Mary Cummins Animal Advocates Los Angeles California Wildlife Rehabilitation Real Estate

Mary Cummins Animal Advocates Los Angeles California Wildlife Rehabilitation Real Estate
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Showing posts with label cow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cow. Show all posts

Friday, August 11, 2023

Why I Support Humane Petting Zoos and Farm Sanctuaries by Mary Cummins, Animal Advocates

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animal advocates,chicken,hotdog,petting zoo,mary cummins,california,cow,county fair,los angeles,farm sanctuary,hamburger,pig,
I support humane legal petting zoos and farm sanctuaries because it exposes people to farm animals in a caring pet like manner. When children see and pet farm animals they are more likely to care about them and their welfare. If they pet them like they do a cat or dog, they will grow up caring more about them. They may even put two and two together and realize hamburgers, hotdogs are cows and pigs. Chicken is a real live chicken. Eggs come out of chickens. Milk comes out of cows. Eventually they may not want to eat them which is better for their health, environment and the animals.

I went to a petting zoo when I was maybe five or six. I pet chickens, cows, pigs and had a great time. Then I went to lunch with my Nana. When we were ordering food it finally clicked. Chicken on the menu was the cute live chicken I just pet at the petting zoo. I asked my Nana if "chicken" was actually the animal chicken. She said "yes." She also told me that hamburgers were cows and hotdogs were pigs. I was soooooo grossed out. I said I didn't want to eat my friends. She was fine with that so I ate rice and beans which is what we ate at home. Eventually I learned about eggs and didn't want those either. Same with milk.

I also support humane and legal farm sanctuaries. The thing about farm sanctuaries is you are basically preaching to the choir unless it's a school field trip. People who go to farm sanctuaries are generally already vegan. You aren't necessarily educating non-vegans who most need the exposure and education. Petting zoos are at fairs, events, road sides, farmers markets where families have easy access. They're generally also free. You just pay for animal feed. Most farm sanctuaries are on agriculturally zoned land far out of cities and towns. I personally think a farm sanctuary should offer petting zoos to some major county fairs. They'd get more exposure and more animals can be saved or at least treated better.

When children are with animals including farm animals they learn respect, compassion and empathy for animals. If they pet or brush them, they learn to care for and about them. Children experience sensory development, motor skills development, language development and learn social skills. There is a lot of research which shows the benefits of animals for children. All of these benefits also benefit animals because children end up caring more about them.

I don't support illegal inhumane unpermitted petting zoos. You need a USDA exhibit permit for a petting zoo. You also need a city and county permit from animal control. There are regulations no matter what lies an ill informed activist tells you. There are USDA and other animal regulations that cover petting zoo and animals. They are covered by federal, state and local animal abuse, neglect, and cruelty statutes. 

Petting zoo animals are not for consumption. They are not food animals because they most likely have received medications over their life span. They will also be injected with euthanasia drugs when they are dying which makes it illegal to use them for food. Animals must be cared for legally and properly. I want children and others to see healthy farm animals who are well cared for and treated. I want people to realize they are living, breathing, sentient beings and not just fried chicken, hamburgers and hotdogs. 

A humane petting zoo or farm sanctuary limits the number of children in the pen at one time. They also limit the time each animal is in the pen. Some animals love being pet and some don't. Clearly they should only use animals that enjoy it. That's why there are mainly goats and sheep. Bunnies are too sensitive and shouldn't be in petting zoos. Chickens could be in another pen with more protection. There must be sun protection and protection from heat, cold, rain, weather. There must be adequate food and water available.

There should be proper hand washing stations and instructions so zoonotic diseases aren't spread. That is the law which is generally enforced by the State Agricultural Department and County Health Departments. If the zoo is at a fair, there are other regulations. If it's in a farmer's market, there are even more regulations. If they sell food in the area, there are even more regulations. There are generally a few people inside the pen to enforce all the regulations. 

Petting zoos have their own regulations such as no picking up animals, no chasing, no pulling, no hitting, no riding, no running, no screaming... Parents must be in there with their children. Children under certain ages aren't allowed for health reasons. No food or drink in the pen except the animal feed. No smoking, toys, pacifiers, strollers, baby bottles, weapons, alcohol... No touching the animals food or water. The zookeepers don't want their animals stressed or harmed. It's their business and they generally really care about their animal if it's a humane zoo.




Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


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Monday, December 12, 2022

Cow Milk doesn't Kill Baby Wildlife, Animals. Wives Tale. By Mary Cummins Animal Advocates

milk,cow milk,goat,esbilac,animal advocates,kmr,mary cummins,baby,formula,fox valley,los angeles,petag, cow,squirrels,wives tale,snopes,wildlife, @marycummins wildlife rehabilitation, wildlife rehabilitator, 


I posted this 20 years ago in 2001 but it disappeared. Here it is again. It's not just about baby squirrels but baby bunnies, squirrels, skunks, raccoons, opossums, bats....

Wives' tale busted - Cow milk does NOT kill baby squirrels. I've heard this ridiculous wives' tale for the past 20 years. People on the Internet will show you photos of dead baby squirrels. They will tell you that cow milk killed the babies. Cow milk did not kill the babies. The babies were fed improperly or died of some other illness or injury. 

The people telling you that cow milk kills squirrel babies will tell you to buy Petag's Esbilac puppy milk instead. Guess what the main ingredients are in Esbilac? You guessed it, cow milk. Below are the ingredients.

Esbilac Powder for Puppies Ingredients: Vegetable Oil, Casein (milk), Whey Protein Concentrate (milk), Dried Skimmed Milk (milk), Butter Fat (milk), Monocalcium Phosphate, Egg Yolk, Calcium Carbonate, L-arginine , DL-methionine, Sodium Silico Aluminate, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Lechithin, Monopotassium Phosphate, Magnesium Carbonate, Ferrous Sulfate, Salt, Dipotassium Phosphate, Calcium Pantothenate, Ascorbic Acid, Niacin Supplement, Magnesium Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Folic Acid, Vitamin E Supplement, Silicon Dioxide, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Manganese Sulfate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Citrate, Potassium Iodide, Biotin. 

The ingredients are listed in descending order by weight. Here oil is the main ingredient. Number two ingredient is "casein" which is from cow milk. Number three ingredient is "whey" which is from cow milk. Number four ingredient is "dried skimmed milk" which is from cow milk. Number five ingredient is "butter fat" which is the fat from cow milk. You can clearly see that cow milk is the main ingredient in animal and human baby formulas. (I just noticed they spelled "lecithin" wrong)

How did those babies in the  photos die? They did not die from cow milk, that's for sure. They most likely died because they were not warmed or hydrated before being fed. They were not fed enough formula or were fed too much. The formula was not introduced slowly which caused diarrhea which caused death. They were aspirated because they were fed improperly. The milk was not warmed, mixed properly or was rancid. Baby died from some other illness or injury. In one photo I could tell the babies died from squirrel pox which has nothing to do with formula. It's a virus.

People have been feeding orphaned baby wildlife and humans cow milk probably since they first started milking cows and goats around 9,000 - 7,000 BC. If cow milk killed babies, we'd have a ton of dead human and animal babies. In the UK they feed endangered orphan red squirrels cow or goat milk with honey and sometimes add an egg. They don't feed commercial formulas most likely because they don't care for the additives, preservatives, coloring agents, anti-clumping chemicals... 

Who is behind this wives' tale? I personally feel commercial formula producers are behind this ridiculous story. People who tell you that cow milk kills babies generally recommend Petag Esbilac or kitten formula KMR. Petag probably spread this rumor to sell more product and why not. Eight ounces of liquid Esbilac costs $2.78. A quart of cow milk (32 ounces) costs $2.60. Esbilac is four times as expensive as cow milk. They're making money telling this ridiculous story.

Two years ago I wrote this comparison chart of the various puppy, kitten formulas. As you can see Esbilac is the most expensive by far. They are the biggest selling puppy, kitten formula in the world. They seem to have a monopoly in the pet stores. http://www.animaladvocates.us/formulacomparison.pdf Make that had a monopoly. Things have changed.

Based on my years of experience I personally recommend Fox Valley. It is a much higher quality product, smells/tastes better and is cheaper. The only downfall is you have to order it online but it's well worth it. 

Composition of Petag Esbilac verses average cow milk. When I sent samples of Esbilac to the lab the amount of protein, fat, fiber and calories were way off what was written on the package. As you can see based on the labels Esbilac has a little more calories, fat and protein than regular cow milk. If you look at a breakdown of the ingredients, they have the same vitamins and minerals. 

Petag liquid Esbilac

protein 4.5% min

fat 6% min

water 85%

900 kcal/kg

 

Whole cow milk

protein 3.5% min

fat 3.4-4% min

water 87%

730 kcal/kg

 

I personally no longer use any Petag products because they do not recall their product when it's tainted or rancid. Legally FDA can't force them to recall their product. There have been at least three instances when their formula was killing babies and they refused to recall it. They kept selling the product even when they knew it was killing babies. I will never support a company that does that. More info on their tainted formula here http://www.animaladvocates.us/petagesbilac.htm

*Nowhere did I state that I feed cow milk to babies. I feed Fox Valley. I also have never told people to feed cow milk straight to babies. The point of the article was to show that cow milk does not kill babies. That is a myth. Most of the commercial formulas (Esbilac, KMR...) are made from cow milk. If you think cow milk kills babies, then you shouldn't use any commercial formulas as they are made out of cow milk.

Here's another wives tale. "Animal babies can't digest cow milk but they can digest goat milk. Cow milk has no nutrition."

The truth. Goat milk contain less lactose, 4.2% vs 5% for cow milk. All natural milk has lactose. Goat milk fat content is also much simpler for human, animal digestion than cow milk. The fat globules in goat milk are smaller and easier for our milk fat-dissolving enzyme — lipase— to break into smaller pieces as they pass through our gut. Goat milk may be easier for some humans and animals to digest.

Cow milk has similar nutrition as goat milk. "Nutritionally, goat milk and cow milk compare relatively well. Most vitamins and macronutrients are found in similar quantities. One cup of goat milk has 10 grams of fat compared to cow milk having eight grams of fat. This causes the goat milk to be higher in calories, about 19 more calories in that cup for a total of 168 calories. Being higher in fat, the goat milk is also higher in saturated fat, which we are cautioned to limit in our diets. In fact, that single cup of goat milk has one third of the saturated fat that you need in a day. However, goat milk has a little less sugar, 11 grams per cup versus cow milk having 12 grams per cup. Goat milk is higher in calcium, giving you 32 percent of your daily value in one cup while cow milk gives you 27 percent. Goat milk’s 9 grams of protein per cup is one gram higher than that of cow milk. Cow milk is higher in folate, selenium, and riboflavin as well as significantly higher in vitamin B12. Goat milk has more vitamin A, vitamin C (cow milk has none), vitamin B1, magnesium, and considerably more potassium. Both milks are roughly the same in their amount of vitamin D, cholesterol, and sodium. Overall, goat milk vs. cow milk are fairly equal nutritionally unless you are specifically looking for a higher or lower amount of any of these key nutrients. (Comparisons were made using whole cow milk via USDA nutritional values.)"


Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


Google+ Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, wildlife, wild, animal, rescue, wildlife rehabilitation, wildlife rehabilitator, fish, game, los angeles, california, united states, squirrel, raccoon, fox, skunk, opossum, coyote, bobcat, manual, instructor, speaker, humane, nuisance, control, pest, trap, exclude, deter, green, non-profit, nonprofit, non, profit, ill, injured, orphaned, exhibit, exhibitor, usda, united states department of agriculture, hsus, humane society, peta, ndart, humane academy, humane officer, animal legal defense fund, animal cruelty, investigation, peace officer, animal, cruelty, abuse, neglect #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Rowdy Girl Rescue loses lawsuits is sanctioned by Judge in Texas

This case is identical to my case except in my case they forged their exhibits and perjured their statements on top of this. Hopefully I will have the same result with my appeal

"A Harris County District Judge has ordered the owners of an Angleton animal sanctuary to pay nearly $29,000 in sanctions for filing a frivolous, harassing lawsuit against critics of the sanctuary who called the operation a "scam" on Facebook.

Renee King-Sonnen and her husband Tommy Sonnen, who run Rowdy Girl, described as a "vegan" farm animal sanctuary, were also ordered to pay nearly $29,000 in defendants' attorneys' fees. The couple had sued the critics in February for $1 million, accusing them conspiring for nearly two years to disparage the sanctuary's reputation.  (Tommy Sonnen is also a sanctuary board member).

The critics — which included former volunteers and donors who questioned the nonprofit sanctuary's finances — raised questions on a Facebook page called The Real Rowdy Girl Revealed.

The defendants, which include Dallas child psychiatrist and former sanctuary donor Sujatha Ramakrishna, successfully sought to have the lawsuit dismissed with prejudice under the Texas anti-SLAPP statute, which is meant to safeguard against meritless defamation lawsuits.

In his lengthy reply, the critics' attorney, Adam Milasincic wrote, "There is no doubt what this lawsuit is designed to achieve — stopping the public debate about Rowdy Girl, and silencing critics who raise questions about Rowdy Gir's less-than-stellar fundraising and animal-welfare records."

A presiding judge agreed, ordering the plaintiffs on July 26 to pay $28,750 in sanctions, noting that "The Court considered lesser sanctions, but determined that [the amount] is necessary to achieve the [anti-SLAPP's] deterrent purpose. The Court concludes that, absent the sanction awarded, there is a material risk that Plaintiffs will continue to bring similarly unsuitable claims in the future."

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/judge-sanctions-vegan-animal-sanctuary-for-frivolous-lawsuit-9659025

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


Google+ Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, wildlife, wild, animal, rescue, wildlife rehabilitation, wildlife rehabilitator, fish, game, los angeles, california, united states, squirrel, raccoon, fox, skunk, opossum, coyote, bobcat, manual, instructor, speaker, humane, nuisance, control, pest, trap, exclude, deter, green, non-profit, nonprofit, non, profit, ill, injured, orphaned, exhibit, exhibitor, usda, united states department of agriculture, hsus, humane society, peta, ndart, humane academy, humane officer, animal legal defense fund, animal cruelty, investigation, peace officer, animal, cruelty, abuse, neglect #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit