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Annual Review 2007

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IAR News

December 2007

Endangered sloth bear cub rescued from poacher

Bear cub being fed by Wildlife SOS staff at the IAR bear sanctuaryAn endangered sloth bear cub of only two or three weeks old has been rescued from a poacher in India, thanks to intelligence supplied by IAR’s partners Wildlife SOS (WSOS). A joint undercover operation conducted by the Forest and Police Departments in the State of Orissa and the Indian charity culminated in the rescue of the little cub whose eyes were still closed. It had clearly been stolen from its mother who may well have been killed while trying to protect it.

In the run-up to the raid informers from Wildlife SOS's Intelligence Unit kept the wildlife smugglers under surveillance and kept watch on the wildlife trading routes near the forested areas of Orissa which form the sloth bears’ natural range.

Arrested poacher Jumman Khan with bear cub before confiscationThen on 10 December the team received confirmation that a bear cub was in the hands of a trader. They also learned that the trader had ordered local poachers to bring him at least four more cubs. The team had to act swiftly to prevent further poaching and immediately set off for Orissa where they were joined by police and forest officials and planned how to proceed.

During the dramatic raid that followed trader Jhumman Khan was arrested and the little bear cub was confiscated. A further suspect was picked up for questioning. The cub was put into the care of Wildlife SOS whose vets and handlers are experts in the rearing of young bears.

Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder of Wildlife SOS, said: "We are committed to ensuring that bear cubs aren’t poached and remain safely in the forest. In achieving this objective we will leave no stone unturned. We are grateful to the Orissa Forest Department and the Police for their support which resulted in this superbly executed seizure."

Arrested poacher Jumman Khan (front). With (right to left): DFO Rehrakol  Mr Shankar Bahra, DFO Sambalpur  Mr PK  Jha, Police officer  Mr Sushil Kumar and Kartick Satanarayan of Wildlife SOSWith support from International Animal Rescue, Wildlife SOS has established sanctuaries across India to care for rescued dancing bears. In the last five years they have rescued more than 420 bears from lives of pain and suffering on the streets. It is believed that there are still about 400 dancing bears in India, and IAR and WSOS are committed to stamping out the barbaric trade by 2010.

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November 2008
IAR in talks about Europe's 'forgotten animals'
Max Farrugia from International Animal Rescue in Malta recently attended a meeting in Brussels to discuss what can be done to help Europe's 'forgotten animals'.

November 2008
IAR presses exotic pet trade issue in Brussels
International Animal Rescue representative Max Farrugia attended the fourth ENDCAP conference in Brussels from 9-11 November.

November 2008
A win for greyhounds in Massachusetts
On 4 November the people of Massachusetts, USA voted overwhelmingly in favour of the Greyhound Protect Act. This legislation will phase out commercial dog racing in the state by 2010.

October 2008
Help the Street Animals of Morocco (HSAM)
International Animal Rescue has twice assisted with the treatment of cats and dogs in Morocco by a group of local and foreign volunteers. The initiative was led by vet nurse Claire Sedgewick. She has produced a report describing their work.

October 2008
Sainsbury's seal protest update
On 29 October we entered discussions with Sainsbury's officials and now await a favorable response to our demands for a statement of their intention to stop killings seals.

October 2008
Seals protest outside Sainsbury's demanding an end to shooting: POSTPONED
UPDATE: The protest has been postponed as a result of Sainsbury's willingness to meet and discuss how the seal killings can be avoided.

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