Animal Person

APRIL 7, 2011

Vegan education/advocacy for animals is easiest for me when I know my audience. And by "know," I mean I have a relationship with them and/or I understand what drives them, what they appreciate and what they can tolerate. From there, my job is to use images and language that they are comfortable with, especially at the beginning, and then to nudge them gently into areas that challenge their thoughts and actions.

Advocacy 100

Advocacy Veal PETA Seals 100

Animal Person

APRIL 5, 2011

Being featured on ARZone's worldwide Live Guest Chat has reinvigorated my thinking about a couple of topics ( here 's the transcript). And then I read the "OMG!!!!!OED!!!!!LOL!!!!!" in today's New York Times, and I couldn't resist posting. A couple of years ago I wrote about whether it's a good use of my time to be a purist about the term "animal rights" when most of the world doesn't have the same understanding of the term as I do.

Animal Rights 100

Animal Rights For Animals Rights HSUS 100

Animal Person

MARCH 28, 2011

. I'm honored to have been asked to be interviewed at the next worldwide Live Guest Chat hosted by ARZone. Questions must be submitted to Carolyn@ARZone.net by midnight GMT on Wednesday. Here 's the link to the page, and I hope to meet you there. Thanks! Mary Martin, PhD. . . .

Animal 100

Animal 100

Animal Person

JANUARY 11, 2011

As anyone who writes and edits knows, it's far easier to produce a longer powerful, thorough piece than a shorter one. I intentionally deleted the entire section on the environment, I'm not dealing with the health benefits of not using animals, and meanwhile I wanted to present a logical progression of comments and questions that, for its perspective, was thorough.

Animal 100

Animal Ethics 100

Animal Person

JANUARY 5, 2011

After failing miserably at a long pamphlet in 2007, I decided to shorten it by 50% and focus on a different audience: people who use animals. I think part of the original work's problem was that it was too ambitious--not to mention expensive to produce--and everything suffered. I wanted to reach people who use animals, but also people who don't, yet who nevertheless advocate for the regulation of the use of animals or give money to organizations that do.

Animal 100

Animal Cooking Vegan Emotional 100

Animal Person

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

Yesterday, I was on my way to the Foster and Adoptive Parents Association, which has a "store" and allows those parents to "shop" for clothing, toys and baby gear at no cost to them. Basically, they give stuff away, unlike Goodwill and the Salvation Army and others, who charge for their donated goods. Everyone was slamming on their brakes on a major road and as I crept around the mayhem I saw the reason: a turtle of some kind.

Turtles 100

Turtles Vegan Welfare Adoptable 100

Animal Person

NOVEMBER 18, 2010

Thanksgiving 2010 will be Baby Sky's first, and our opportunity to introduce her to the notion that our family doesn't eat animals (not to mention that other historical story we'll be correcting). There will be no greyhound corpse on our table, no turkey corpse and no pig corpse. There will be no pies or cakes that were made with milk that was meant for calves, or eggs that represent dead male chicks , forced molting, debeaking and other mutilations and cruelties.

Greyhounds 100

Greyhounds Forced Molting Debeaking Vegan 100

Animal Person

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

When I agreed to read and review Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson's THE DOG WHO COULDN'T STOP LOVING (Harper 2010), the regal Charles Hobson Booger, III was still with us. When it arrived, the day after Charles died, I'll admit to wanting to burn it. Essentially, I was afraid that the pain would never stop. And the crying would never stop. But it has lessened some, and I've gained back that five pounds I lost, so I suppose my heart is on the mend.

Dogs 100

Dogs Pit Bulls Greyhounds Kennels 100

Animal Person

OCTOBER 30, 2010

High in the Clouds , by Paul McCartney, Geoff Dunbar and Philip Ardagh is supposed to be for Grades 2-4, but its themes, vocabulary and syntax are more advanced. From Barnes and Noble : "Wirral the Squirrel is homeless. The evil Gretsch have [ sic ] destroyed his wilderness home, trampling it in their relentless drive to expand. But Wirral does not despair; he vows to find a new home in Animalia, the fabled land where all creatures are said to live together in freedom.

Factory 100

Factory Vegan Homelessness Animal Rights 100

Animal Person

OCTOBER 22, 2010

Charles died a week ago today, and if you haven't seen Deb's tribute , it's a must-see and we're very grateful and humbled by her post as well as all of the e-mails and cards and calls we've received. In all of the lovely messages we've been getting, I've noticed two trends: 1) Death is a communal experience as well as an individual one. One being dies, but the memories of death and the stories of life are brought to the fore for those who learn of the passing.

Greyhounds 100

Greyhounds Adoptable Suffering Collecting 100

Animal Person

OCTOBER 16, 2010

. My boyfriend. That's what I called him. Loverboy, Charles, Charlesez, Gorgeous. My husband called him Charlie. He's no longer with us, and our hearts ache. . Charles' death was sudden, tragic and avoidable. He had a corn removed Thursday morning, left the vet looking just fine and happy to be rid of the pain, and by 5:00 pm yesterday, after we were told that he had a less than 5% chance of survival with days of intensive treatment, and after consulting friends who are vets, we decided to e

Vet 100

Vet Greyhounds Suffering 100

Animal Person

OCTOBER 13, 2010

I've been under the radar for a bit, anxiously awaiting the adoption finalization of Baby Sky. But now that she's officially ours, I feel like I can write about a topic that means a lot to me without the fear that my words might somehow jeopardize the adoption. As someone who was very, very late to the wanting-a-baby party (my desire didn't kick in until almost 40), and who did attempt to have a biological child, I'm particularly qualified to say what I'm about to say.

Vegan 100

Vegan Adoptable Cooking Ethics 100

Animal Person

SEPTEMBER 4, 2010

Tags: Activism Current Affairs Economics Ethics Gray Matters.

Ethics 100

Ethics Animal Tagged 100

Animal Person

AUGUST 25, 2010

An Animal Person reader wrote me with the following question: There are many species of cichlids in Lake Victoria that are on the verge of extinction, and most are hardy and small enough to be kept in an aquarium. There are conservation efforts to save these species by individual aquarists, who are keeping and breeding them in hopes that they can someday be reintroduced into the lake.

Fish 100

Fish Rabbits Rescue Vegan 100

Animal Person

AUGUST 13, 2010

Yesterday, in the comments of An Affront to the Idea of Family , Brian wrote: I understand your concern for those cows that were beat by that man and the unfortunate death of all the cows that died in the snow storm. As a dairy farmer I even had a hard time reading that. I love my cows and I don't anyone touch them in that manner. I am always working for the best environment and the most comfortable situation for my cows, who I consider part of my family.

Family 100

Family Animal Sanctuary Sanctuary Cows 100

Animal Person

AUGUST 12, 2010

In " Move to Limit 'Factor Farms' Gains Momentum " in today's New York Times , we learn that farmers in Ohio have agreed to phase out gestation crates within 15 years and veal crates by 2017. I won't get into whether I find that to be a victory. Here are the sentences that I want to bring attention to: The family of Irv Bell, 64, has been growing hogs in Zanesville, Ohio, since the 19th century.

Gestation Crates 100

Gestation Crates Farming Factory Farm Factory Farming 100

Animal Person

AUGUST 10, 2010

I'm not one of those people who thinks family is composed of only humans or humans who are biologically related. That's one of the reasons adopting wasn't a stretch for me at all mentally. The idea of family is currently being used by the dairy industry in a series of commercials with the tag line: "99% of dairy farms are family owned." You see midwestern folk in overalls with tired faces.

Family 100

Family Factory Farm Factory Farming Cows 100

Animal Person

JULY 25, 2010

Thanks, once again, to James LaVeck and Jenny Stein of Tribe of Heart for kindly and carefully bringing attention to what should be a stunningly-obvious moment of hypocrisy by groups that exist to advocate for and save animals. I understand how someone who supports the Humane Society of the United States might think an event celebrating "humane" farms would be a good id, as HSUS isn't an animal rights organization.

Humane Society Of The United States 100

Humane Society Of The United States Lamb HSUS The Humane Society 100

Animal Person

JULY 21, 2010

I somehow became the non-vet, go-to person regarding dogs and diabetes, I suppose due to my frequent blogging about Violet Rays (left), my greyhound who has been through diabetes, blindness (then cataract replacement), glaucoma and retina detachment. As you may know, Vetsulin has been discontinued and diabetic animals are being transitioned to Humulin N (or a similar human insulin appropriate for dogs and some cats) or Lantus/glargine (for cats). " On the Vetsulin 'Recall' " has been very active

Vet 100

Vet Emotional Greyhounds Cats 100

Animal Person

JULY 15, 2010

A comment left yesterday on a two-year old post, by None Please presented a phrase I've never heard before and I'd like to address it. "In the Washington metro area, we have a BIG deer problem. I have a question for you, would you prefer to get shot by a compassionate bullet to the head,and be eaten by a lifeform that thanks god for you flesh and appreciates it.

Deer 100

Deer Euthanasia Killing Ethics 100

Animal Person

JULY 6, 2010

Surprise! On Friday, June 25, I received a call from an attorney who said a little girl was born the evening prior, her adoption fell through and she needed a family. And on Sunday, June 27, we brought her home! We named her Skylar and she's adorable and sweet and has a very punk hairdo. Her daddy is madly in love with her and I practically have to pry her out of his arms to get a moment with her.

Humane 100

Humane Animal Cows Greyhounds 100

Animal Person

JUNE 23, 2010

Have you seen the ridiculous television show, Wipeout ? There's something hilarious about people intentionally putting themselves in a position to be beaten up like Wile E. Coyote. It's all in fun, with much of the humor coming from the commentators and the special sound effects. It does get old, however, after about 10 minutes. At minute #9 for me last night was a young woman going through one of the obstacle courses and getting pummeled, just like everyone else.

Lions 100

Lions Animal Cruelty Cruelty Chickens 100

Animal Person

JUNE 16, 2010

" Creature Quotes: Advancing Toward Freedom For All Species ," compiled and edited by SBH Clay, is now available. From the Introduction : "Humans are fascinated by animals. For all our devotion, though, we sometimes seem not to recognize the needs and wants of animals. We unwittingly partake of activities that hurt, physically and mentally, the very creatures we admire and seek to protect from harm (5).".

Advocacy 100

Advocacy Vegan Ethics Animal Rights 100

Animal Person

JUNE 12, 2010

Last night I watched 2009's " The Road " (based on the Cormac McCarthy novel , which I haven't read), a post-apocalyptic tale of a man and his son trying to survive. They're trying to get to the coast and then go south, where they think there might be more food and at least the winters won't be so brutal. Gangs of evil-doer survivors are marauding across the land, up to a particular kind of evil.

Humane 100

Humane Killing Cooking Dogs 100

Animal Person

MAY 25, 2010

I've decided that 20 lessons is a good number to stop at, and today I'll discuss what are probably the two most controversial ones, about the animal rights movement. Lesson #11. The Appeal of Cliques The first six Lessons Learned from 4 Years of Animal Person and numbers 7-10 hinted about cliques, but only the negative aspects. For me, preaching to the choir wasn't satisfying and also became ugly and time consuming because I positioned myself to be part of a clique and that didn't work well for

Animal Rights Movement 100

Animal Rights Movement Vegan Lifestyle Animal Rights 100

Animal Person

MAY 24, 2010

Yesterday's lessons learned were primarily about blogging. Today they're about language. Lesson #7 Obsessing over language can become counterproductive. And this, coming from a person with a doctorate in Applied Linguistics. I can talk about language all day, every day. How it shapes our lives and our culture. How it changes because it's not static--it's alive.

Vegan 100

Vegan Vegetarian Animal Feral Cats 100

Animal Person

MAY 23, 2010

I've officially been blogging for four years (1,329 posts and 5,441 comments) today, and as I (re)ponder whether I will continue, I'd like to present some lessons I've learned about blogging, veganism, people, "the movement," language and. I'll also take requests. Today I'll address blogging. Lesson #1. Know your audience. If you want to facilitate change in the hearts, minds and actions of others, you should know your audience.

Vegan 100

Vegan Animal Unwanted Ethics 100

Animal Person

MAY 9, 2010

Check out " On Motherhood and Pizza " at Animal Rights & AntiOppression, by yours truly, and have a Happy Mother's Day! Tags: Activism Current Affairs Ethics Food and Drink.

Ethics 100

Ethics Animal Rights Tagged Rights 100

Animal Person

APRIL 26, 2010

First, Chris directed me to ePub Bud , which appears to be a timely and fantastic idea given my recent plea for more books for children about veganism. In addition, it looks like a great way to get your book into ePub form (and here 's how to read it) no matter what age your audience is. Next, a fellow introvert e-mailed me describing herself as extremely awkward socially as well as invisible and having social anxiety, and asking where/how she might be useful to the animal rights movement.

Animal Rights Movement 100

Animal Rights Movement Animal Sanctuary Neutering Animal Rights 100

Animal Person

APRIL 7, 2010

As many of you know, 2009 was chock full of creature-related drama for me. From the feral cats of Project Treadstone to Charles' back surgery to problems with Violet's Vetsulin (insulin for dogs), we had more than our share of issues. If I told you what I spent last year doing work-wise, you probably wouldn't believe me and you'd definitely suggest I write a book about it.

Project Treadstone 100

Project Treadstone Greyhounds Feral Cats Vet 100

Animal Person

APRIL 6, 2010

When I started blogging in May of 2006 I was very snarky. Snark defined blogging back then. And of course, as a (pop) culture whose sensibility has been formed by The Onion and The Daily Show , it's no wonder. My snarkiness increased, and turned into ranting, but then ranting for some reason got old. It's very, very easy for me to use language as a weapon; I've done that my whole life.

Animal 100

Animal Pigs Human Animals Humane 100

Animal Person

APRIL 1, 2010

I realize that in writing about "old speciesism" I failed to define this term that Dunayer uses. I think of "old speciesism" as analogous to racism and sexism in that it is exploitation based on species. The advocacy component of old speciesism isn't the campaign to end that exploitation, however. Instead, it is the campaign to modify it. Meanwhile, "new speciesism" is the notion that within a paradigm where rights are included for nonhuman animals, some are more deserving of rights than others

Speciesism 100

Speciesism Apes Advocacy Salamander 100

Animal Person

MARCH 29, 2010

I finally read SPECIESISM , by Joan Dunayer, which was published a couple of years after ANIMAL EQUALITY , which I wrote about a couple of weeks ago. This book has so many great quotes that I'm going to have to write a couple of posts about them. Off we go (and all of the below are exact quotes). Whenever the media report that someone has killed "an endangered animal" or "an endangered species," they too confuse an individual with a species.

Speciesism 100

Speciesism Endangered Species Vivisection Killing 100

Animal Person

MARCH 25, 2010

" Creative Nonfiction is seeking essays about the bonds--emotional, ethical, biological, physical, or otherwise--between humans and animals. We're looking for stories from a variety of viewpoints. For the past 16 years, Creative Nonfiction has devoted itself to publishing vividly-written literary nonfiction on a variety of topics. The postmark deadline is April 2, 2010.

For Animals 100

For Animals Animal Ethics Emotional 100

Animal Person

MARCH 24, 2010

Coincidentally, last night was a board meeting for our homeowner's association, and though I wasn't on the agenda there's always time for homeowner comments about, say, the petting zoo and pony rides that are scheduled for the spring "BBQ" ( here 's part one of this story). I printed pages of information about petting zoos from the Internet, mostly about health risks but also about animal treatment.

Zoos 100

Zoos Ponies Pets Vegan 100

Animal Person

MARCH 20, 2010

?After my long weekend up North I returned to a message from our neighborhood association announcing a picnic on April 11 on the Village Green. We paid a heap of extra money to live on the Village Green, so anything that happens there is basically happening in our front yard. Like a "BBQ, pony rides and a petting zoo!" Naturally, upon reading such words, my stomach turned and I immediately thought of making plans to be away from the house that day so I wouldn't have to see any of the festivities

Zoos 100

Zoos Pets Ponies Cruelty 100

Animal Person

MARCH 18, 2010

I went back to New York to the areas where I grew up and went to college and graduate school for a five-day weekend. I'd been longing for NYC and, as usual, thinking about moving back. The Nor'easter cured me of that longing. I visited my three godchildren and a handful of friends, and all but one friend has at least one child. As someone who's about to have a one-year old in her life, I was particularly aware of the part animals play in the lives of the children and how animals are talked about

Gorillas 100

Gorillas Pets Vegan Speciesism 100