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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Animals Gain Some Protection in New Budget

The Humane Society Legislative Fund, the government affairs affiliate of the Humane Society of the u.S., worked with animal protection champions in both chambers and with other stakeholders to secure success on several fronts in the 2018 federal budget.

Victories include preventing the slaughter of wild horses and burros, preserving protections for carnivores on National Park Service lands in Alaska, preserving Endangered Species Act protections for Great Lakes wolves and urging the u.S. Department of Agriculture (uSDA) to restore inspection reports and enforcement records for horse shows, puppy mills, roadside zoos, laboratories and other facilities that were purged from the agency’s website in early 2017.

The budget also adds another $2 million for uSDA enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act and $5 million to train and provide therapeutic service dogs for veterans and soldiers. It holds the line against cuts on many other vital fronts affecting animals, such as the marine mammal Commission and development of alternatives to live animal testing.

Harmful provisions still reflected in the budget include exempting concentrated animal-feeding operations from reporting toxic air emissions and maintaining a prohibition on the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate toxic lead content in ammunition and fishing tackle that poison and kill wildlife.

 

Image: WEB-DESIGN/Shutterstock.com

Global Briefs
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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