By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House last month for a second term, his administration has been issuing dozens of executive orders, some of which can have an impact on animals.
As we often say, every year is an election year. And every election gives us an opportunity to improve prospects for the lives of millions of animals. Last year, HSLF proudly supported 775 candidates up and down the ballot, and a substantial number of them—736, or 95%—won their races. Now, we’re ready to continue the fight in 2025, and we’re asking you to join us at the ballot box for animals, because with the new year comes a new set of elections for federal, state, and local offices.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
In a pet store’s back room, a tiny brown-and-white Havanese puppy was vomiting and lethargic—and left entirely alone in a pen. On seeing her in that state, our undercover investigator alerted Puppy Heaven’s manager, urging that the dog needed to be seen by a veterinarian. When the staff refused, the investigator alerted law enforcement authorities, who insisted that the store manager take Cindy Lou to a veterinarian.
It was too late.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
With allies and supporters, we have been doing all that we can to keep more sharks swimming safely in oceans all over the world. For years, we advocated for the passage of the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act, which President Biden signed into law in December 2022, with strong bipartisan support.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
In a victory for wolves, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently denied two petitions filed by trophy hunting organizations aimed at removing federal Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in the Western Great Lakes region and reducing or removing protections for wolves in other areas of the lower 48 states.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Inevitably, the passing of an American president offers an opportunity to think not only about an individual’s achievements in office, but to reflect on what those achievements say about our nation, and who we are, and what we can be. In this regard, Jimmy Carter leaves one of the richest legacies of anyone who has ever occupied the White House.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
On Wednesday afternoon, in a move supporting the notion that the species needs more time to recover, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it would not prematurely remove Endangered Species Act protections from grizzly bears living in the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide ecosystems—the two largest populations in the continental U.S. Wyoming and Montana had petitioned the agency to delist grizzly bears and turn the management of the animals over to the states.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Every day of every year, we take meaningful action to create a better world for animals. In the U.S., our State Affairs team works across the country to help protect animals in a variety of ways. One of the most important involves partnering with elected officials, law enforcement agencies, individual advocates and other parties to ensure that animal welfare legislation is put into place and then properly enforced.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
In 1975, when she was just a year old, a chimpanzee later named Montessa was sold to a New Mexico laboratory owned by the U.S. government.
Unbelievably, nearly 50 years later, Montessa is still locked in the same laboratory.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
