For "Mammal Monday":
"The new report is hot off the press. The 2011 Humane Scorecard provides an easy way to track the performance of your federal lawmakers on key animal protection issues during last year, and I hope you'll take a moment to check it out.
The first year of the 112th Congress brought encouraging advances for animals, despite tough political and economic times, but also deeply troubling setbacks for horses, wolves, and others.
With many lawmakers focused on deficit reduction, it was a challenging climate to seek funding increases. Nevertheless, thanks to a concerted lobbying push by HSLF and our supporters, Congress still approved some record-level boosts for key animal welfare programs in fiscal 2012. They included:" More at: http://www.hslf.org/pdfs/2011-Humane-Scorecard-Final.PDF
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EARLY BIRD SPECIAL
WCS Run for the Wild: April 28, 2012 $5 OFF!
"This year's WCS Run for the Wild at the Bronx Zoo is set for Saturday, April 28, in support of lions. There's no need to wait until spring to register:
When you sign up during the month of January, you'll get $5 off the entrance fee. Then, get a jump on raising funds for lions – all adult (and senior) participants are required to raise at least $30 in order to participate. We've also got a great variety of prizes in store for fundraisers this year, so register now for your chance to win. Thank you for helping us to make tracks for lions." 
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Thank USDA for Ending Puppy Mill Imports
"Help us stop the import of puppy mill puppies! The USDA issued a proposed rule to implement the 2008 amendments to the Animal Welfare Act (AWA).
These amendments banned the import of puppies from foreign puppy mills for resale in the U.S.
It's high time the import regulations are finalized and strictly enforced. Please thank the USDA for issuing the proposed rule, and encourage them to put it into action as soon as possible.
TAKE ACTION
Complete the form below to automatically send a message to the USDA, thanking them for taking this important action to protect animals.
The USDA receives a lot of email, so remember to personalize email message below so that your message stands out." Form at: https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=5181
More at: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/puppy_mills/tips/what_you_can_do_stop_puppy_mills.html
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"Dogs are used to protect sheep and other livestock from the cheetahs in Africa - thereby saving the big cats from potential shootings by aggrieved farmers."
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Protect the Underdogs of the West
"How much do you know about prairie dogs? Did you know that the intricate burrows they dig go as deep as 15 feet, or that their language is so sophisticated they can communicate people’s sizes and shape to each other?
Prairie dogs are also very social. But they're often poisoned, shot for sport, or killed as their colonies are bulldozed for development because many ranchers, farmers, and government agencies consider them to be "pests."
Because of the unjust pest label that plagues prairie dogs, their population has plummeted 95 percent from decades of persecution.
And when prairie dogs decline, so do foxes, owls, black-footed ferrets, and other animals who depend on them for food and shelter.
The good news is that we’re tackling many of the threats faced by prairie dogs -- but we need your support to continue.
An animal native only to North America, we have a lot to learn about prairie dogs. Will you help us ensure that their fragile existence is preserved?"
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Wildlife Trade.
"I'm horrified that we're on the brink of losing wild tigers forever.
These big cats are threatened by organized gangs of poachers who use explosives, poison bait, and wire traps to kill them – and then sell their skins and other body parts.
With fewer than 3,500 wild tigers left, we don't have a moment to lose to prevent these magnificent animals from becoming extinct.
Help conservation organizations such as the Wildlife Conservation Society to protect tigers from poaching and crack down on the illegal trade in tiger parts. We can help save wild tigers from extinction. Thanks." Take action: https://secure3.convio.net/wcs/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=383&s_src=2011-09_ADV_WildlifeTrade "
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On This Day:
Soldiers massacre the wrong camp of Indians, Jan 23, 1870:
"Declaring he did not care whether or not it was the rebellious band of Indians he had been searching for, Colonel Eugene Baker orders his men to attack a sleeping camp of peaceful Blackfeet along the Marias River in northern Montana.
The previous fall, Malcolm Clarke, an influential Montana rancher, had accused a Blackfeet warrior named Owl Child of stealing some of his horses; he punished the proud brave with a brutal whipping. In retribution, Owl Child and several allies murdered Clarke and his son at their home near Helena, and then fled north to join a band of rebellious Blackfeet under the leadership of Mountain Chief. Outraged and frightened, Montanans demanded that Owl Child and his followers be punished, and the government responded by ordering the forces garrisoned under Major Eugene Baker at Fort Ellis (near modern-day Bozeman, Montana) to strike back.
Strengthening his cavalry units with two infantry groups from Fort Shaw near Great Falls, Baker led his troops out into sub-zero winter weather and headed north in search of Mountain Chief's band. Soldiers later reported that Baker drank a great deal throughout the march. On January 22, Baker discovered an Indian village along the Marias River, and, postponing his attack until the following morning, spent the evening drinking heavily.
At daybreak on the morning of January 23, 1870, Baker ordered his men to surround the camp in preparation for attack. As the darkness faded, Baker's scout, Joe Kipp, recognized that the painted designs on the buffalo-skin lodges were those of a peaceful band of Blackfeet led by Heavy Runner. Mountain Chief and Owl Child, Kipp quickly realized, must have gotten wind of the approaching soldiers and moved their winter camp elsewhere. Kipp rushed to tell Baker that they had the wrong Indians, but Baker reportedly replied, "That makes no difference, one band or another of them; they are all Piegans [Blackfeet] and we will attack them." Baker then ordered a sergeant to shoot Kipp if he tried to warn the sleeping camp of Blackfeet and gave the command to attack.
Baker's soldiers began blindly firing into the village, catching the peaceful Indians utterly unaware and defenseless. By the time the brutal attack was over, Baker and his men had, by the best estimate, murdered 37 men, 90 women, and 50 children. Knocking down lodges with frightened survivors inside, the soldiers set them on fire, burnt some of the Blackfeet alive, and then burned the band's meager supplies of food for the winter. Baker initially captured about 140 women and children as prisoners to take back to Fort Ellis, but when he discovered many were ill with smallpox, he abandoned them to face the deadly winter without food or shelter.
When word of the Baker Massacre (now known as the Marias Massacre) reached the east, many Americans were outraged. One angry congressman denounced Baker, saying "civilization shudders at horrors like this." Baker's superiors, however, supported his actions, as did the people of Montana, with one journalist calling Baker's critics "namby-pamby, sniffling old maid sentimentalists." Neither Baker nor his men faced a court martial or any other disciplinary actions. However, the public outrage over the massacre did derail the growing movement to transfer control of Indian affairs from the Department of Interior to the War Department--President Ulysses S. Grant decreed that henceforth all Indian agents would be civilians rather than soldiers."
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Yesterday:
Jay and I took Maddie and Misty walking when I went to get Jay. There is less traffic down at his part of the subdivision down by the lake.
I had one of these Danbys when my DH was still alive. I sure like these little dishwashers, they are just right for one or two people. They use less soap and hot water, and the smaller door doesn't get in the way.
I know winter can't be over, but it seems like it.
Another lovely "windows-and-doors-open" day!
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