VegDems

08/22/2026

Over 200 horses have lost their lives on US racetracks this year.

Of the 91 racetracks, Belmont Park in New York recorded the third highest number of deaths with 12, Santa Anita Park in California is second with 13 deaths, while three tracks are currently tied for the deadliest of 2026 with 18 deaths each – Oaklawn Park in Arkansas, Saratoga Harness in New York, and Parx Racing in Pennsylvania. 79 horses have died at just these five tracks since the beginning of the year.

The death toll is also rising in the UK. Six-year-old racehorse Cueros was euthanized after suffering a broken leg in a fall during the Grosnez Handicap at Les Landes Racecourse in Jersey.

Contact your local representatives and urge them to support legislation to protect horses.

Thank you, Animal Defenders International

08/21/2026

Strengthening Enforcement of our National Animal Fighting Law

"Thank you for supporting the FIGHT Act — a commonsense, bipartisan measure to stop some of the worst forms of animal cruelty still happening in the shadows. Dogfighting and cockfighting remain illegal in every state, yet they continue underground, intertwined with gambling, drugs, and violence. The FIGHT Act closes loopholes that allow these crimes to persist, banning online gambling and mail shipments of fighting animals, empowering citizens to aid enforcement, and strengthening property forfeiture provisions.

Congress should also advance the complementary No Flight, No Fight Act, which targets another major trafficking pipeline by prohibiting commercial airlines from transporting fighting birds destined for the global cockfighting trade. Together, these measures attack the criminal networks that profit from organized animal fighting on the ground, through the mail, and in the air."

08/19/2026

"Brooke Rollins, head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, on Tuesday filed a rule to rescind “in its entirety” the national 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, which prohibits road construction, logging and mining on about 30% of lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, mostly in forested areas of the West. Rollins had last year filed a notice of intent that the agency was considering “rolling back” some protections under the rule.

The Roadless Rule is intended to protect wildlife, watersheds and old-growth forests from human development and human-caused wildfires. But in her announcement, Rollins said she was rescinding the rules on nearly 45 million acres under the banner of wildfire prevention, saying the protections instead have led to “overgrown stands, insect outbreaks and disease” that have turned “healthy landscapes into tinderboxes.”

Rollins’ assertions are not borne out by research, including from Oregon State University Professor Chris Dunn, a forest ecologist and wildfire expert. Dunn and his colleagues found that most wildfires in Western national forests between 1984 and 2018 started near roads, showing an increased likelihood of wildfires where roads exist because the No. 1 cause of wildfires is people.

Abigail Dillen, president of the nonprofit environmental legal group Earthjustice, said in a statement that the group will likely sue to stop the rule changes from moving forward."

The Trump administration will move ahead with plans to end more than 25 years of sweeping protections for tens of millions of wild, federally managed acres across the U.S.

08/17/2026

"Time and again, people who commit violence against partners, children, elderly people, and others are found to have histories of abusing animals. In fact, studies show that 70% of convicted animal abusers commit another crime, and nearly 40% go on to commit violent crimes against people.

Those numbers should be a wake-up call.

Yet animal cruelty is often underreported and under-investigated. And many communities simply don’t have the resources, training, or programs they need to intervene effectively.

We can do better—for animals and for people.

That’s why Congress must pass the bipartisan Animal Violence Exposes Real Threat of (AVERT) Future Violence Act.

The AVERT Future Violence Act would direct the Justice Department to study the connection between animal cruelty and future violence, including the risk factors associated with animal abuse and which interventions can help prevent further harm.

But it wouldn’t stop at studying the problem.

The bill would also authorize $2 million annually in grants to support mental health professionals, law enforcement, and animal welfare organizations working to stop animal cruelty and rehabilitate offenders.

That means giving communities more tools to recognize warning signs, intervene earlier, and prevent animals—and potentially people—from becoming victims.

No animal should have to endure cruelty while warning signs are ignored. And communities shouldn’t have to wait until violence moves from animals to people to take those warning signs seriously.

Animal cruelty inflicts fear, pain, and suffering on animals who depend on us for protection. When taking that cruelty seriously can also help prevent further violence, the case for acting early is even stronger."

Animal cruelty is horrifying on its own. But it can also be a warning sign of violence against people. Time and again, people who commit violence against partners, children, elderly people, and others are found to have histories of abusing animals. In fact, studies show that 70% of convicted animal....

08/04/2026

Please add your name...sign the petition.

"A senior federal wildlife official should not help shape decisions that could benefit her family’s animal-breeding business—or appear as a featured speaker for a trophy-hunting organization while serious ethics questions remain unresolved.

That is why Deputy Assistant Secretary Jenifer Chatfield’s reported actions and potential conflicts of interest warrant an independent investigation.

Chatfield's family operates a commercial wildlife-breeding facility. Recent reporting alleges that she became involved in government matters affecting the facility—including its application to renew a federal permit to breed endangered lemurs—prompting members of Congress to call for an ethics investigation.

Her ties also extend into the trophy-hunting world. Days after reportedly leading the U.S. delegation to the 34th meeting of the CITES Animals Committee, Chatfield appeared as a keynote speaker at a Dallas Safari Club luncheon and auction.

Interior officials oversee endangered-species permits, trophy imports, captive breeding, wildlife trade, and policies that can determine whether vulnerable animals receive stronger protections or face greater commercial exploitation.

The public deserves to know whether Chatfield properly disclosed her interests, recused herself when required, and kept official decisions free from private influence.

Two senior House Democrats have already asked the Interior Department’s Inspector General to investigate.

Now the watchdog must act."

A senior federal wildlife official should not help shape decisions that could benefit her family’s animal-breeding business—or appear as a featured speaker for a trophy-hunting organization while serious ethics questions remain unresolved. That is why Deputy Assistant Secretary Jenifer Chatfield...

07/17/2026

07/16/2026

Please sign and send.

"The SPARE Act (HR 1802) is an essential piece of legislation that would mark a historic shift in federal research policy by prioritizing humane, human-relevant scientific methods while significantly reducing the use and abuse of animals in federally funded experimentation. "

NAVS is a leading voice for Anti-Vivisection Advocacy

06/10/2026

Our state needs leaders that would stand up like these 13 did in Colorado!

"Surgeons-in-training cut open live animals to remove organs and perform procedures. Then staff kill the animals. But 13 state legislators want to see that practice stopped. In a letter sent last Thursday, the senators and representatives urge CU Anschutz Chancellor Donald Elliman to “employ modern training methods in order to benefit both patients and animals.” The letter was organized by Senate President Pro Tempore Cathy Kipp and signed by House Majority Leader Monica Duran, among others.

The letter builds on years of work by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a nonprofit medical ethics group, to convince CU Anschutz to follow the example set by most universities and hospitals across the country. According to the group’s ongoing survey, 80 percent of surgery programs teach using only cadavers or advanced simulators modeled on human anatomy and physiology. That list includes the Mayo Clinic, the Cleveland Clinic, Yale University, and hundreds of other institutions.

Public records obtained by the Physicians Committee from CU Anschutz show the medical center used live pigs in training exercises in May 2023, 2024, and 2025. Plans for this year are unknown.

“Colorado patients deserve doctors trained on human anatomy,” said Sen. Kipp. “If Harvard and Stanford can train surgeons without harming animals, CU can too.”

DENVER, Colo.—Every May, the University of Colorado Anschutz conducts a controversial exercise increasingly out of step with most medical centers: Surgeons-in-training cut open live animals to remove organs and perform procedures.

06/10/2026

Thank you Switch4Good 💚

We ALL need to keep our elected decision makers aware that they must represent ALL constituents and they must promote real health, environmental care, and the protection of children and animals.

"Food is a political act, and our choices impact the lives of others—whether we are conscious of this or not. While we have been told that dairy benefits our bodies, the serious social repercussions far outweigh any nutrients found in this food (which are easily obtained elsewhere).

Sixty-five percent of the world’s population is intolerant to cow’s milk with disproportionately higher rates (up to 95 percent!) among Black individuals, Asians, Native Americans, and Latino populations. Despite this, the American government and even some nonprofits promote dairy to the public as a healthy, necessary food.

This is an act of dietary racism, and Switch4Good is committed to putting an end to it."

Many people can’t fully digest cow’s milk, and government-backed promotion of dairy forces a product that makes millions sick — a form of dietary racism that hits communities of color hardest.