NEWSBYRENEE EVANS

The Belfast City Council has forgotten a cardinal lesson we all learned in kindergarden: Don't judge based on appearance. They've impounded a 5-year-old American Bulldog/Labrador mix because they didn't like the way he looked.

When his owners adopted Lennox as a puppy, they did everything right. Lennox was neutered, Pet Safe and DNA registered, microchipped, well cared for and even insured. Lennox soon found himself acting as a therapy dog to the family's 11-year-old disabled daughter. No one had ever complained about Lennox, nor did he exhibit aggressive behaviors.

So why would such a well-mannered, four-legged member of society be locked up like a prisoner on death row? It's because of Northern Ireland's breed specific legislation, or BSL. BSL aims to reduce the incidents of dog attacks by judging dogs based on how they look rather than how they behave. (It doesn't work.) Like similar laws around the world, Northern Ireland's BSL allows a dog to be impounded and euthanized just for being, or appearing to be, a certain breed.

A young orca who was taken captive last June off the coast of the Netherlands received her first glimpse of freedom last week, thanks to the diligent work of the Free Morgan Group, the Orca Coalition and growing pressure from advocates.

Morgan had been found stranded in the Wadden Sea, along the northern coast of the Netherlands. She was dehydrated and undernourished, so she was taken to the Harderwijk Dolfinarium for treatment. She was supposed to be released back into the wild, but instead, the Harderwijk Dolfinarium decided to put her on public display — just five weeks after her capture. Last December, the marine park made the announcement that devastated Morgan's supporters: they were keeping her. Well, unless another aquarium offered big bucks for her.

Under the claim of scientific and educational purposes, Morgan's new home was proposed to be a tank at Loro Parque in Spain. SeaWorld would then have ownership of the orca.

More than a year later, and several months after Morgan got a lawyer, a Dutch judge ruled on August 3 against Morgan's transfer to Loro Parque. The judge also questioned whether using the claim of "scientific research" was just a ploy to get Morgan to the new facility where she would no doubt reel in profits. He ordered the Ministry to investigate the claim.

A five-month old American bulldog, described by veterinarians as an "absolute doll, very sweet and [gives] kisses," apparently posed such a frightening threat to her owner that he felt the need to stab her repeatedly in the face.

The puppy's name is Diamond and she survived the violent attack from 19-year old Matthew Davonn Weatherspoon. She is now safe and healing at VCA Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Weatherspoon is currently spending his days behind bars, awaiting trial.

Weatherspoon stated that Diamond bit and cornered him in his apartment and he was forced to defend himself. Not surprisingly, Diamond was the only one who suffered injuries. No bite marks were discovered on Weatherspoon. After stabbing Diamond five times in the face, Weatherspoon became angry that she was bleeding all over the apartment. So he did the only logical thing and put her outside. At some point during the scuffle, Diamond received additional lacerations on her stomach and broke her leg.

The waters of the Solomon Islands are some of the most beautiful in the world, full of diverse marine life. Sadly, 27 wild bottlenose dolphins were captured from paradise and sent to live a life in captivity.

Two dolphins have already died and, statistically, many more of the remaining 25 dolphins will die, too. Dolphin hunts are incredibly stressful and inhumane to these intelligent and social marine mammals. Thirty to eighty percent of dolphins die during the capture; some drown or die from injuries sustained in the hunt, and others die later due to stress and trauma.

After being hunted down and taken from their home, the dolphins were sent to the Philippines, where they're being held in pens and trained to entertain people. Their final destination will be Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore. The facility is scheduled to be completed later this year.

A few weeks ago, the World Wildlife Fund gave the world some serious aww factor when they released footage of adorable tiger cubs playing in the Indonesian forest of Bukit Tigapuluh.

The video was posted on YouTube along with footage of other tigers caught on tape in the same area, and soon they attracted thousands of viewers. The WWF points out that the tigers were found roaming outside of the designated protected area of the forest. Less than half of the total area of the Bukit Tigapuluh forest is protected.

The Bukit Tigapuluh forest is home to other endangered species, such as elephants and orangutans. Unfortunately, cute and fuzzy tiger cubs aren't winning over the hearts of some companies who are determined to destroy the land for profit.

While the WWF is asking the Indonesian government to protect the vital habitat, Greenpeace is pointing its finger at Mattel, the company famously known for creating Barbie and Ken dolls.

Nevada lawmakers have introduced a bill that would remove protections for wild horses and make it legal to withhold water from them. What's even more shocking is that it's already passed in the House and now sits in the Senate for the final vote.

The bill spawns from a battle over public lands water. A Nevada wildlife division — the Feral Horse Committee — says the wild horses and burros are illegally drinking from water rights given to officials to support wildlife. Now, the committee wants the right to deny wild horses and burros water in order to force them off of public lands. AB 329 would do just that by excluding wild horses and burros from the definition of "wildlife."

Friends of Animals and the Animal Law Coalition are fighting the bill by urging their supporters to contact Nevada lawmakers to oppose the bill. Friends of Animals argues that wild horses and burros are no different from other wildlife and are entitled to drink from water sources allocated for Nevada's wildlife.

A few decades ago, the wolves of the Great Lakes region faced extinction. The number of gray wolves in Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan has since grown, but still faces threats.

Their cousins to the west, the gray wolves of the Rocky Mountains, will be the first species ever to be removed from the Endangered Species List. The decision has spurred federal officials to threaten Great Lakes wolves with the same fate.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been trying for years to cross wolves off of the Endangered Species List, but hasn't been successful due to lawsuits and warnings by wildlife advocacy and environmental groups. The agency says wolves attack livestock, hunting dogs and big game (which prevents the human hunter from getting a trophy kill), but instead of turning to nonviolent, alternative measures of control, the agency wants permission to kill wolves.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service argues that allowable killings are necessary to control the population in certain areas of the Great Lakes Region. The Center for Biological Diversity doesn't agree. Their lawsuits are part of the reason why protections have remained intact. The group believes that removing the wolf from protected status will only unravel the progress that's been made toward restoring them.

World Laboratory Animal Liberation Week is this week (April 16-24), and there's no better way to kick it off than to ask your leaders to co-sponsor the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act.

The United States is the last developed country in the world to keep a large number of chimpanzees — about 1,000 — for medical experimentation, but the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act aims to change that.

The Humane Society of the United States estimates that ending biomedical research on great apes could save taxpayers up to 25 million dollars a year and an additional tens of millions of dollars every year for the cessation of breeding programs.

If passed, the bill will end invasive biomedical research on chimpanzees, free all federally captive chimpanzees in labs to sanctuaries, end funding for invasive research both nationally and internationally, and finally, end all funding for breeding programs of federally owned chimps.

More than 75,000 people have signed a Change.org petition to end the captivity of dolphins kept at The Mirage Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas strip.

The extraordinarily high death rate has earned Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat the nickname "Dolphin Death Pool." Several dolphins at the facility have died young due to respiratory failure, pneumonia and lung infections. The Mirage's response? They claim to "uphold the highest professional values for the care of our animals."

If this is the best they can do, it's all the more reason why the dolphin habitat needs to shut down. That's why Justice & Compassion for Animals has organized a peaceful rally at The Mirage for Saturday, April 16th. The rally will begin tomorrow morning in front of The Mirage Hotel and Casino at 9 a.m. and conclude at 3 p.m. The group is welcoming costumes, signs and anything else that will help draw attention to the dolphins.

A New Zealand man will spend the month of April confined to a small cage measuring 6.25 feet long by 4.25 feet high. He'll sit on a bucket doubling as his toilet and will not leave unless an emergency arises.

Carl Scott is protesting against a proposal made by the Government's National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee that would require farmers to extend battery cages by a few inches per hen. The new cages, called "enriched" cages, were banned in parts of Europe after they were deemed cruel.

Scott strategically set up his cage adjacent to one of New Zealand's largest egg producers and right off of a busy road. He plans to speak about the cages to anyone passing by, write articles and post updates on a Facebook page he created to stir up awareness. A supportive neighbor is allowing Scott to use his electricity via an extension cord.