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Animal Cruelty Around The World

  • 96% of a circus animal's life is spent in a cage
  • 150 million land animals killed for food every day (56 Billion a year in the US alone.)
  • 11,417 sharks killed per hour due to unsustainable “finning”
  • 10 million wild animals are trapped and killed exclusively for their fur each year
  • 1 billion rabbits and 50 million other animals like foxes, seals, mink, and raccoon dogs are raised on fur farms or trapped in the wild and killed for their pelts every year
  • 15 million warm-blooded animals tortured daily in laboratories
  • 100 million sharks, fish, aquatic animals injured by fishing trolleys
  • 65 billion animals killed annually for food. That’s 9 animals for every living human, every year
  • Help us keep this list up-to-date, let us know about changes we missed, or that we should add on social media!
  • Asia - Dog fighting is present in various locations around Asia. Dogs are pitted against each other until one of them is declared the winner, many times the winner is declared when one of the dogs dies. Notably, China and Japan have not outlawed the practice, and despite being banned under the Taliban, dog fighting has seen a resurgence in Afghanistan. Dog fighting is particularly prominent in China and Pakistan. (Read more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_fighting#Asia)
  • Europe - Although animal cruelty laws have been passed in some parts of Russia, dog fighting is still widely practiced in areas where it remains legal. Dog fights are still prevalent in Albania, it has been legal for over 25 years. (Read more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_fighting#Europe)
  • Quebec, Canada - The proliferation of puppy mills in Quebec has resulted in an estimated 1500 and 1800 plants now in operation. These inhumane facilities produce the birth of approximately 400,000 puppies every year. It is unknown how many puppy mills are currently operating in Canada since these farms tend to be located in sparsely inhabited areas, and operate covertly - requiring some investigation to be uncovered. (Read more here: https://www.spacanada.org/en/campaigns/puppy-mills.html and https://www.peta.org/issues/animal-companion-issues/pet-trade/puppy-mills)
  • United States - There are an estimated 10,000 puppy mills, licensed and unlicensed, currently operating in the United States. More than 2 million puppies are bred in these mills annually. (Read more here: https://www.thepuppymillproject.org/about-puppy-mills)
  • China - 10 million dogs are killed for their meat each year in China alone. When the dogs arrive at the dog meat markets, dehydrated, exhausted, and injured, they are often forced to watch other dogs being slaughtered. (Read more here: https://www.animalsasia.org/us/our-work/cat-and-dog-welfare/facts-about-dog-meat-trade.html)
  • China – Breeding dogs spend their entire lives in cages, some so small they can't even turn around. Those that can move are seen spinning in circles and pacing, having gone insane from the cruelty they're subjected to. Breeding dogs in puppy mills have never known love, affection, or even what it's like to walk on the grass. (Read more here: https://www.petaasia.com/features/chinese-puppy-mills)
  • United States – Dog owners who haven't properly trained their dogs and don't know how to control their dog's barking are resorting to "debarking" surgery. Making it physically impossible for a dog to bark, debarking surgery is needlessly cruel and strips a dog of its natural means of communication. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/issues/animal-companion-issues/cruel-practices/debarking)
  • United States – Greyhound dogs condemned to a life of racing spend as much as 23 hours every day locked in a tiny cage. Injuries are rife on the racetrack, and most greyhounds don't live to see their "retirement age" of four or five years. Many dogs who do reach retirement are euthanized. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-in-entertainment/cruel-sports/greyhound-racing)
  • California, United States – Greyhounds no longer useful in the racing industry are continuously bled to provide dog blood to veterinary clinics across the United States and Asia. Dogs were not permitted to socialize and spent up to 23 hours a day in tiny cages. (Read more here: https://investigations.peta.org/hemopet-greyhounds-expose)
  • United States – Companion animals often suffer at the hands of domestic violence abusers. As many as 1 million pets per year are hurt, abused, or killed as a result of domestic violence, with more than 70 percent of women with pets who enter a domestic violence shelter reporting that their abuser had hurt or even killed a family pet. (Read more here: https://brandongaille.com/23-fascinating-dog-abuse-facts-and-statistics)

How To Help:

  • The only way to help dogs being abused is to be proactive. If you know of a dog being kept in cruel conditions or suspect a dog is being abused, it's time to take action. If it is safe to do so, take videos or photos of the situation and then call your local animal protection organization. To help out with larger issues, start by educating family and friends about the issue. Most people are unaware of the torturous lives greyhounds live, for example, and education is the first step towards changing people's attitudes towards the greyhound industry.

Read more about what can be done about this cruelty, and how you can help through these links:

  • China - 4 million cats are killed for their meat each year in China alone. Many of these cats are still wearing their collars when they are snatched from the streets and thrown into tiny cages. Both the tortuous transportation and inhumane slaughter methods in China are some of the most shocking cases of animal abuse in the world. (Read more here: https://www.animalsasia.org/au/facts-about-cruelty-to-animals-in-asia.html)
  • Vietnam - Cat meat can be found on various menus in Vietnam, even though it is technically illegal. The cat meat market in the country is wrapped in superstition. At the start of every month, the meat is consumed to boost libido, protect against misfortune, and even increase their agility to that of a cat. The butchers want tougher meat, so they terrorize the cats before slaughtering them. (Read more here: [CAUTION: DISTURBING IMAGERY] https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5818658/video-vietnam-cat-meat-market-pets-butchered/)
  • United States - Approximately 3.4 million cats enter animal shelters every year. Among those cats, 37% are adopted and 41% are euthanized. Out of the 3 million cats and dogs euthanized in shelters annually, 80% (2.4 million) are healthy enough to be adopted. (Read more here: https://kittencoalition.org/news-events/statistics)
  • United States - Over 19,000 cats are abused in laboratories each year with painful, invasive, and many times deadly experiments. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-experimentation/cats-laboratories/)

How To Help:

  • The best way to help cats is to firstly spay or neuter your own pet cats, and then consider adopting a cat from a shelter rather than buying a kitten from a breeder. When it comes to the larger issue of cat meat in China and Vietnam, education and awareness is the first step towards change. Most people don't know that these issues are occurring, and spreading the word and raising awareness can promote a flow-on effect of advocacy and education.

Read more about how you can help here:

How To Help:

  • There is simply no humane way of extracting cow's milk. All dairy farms cause unnecessary ongoing suffering to cows and calves. The only way to help dairy cows and their calves is to raise awareness of the issues rife in the dairy industry and to adopt a vegan lifestyle.

Read more about how you can help here:

How To Help:

  • With arrays for eggs or meat, chickens are widely thought to be the world's most abused animals. Society is turning away from red meat, causing demand for white chicken meat to continually increase. To play your part in helping shut down the inhumane egg and chicken industry forever, choose a vegan lifestyle.

Read more about how you can help:

How To Help:

How To Help:

  • If you know of or see cruelty to horses in any way, be proactive and stand up for animals who don't have a voice of their own. Take videos and photos if safe to do so, and immediately contact your local animal protection organization. Choose to boycott horse race events, and share information to educate others about the cruelty involved in the horseracing industry.

Read more about how you can help:

  • China and South Africa – "Canned hunting" is a highly secretive and hidden – yet very lucrative – industry. Big cats, particularly lions, are kept in small enclosures where they can be "hunted" by wealthy hunters who pay tens of thousands of dollars for the experience. The animal's head is kept by the hunter as a trophy, while the rest of the body is sold to practitioners of Chinese medicine. (Read more here: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1151196/lions-tigers-chinese-medicine-animal-cruelty)
  • United States – Many circuses still feature big cats, forcing these wild, nocturnal, solitary, and water-loving animals to live in cramped quarters with other animals, never having access to a watering hole. Mothers and cubs are routinely separated long before the maternal bond would have been broken in the wild. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/features/big-cats-lions-tigers-circus/)
  • South Africa – 27 lions kept at a lion breeding facility in South Africa have been diagnosed with mange, with their cases being so severe that the Lions had lost their fur. (Read more here: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/05/sick-neglected-lions-found-at-captive-breeding-facility-in-south-africa)
  • Thailand – A new tiger entertainment has recently opened, despite ongoing pressure for Thailand to reduce its reliance on tiger entertainment venues. Thailand's wild tiger population has dropped to around 250, with four times this amount still being camped captive in entertainment venues. (Read more here: https://www.worldanimalprotection.ca/news/outrage-thailands-cruel-tiger-entertainment-industry-continues-grow)
  • Worldwide – Tigers are inherently afraid of fire, yet tigers in captivity are frequently forced to jump through metal hoops alight with fire. In order to push past their instinctive terror of fire, tigers are punished for non-compliance to the point where it is preferable for them to face fire than to endure further punishment. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/features/big-cats-lions-tigers-circus/)
  • Worldwide – Animal agriculture is a greater contributor to global warming than all worldwide transportation systems put together. When fish are killed for food, enormous ships are at sea for six months at a time, resulting in the elimination of 90% of fish populations, with many other marine animals and birds killed or injured as a result. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/features/starving-polar-bears-going-pescatarian-not-enough/)

How To Help:

  • If you hear of a circus coming to town that features big cats, contact an animal protection organization and boycott the show, encouraging others to do so as well. Never support anyone who hunts big cats or who displays hands or skins as trophies. When traveling, avoid tourist attractions that feature wild animals. Remember that these animals have been forced into submission through fear and violence.

Read more about how you can help:

  • Worldwide – Marine themed entertainment parks like SeaWorld, purport to be places of research and education, yet they are no better than zoos. Part of a multibillion-dollar industry, these theme parks and aquariums force intelligent marine animals to perform and spend their lives in captivity. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-in-entertainment/zoos-pseudo-sanctuaries/aquariums-marine-parks/)
  • Worldwide – Marine animals share strong social bonds within families, just like humans. Marine themed entertainment parks and aquariums destroy familiar bonds, ripping dolphins and orcas – who would normally stay with their family groups for life – away from the normal social networks, forcing them to live solitary lives of confinement. (Read more here: https://www.petaasia.com/issues/entertainment/marine-parks/)
  • Philippines – Ocean litter has caused the death of yet another enormous marine animal, with a juvenile whale found dead on the shores of the Philippines having ingested more 40 kilograms of plastic rubbish and other waste. (Read more here: https://www.petaasia.com/news/whale-dies-from-ingesting-plastic-bags-philippines)
  • Choshi, Japan – A dolphin, 46 penguins, and other marine animals and fish have been abandoned following the closure of a marine-themed aquarium in Choshi, Japan. The marine animals were abandoned after the park was closed, with no arrangements made for their safe transfer to a marine animal sanctuary. (Read more here: https://secure.petaasia.com/page/29765/action/1)
  • Canada – Every year sees Canada play host to a shameful practice, the annual bludgeoning of baby harp seals, most under three months of age. By repeatedly shooting and clubbing baby seals, hunters kill thousands of babies every year in a practice that not only condoned but celebrated by the Canadian government. (Read more here: https://www.petaasia.com/news/5-easy-ways-help-animals-world-oceans-day/)
  • Worldwide – If asked to guess which creature is the most dangerous predator in the world, most people would point the finger squarely at sharks. However, humans far outweigh sharks or any other creature when it comes to massacres and meat consumption. To compare, note that humans kill at least 100 billion sharks every year, in addition to the billions of other sea creatures and land animals. Meanwhile, sharks kill on average 10 humans every year. Who's the biggest predator now? (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/features/sharks)
  • Worldwide – Shark fin soup is considered a delicious meal for some, but it means painful suffocation and eventual death for millions of sharks around the world every year. Sharks are caught and dragged to the surface of the water, where their fins are brutally cut off. Since the rest of the shark's body is not wanted, they are tossed back into the water to die a slow and painful death, usually from suffocation. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/blog/shark-fishing-banned-bahamas/)
  • United States – SeaWorld is known for inflicting pain and suffering on its captive marine wildlife, but perhaps not so bad as its treatment of penguins. Endlessly paraded around as props and entertainment, penguins know no safety at SeaWorld. Repeatedly having to undergo surgery to have rubbish removed from their stomachs from the inhumane and dirty enclosure they swim in, penguins live lives of misery from the moment are stolen from her mothers to their eventual deaths in captivity. (Read more here: https://www.seaworldofhurt.com/world-penguin-day-wont-believe-seaworld-treated-penguins)
  • Iceland – Despite international pressure and low demand, an Icelandic company Hvalur hf (Whale Inc.) continues to slaughter fin whales. Even though these whales are an endangered species, the CEO of the company describes them as an "abundant marine resource" and "just another fish for me". Enormously large, fin whales are killed by being impaled with a harpoon fired from a cannon. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/blog/iceland-hvalur-fin-whale-hunt/)
  • Indonesia – A sperm whale has washed up on Indonesian shores having ingested 13 pounds of plastic streaming and plastic rubbish, including cups, bottles, bags, and even shoes. (Read more here: https://www.peta.org/blog/dead-whale-ingested-plastic-bags-bottles-cups/)
  • Canada – Despite international pressure and many countries banning the importation of seal fur, the Canadian government continues to support and condone annual baby seal clubbing. Many Canadians no longer wish this practice to continue, yet the Canadian government has yet to ban the cruel and unnecessary practice. (Read more here: https://support.peta.org/page/1144/action/1?locale=en-US)
  • Namibia – Starting on 1 July every year, an estimated 85,000 fur seal pups are murdered by brutal beatings and stabbing for their pelts, while another 6,000 male adult seal will be killed for their genitals to be harvested to make aphrodisiac for sale throughout Asia. (Read more here: https://www.petaasia.com/news/stop-the-slaughter-of-the-seals-of-nam)

How To Help:

  • The first thing that must be done to help marine animals is to stop the multibillion-dollar marine themed entertainment industry. By boycotting aquariums and theme parks like SeaWorld, and educating others to do the same, you can vote with your feet and your wallet and tell these giant corporations that they can no longer profit from abusing marine animals. More generally, promise to never visit or support any organization that makes money from live animals. Rethink everything you thought you knew about humans' "need" to eat fish to survive. All nutrients found in fish can be easily sourced from plant-based products. By choosing a vegan lifestyle, you can reduce international fishing and save the lives of countless fish and other marine animals around the world.

Read more about how you can help:

How To Help:

  • It's time to stop thinking of hunting as a sport and start recognizing it for what it is: a killing spree disguised as an acceptable pastime. How can hunting be considered a sport, when sports include a referee or judge, consenting parties, and never end with a deliberate death. Show your disdain for the cruelty of hunting by never liking or sharing a photo of hunting, and educating others about the realities of this cruel practice.

Read more about how you can help:

Animal Hoarding

  • United States - 250,000 animals kept in hoarding conditions each year

Bear Bile

  • Asia - 20,000 bears held in captivity to have ongoing bile extractions

Circuses

  • Worldwide - 96% of a circus animal's life is spent in a cage

Dairy Industry

  • Australia - 900,000 calves killed per year as unwanted waste products of the dairy industry

Dog Meat

  • China - 10 million dogs and 4 million cats killed for meat trade each year

Egg Industry

  • Australia - 12 million male chicks killed each year as unwanted by-products of the egg industry

Food

  • South Africa - 3,000 gorilla and 4,000 chimpanzees killed each year for their meat
  • Worldwide - 150 million land animals killed for food every day
  • Australia - 15 million lambs die within 48 hours of birth from harsh weather conditions
  • Worldwide - 100 million sharks killed each year

Fur Trade

  • Worldwide - 18 foxes killed to make one fur coat
  • Worldwide - 55 minks killed to make one mink coat
  • Worldwide - 10 million wild animals killed each year
  • Worldwide - 1 billion rabbits and 50 million other animals are bred and killed for their fur

Greyhound Racing

  • Australia - 17,000 healthy greyhounds killed each year because they're not fast enough to race
  • Australia - 200 dogs injured in official races each week

Laboratory Testing

  • Worldwide - 15 million warm-blooded animals tortured daily in laboratories
  • United States - 100 million mice and rats held captive for lab testing
  • United States - 1 million larger animals held captive for lab testing
  • Canada - 4.4 million animals held captive for lab testing
  • Canada - in 2017, 95,000 animals subjected to severe pain in lab testing
  • United Kingdom - in 2018, 3.5 million lab procedures on animals, of which 94,000 were "severe"

Poaching

  • Worldwide - 30,000 new species driven to extinction each year
  • Africa - 96 elephants killed for ivory every day
  • Africa - 3 rhinoceroses killed by poachers every day

Puppy Mills

  • United States - 10,0000 puppy mills
  • United States - 2 million puppies born in puppy mills each year

Sea Incidents

  • Worldwide - 100 million sharks, fish, aquatic animals injured by fishing trolleys
  • Worldwide - 650,000 marine animals killed or injured by fishing line or supplies per year

Seal Hunt

  • Canada - 350,000 baby seals clubbed to death in 2006
  • Canada - 1 million seals killed in the last five years

SOURCES:

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About this project

Animals around the world need our help.

Dogs, cats, bears, elephants, marine wildlife. The tiniest creatures to the world's giants.

The problem seems insurmountable.

As an animal lover, what can you do? Signing a petition, adopting a rescue animal, donating money to an animal sanctuary: these efforts can seem tiny when compared to the sheer vastness of the issue.

Sure, by rescuing a dog rather than buying a puppy, you've saved one adult dog from being killed in an overgrown shelter. You've given her a cozy, warm, protected home to live out her final years. You've shown her love and peace and safety after a life of cruelty and neglect.

But what about the billions of other animals in the world that need your help too?

You are just one person, and you can only do what you can do. At first, this sentiment may feel disempowering, but its intent is quite the opposite. You are one person, and you have done as much as you can do with what you have. If everyone in the world followed in your footsteps, global animal cruelty issues would no longer exist.

That's why we put together this information. We aimed to spread awareness of global animal rights issues, to shine a light on the plights of some of the world's most vulnerable and abused inhabitants. For those who were unaware of the true extent of animal abuse around the world, we aimed to put this issue in sharp focus. For those who were well aware of the problems faced by animals of every size and in every country, we aimed to provide easy ways for you to help and support the organizations that share the same values as you do.

This infographic is the result of months of in-depth research into numerous publications. We compiled as much data as we could find, from local animal rights issues in various countries and continents of the world to issues that affect animals globally. We chose the globe model to visually represent the types of animal abuse issues that are prevalent in various parts of the world. We hope that the globe model is coherent and helps to present the data in a way that is accessible and understandable.

Now that you have a much better understanding of issues affecting animals across the globe, what can you do? This next part is up to you. Perhaps you'd like to focus your efforts in your local area. Our infographic and list of resources will help you to find local animal rescue organizations to support.

Alternatively, you may feel drawn to support a particular animal rights issue, even if it is not one local to you. You may not live in Africa or Asia, but the plight of elephants used as machines and for entertainment may be the most important issue to you.

If the data we have compiled, the resources we have listed, and the resulting infographic inspires just one person to take action against just one type of animal cruelty, we will consider our efforts to have been entirely worth it.

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