treatments for injuries sustained from fires are painful, long and expensive and without additional supplies, many of these affected animals will not survive.

“We have been in dialogue with all stakeholders involved, monitoring critical needs and coordinating with our international team to provide timely supplies to help the animals affected. With help from Quiltro Foundation in Chile, we have delivered veterinary supplies such as oxygen concentrators for the treatment of wild animals in critical conditions along with food and other medication to support hundreds of severely burned companion, wild and farm animals,” says Daniela Sanchez, Chile country director for Humane Society International.

The combined efforts between the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service, the National Veterinary Board, the Agriculture and Livestock Service, the University of Concepción, the military forces and many veterinary private clinics and local volunteers have resulted in the installation of a number of local veterinary attention points to help animals in need.

Humane Society International will continue connecting and supporting local stakeholders in Chile to help provide relief to the thousands of affected animals.

ENDS

Media Contact: Daniela Benavides Sanchez: dsanchez@hsi.org

Humane Society International / Europe

Fox on a fur farm
Oikeutta eläimille

BRUSSELS—An official EU-wide petition, called the Fur Free Europe European Citizens’ Initiative, has closed more than two months ahead of the deadline for signatures after exceeding the number of signers required for the European Commission to respond. More than 1.7 million EU citizens signed the petition calling for an EU-wide ban on cruel fur farming and trade. Following its commitments under the EU Farm to Fork Strategy, the European Commission is currently drafting legislative proposals to update and expand the scope of EU animal welfare legislation. Campaigners argue this is the perfect opportunity to include a ban on the fur trade across the European Union.

Launched on 18 May last year with a target of 1 million signatures within 12 months, the ECI has collected enough signatures in less than 10 months for campaigners to be confident it will exceed the target after signatures are officially validated. More than 80 animal protection organisations from across Europe, including Humane Society International/Europe and other members of the Fur Free Alliance, called on EU citizens to take part if they agree that fur farming is cruel and unnecessary.

Dr Joanna Swabe, HSI/Europe’s senior director of public affairs, says: “EU citizens have made their voice heard loud and clear, they want a full EU-wide ban on cruel fur farming and fur imports. Fur farming is inherently inhumane, so we warn the Commission that any proposal for animal welfare standards for species, such as mink and fox, would be completely unacceptable. More than 1.7 million signatures have been collected in less than 10 months, so now it’s time for the Commission to take decisive action and consign this cruel trade to the annals of history. Confining animals to a miserable life in a cage just for frivolous fur fashion is a practice that belongs to the past. The fur industry has no future in the European Union.”

The complex behavioural needs of wild species, such as American mink, fox, chinchilla and raccoon dog, cannot be met on fur factory farms, and eye and ear infections, deformed feet, repetitive pacing indicative of mental decline, and cannibalism have all been documented on fur farms in Europe. In addition to animal cruelty, fur farming is damaging to the environment due, for example, to the use of toxic chemicals to dress, dye and preserve fur. Fur farms also pose a risk to European biodiversity. American mink is an invasive alien species that has been implicated in the decline of native species, such as the European mink and water vole, and has had a significant impact on breeding success of native birds and on domestic fowl.

Fur farming also poses a serious public health risk. Since April 2020 there have been hundreds of outbreaks of COVID-19 on mink fur farms across Europe, and in October 2022 a fur farm in Spain with 52,000 mink reported an outbreak of avian flu that had likely spread between the animals.

To date, 19 countries across Europe, including Member States the Netherlands, Belgium, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy, France, Luxembourg, Estonia, Latvia, Malta, Ireland and Austria, have banned the practice of fur farming. Fur farming continues to be allowed in Finland, Poland, Greece, Lithuania, Spain, Romania, Sweden, Denmark and Bulgaria. However, figures show the industry is in decline: in 2014, approximately 43.6 million animals were killed for fur in European countries, a number that had fallen to 30.7 million by 2019 and, as of 2021, has declined further to 12 million animals. More than 1,500 retailers, including Gucci, Adidas, H&M and Zara, have committed to a fur-free future and have joined the Fur Free Retailer scheme.

The next phase of the ECI process is the validation of the signatures by Member States, which will take three months, after which the European Commission must take the ECI into consideration and deliver a response within six months.

Download photos and video of a Finnish fur farm taken in Nov 2021

ENDS

Media contact:  Yavor Gechev, HSI/Europe communications director: ygechev@his.org

#BeCrueltyFree campaign applauds largest beauty market in South America for restricting cosmetics animal testing

Humane Society International / Global

sirius_r/iStockphoto

Brasilia, BRAZIL—A partial ban on animal testing for cosmetics in Brazil was introduced by the National Council for the Control of Animal Experimentation via regulatory restriction No. 58, of Feb. 24, 2023, published today in the Union Official Journal. The restriction prohibits animal testing for cosmetic ingredients with “known effects” and obligates the use of alternative methods for “unknown ingredients.”

Humane Society International government affairs specialist in Brazil, Antoniana Ottoni, said: “We are thrilled to see our efforts come to fruition after a decade of campaigning resulting in state bans and federal progress. This new Brazilian norm is a welcome next step in the right direction and something for which we have long advocated. However, a domestic testing ban on its own will not prevent the import and sale of newly animal-tested cosmetics from other countries. This will put our personal care industry at a competitive disadvantage, and fall short of the cruelty-free beauty sector that Brazilian consumers have made clear that they want. For this reason, our work to secure a federal law must continue, and we look forward to working with the Chamber of Deputies to build on this positive momentum to see a federal law in place this year.”

As an extension of the Ministry of Science and Technology, CONCEA does not have the legal jurisdiction to include certain important issues in its resolutions, including a restriction on marketing cosmetics that rely on new animal data. As such, the new CONCEA normative should be seen as a partial solution only, and one that requires the support of lawmakers to augment.

At the end of last year, language for a federal bill was agreed to by Humane Society International and The Brazilian Association of Personal Hygiene, Perfumery and Cosmetics Industry, and through a cooperative effort, it cleared the Federal Senate. Today, PL 3062/2022 is in urgent status and stands ready for approval by the Chamber of Deputies, and contains all the essential provisions to complement the CONCEA normative and guarantee an end to cosmetic animal testing in Brazil.

Humane Society International has led a decade-long global effort to outlaw animal testing for cosmetics and has played a pivotal role in securing national bans in India, Norway, Switzerland, South Korea, Australia and Mexico. #BeCrueltyFree Brazil, led by Humane Society International and Te Protejo, was instrumental in attaining state-level bans in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Amazonas, Pará, Santa Catarina, Paraná, Pernambuco, Espírito Santo, Acre, Paraíba and the Federal Distict.

ENDS

Media Contact: Antoniana Ottoni: aottoni@hsi.org; +5561981403636

Humane Society International’s rescuers are still finding dogs and cats alive more than three weeks after the first quake

Humane Society International

Emrah Gurel/AP Images for HSI.

ANTAKYA,Türkiye—More than three weeks after the deadly earthquake in Türkiye, the animal rescue team from Humane Society International is still finding dogs and cats alive in abandoned apartments, damaged buildings or wandering the streets. The animal charity estimates that more than 1,500 animals―dogs, cats, rabbits, goldfish, a rooster, budgies, reptiles and more―have been brought to receive medical care at just the three main veterinary field clinics set up by local veterinarians and groups in the city of Antakya, where HSI’s team is working. HSI estimates that tens of thousands of animals across the country will have perished.

Most of the animals being rescued and brought to the clinics, have suffered cuts, bruises, infected wounds, infected eyes, dehydration, starvation and shock.  Unbelievably, despite most of these animals seeming to have had little to no access to food or water, they have survived against the odds.

Kelly Donithan, HSI’s director of animal disaster response, is leading HSI’s deployment. Ms Donithan says: “It’s remarkable that after more than three weeks since the first earthquake, our team is still finding animals alive, but they are in desperate need of help. Around 1,500 have been treated in just the three main veterinary field hospitals where we’re working in Antakya, and the numbers of dead animals across the country is likely to run into the tens of thousands. The animals we’re finding still alive are often in abandoned and damaged apartments, where they’ve been all alone throughout this disaster. I can only imagine how frightening it must have been for them enduring four earthquakes over the past couple of weeks, and also experiencing the deafening drone of helicopters overhead. When I think of how nervous my own animals are at home when there are loud bangs like fireworks, it’s heart breaking to think how traumatized these animals must have been. Now they’re getting all the love and care they need to heal, but every day we’re finding more amidst the rubble and wreckage.”

Humane Society International’s team of experienced disaster responders have come from the United States, Europe, Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia and India.

HSI responds to disasters around the world to assist animals and communities in need, and in the past has stepped in to provide emergency treatment to animals affected by volcanic eruptions in Guatemala; deadly earthquakes in Nepal, Ecuador and Mexico; hurricanes, flash floods and cyclones in India, Haiti and Mozambique; and wildfires in Australia and Chile; as well as helping refugees and their pets fleeing the war in Ukraine.

ENDS

Media contact: Wendy Higgins, director of international media: whiggins@hsi.org

Donate to HSI’s Animal Rescue Fund here to provide grants, vital supplies and fund our teams in emergency situations such as this.

 

The lifesaving program to manage the city’s street dog population celebrates World Spay Day with milestone

Humane Society International / India

Kawi from Lucknow’s Rajajipuram area was the 50,000th dog to be sterilized. Photo by: Shruti Singh for HSI/India

LUCKNOW, Uttar Pradesh—Humane Society International/India celebrates World Spay Day with the successful completion of its 50,000th spay/neuter surgery in Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, reaching a crucial milestone in its Animal Birth Control program.

In 2019, HSI/India implemented the city’s first-ever comprehensive street dog management program to improve the welfare of its street dog population. As is the case in many other Indian cities, street dogs in Lucknow often suffered from injuries caused by vehicular accidents, malnutrition and infectious disease; sadly, few survived long enough to see their first birthday.

Lucknow is home to more than 4 million people and an estimated 75,000 dogs living on the streets.

The two projects involve traditional aspects of dog management including high-volume, high-quality spay/neuter and rabies vaccination, coupled with intensive community engagement and ongoing data collection to ensure the success of the programs. The dog management project is run in collaboration with the Lucknow Municipal Corporation. Thanks to the work of HSI/India, Lucknow is on the path to becoming Uttar Pradesh’s first city to have achieved 80% sterilization of its street dog population and will hopefully serve as a model for other Indian cities.

“A large population of unsterilized dogs contributes to ongoing dog-related complaints and requests for help from the local community,” says Dr. Arvindkumar Rao, additional municipal commissioner at Lucknow Nagar Nigam. “Achieving 50,000 surgeries using high-quality protocols is a great achievement to ensure better dog welfare in the city.”

“Despite setbacks posed by the pandemic, we were able to successfully sterilize almost 58% of the entire dog population in Lucknow,” says Dr. Neeraj Kumar, program manager at HSI/India. “After sterilizing the 50,000th dog Kawi, we are more determined than ever to achieve our goal of sterilizing 80% of the entire dog population in the city by the end of 2023.”

Thanks to the work of HSI/India, Lucknow is on the path to becoming Uttar Pradesh’s first city to have achieved 80% sterilization of its street dog population and will hopefully serve as a model for other Indian cities to follow.

Media contact: Shaili Shah, sshah@hsi.org ; 993-059-1005

Humane Society International’s veterinarian and rescuers help local teams respond to desperate calls to find pets

Humane Society International

Emrah Gurel/AP Images for HSI.

ANTAKYA,Türkiye—A veterinarian and animal rescue team from Humane Society International who have deployed to Antakya, Türkiye following the earthquakes, are responding to requests from locals to find their missing pets. Following the original 7.8 magnitude earthquake and a second 6.4 magnitude yesterday, dogs and cats can be seen roaming the streets, and desperate barks and meows can still be heard coming from abandoned and collapsed buildings. HSI is working with a team of local vets responding to as many calls as possible.

Kelly Donithan, HSI’s director of animal disaster response, is leading HSI’s deployment. Ms Donithan says: “Every day here our team is heading out to search for animals in the worst affected areas. We’re bringing back rescued dogs and cats suffering with cuts, bruising, malnutrition, dehydration and infections. We’re working with an amazing team of local vets and volunteers in a veterinary field hospital tent, and the calls for help keep coming in. People who evacuated are worried for their pets left behind, so wherever possible we locate their apartments and find them. We’re also picking up animals on the street; we found a mother dog who had very recently given birth, her puppies were still blind but somehow she’d managed to keep them safe. When we settled her in a comfy bed at the hospital she was so exhausted she slept all day while her pups suckled.

We’ve been setting up water bowls on street corners as so many roaming animals are suffering from dehydration. It’s hard to estimate how many animals have been impacted by this disaster, but the numbers are certainly high. It’s clear that for the people here who have lost everything, to know that their pet companions are safe means a lot and it is humbling for our animal rescue work to be so welcomed by the people we’re meeting in Antakya.”

Humane Society International’s team of experienced disaster responders have come from the United States, Europe, Mexico and Costa Rica, and will soon be joined by colleagues from Colombia and India. HSI has additionally provided an emergency grant of financial aid to local rescue groups Working Animals Rescue Foundation and Homeless Animals Protection Society, enabling them to dispatch veterinarians and response vehicles to get veterinary and relief supplies to the animals and their people most in need.

HSI responds to disasters around the world to assist animals and communities in need, and in the past has stepped in to provide emergency treatment to animals affected by volcanic eruptions in Guatemala; deadly earthquakes in Nepal, Ecuador and Mexico; hurricanes, flash floods and cyclones in India, Haiti and Mozambique; and wildfires in Australia and Chile; as well as helping refugees and their pets fleeing the war in Ukraine.

Donate to HSI’s Animal Rescue Fund here to provide grants, vital supplies and fund our teams in emergency situations such as this.

Download photos and video 

ENDS

Media contact: Wendy Higgins, director of international media: whiggins@hsi.org

 

 

On World Pangolin Day, HSI/Africa celebrates the successful reintroduction of vulnerable pangolins into the wild

Humane Society International / Africa

Footage of Cory the pangolin with her pangolin pup at the Manyoni Private Game Reserve after being retrieved, rehabilitated and released back into the wild.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa—On World Pangolin Day 2023, animal protection organization Humane Society International/Africa celebrates a powerful collaboration with the African Pangolin Working Group and the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital to retrieve, rehabilitate and release vulnerable Temminck’s pangolins back into the wild. One of the many success stories is that of Cory, a lucky pangolin who was rescued from poachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now released back in the wild after rehabilitation, a camera trap has revealed that Cory has given birth to a pango-pup, who has been filmed clinging to her back.

Pangolins are the world’s only scaled mammals. They are ruthlessly poached for these scales— mistakenly believed to have curative properties in traditional Asian medicine—as well as for meat, which is eaten as a delicacy in some Asian countries. They are incredibly vulnerable and submissive creatures with no teeth who are unable to defend themselves or run away from danger. Their only means of defense is to curl into a ball, which ironically makes them even more vulnerable to poachers who can easily pick them up. The number of pangolins left in the wild is unknown as they are very difficult to spot, but all species of pangolin are classified as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered. In 2019, 97 tons of African pangolin scales were trafficked from Africa, which equates to roughly 160,000 individual pangolins.

Dr. Audrey Delsink, wildlife director for Humane Society International/Africa, said: “Pangolins are officially the world’s most trafficked mammal. This is devastating for a species whose cryptic status means that little is known about how many actually exist in the wild. Every pangolin saved from the trade and successfully reintroduced back into the wild is a conservation success. The birth of this pango-pup signifies hope that with better enforcement of laws prohibiting pangolin trafficking and continued work on rehabilitating and protecting these iconic animals, we can halt the rapid decline in pangolin populations. HSI/Africa is proud to support the African Pangolin Working Group and the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital and applaud all those who work tirelessly to save this remarkably unique species from extinction.”

Cory the pangolin was one of several of her species retrieved from a crime intelligence-led sting operation in Johannesburg during the pandemic. Law enforcement officials discovered Cory concealed in a zipped sports bag and in very poor condition as she had been held captive for approximately 10 days without food or water, and surely experienced extreme psychological stress during this time.

Cory was treated at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital where she was initially weighed in at an underweight 4.9 kilograms. Although Cory’s condition was poor, she seemed to be free of any physical injuries and was deemed likely to recover fairly easily.

After a month of rehabilitation, Cory was transported to Manyoni Private Game Reserve for an initial ‘soft’ release. Cory still needed to gain weight to reach 6.5 kilograms before she could safely be released back into the wild, so she was fitted with two telemetry tags for monitoring—a VHF (very high frequency) and a satellite device generously sponsored by The Boucher Legacy— attached painlessly to one of her scales.

Cory was eventually released in 2020 in Manyoni Private Game Reserve in Zululand where she and another tagged pangolin were observed using the satellite data and a camera trap the specialist Manyoni team placed in front of Cory’s burrow. There was tremendous excitement in July 2022 when the camera trap revealed a surprise: a pup holding on to Cory’s tail as she exited the burrow! This week, merely days before World Pangolin Day, Cory and her pup were spotted inside her burrow and both mum and pup are thriving in their natural habitat. This birth has signaled the overall success of the program to retrieve, rehabilitate and reintroduce Temminck’s pangolin back into KwaZulu Natal’s wilderness where they had been locally extinct for around four decades.

Four traffickers were arrested by the South African Police Service Cullinan Stock Theft and Endangered Species Unit for the poaching of Cory. One of the perpetrators was found guilty and sentenced to three years’ jail time or a R10,000 fine.

Note: All pangolins who are treated at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital are kept off-site for safety and security.

Pangolin facts:

  • There are eight species of pangolin in the world: four Asian species and four African species.
  • Of the four Asian species of pangolin, the Sunda, the Chinese, and the Philippine are now listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, while the Indian pangolin is listed as endangered.
  • Of the four African species, the white-bellied and the giant ground pangolin are listed as endangered, while the Temminck’s and the black-bellied are listed as vulnerable.
  • An estimated one million pangolins were trafficked globally over the past decade.
  • Europe has become a key transit route for pangolin parts from Africa to Asia, and pangolin parts are also illegally trafficked from Asia to the United States.

Photos of Cory and her pup are available here.

ENDS

Media contact: Leozette Roode, media specialist for Humane Society International/Africa, LRoode@hsi.org, +27 71 360 1104.

 

Humane Society International

HSI

KOREA—A joint public-private discussion forum will take place on Feb. 8 at the National Assembly to request the swift enactment of a bill proposed to advance animal-free approaches in science.

The forum discussion entitled “An era that runs tests with novel technologies instead of animals” is hosted by the National Assembly Animal Welfare Forum and organized by Humane Society International/Korea, and Reps. Nam In-soon and Lee Joo-hwan. It takes place at the National Office Members’ Office Building from 2-4:30 p.m. on Feb. 8.

A number of domestic and overseas experts will be joining the discussion to share the past cases of public-private collaborative efforts in working to replace animal testing. The forum will start with HSI/Korea’s director of government affairs Borami Seo providing an introduction on the status on the PAAM Act—the Act on the Promotion of Development, Dissemination and Use of Alternatives to Animal Testing Methods. This will be followed by a session led by Dr. Lorna Ewart, chief scientific officer of Boston-based life science company Emulate, who will share examples of public-private cooperation in developing organ-on-a-chip technologies. Jae-ho Oh, director of the Korean Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods, will then provide a presentation of related activities.

In the closing discussion session led by Ewha Womans University Pharmaceutical Sciences Prof. Kyung Min-Lim, a range of experts will share their thoughts and ideas on non-animal test methods. The experts include:

  • Nam-geun Song, head of the Animal Welfare and Environment Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
  • Jung-kwan Seo, a director with the Risk Assessment Division at the National Institute of Environmental Research. Young-ji Kim, a director at the Division of Regenerative Medicine Policy’s Regenerative Medicine Innovation Task Force at the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
  • Young-jin Song, a director with the Bio-Convergence Industry Division at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
  • Tae-ho Lee, deputy director of the Bioscience Technology Division at the Ministry of Science and ICT.
  • Young-jin Ahn, director of the Clinical Trials Division at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
  • Young-jae Cho, a professor at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital.
  • Bae-hwan Kim, chairman of the Korea Society for Alternatives to Animal Experiments.

HSI/Korea’s Borami Seo said: “As cases of public-private cooperation have proven critical in the process of developing many innovative technologies in the past, technological development through such cooperation is crucial in the case of animal-free testing. Korea recognizes the importance of animal-free testing and has actively conducted technology research efforts in this area. However, the lack of cooperative working structures among ministries and the absence of a legal basis have prevented public-private cooperative efforts from taking place, which has caused difficulties in nurturing the industry. By co-organizing this event, HSI/Korea is excited to provide an opportunity for related ministries to share their ideas and emphasize the importance of public-private cooperation, by opening a channel for communication towards the enactment of the PAAM Act.”

Dr. Lorna Ewart said: “With the advancement of human relevant technologies that are more predictive than two dimensional cell culture or animal testing, companies must be willing to invest in research and development, as well as commercialization efforts, while working hand-in-hand with regulatory agencies. To bring efficient, accurate and safe preclinical testing models to the world market, Korea must initiate and integrate these actions.”

Research and development efforts for creating and commercializing human analog models, organ-on-a-chip, organoid, 3D-printing-used tissue reconstruction, computer modeling and big data analysis have gained speed worldwide. Both the public and private sectors are encouraged to make investments to make technological development more effective and efficient.

Korea has also been working to support infrastructural expansion of animal-free testing methods by joining forces with centers for the validation of alternative methods in the United States, Japan, Canada and Europe. Yet despite this effort, problems of duplicating R&D budgets, difficulties of commercializing new technologies and the absence of a validation system due to the lack of cooperative working structures persist in Korea. The situation has drawn the National Assembly Budget Office and many experts to request more efficient R&D cycle management and administrative innovation.

Since consensus was reached on the need to advance a bill on promoting the development, dissemination and use of animal-free testing methods, a cross-ministerial discussion forum was held on the topic at the National Assembly in 2019, followed by the Korea Legislative Research Institute’s research study on the need for the bill the same year.

After expert opinions were gathered for such a bill to be drafted in 2020, two bills on promoting animal-free testing methods were proposed and are awaiting review at the National Assembly. The first was proposed by Rep. In-soon Nam in December 2020, and the second was proposed by Rep. Jeoung-ae Han two years later in December 2022.

ENDS

Media contact: Borami Seo, bseo@hsi.org

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