Humane Society

NEW YORK - John A. Hoyt, who made the Humane Society of the United States the largest anticruelty organization in the country in an era in which changing cultural attitudes were greatly expanding the number of animal protection groups, died April 15 in Fredericksburg, Va. He was 80. The cause was progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare brain disorder, said his daughter Peggy Hoyt. Mr. Hoyt, who was president and chief executive of the Humane Society from 1970 to 1996, was best known for expanding its traditional stewardship over dogs and cats to include laboratory animals,...

Wow, what an ignorant editorial on the cat leash proposal in Concord (" Cats: If you like it, put a bell on it ," May 3). Concern for songbirds drove Lydia Lodnysky's proposal that the town of Concord adopt rules about cat ownership. But her proposal was doomed because people's view of cats is outdated. Cats are supposedly so independent that no laws should apply to their ownership. Let them roam freely, so that they can get mangled by a car, coyote, dog, insane person — by all means, allow them to be the innately wild creatures that they are. Imagine if people in cities and everywhere...

RICHMOND — The Humane Society of the United States said yesterday that an undercover worker at a farm owned by the world’s largest pork producer saw breeding pigs abused and crammed into small gestation crates. The animal welfare organization released the results of a monthlong undercover investigation at a Waverly, Va., factory farm owned by Murphy-Brown, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods Inc. Murphy-Brown is Smithfield’s livestock production subsidiary and is the world’s largest producer of pigs for slaughter.

LillyAnna Kuehl took the path less taken. While most Girl Scouts choose to do a community-service project for their Gold Award Project, the Girl Scout equivalent to an Eagle Scout Project, Kuehl wanted to build something. Although both kinds of projects are admirable and deliver a service to the community, Kuehl said she wanted something that would make a lasting mark. "I felt like it was a little more permanent and it wasn't just a one-day thing," said Kuehl, 17. "I could go back 10 years from now and look at it and know that I did it. " After volunteering with her...

Wow, what an ignorant editorial on the cat leash proposal in Concord (" Cats: If you like it, put a bell on it ," May 3). Concern for songbirds drove Lydia Lodnysky's proposal that the town of Concord adopt rules about cat ownership. But her proposal was doomed because people's view of cats is outdated. Cats are supposedly so independent that no laws should apply to their ownership. Let them roam freely, so that they can get mangled by a car, coyote, dog, insane person — by all means, allow them to be the innately wild creatures that they are. Imagine if people in cities and everywhere...

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The bear that recently killed a caretaker in a Cleveland suburb was the latest example of animal violence in a state that has some of the nation’s weakest restrictions on exotic pets and among the highest number of injuries and deaths caused by them. After a standoff between the Humane Society and agriculture interests, state officials are crafting restrictions on the ownership of dangerous wild pets. But the killer bear and others owned by former bear-wrestling entrepreneur Sam Mazzola, who had lost his federal license to exhibit exotic animals, would have been...

LUBBOCK, Texas - The Texas wildlife agency said Tuesday it is suspending a policy that allows the killing of burros in a state park along the Mexican border after the Humane Society of the United States offered to devise a nonlethal plan to remove the destructive animals. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will contribute up to $10,000 toward a humane society aerial survey of the wild donkeys at Big Bend Ranch State Park to establish baseline data, according to the agency's executive director, Carter Smith.

LillyAnna Kuehl took the path less taken. While most Girl Scouts choose to do a community-service project for their Gold Award Project, the Girl Scout equivalent to an Eagle Scout Project, Kuehl wanted to build something. Although both kinds of projects are admirable and deliver a service to the community, Kuehl said she wanted something that would make a lasting mark. "I felt like it was a little more permanent and it wasn't just a one-day thing," said Kuehl, 17. "I could go back 10 years from now and look at it and know that I did it. " After volunteering with her...

I DID a double-take when I saw the news that McDonald's was asking its suppliers to phase out gestation crates. But the multinational food corporation, did, in fact, make history last week, with its press release stating, "McDonald's believes gestation stalls are not a sustainable production system for the future," and "there are alternatives that we think are better for the welfare of sows. " McDonald's has finally caught up with the explosion of consumer sentiment on the subject of factory farming, driven by groups like the Humane Society of the United...

To celebrate animals and to emphasize their importance as spiritual beings, Calvary Episcopal Church will sponsor the 9th annual Blessing of the Animals on Oct. 1 at Endicott Park in Danvers, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. rain or shine. The Blessing coincides with the annual Feast of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals and ecology. The Rev. Thea Keith-Lucas, Calvary's rector, will preside over the event that welcomes all. Rev. Thea will offer hands-on blessings for all animals who attend and she will also bless photographs and paper prayers for those animals who...

NEW YORK - John A. Hoyt, who made the Humane Society of the United States the largest anticruelty organization in the country in an era in which changing cultural attitudes were greatly expanding the number of animal protection groups, died April 15 in Fredericksburg, Va. He was 80. The cause was progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare brain disorder, said his daughter Peggy Hoyt. Mr. Hoyt, who was president and chief executive of the Humane Society from 1970 to 1996, was best known for expanding its traditional stewardship over dogs and cats to include laboratory animals,...

Andy, an 11-year-old Pembroke Welsh corgi, has been lost since New Year's Eve, frightened away by fireworks. Since then, thousands of people have seen his face online, though no one knows where he is. You can see his fluffy golden coat and pointy, oversized ears on YouTube, Craigslist, and the blogosphere. If you drive through Westport, Conn., where Andy disappeared, you will find him on 4,000 laminated color posters. If someone reports seeing Andy, prerecorded missing-pet phone messages (similar to a Reverse 911 call)

The South Shore Humane Society will hold its annual yard sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 21, at Braintree Town Hall on JFK Memorial Drive. To donate items such as glass, china, linens, toys (no stuffed animals), costume jewelry, books, CDs and DVDs, small furniture, pictures, frames, and small electrical appliances in working condition, contact Claire at 781-843-8824. - Christine Legere

LUBBOCK, Texas - The Texas wildlife agency said Tuesday it is suspending a policy that allows the killing of burros in a state park along the Mexican border after the Humane Society of the United States offered to devise a nonlethal plan to remove the destructive animals. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will contribute up to $10,000 toward a humane society aerial survey of the wild donkeys at Big Bend Ranch State Park to establish baseline data, according to the agency's executive director, Carter Smith.

Sharpening their messages for what is poised to be a fierce campaign-season fight over physician-assisted suicide, proponents of the policy contended at a State House hearing Tuesday that terminally ill patients with months to live should be empowered to take their own lives. "Everyone must be allowed to make their own choice with their own beliefs," said state Representative Lewis Kafka, Democrat of Stoughton, sponsor of legislation that would allow patients to self-administer life-ending drugs if they are deemed by doctors to have no hope of recovery and fewer than six months to...

I DID a double-take when I saw the news that McDonald's was asking its suppliers to phase out gestation crates. But the multinational food corporation, did, in fact, make history last week, with its press release stating, "McDonald's believes gestation stalls are not a sustainable production system for the future," and "there are alternatives that we think are better for the welfare of sows. " McDonald's has finally caught up with the explosion of consumer sentiment on the subject of factory farming, driven by groups like the Humane Society of the United States.

RICHMOND - Animal advocates around the nation hope that public outrage over dogfighting and puppy mill scandals in Virginia will force state and federal lawmakers to pass tougher animal abuse laws. Some sportsmen, however, warn that the emotionally charged debate could result in laws affecting legitimate owners, especially of hunting dogs, along with the intended targets. The legislative moves stem from the arrest of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and friends on charges they were operating a dogfighting ring at his 15-acre country estate in southeastern Virginia.

ALTHOUGH OUR national conversation has retreated from the generosity of vision and aspiration enunciated by leaders like Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr., it appears the pendulum is swinging back ( "Why isn't peace on anyone's platform?" Op-ed, Dec. 23). It has become safe again to talk about values. Nicholas Burns might have given some credit to the Occupy movement for compelling us to face the political negligence, corporate greed, and indulgence of the wealthy that have bled us in unwisely prosecuted wars and frayed the domestic social contract.

ALTHOUGH OUR national conversation has retreated from the generosity of vision and aspiration enunciated by leaders like Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr., it appears the pendulum is swinging back ( "Why isn't peace on anyone's platform?" Op-ed, Dec. 23). It has become safe again to talk about values. Nicholas Burns might have given some credit to the Occupy movement for compelling us to face the political negligence, corporate greed, and indulgence of the wealthy that have bled us in unwisely prosecuted wars and frayed the domestic social contract.

To celebrate animals and to emphasize their importance as spiritual beings, Calvary Episcopal Church will sponsor the 9th annual Blessing of the Animals on Oct. 1 at Endicott Park in Danvers, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. rain or shine. The Blessing coincides with the annual Feast of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals and ecology. The Rev. Thea Keith-Lucas, Calvary's rector, will preside over the event that welcomes all. Rev. Thea will offer hands-on blessings for all animals who attend and she will also bless photographs and paper prayers for those animals who...