Hop to it & save a kangaroo or two!

    Late nights while  kangaroos are grazing, they are faced with the threat of being hunted for meat and their skins. These gentle herbivorous, which are an integral part of the Australian ecosystem are brutally killed for profit. This massacre has been described at the largest of wildlife in the whole world.
    According to VIVA, Australia exports approximately three million skins each year. They are used to make handbags, wallets, shoes, athletic gloves & mitts, and other products. In addition, many souvenir shops sell "kangaroo paw" back scratchers and even bottle openers and coin purses made from kangaroo scrotums.. beer can holders and other absurd products, including using their fur.According to the Australian Department of Trade and Foreign Affairs, the kangaroo industry exports kangaroo meat (for human consumption) to over 55 countries. Additionally, a large portion of Australia’s precious wildlife ends up being used as pet food. According to the Australian Department of Trade and Foreign Affairs, the kangaroo industry exports kangaroo meat (for human consumption) to over 55 countries.
    Kangaroos (including mothers with their joeys) are targeted at night. First, startled by the noise of vehicles and blinded by the bright spotlights that the shooters use, they are defenseless. Shooters are supposed to at least lethally wound the kangaroo by a single shot to the head to avoid suffering.. but unfortunately many are shot in the jaw, neck, and chest which as you can imagine cause prolonged, immense suffering. Once the mother has been killed, the joeys are helpless. The code of practice for humane shooting says that 'at foot' joeys should be killed by a single shot to the hear or heart, but many escape death by starvation, predation, cold, or dehydration. Pouch dependent joeys are ripped from their dead mothers pouch and either hit over the head will a metal pipe, stomped on, or decapitated and discarded, which surprisingly enough is acceptable by the Australian government.
    The only protection for these docile & unique animals is a weak set of guidelines known as the "Code of Practice for Humane Shooting of Kangaroos" which is not linked to the Prevention of Cruelty to animals act, nor monitored of policed by the RSPCA or animal welfare experts. Video footage has revealed serious violations of the Code of Practice for Humane Shooting of Kangaroos including horrific abuse of kangaroo where shooters were seen slamming fully conscious joeys into their trunks, stomping on fur less joeys, and simply leaving them on the ground to die. Unfortunately, I came across one of these videos. I hadn't had any knowledge on the murdering on kangaroos; I suppose I knew it happened.. but I have never read or seen anything.. after viewing just one frightening video, I was just about to puke. I cannot believe it.. well, I guess I can believe it since all of the cruelty I've been researching. I tell you, nothing stands a chance in this world.

    When researching the information about these incredible crimes, I found something else, which I think is absolutely stupid! Sometimes animals used for entertainment makes me more upset than anything.. because that is what it is.. entertainment.. listen to this! Who would believe anyone would actually commute with a distressed, diapered kangaroo and force him to box? Yes, that is right, ladies & gentlemen.. box. There is a 'man' named Javier Martinez who travels with the Piccadilly Circus and is doing just that.
    The skit is called Rocky Show Circus.. he dresses up a kangaroo who he calls Rocky and taunts him into fighting back. He has been repetitively been cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for violations of the Animal Welfare Act, including failure to provide adequate veterinary care and safe animal enclosures. The kangaroo get severely stressed and has charged people during photo shoots, attempted to flee the ring during the act, and has chewed on his own arm. At least 2 kangaroos used in his act have died which touring with the circus.. one passed away from a deadly bacterial disease called "lumpy jaw," which can result from severe crowding, poor diet, stress, and poor hygiene. There is no need to attend circuses that use & exploit real animals.