Speak Out For Species

The Emotional World of Farm Animals

2008-02-12T19:47:00.001-05:00

On Monday night, SOS showed "The Emotional World of Farm Animals" as part of our ongoing movie fest. This movie follows author Jeffrey Masson as he does research for his book The Pig Who Sang to the Moon. He travels to different sanctuaries where he meets rescued animals and talks with the people who run the sanctuaries. Each and every animal has a unique personality and a story to tell. Anyone interested in volunteering or starting an animal sanctuary should visit www.sanctuaries.org
After the movie, Rae Sikora led a discussion about how humans see these animals as just food even though it is obvious that they are thinking and feeling beings. It is interesting how people think more fondly of domestic companions (cat, dogs, rabbits, horses) while farm animals are considered to be just stupid animals. However, there is overwhelming evidence that animals such as pigs and chickens are actually very intelligent. Hopefully we will soon be able to abolish the stigma against farm animals and embrace them as unique, smart and emotional animals.

2008-02-05T21:53:00.001-05:00

This past Monday, SOS showed LAST OF THE SPANISH MUSTANGS, a movie about the plight of the Spanish mustangs- our country's wild
horses are being wiped off their range to support the foreign horse meat market. After the movie, Liz Cherry, a PhD Candidate in Sociology at the University of Georgia, discussed her experience witnessing the popularity of horse meat in France during the year that she lived there. Liz also talked about the current efforts to end horse slaughter through creating more effective legislation- H.R. 503 and S. 311. For more information and to find out how you can help, please visit this HSUS site.

For more information on our ongoing movie fest, please visit our FilmFest page.

General Tao's Tofu

2008-01-06T11:20:00.000-05:00

I wanted to write about my (only) favorite holiday tradition: blackeye peas and collard greens on New Year's Day, but I made this last night and have to share! It might look daunting, but don't let the different parts scare you. Just chop and prepare everything in advance, and then fire up the stove to finish!

This recipe is from vegweb.com, and is by far the most popular recipe. I've modified the recipe based on the 200+ reviews. So we have "rubybean77" to thank for the recipe.

You'll have five parts to make:

--cornstarch-coated tofu cubes

--rice or noodles

--veggies

--sauce

--slurry

Tofu

--Press one block of tofu for about 15 minutes.

--If you've never pressed your tofu, it's easy and worth it. I just take a small plate and put a folded paper towel on it. I then put the tofu on that, put another folded paper towel on top, and then put something heavy on the top. I usually use one of my big glass mixing bowls because they are sturdy and provide a good flat surface for pressing.

--Then take your tofu out (and save the paper towels for cleaning up stuff later--it's just tofu water!) and cut it into cubes of your liking.

--Put 3/4 C cornstarch in a clean paper bag or a ziploc bag (I used a big ziploc bag), and put the cubed tofu in it. Shake that for about a minute or so, until the tofu is cubed on all sides.

--Your tofu is prepared, but you have to cook it. Wait for the rest of the intstructions, yo.

Rice or Noodles

--Um, make some rice or noodles for your base. I used udon noodles because I didn't want to wait 40 minutes for rice. But I'll make rice today for the leftovers!

Veggies

Use whatever veggies you want! But do make certain to include:

--1/4 - 1/2 C onion

--1 T ginger

--1 T garlic

I used broccoli, zucchini, green peas, corn, and mushrooms, as well.

A couple of tips:

--This recipe calls for fresh ginger and garlic, but if you want a more "takeout" flavor, add a bit of powdered ginger, garlic, and onion.

--An easy way to prep ginger: I always wash and then break up my ginger into its "fingers" and put in the freezer. There, it will keep indefinitely, rather than getting all shriveled and dry. When I need any ginger, I just take it out and use a microplane to grate it onto whatever I need. Try it--you'll love it!

Sauce

I doubled the sauce recipe from vegweb and cut way down on the sugar, as other reviewers recommended.

--1 1/3 C vegetable stock

--4 T soy sauce

--3 T sugar

--hot red pepper flakes to taste

--1 T sherry (optional)

--1 T white vinegar

I used the sherry because I had some. It was great. Some other people used balsamic vinegar, and seemed to like that.

Slurry

Slurry is just the fancy cook name for the cornstarch and water mixture used to thicken soups and sauces. Just use 1 part cornstarch and 1 part water (usually just 1-2 T each), and mix together.

Okay, now you're ready to get cooking. It goes well if you multitask, plus it's more fun that way.

I cooked the tofu in an electric wok, because it was so big that I knew I could add everything to this at the end. Plus, it's great for cooking tofu. But you will need a large (really large) skillet to cook your tofu. This will take a little while, about 15-20 minutes, because you need to cook all sides of the tofu. Temp? I dunno, I was on 250-350 on the wok, probably medium on the stovetop. Cook until the tofu gets a bit golden, and when the cornstarch is fully cooked (not goopy) on the tofu. I just left mine alone and then stirred/flipped it every few minutes.

At the same time, cook your veggies in another skillet. I did this on the stove on medium heat. I always add my garlic and ginger last, because you don't want to burn those.

Also at the same time, cook your noodles or rice. If you're using brown rice, you should start that before you start everything else because it takes longer.

If you premade your sauce, hold off on that. If not, make it now!

Once your veggies are cooked, add the sauce to that and let it simmer a bit. And when the tofu is cooked, add the veggies/sauce to the tofu. This is when it really helps to have a huge wok.

Stir that around a bit. If you like the consistency of the sauce, stick with that. If not, if you want a thicker sauce, then re-stir your slurry and add a bit of that and stir it around. I only used about 1 T of slurry.

Serve over noodles or rice, and get ready to wow your friends!

Whale Slaughter and "Culture"

2007-12-06T17:58:00.000-05:00

There was an interesting commentary posted today by Tony Long in his "The Luddite" column in WIRED online magazine called, "Slaughtering Whales As an Expression of National Culture." The piece looks at Japan, and to a lesser extent, Norway, on how they attempt to use "traditional culture" as an excuse for whale hunting.

Be Happy, Healthy and Humane!

2007-12-03T15:11:00.000-05:00

Elizabeth Pembleton, a sophomore from Atlanta, recently gave a protest speech for her public speaking class outside the Chapel on UGA's North Campus. In this speech, she addressed concerns about contaminants that are in meat, and how to avoid getting sick from them. Ways she suggested were to not buy from companies that are notorious for their haphazard manufacturing, to buy organic, free-range meats from local markets, or to not buy or eat meat at all. She also mentioned the University of Georgia student organization S.O.S. and encouraged audience members to try vegetarianism or, at the very least, Meat Out Mondays. Because she is vegetarian and a health promotion major, she attempted to sway people using the slogan, “Be Happy, Healthy and Humane”, and handed S.O.S. stickers out at the end to promote the distribution of the message of her speech. It seemed to work, as a few students commented how they would definitely try Meat Out Mondays.

"Green" not good for birds

2007-11-26T18:37:00.000-05:00

There is an interesting article in the Novemeber 23 issue of the AJC about "green" buildings being a danger to birds. The article focuses on a green LEED certified building at Emory that was causing a high number of bird deaths. The building, as do many "green" buildings, uses a lot of glass, and the birds were becoming confused by the reflections and flying into the building. The deaths would have continued, had it not been for a faculty member who really pushed to find a humane solution, in this case seasonal nets. Shows how one person being a voice for animals can make a difference! (photo credit: FRANK NIEMEIR/AJC)

Pacelle & HSUS featured in Newsweek

2007-11-12T09:53:00.001-05:00

Some of you may have heard Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States speak when he gave a lecture at UGA a year ago. The current issue (November 19) of 'Newsweek' features a column written by Pacelle talking about what motivated him to be a voice for animals. (photo by D.A. Peterson for Newsweek)

Cooking Class

2007-11-08T18:10:00.000-05:00

It was a good time last night at the special Vegan Cooking Class presented by EarthFare for S.O.S folks. For those of you who couldn't be there, I'm posting the recipe for the Curried Lentils we all got to try last night. Enjoy!

Curried Lentils

1 med. onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 med. carrot, chopped

2 cups cauliflower, chopped

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp turmeric

2 cups cooked lentils

2 cups peas (frozen)

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup vegetable stock

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

In a large saucepan over med-high heat, saute the onions, garlic, carrot, and cauliflower in the oil until the onions are glassy, but haven't started to brown. Add the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, lentils, peas, salt, and vegetable stock. Stir and reduce heat to a simmer for 10-15 minutes until cauliflower is tender but still firm. Serve over rice. (when cooking the 2 cups of lentils before hand, be careful not to over cook!)

Dogs Need Your Help!

2007-11-06T12:27:00.001-05:00

A little over a year ago, UGA law professor Steve Shi and his wife Betsy learned of nearly 150 abandoned dogs on a property in North Georgia. These dogs were left in filthy pens outdoors, exposed to all weather extremes. Steve and a few others helped transport most of the dogs to no-kill shelters around the country. The Shis kept seven dogs in order to rehabilitate them to be able to later adopt them out to their forever homes. These dogs are very fearful because all they have known from humans is abuse. In order to help rehabilitate them, it is necessary for them to be exposed to kind people who will spend time with them in a calm and loving environment.

The Shis have set up a system where people come to their house and spend time with the dogs, taking them on walks, feeding them, and simply petting these animals. The dogs are still fearful and don't jump around and play with humans like other dogs do. It is evident that they are still uncomfortable when new people come to the house, but after you spend a few hours with them, they will relax and even let you touch them. The experience is very rewarding and you get to spend an afternoon with these amazing creatures. If you are interested in volunteering some of your time, please email Betsy Shi at betsy@shilaw.com

Bear Rescue Worldwide

2007-11-05T18:51:00.000-05:00

Listen to a hour long radio program that aired today, discussing the plight of bears worldwide and what is being done to rescue them from abuse and to preserve their habitat.

To learn more about bear rescue worldwide, join Speak Out for Species Monday, November 12, for an event featuring Kartick Satyanarayan and Geeta Seshamani of Wildlife SOS, an Indian non-profit organization, who will be speaking about efforts to save India's rapidly-vanishing wildlife including the "dancing bears" of India.

Year of the Dog

2007-10-27T22:01:00.000-04:00

If you like dogs, or any animal, really, may I please recommend Mike White's film Year of the Dog. I heard it was Mike White's apology for not being vegan. Anyway, it's a sweet story of Peggy (Molly Shannon) and her beloved dog, Pencil. When Pencil dies unexpectedly, Peggy's life takes many other unexpected turns: she gets into animal rights, goes vegan, and starts saving animals left and right. Those of us who are already will likely identify with Peggy during scenes with her uncomprehending family, and her coworkers who are afraid to eat her vegan cupcakes. Those who aren't yet vegan will appreciate the humor and humility of the film--it's not preachy, I swear!

It does seem, though, that Peggy goes through a bit of everything, almost becoming a hoarder and the stereotypical "crazy dog lady" at one point, but that's not necessarily a low point: we do see that hoarding is wrong and that we need to only take in as many companion animals as we can care for.

And anyway, with a writer/director like Mike White, and actors like Molly Shannon, Laura Dern, Peter Sarsgaard, and John C. Reilly (who walked out of a stupid Lars Von Trier film in protest over a donkey being killed on set), you can't go wrong!

Red Lentils, Indian Style (Masoor Dhaal)

2007-10-27T21:53:00.000-04:00

This lentil dish was one of the first dishes I made for my partner. He hates lentils, yet we're still together after 8 years. It must be that good.

Red lentils Indian style
(Masoor Dhaal with vegetables)

½ onion, chopped
3 green chiles, chopped (I used 2 fresh jalapeno peppers)
6 whole curry leaves (if you have them—if not, don’t worry!)
1.5 t ground coriander
1 t grated ginger or ginger pulp
1 t garlic pulp, or about 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
Some cayenne pepper, to your spice level
1.5 t salt
2 T oil

½ C red lentils
1 potato, coarsely diced

3 T chopped fresh cilantro
Some tomatoes, chopped (however many you want. The recipe called for 3, I used 3 cherry tomatoes and that was just fine.)
3 T lemon juice

Prepare all the ingredients (up to 2 T oil), and sautee them in the 2 T oil in a large saucepan on medium heat until the onion is at least translucent.

Chop the potato and wash the red lentils. Add them to the spices along with enough water to cover the ingredients. If I had to specify, I’d say at least 2 C water, because you definitely want to make sure those lentils cook all the way through. Bring to a low boil on medium heat, or lower heat if you need to. Cook for about, I don’t know, 20 minutes, until the lentils and the potato are done.

If you want to cook your cilantro, add it now. If not, just add the chopped tomatoes and lemon juice, and then add the cilantro as a topping to your final dish. I prefer fresh, not cooked, cilantro, so I added mine once I plated it.

I served this dish with some potatoes and cauliflower Indian style, as well as some brown rice cooked with a stick of cinnamon, 2 cardamom pods, and 2 whole cloves. (Do take those out before serving, though!)

Georgia Sea Turtle Center

2007-10-18T23:12:00.000-04:00

Georgia now has a center devoted to the care of sick and injured sea turtles on Jekyll Island. Opening in June 2007, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center works to promote the conservation of sea turtles through rehabilitation, research, and education. Next time you are at the coast you should stop by and visit! More info on their blog about their activities.

Cage-Free Egg Campaign

2007-10-01T20:34:00.000-04:00

The egg industry is one of the worst examples of animal cruelty in agribusiness. Millions of hens spend their lives in small battery cages packed so full that they cannot even stretch their wings, let alone engage in any other natural activity, such as nesting or foraging. Factory farm hen houses are made up of rows upon rows of these battery cages stacked one on top of the other. This set up results in waste from the chickens above falling on those below. These horrible conditions leave the hens in very poor health with hardly any veterinary care.

Cage-free facilities remove the cages and allow the hens to move about on the ground. The quality of life for these hens is so much better than those stuck in battery cages. They have more space to run around and socialize. Battery cages are so awful that the countries in the European Union, such as Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden are completely banning them. A few cities in the U.S., such as Cambridge, MA, West Palm Beach and New Port Richey, FL, are following suit. Big companies like Whole Foods, Earth Fare, and Ben&Jerry's have switched to exclusively using cage-free eggs. Over 160 universities are now serving cage-free eggs in their campus dining facilities.

SOS is trying to convince the University of Georgia Dining Services stop supporting the torture of these chickens in battery cages and switch to cage-free eggs. There are many things you can do to help: write a letter or an article for the Red&Black supporting cage-free eggs, write an email to the director of Dining Services J. Michael Floyd (mfloyd@uga.edu) requesting cage-free eggs or make the request on a Dining Services comment card located at all four campus dining halls. Also, you can make the switch in your own kitchen. Stop buying eggs that are the result of an inhumane practice. If there is a larger demand for cage-free eggs, battery-cage facilities will be phased out in favor of cage-free ones. We really can make a difference.

For more information on the Cage-Free Egg Campaign led by the Humane Society of the United States, go to http://www.hsus.org/farm/camp/nbe/

For those of you who missed Kelly's talk at SOS

2007-09-28T22:58:00.001-04:00

NATIONAL FERAL CAT DAY SPECIAL EVENT

October 16, 2007

“Communities & Cats”
Presentation by: Kelly Bettinger
(“Campus Cats” Program Coordinator and Wildlife Biologist)

Learn how other communities have been successful at humanely reducing their feral cat populations, how a “Campus Cats” program is being implemented on the University of Georgia Campus, and what you can do to help in the efforts to combat feline overpopulation.

Date/Time: 10/16/07, Tuesday, 6:15pm-7:15pm
Location: Athens-Clarke Public Library, Baxter Street, Athens, Georgia
Admission : A donation to our Fall Cat Food Drive* would be appreciated! Suggested donation: 2 cans of wet/soft food or 1 bag of dry food

*For additional drop-off locations or to arrange for the pick-up of donated food, please e-mail Kelly at: feralcatcaregivers@yahoo.com

Event sponsored by the Cat Zip Alliance
www.catzip.org

"Person with Interests"

2007-09-28T19:05:00.000-04:00

Interesting news item today out of Austria. It is about a chimpanzee, Matthew Hiasl Pan, who an Austrian group, Association Against Animal Factories, is trying to have declared legally a "person with interests" rather than a "thing without interests" in order to help provide for his future care (the shelter he has been living at has gone bankrupt) and to ensure he isn't sold to someone outside the country where he would no longer be protected by Austrian animal cruelty laws. The article notes that they are not trying to have him declared "human" just legally a person rather than a thing.

Help Stop Dogfighting in Georgia

2007-09-28T00:41:00.000-04:00

The federal prosecution of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick on dogfighting charges has brought new attention to efforts by state Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) to put some teeth into state laws banning the practice.

Georgia is a dogfighting haven because it lacks tough laws. For example, Georgia is the only state where it's legal both to attend a dogfight and own fighting dogs.

John Goodwin, manager of animal fighting issues for the Humane Society of the United States, recently held a public meeting in Atlanta. "Now that the nation has been awakened to the horrors of dogfighting and its prevalence, states with weak dogfighting laws need to step up to the plate" said Goodwin. "Strong felony penalties for dogfighting, including being a spectator at a fight, are essential to controlling this criminal, multi-million dollar industry. No one who fights dogs or who is complicit in this horribly cruel activity should be able to escape the law."

Senate Bill 16, the dogfighting bill, passed the Georgia Senate by a unanimous vote of 54-0 last Spring. It awaits action in the State House. Please contact your State House member and ask them to support S.B. 16.

The 2008 Georgia General Assembly session will begin January 2008. Your Georgia Representative needs to hear from you now. Please urge your legislator to strengthen laws against this cruel activity!

You can find your state elected officials using the HSUS Legislator Lookup or at the Georgia General Assembly website.

Learn more about this urgent problem at Georgia's Dog Fighting Legislation. And check out the winners of the HSUS "Knock Out Animal Fighting" video contest selected by tens of thousands of voters!

Vegan Lasagna!

2007-09-25T16:40:00.000-04:00

I love cooking and eating! And for some reason lately, I've been really into taking pictures of my food. So I want to periodically post some recipes with photos of my favorite foods. Some of them I came up with on my own (like today's lasagna), some are from cookbooks, and some are from vegweb.com--but I'll always give a recipe! So enjoy today's recipe. Who doesn't love lasagna?

Vegan Lasagna

Ingredients
--1 box lasagna
--1 jar marinara/pasta sauce
--a bunch of sauteed veggies (optional, but awesome)

“Ricotta” Filling:
--1 block firm tofu (usu. one pound), crumbled into small ricotta-like pieces
--about ¼ - ½ block Follow Your Heart Vegan Soy Mozzarella Cheese, grated
(Follow Your Heart, available at Daily Groceries Coop, is my favorite because it actually melts

and is vegan—no casein)
--about 2-3 T Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese (or other vegan cream cheese)
--about 2-3 T soy milk
--about ¼ C nutritional yeast
(the yellow flaky stuff you get in bulk, not “brewer’s yeast”)
--about ½ t – 1t each of:
garlic
basil
oregano
salt
pepper
dried or fresh parsley
--about ¼ t nutmeg

Crumble the tofu, grate the soy cheese, and mix all ingredients in a bowl. Sautee the veggies if you want veggie lasagna. I usually spice up the veggies, too. In the meantime, bring water to a boil and cook the lasagna. Rinse lasagna in cold water and set aside Lightly cover a baking dish with some pasta sauce, and place one layer of pasta in the dish. Cover pasta with the “ricotta” filling, sauteed veggies, some pasta sauce, and top with more grated Soy Mozzarella. Repeat pasta, filling, veg, sauce, cheese, etc, until you run out of ingredients! I also like to top the completed lasagna with a bunch of sauce and then some soy cheese, too. You can also use the ricotta filling to make stuffed shells, ziti, whatever you like.

Bake at 350 degrees F for about 20-30 minutes, until sauce is bubbly. The cheese won’t necessarily be totally browned, what with it being soy cheese and all, but it will be melty. And delicious.

AthensPets Needs Your Help

2007-09-24T00:17:00.000-04:00

Interested in helping out Athens homeless pets? Do you own a digital camera and have access to email? If so, read on! A network of volunteers updates and maintains AthensPets.net, a site dedicated to saving the lives of dogs at Athens-Clarke County Animal Control. If you are able to volunteer at least once every 4-6 weeks and visit animal control to take pictures and write stories for the dogs at the shelter, then email Allyson at ally99@gmail.com for more information. Thanks!

One Bite at a Time

2007-09-23T23:12:00.000-04:00

On her blog, Kathy Freston offers some helpful tips for anyone interested in transitioning to a plant-based diet:

"I heard from a lot of people who wanted help in making the transition to a vegetarian (or mostly vegetarian) diet. Let's face it: If you've been eating meat all your life, this sort of a change can be daunting even just to think about, let alone act on. Happily, it's easier than ever today to make the transition from meat-eater to vegetarian, and the following suggestions should help even the most die-hard carnivores make the switch."

You can read Kathy's "Top 6" tips at One Bite at a Time: A Beginner's Guide to Conscious Eating. This is a great introduction for everyone concerned about improving their own health, protecting our environment, or reducing the suffering of factory-farmed animals.

Threatened Species

2007-09-20T18:00:00.000-04:00

As a follow-up to last week's S.O.S/S.E.A. film "Planet Earth: The Future" you may be interested to see the newly released 2007 Red List of Threatened Species maintained by The World Conservation Union. The list is searchable and contains scientific as well as popular names for the listed species - both animals and plants. There is a brief overview of some of the notable animals on the list at Discovery.com newsfeed.

While we are on the topic of endangered animals...there is an interesting article out of the Sacramento Bee about how Sacramento State helped a potential donor get approved hunting licenses for "red listed" species in Tanzania. It is a really interesting article, and like the film "Planet Earth" shows 'conservation' is in the eye of the beholder.

Welcome to the S.O.S blog!

2007-09-13T18:46:00.000-04:00

The S.O.S Leadership Council decided to create a blog to share information about S.O.S activities and other animal related news/information. Enjoy!