FROM THE DESK OF HAPPY TRAILS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ANNETTE FISHER.

     It greatly saddens me to know that there are people in this world capable of extreme and gruesome cruelty toward the gentle creatures we call animals. It disturbs me even

Pookie as a baby duckling, enjoyed snuggling in the grass and dirt for warm afternoon naps.

more to know that the kind, compassionate and caring folks often look away from the abusive situations and shake their heads in disgust, and feel that there is nothing they can do to help spread their kindness, compassion and caring. The good news is that, in this situation, there is something you can do to help speak out on behalf of our feathered friends!
     Rockwell and Pookie, two beautiful and gentle ducks at Happy Trails that are available for adoption, respectfully request your help to stop the hideous torture that is inflicted upon their feathered

Heckle and Jeckle, two adorable baby ducks, experienced nothing but love and kindness during their stay at Happy Trails. Let's make compassion a reality for the ducks currently in the fois gras industry.

companions in the foie gras industry. The details of this cold and brutal industry are detailed in this update (below) from Farm Sanctuary, and are difficult to read, even for myself. I have done my share of undercover investigations into animal cruelty right here in Ohio, and you never become immune to the abuse that you witness. Often simply hearing about it can be as devasting as witnessing the situation for yourself, so I completely understand how difficult it can be to read about the pain inflicted on these gentle ducks in the fois gras industry. 
    

Emerson and Emily enjoy a relaxing nap in the grass at Happy Trails. They are hopeful that you will speak out on behalf of their feathered friends!

Rockwell and Pookie daily experience a gentle hand, a kind voice, and are able to enjoy the benefits of free-roaming in green grasses on a fall day, happily digging through the soft dirt and finding precious treasures only known to the nature of duck. At their request, please help end the torture of their feathered friends who are not as fortunate as they are. At this point, I very politely ask you, to take a deep breath, to read on and to help make your voice heard on their behalf...

Rockwell takes a swim with a friend in one of the kiddie pools as Zeus the Goose watches. This is a luxury that the fois gras ducks do not get to experience.

FROM THE DESK OF FARM SANCTUARY:

Ask Canadian Government to Investigate Canada's Foie Gras Industry

Farm Sanctuary, in cooperation with Canadian group Global Action Network (GAN), has released Round 2 of its investigation into the Canadian foie gras industry. The undercover footage shot at Aux Champs D’Elise and Palmex, the second and third-largest foie gras producers in Canada respectively, further confirms the immense cruelty inherent in the production of foie gras.

Video and photographic evidence from Palmex and Champs D’Elise show ducks suffering the gruesome after-effects of force feeding: ducks gasping for breath, choking blood and regurgitated food, many barely able to hold up their heads. Others are shown dead in their cages, having succumbed to the debilitating effects of being force fed up to a third of their own body weight daily.

In addition to dead and dying ducks, undercover footage shot over a 5-day period by an investigator working at Aux Champs D’Elise depicts shocking acts of cruelty: employees bashing the heads of ducks against the concrete floor, hurling them through the air by their necks and even sawing off an animal’s head, all while the ducks are fully conscious.

See for yourself. Watch Farm Sanctuary's video, “Culinary Cruelty: Undercover in Canada” and distribute this alert widely: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikRV0Z-pHB0

This latest investigation into the Canadian foie gras industry is a follow up to Farm Sanctuary and GAN's June 2007 release of an investigation into Elevages Perigord, Canada's largest foie gras producer. You can view this investigative video at: http://www.farmsanctuary.org/actionalerts/alert_FG_10_1_07.htm

Combined, the three Canadian producers investigated—Elevages Perigord, Palmex and Aux Champs D’Elise—produce over 80% of Canada's foie gras. At least one-third of Canada's foie gras is exported to the U.S. and effectively comprises 72% of the foie gras imported by the U.S. (with the remainder coming from France).

Based on the incontrovertible evidence of rampant cruelty in Canada's foie gras industry, Farm Sanctuary and Global Action Network are calling upon Canada's Minster of Agriculture to investigate Canada's foie gras industry and to put an end to its unabashed cruelty.

What you can do:

Please contact Canada's Minister of Agriculture and ask him to fully investigate Canada's foie gras industry and to take all steps necessary to stop its cruelty.

    Minister of Agriculture Chuck Strahl
    Sir John Carling Building
    930 Carling Avenue
    Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C5
    Canada
    (note: a normal postal letter to Canada requires 69 cents postage)
    613-759-1059
    Ottawa@chuckstrahl.com