Cash, Contraception, and Cruelty

CASH FOR CLASSES.  Bob Barker, the former host of “The Price is Right” and a Drury University alumnus, earlier this month presented $1 million to his alma mater to establish the Bob Barker Endowment Fund for the Study of Animal Rights.

Barker’s “Animal Ethics” course, slated to begin in the spring of 2010, will educate students about issues that directly affect the lives of animals. The multidisciplinary class will be taught by professors with expertise in anthropology, biology, law, sustainability, psychology, criminology, philosophy, and religion.

Several law schools, including Harvard and Stanford, have received gifts from Barker over the years to help fund the study of animal rights and his DJ&T Foundation—named after his late wife, Dorothy Jo, and his mother, Matilda (Tilly)—gives financial assistance to organizations and individuals that offer spay and neuter services.

A bit of back story: Barker was born in Washington State and grew up on an Indian reservation in South Dakota before his family relocated to Missouri, where the future television icon graduated from Springfield’s Central High School in 1941 and then attended Drury University on a basketball scholarship. He graduated summa cum laude in 1947, after his education was interrupted to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II. After a brief radio career in Springfield and California , he moved on to television and became the host of “Truth or Consequences.” In 1972, he debuted as host of what was then called “The New Price is Right,” where Barker reigned supreme until his retirement last year. His signature sign-off: “Help control the pet overpopulation problem; have your pets spayed or neutered” raised awareness about the proliferation of pets and helped save countless lives.

Tuesday, February 26 is Spay Day USA, an annual event that encourages pet guardians to “come on down” to their local animal shelter or humane society to have their dogs and cats spayed or neutered. Low-cost spay/neuter services are available year-round at the Santa Barbara Humane Society. Call 964-4777 for more information. And DAWG (5480 Overpass Road, 681-0561) will spay/neuter local residents’ pit bulls or pit bull mixes and provide all routine shots plus a Home Again microchip—ALL FREE OF CHARGE. Now that’s what I call the right price!

“FIXING” THE PET OVERPOPULATION PROBLEM. Speaking of spaying and neutering…the Los Angeles City Council, on February 12, overwhelmingly passed an ordinance that will require pet guardians to spay or neuter their dogs and cats by the age of four months. That’s good news for supporters of the California Healthy Pets Act (AB 1634), which seeks to reduce the number of stray animals killed each year in shelters throughout the golden state, while saving tons of taxpayer money too. Currently, it costs $135 to euthanize a cat and $195 for a dog, while it only costs $60 to $80 to spay or neuter them.

“I am in strong support of this measure,” says Assemblymember Lloyd Levine, author of AB 1634, which is currently awaiting its next hearing in the State Senate’s Local Government Committee.

Last week’s action was a giant first step toward alleviating the state’s pet overpopulation crisis, but more needs to be done. To find out how you can help, visit www.cahealthypets.com.

CRUELTY TO COWS IS AN UDDER DISGRACE. As an animal advocate, I thought I had seen it all. That is, until The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) released a video earlier this month of “downer” cows (animals too sick to stand) at a Chino, California slaughter plant being rammed with forklifts and “waterboarded” in an attempt to get these poor creatures to stand up and walk into the slaughter chutes. I’ll spare you more of the gory details (if you have a strong stomach, you can view the video at www.hsus.org), but suffice it to say it’s some of the most graphic and barbaric treatment of animals imaginable. And to think that meat from this facility was being sent to our children’s school lunch programs around the country.

I became a vegetarian eleven years ago because I care deeply about how animals destined for our dinner plate are treated. Never mind that back then, I couldn’t find a decent veggie meal to save my life. That was, until I discovered Taco Bell. For a few months, I think I ate my weight in the fast-food restaurant’s bean burritos until I eventually found the all-you-can-eat salad bar at Sizzler and the rest is gastronomical history. I’ve been happily sipping sumptuous vegetarian soups and gobbling up garbanzo beans and humongous helpings of jicama ever since.

Now, I’m not trying to go all PETA on you here—after all, you won’t see me dressing up like a chicken and shoving pamphlets in your hand as you walk into the local steak house and I won’t be posting graphic images of animal abuse on my Web site (www.allforanimals.com). What you will see is more columns from me on this important subject. You got a beef with that? Send me a note and let’s talk about it over lunch at Taco Bell. I’ll even spring for the burritos.

 

What are your thoughts on the recent news about animals? Let Karen know by sending her an e-mail message at karenleestevens@cox.net.

 

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By Karen Lee Stevens,
Founder & President, ALL FOR ANIMALS, Inc.
Copyright © 2008. All Rights Reserved.

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