Dutch Society for the Protection of Animals

Last updated
Nederlandse Vereniging tot Bescherming van Dieren
AbbreviationDB
FormationAugust 25, 1864
TypeNGO
Purpose Animal welfare
Staff
65
Volunteers
200,000
Website dierenbescherming.nl

The Dutch Society for the Protection of Animals (Dutch : Nederlandse Vereniging tot Bescherming van Dieren or De Dierenbescherming) is a Dutch voluntary animal protection organisation, founded in 1864.

Activities

In the early years following its establishment, the Dutch Society for the Protection of Animals was an aristocratic movement seeking animal protection, similar to organisations elsewhere. [1] Early objectives included abolishing draft dogs, improving living and working conditions for horses, banning the docking of dog and horse ears and tails, and better slaughter regulations (including mandatory anaesthesia). [2] The group tried to prevent animal abuse by influencing public opinion through brochures and lectures and by drafting national laws. [1] Early legislative accomplishments included an 1875 law on rabies prevention, including punishments for intentional abuse of a dog or cat; and an 1880 law protecting species useful for agriculture and timber production, offering official protection to certain birds and mammals. [2] A milestone was reached in 1886 when an article was included in the penal code that made abuse of all animals punishable. [1] As enforcement of these statutes proved lax, in 1920 the Society set up a rural inspectorate, active until its replacement by the National Animal Inspection Foundation in 1975. Additionally, the Society backed a 1961 law on animal protection, which among other provisions banned using dogs as pack animals. [2]

In the 1980s the Society actively campaigned against ritual slaughter. In 1984 the State Secretary of Agriculture and Fisheries, relying on the DSPA Ritual Slaughter Commission report, decided to gradually eliminate the production of ritually slaughtered meat for export. [3] The Ministry of Agriculture argued that this ruling didn't affect the production of ritually slaughtered meat for the consumption within the Netherlands and therefore did not infringe upon religious freedoms. [3] However, the Ministry of Interior ruled it a violation of the principle of religious freedom, and the decision was eventually cancelled. [3]

In 1984 DSPA started a national campaign promoting the sale of free range eggs (Dutch : Scharreleieren, literally: scratching eggs). New distribution channels were created and special stickers were produced by DSPA, marking the bakeries and the restaurants that use scratching eggs. [4]

In 1985 a new draft of the Dutch Animal Health Act was issued. It contained a new chapter on animal welfare, so its name was amended accordingly, to Animal Health and Welfare Act. [5] Because the new Welfare Act resulted in few concrete measures, DSPA took the initiative for revising it. [5] According to DSPA, the Welfare Act should implement the "no-unless" principle - no practices that injure animal welfare are allowed, unless specific regulations permitting it exist. [5] As a result of DSPA efforts, the Dutch parliament requested the Ministry of Agriculture to revise the Welfare Act in accordance with the "no-unless" principle. The initial draft was met with caution by parliament in 1989, but after further changes and discussions it finally passed the revised version of the Animal and Welfare Act in 1992. [5] The new animal welfare law also included a chapter on transgenic animals, which was a subject of study initiated by DSPA in 1985. [6]

In 2005 a news story about a sparrow killed during the Domino day preparations received worldwide media attention. [7] [8] The bird flew into the FEC exhibition centre in Leeuwarden, knocking down over 23,000 out of 4,321,000 domino tiles that had been arranged in preparation for a world record attempt. [7] [8] A hired animal expert, after failing to capture the bird, shot it with an air rifle. The event was widely reported and the death of the Domino Day sparrow was protested by animal rights groups. DSPA launched an investigation, which resulted in a 200 euro fine issued by the public prosecutor to the shooter for the unlawful killing of an animal belonging to a protected species. [9] [10]

During its history, the Society has seen strong growth in membership: from some 2,000 in 1875, it had doubled by about 1900, and by 1920, it was large enough that it had to hire permanent staff. Growth continued after World War II and during the environmentally-conscious 1970s, membership rose from 65,000 to 100,000. The mid-1990s saw another jump in membership, reaching 200,000 by 2009. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Animal welfare</span> Well-being of non-human animals

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cruelty to animals</span> Negligent or abusive action against animals by humans

Cruelty to animals, also called animal abuse, animal neglect or animal cruelty, is the infliction of suffering or harm by humans upon animals, either by omission (neglect) or by commission. More narrowly, it can be the causing of harm or suffering for specific achievements, such as killing animals for entertainment; cruelty to animals sometimes encompasses inflicting harm or suffering as an end in itself, referred to as zoosadism. Divergent approaches to laws concerning animal cruelty occur in different jurisdictions throughout the world. For example, some laws govern methods of killing animals for food, clothing, or other products, and other laws concern the keeping of animals for entertainment, education, research, or pets. There are several conceptual approaches to the issue of cruelty to animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chick culling</span> Process of killing newly hatched chicks for which the industry has no use

Chick culling or unwanted chick killing is the process of separating and killing unwanted chicks for which the intensive animal farming industry has no use. It occurs in all industrialised egg production, whether free range, organic, or battery cage. However, some certified pasture-raised egg farms are taking steps to eliminate the practice entirely. Worldwide, around 7 billion male chicks are culled each year in the egg industry. Because male chickens do not lay eggs and only those in breeding programmes are required to fertilise eggs, they are considered redundant to the egg-laying industry and are usually killed shortly after being sexed, which occurs just days after they are conceived or after they hatch. Some methods of culling that do not involve anaesthetics include: cervical dislocation, asphyxiation by carbon dioxide, and maceration using a high-speed grinder. Maceration is the primary method in the United States. Maceration is often a preferred method over carbon dioxide asphyxiation in western countries as it is often considered as "more humane" due to the deaths occurring immediately or within a second.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humane Slaughter Act</span> United States federal law

The Humane Slaughter Act, or the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act, is a United States federal law designed to decrease suffering of livestock during slaughter. It was approved on August 27, 1958. The most notable of these requirements is the need to have an animal completely sedated and insensible to pain. This is to minimize the suffering to the point where the animal feels nothing at all, instead blacking out and never waking. This differs from animal to animal as size increases and decreases. Larger animals such as bovines require a stronger method than chickens, for example. Bovines require electronarcosis or something equally potent, though electronarcosis remains a standard. The bovine would have a device placed on their head that, once activated, sends an electric charge that efficiently and safely stuns them. Chickens, on the other hand, require much less current to be efficiently sedated and are given a run under electrically charged water. To ensure that these guidelines are met, the Food Safety and Inspection Service inspectors at slaughtering plants are responsible for overseeing compliance, and have the authority to stop slaughter lines and order plant employees to take corrective actions. Although more than 168 million chickens and around 9 billion broiler chickens are killed for food in the United States yearly, the Humane Slaughter Act specifically mentions only cattle, calves, horses, mules, sheep and swine.

Animal welfare and rights in Israel is about the treatment of and laws concerning nonhuman animals in Israel. Israel's major animal welfare law is the Animal Protection Law, passed in 1994, which has been amended several times since. Several other laws also related to the treatment of animals: Rabies Ordinance, 1934; Fishing Ordinance, 1937; Public Health Ordinance, 1940; Wildlife Protection Law, 1955; Plants Protection Law, 1956; Criminal Procedure Law, 1982; Animal Disease Ordinance, 1985; National Parks, Nature Reserves, National Sites and Memorial Sites Law, 1991; the Law of Veterinarians, 1991; Dog Regulation Law, 2002; Rabies Regulations (Vaccinations), 2005; and Prohibition on declawing cats unless for reasons vital to the cat's health or owner's health, 2011.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domino Day 2005 sparrow</span> Dutch house sparrow

The Domino Day 2005 house sparrow, generally known as the domino sparrow, was a house sparrow that was shot and killed by a hunter from the company Duke Faunabeheer in the Frisian Expo Centre in Leeuwarden, Netherlands, during preparations for Domino Day 2005 on 14 November 2005. With only four days to go until Domino Day 2005, the bird flew into the building and landed on several domino bricks, eventually causing 23,000 of them to fall. Because of the protective gaps that were placed between groups of dominoes, the damage was limited. Faunabeheer was hired to remove the unwanted intruder from the centre. After trying to capture the sparrow with nets and sticks, the company decided to shoot the bird.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legal aspects of ritual slaughter</span>

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Animal welfare and rights in the Netherlands is about the treatment of and laws concerning non-human animals in the Netherlands. The Netherlands has moderately strong animal protections by international standards.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Efting Dijkstra, Marjolein (2004). "The Animal Prop: Animals as Play Objects in Dutch Folkloristic Games". Western Folklore. Retrieved 2009-01-19.[ dead link ]
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Geschiedenis". Dutch Society for the Protection of Animals. 2009. Archived from the original on 2008-12-23. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  3. 1 2 3 W. A. R. Shadid; P. Sj. van Koningsveld (1992). Islam in Dutch Society: Current Developments and Future Prospects. Peeters Publishers. p. 22. ISBN   90-242-3047-0.
  4. ↑ Disco, Cornelis; Barend van der Meulen (1998). Getting New Technologies Together: Studies in Making Sociotechnical Order By. Walter de Gruyter. pp.  154. ISBN   3-11-015630-X.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Dol, Marcel (1999). Recognizing the Intrinsic Value of Animals: Beyond Animal Welfare. Uitgeverij Van Gorcum. pp. 19–20. ISBN   90-232-3469-3.
  6. ↑ Martin W. Bauer; John Durant; George Gaskell (1998). Biotechnology in the Public Sphere: A European Sourcebook. NMSI Trading Ltd. p. 104. ISBN   1-900747-09-X.
  7. 1 2 "Death by Domino". Deutsche Welle. 2005-11-15. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  8. 1 2 "Sparrow knocks over 23,000 dominoes before being shot". USA Today. 2005-11-14. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  9. ↑ "Killer of Domino-toppling sparrow threatened". Expatica News. 2005-11-15. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  10. ↑ Sterling, Topy (2005-12-12). "Domino-busting sparrow earns place in Dutch natural history museum". Associated Press. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
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