#animal-welfare · Cascadity

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TThe Trail #animal-welfare #central-park #New-York #tourism

New York City votes to end Central Park's horse-drawn carriages by June 2028

A 150-year tourist tradition ends; the open question is what happens to more than 150 drivers and their horses.

The New York City Council on October 22 passed a bill banning horse-drawn carriage rides by June 2028, ending a Central Park tradition of more than 150 years that animal-welfare groups have long opposed, the Associated Press reports (via NBC News). The vote followed the death of a teenage tourist last spring.

The law requires Mayor Zohran Mamdani's office to produce a plan by next April to help the more than 150 remaining drivers find work, including referrals to transit, hospitality and taxi jobs, and lets the city consider compensation. Driver Alexus Lawson asked, "Without a job, how can I take care of my horses?"

Instead of a carriage ride before 2028, consider seeing Central Park on foot or by bike.

Read it at the source

NBC News (AP)NYC passes bill to ban horse-drawn carriages; Central Park’s drivers fear for their future Independent ↗

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GSGlobal Stewardship #animal-welfare #Congress #exotic-pets #florida #sloths #wildlife-trade

After more than 50 sloths died at an Orlando attraction, a bipartisan bill would ban wild sloth imports to the US

Inside Climate News broke the Sloth World story, and this piece explains what the new SLOTHS Act would and wouldn't allow.

What happened: Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) and Rep. Laurel Lee (R-Fla.) announced the SLOTHS Act (Stopping Legalized Organized Trafficking and Harm to Sloths) on Oct. 20. It would ban importing wild sloths into the US, with fines of up to $100,000 and loss of import licenses. Accredited zoos could still exchange captive sloths, and researchers could import biological samples, but not live animals. Sloth scientist Rebecca Cliffe and Sam Trull of the Sloth Institute helped draft it.

Why it matters: More than 1,100 live sloths were imported into the US from 2011 to 2021. Sloth World, a planned $49-per-encounter Orlando attraction, never opened. Government records later showed that more than 50 of its imported sloths died, mostly from stress and illness. IFAW, which supports the bill, says 13 survivors went to the Central Florida Zoo.

How much agreement is there? Some disagreement on how to do it, not on the goal. The bill has sponsors from both parties. Researcher Alice Hughes of the University of Melbourne warns that without careful enforcement, wild-caught animals could be "laundered" as captive-bred.

Could someone help? Skipping sloth "encounter" photo ops, and telling your representative what you think of the bill, are two simple things anyone can do.

Read it at the source

Inside Climate NewsFederal Lawmakers to Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Ban Wild Sloth Imports Independent ↗ IFAWSLOTHS Act aims to protect sloths from wildlife trade Independent ↗

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Sloth

After exploring SLOTHS Act aims to protect sloths from wildlife trade, to meet the animal behind the headlines, start with Sloth.

Sloths are Neotropical mammals that spend most of their lives hanging upside down in rainforest trees in Central and South America, and are known for moving slowly.

Wikipedia · Wade · 5 min

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GSGlobal Stewardship #animal-welfare #belugas #Canada #captivity #marineland #whales

A sixth beluga rescued from Canada's shuttered Marineland dies, this time at SeaWorld San Diego

Mongabay walks through each death and why a marine mammal biologist says they were no surprise.

What happened: SeaWorld San Diego announced on Oct. 18 that Cyprus, a 9-year-old male beluga, had died after he stopped eating. An ultrasound showed his intestines were not working properly. He was one of 30 belugas moved in July and August from Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario, which closed to the public in 2025. They went to SeaWorld parks, Chicago's Shedd Aquarium, Georgia Aquarium and Oceanogràfic València in Spain. Six of the 30 have now died: four at Shedd, one in Valencia and Cyprus. A dolphin from Marineland also died in Valencia.

Why it matters: Canada banned keeping whales and dolphins for entertainment in 2019, and these were among the last held in the country.

How much agreement is there? Some disagreement. Naomi Rose of the Animal Welfare Institute says the deaths were expected given years of poor care, and that moving the whales was "the best of a bad job." Conservationists are using the deaths to call for an end to keeping cetaceans in captivity.

Could someone help? Seaside sanctuary projects for retired captive whales are being built and take donations and volunteers. Choosing not to pay for shows that use captive whales and dolphins is another option.

Read it at the source

MongabaySix beluga deaths cast a shadow over rescue from Canada's Marineland Independent ↗ Chicago Sun-TimesSixth beluga whale rescued from Canada dies in San Diego, following four deaths at the Shedd Independent ↗

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Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act

After exploring Six beluga deaths cast a shadow over rescue from Canada's Marineland, the law that ended the business model is the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act.

Canada's 2019 law banning the capture and captivity of cetaceans, with a grandfather clause for animals already held when it came into force.

Wikipedia · Wade · 5 min

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Marineland of Canada

After exploring Six beluga deaths cast a shadow over rescue from Canada's Marineland, the history of the park itself is in Marineland of Canada.

The Niagara Falls theme park founded in 1961 by John Holer, which displayed dolphins, belugas, walruses and orcas and faced years of protests and lawsuits.

Wikipedia · Wade · 5 min

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