By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block Last fall, our Animal Rescue Team worked with authorities in Virginia to help remove 110 cats from a U.S. Department of Agriculture-licensed dog and cat dealer as part of an alleged cruelty situation. Since March 2023 alone, the USDA had documented more than 50 Animal Welfare Act violations at the facility, […]
USDA finalizes organic farming rule, clarifying gestation crate ban for animal welfare and public health
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block In a historic move, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program has issued the final Organic Livestock and Poultry Standards rule, a landmark federal regulation that strengthens and clarifies animal welfare standards. While the rule only covers animals raised in the National Organic Program, it will be the […]
Let’s stop USDA from moving backward on cruelty to horses
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block Amidst continuing dissatisfaction over its approach to ending the problem of horse soring, a cruel practice that produces an artificial high-stepping gait in show horses, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has taken a backward step. The agency plans to withdraw a 2017 rule to come down hard on soring, […]
USDA: Stop Animal Exhibits at Anderson & Girls Orchards!
PETA just got the September 2022 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report on Anderson & Girls Orchards—a notorious roadside zoo in Stanton, Michigan—and its contents are shocking. Now we’re asking the USDA to revoke owner Terry Anderson’s wildlife exhibitor license. The Damning Details The report from the September inspection cited Anderson & Girls for endangering […]
Putting the ‘USDA Organic’ label on a stronger animal welfare path
By Kitty Block and Sara Amundson The U.S. Department of Agriculture is currently accepting public comments on its proposed Organic Livestock and Poultry Standards rule, which is a great opportunity to address farm animal welfare. We’re pushing hard for this landmark federal regulation to become final because the rule, which is over twenty years in […]