I just attended an interesting workshop titled "Protect and Serve: Working with Law Enforcement." Lorri Bauston, President of Animal Acres, and Eric Sakach, West Coast Regional Director of The HSUS spoke about the importance of enforcement of animal cruelty statutes. Sakach pointed out that legislation is just one aspect to animal cruelty prosecutions. To make sure the abusers are prosecuted, we also need to educate law enforcement and the judiciary. Most police officers receive no training regarding animal cruelty cases. Bauston found that despite a federal law requiring humane treatment of "downed" animals (animals who are unable to walk or stand) at stockyards and slaughterhouses, many of the same old cruel practices continue to this day. Bauston is starting a new organization in California that would have law enforcement powers and the authority to appoint and train humane enforcement officers. California law allows the formation of such organizations, and the law requires the police to support the humane officers.

I spent this morning at the TAFA conference interviewing two of the leaders on the farmed animals issue: Lorri Bauston, founder of Animal Acres and co-founder of Farm Sanctuary, and Karen Davis, founder of United Poultry Concerns.

Both told me that in the early 1980s, there was little or no awareness about farmed animal issues because even the movement leaders at the time did not want to take on the issue. Bauston explained that it was hard enough to get people to care about whales and dogs without trying to get them to care about pigs and chickens. Davis pointed out that many of the leaders at the time were not vegetarian and didn't want to have to think about the issue. How times have changed!

In the coming weeks, I will be posting transcripts of all of the interviews from this weekend.