By John Di Leonardo
Thanksgiving – an annual harvest festival celebrated by the Pilgrims in 1621 and held in the US on the fourth Thursday in November – is around the corner, and my organization Humane Long Island has one more reason to give thanks. Carlos Lauro of Riverhead—who last year pleaded guilty to fatally shooting a German Shepherd, receiving a one-year jail sentence and a 20-year ban on owning or possessing animals—has been arrested once more on new charges of animal cruelty and contempt of court. The arrest followed a tip from my organization, Humane Long Island.
Authorities have confiscated more than 50 animals from Lauro’s property, previously identified as an unlicensed slaughterhouse and backyard breeding operation. Among the rescued animals were puppies in distress and underweight chickens suffering from mutilated beaks and frostbite. Two dozen roosters and hens are now recovering under our care.
Acharya Tulsiji (Photo courtesy: Arvind Vora)
People who abuse animals once are far more likely to do it again, and the well-documented link between animal cruelty and violence toward humans makes strong enforcement essential. That’s why Suffolk County’s new penalties for failing to register with the animal-abuse registry—and for violating its terms—are so critically important. Humane Long Island thanks the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and its Biological Environmental Animal Safety Team (BEAST Unit) for acting on our tip and swiftly confiscating dozens of underweight chickens with mutilated beaks and puppies from an apparently unlicensed slaughter operation and backyard breeding site.
This situation is not unique. Animals suffer behind closed doors in puppy mills and factory farms across the country. 46 million turkeys will be consumed for Thanksgiving this week alone. These birds have no federal protections. On factory farms, they’re kept in cramped and filthy sheds by the thousands and killed when they’re still babies: only 3 to 5 months old. Driven psychotic by their harsh realities, they self-mutilate and are driven to cannibalism. Rather than improving conditions, farmers resort to severing–without painkillers–the ends of their toes, their snoods–the long protuberance on their face they use to show affection for one another–and even the ends of their beaks – like the chickens rescued from Carlos Lauro – which are filled with nerve endings, and they use like we use our fingers–to minimize the harm they can do to their “product”. In their short lives, these turkeys will never know even the simple pleasures of parenthood, building a nest (their home), or even feeling the sun on their backs before they’re hung upside down and have their throats slit.
People can make a difference by adopting rather than shopping for companion animals, and by choosing plant-based foods. Each person who eats vegan helps spare approximately 200 animals every year.
At a time of rising costs and growing hardship, Humane Long Island is working to make compassionate eating more accessible. Ahead of Thanksgiving, we are partnering with community leaders to distribute free plant-based Tofurky roasts and free companion-animal food at the following location:
-Manhattan: With Assembly Member Harvey Epstein
Thursday, November 20 • 4:00–5:00 PM
107 & 109 Avenue B New York, NY 10009
-Huntington: With Suffolk County Legislator Rebecca Sanin
Friday, November 21 • 12:00–1:00 PM
Cindysnacks, 90A Washington Dr, Centerport, NY 11721
-Hempstead: With Community Solidarity
Sunday, November 23 • Starting at 3:15 PM
Cooper St. North & Washington Avenue, Hempstead, NY 11550
For this week’s Anuvrat, or small vow, I invite you to plan a vegan Thanksgiving – and leave the traditional turkeys to live their lives.
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John Di Leonardo is the founding director of Humane Long Island. He was previously the Senior Manager of Grassroots Campaigns and Animals in Entertainment Campaigns for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). He has a Master's degree in Anthrozoology from Canisius College. He also earned a graduate certificate in Jain Studies from the International School of Jain Studies (ISJS) in India. John can be reached at [email protected]. (Photo courtesy: John Di Leonardo)
