Honoring Our Friends on this Memorial Day

One of the hardest parts about working on Ninety-Five has been finding out that some of the animals that touched our hearts have passed away. On this Memorial Day we'd like to honor them and their caregivers. The only thing harder than providing the daily care these rescued animals need is seeing them through their (often premature) final days. This is our way of paying tribute and recognizing their part in helping all of us better understand and support farmed animals. This is part of their legacy.

In November of last year, Ian, a turkey from Peaceful Prairie passed away after finally finding love and friendship with a hen named Simone. (You can read more here.)  

Ian © 2010 Joanna Lucas

Amelia, whose charms earned her an essay in Ninety-Five, passed away in March. She became a resident at United Poultry Concerns (UPC) in 2007, when she was surrendered by a local farmer. She was still quite young when we first met her in May of 2008. On subsequent visits she had matured and had a nest in a quiet part of the yard. According Karen Davis, her caregiver, she died peacefully. Her legs had been giving her trouble and went out altogether. She lost her mobility and will to live. She inspired us, but we also came to think of her as a friend.  

Amelia

Another friend from United Poultry Concerns was Mr. Frizzle, a rather dashing rooster. He was found as a bedraggled stray in 2007 and made his way to UPC, where he flourished. He lived in the yard there with a flock of tiny Thumbelina hens. He had battled a respiratory infection the last few years and over the weekend of April 2nd, he finally succumbed to it. His portrait can be seen around the DC area on bus ads.  

Mr. Frizzle

On April 22nd, Opal, a turkey from Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary, died in her sleep. She arrived at the sanctuary in 2004 and was seven when she passed away, which is very old for a turkey. She was lucky from the start, when she literally escaped from a slaughterhouse, just as two vegan women were driving by. They rescued her and brought her to Poplar Spring where she charmed visitors and volunteers alike.    

Opal

We urge you to support your local and national sanctuaries and help them provide animals like Ian, Amelia, Mr. Frizzle, and Opal with the care and love they deserve.

Ninety-Five Wins IPPY Gold Award

On Monday night, No Voice Unheard was honored with an IPPY Gold Medal in the Pets/Animals category for Ninety-Five: Meeting America's Farmed Animals in Stories and Photographs

This year's Independent Book Publisher Awards (IPPY) attracted 3,907 entries, and the medalists represented books published in 45 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia, seven Canadian provinces, and seven countries overseas. Launched in 1996 as the first unaffiliated awards program open exclusively to independent, university, and self-published titles, the IPPY Awards contest celebrated its 15th anniversary this year at a gala celebration in New York on Monday, May 23rd. Winners in 69 national and 22 regional categories received gold, silver and bronze awards. We were honored to be able to tell their stories and are doubly honored to accept this award on behalf of Gilly, Libby & Louie, Olivia, Justice, Lucas and their caregivers.

Ninety-Five is a Gold Medal IPPY Winner!

Ninety-Five has won a Gold Medal in the Animals/Pets category for the 2011 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY)!

We are thrilled and want to thank every contributor for helping to make this happen.

Yay!

Celebrate International Respect for Chickens Day

Celebrate International Respect for Chickens Day with a joyous dust bath!

Nine Next Steps to Ending America's Homeless Animal Tragedy

As many of you know, 3 - 4 million animals enter shelters every year in our country; only half of them leave alive.  An animal dies in a shelter every nine seconds.

What can you do? The answers are simple, yet profound. Although the homeless animal problem in America is heartbreaking, there is also hope: this problem can be solved and everyone can help. In the actions you take and the decisions you make about companion animals, you will have an impact.

Moreover, solving this problem offers us the chance to become better people and to express the very best of our humanity. We believe this issue can be a stepping stone toward an expanding circle of compassion and action, and toward creating a society that is just and caring to all living beings - beginning with the precious ones "right in our own backyards."

Once you've learned about the issue, these are the next steps that, one at a time, will help bring an end to America's homeless animal tragedy. We offer them to you in gratitude for your concern, and in hope.  As always, please help us spread this info far and wide, by forwarding to your friends, family and acquaintances; please also ask them to sign up for our email list for future updates.

 *****

Nine Next Steps to Ending America's Homeless Animal Tragedy

1) Be Heroic.

Adopt your next animal companion from a shelter or rescue group. You will be saving an animal whose life literally depends on getting a new home.

2) Be Committed.

Know the commitment when you bring an animal into your family, and follow through on it. Your animal companion is utterly dependent on you for his health and well-being. Commit to providing the care he needs, to working through any problems, and to being his guardian for his entire life.

3) Be Smart.

Before you adopt an animal, take the time to learn so you can make a good choice. Different types of animals and breeds have different needs - make sure you know enough to choose an animal who will be compatible with you and your lifestyle.

4) Be Responsible.

There are already more animals than homes available. Spay or neuter your animals so they don't add even more to the staggering animal overpopulation problem.

5) Be Identified.

Millions of animals become lost each year and never make it back home. Make sure your animal is always carrying your contact information, via an ID tag (which is visible and easy for anyone to use) and a microchip (which is permanent).    

6) Be Prepared.

Make plans now for your animals' care should something happen to you. Many animals are in

shelters because their guardians did not make such arrangements.

7) Be a Role Model.

Always demonstrate responsible and loving animal care, so that others will want to do the same.

8) Be a Supporter.

Volunteer, donate, and support your local animal shelter or rescue group, especially their programs that educate the community and prevent animals from becoming homeless and even needing to be in the shelter. These programs save lives.

9) Be a Teacher.

Many good-hearted people simply don't know about the homeless animal tragedy in this country, and would help if only they understood how their actions impacted the situation. Help spread the word; speak up and speak out for homeless animals.

Striking at the Roots of Suffering

The mission of No Voice Unheard, "is to promote an ethic of compassion and respect for all living beings and the planet we share, and encourage a deeper awareness of the effects our actions have on the lives and existence of animals, the environment, and our fellow human beings."  We don't simply want to rescue individual animals, although that is a crucial part of it, we want to strike at the root of the suffering. To effect change before an animal finds himself in need of rescue because of the actions of a human being. 

All of us at NVU have been and are involved in direct action rescues as individuals, but as an organization we desire to create lasting change and prevent suffering by publishing books that have the power to create social change. We seek to educate the general public and give activists tools to use. 

In the past month we have watched as Borders stopped paying its vendors, Barnes & Noble fired their small press buyer and almost 50 other staffers, and even our own distributor let most of its sales force go. And we've felt the impact on our latest book, Ninety-Five: Meeting America's Farmed Animals in Stories and Photographs.  Since its release last year, we've found it harder than ever to get exposure for the book and get it onto bookstore shelves where it can reach readers.  Perhaps our expectations are a bit high, but we are so proud of this book and the people and sanctuaries we worked with to help tell the stories of Justice, Lucas, Willy, Jeremy and Lenny, Olivia and so many other beautiful creatures. 

So here we are, plagued with doubt about the state of the publishing industry and our present and future within it, filled with more questions than answers. Then on Friday Diane and Davida went on "The Signal", an NRP radio program. We simply talked about the books, the animals we met working on it, and why they inspired us so. 

The day the interview aired we received the following email :

I have been a vegetarian since the age of 18 (now 45) when I learned of how beef, pork, etc. were processed. I was disgusted! I still, was always concerned about eggs and milk and although I never researched it I lowered my consumption and go on and off eating both. After hearing today's program and how chickens are kept I decided I'm OFF eggs! The same with the cows and how milk is produced... I'm OFF milk! 

How could I, or anyone not be aware of what is going on?? I understand the world would never be vegan or vegetarian, but there is SO much waste and inhumane treatment. 

My dream, my "if I ever win the lottery" wish would be to start a sanctuary here on the East Coast and to educate people of how we are killing the animals, our planet, and ourselves with all the toxins these animals are eating and injected with. 

I can go on and I'm not telling you anything you don't know. What I do want to tell you is "THANK YOU" for what you do and represent. I too believe ALL animals have emotions and it kills me that we torture and abuse them. 

I'm looking forward to purchasing many copies of "Ninety-Five" for myself and to share with my clients.

 

Despite our fears and doubts, this is why we publish. What we do can and does make a difference. If just one person goes vegan after reading Ninety-Five it means that we helped 95 animals (that year alone). That is striking at the root of suffering. 

We will do the best we can to adapt to the ever-changing publishing industry. We'll also continue to evaluate the best strategies we can use as a publisher to reach, educate, and move people. We know we can make a difference. We know we already have. 

Thank you for your support of our work and for what you do to strike at the roots of suffering. 

For the animals,
Diane, Marilee, Windi, and Davida

P.S. One of the ways you can help is to share our message with your circle of friends and family. The more people who read and use our books as a voice for the animals, the stronger our books become. Again, we thank you for your help and your good work.

1st Annual Baltimore VegFest 2011 at UMBC

The Animal Awareness Project and The UMBC Vegetarians are hosting the 1st Annual Baltimore VegFest at UMBC Campus this spring!

They still have some vendor/non profit spaces available - so if your organization or company would like to table or be a sponsor please contact them at: baltimorevegfest@gmail.com

Date: Sat April 30th
Time: 11:00- 3:00 pm
Location: Erickson Field on UMBC Campus Baltimore, MD

FREE to Public and FREE Parking!

Speakers for VegFest:

• Bruce Friedrich of PETA
• Harold Brown - former beef farmer turned animal activist
• Plus an amazing vegan cooking demo by Alka Chandra of PETA

Exhibitors at Baltimore VegFest:

• Vegan Outreach
• Compassion Over Killing
• The Humane Society of The United States
• Mercy For Animals
• FARM
• The Animal Awareness Project
• The Humane League of Philly
• PETA
• PETA 2
• The Yabba Pot
• Emily's Desserts
• No Voice Unheard
• VegTerps
• Dirty Carrots Vegan Bakery
• Animal Advocates
• Compassion For Animals
• Green Earth Travel
• EarthSave Baltimore
• Students for Environmental Awareness
• The UMBC Vegetarians
• Coconut Bliss Vegan IceCream
• Farm Sanctuary
• Lucky Dog Rescue
• For The Animals Sanctuary
• Brad's Raw Chips
• and many many more TBA!!!!!!!

Website Address: www.vegfestbaltimore.com
Facebook Event Page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=168562183180383
Join the Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/alka1963#!/pages/Baltimore-Vegfest-2011/147393468645769