World Animal Day - October 4

 
WORLD ANIMAL DAY
October 4

Each year 4 October is World Animal Day!   These 24 hours are the chance to give back and celebrate animal life in all its shapes and sizes, from mice to elephants, and recognise the positive influence they have on our lives.
This special day was established in 1931 by ecologists in Florence in Italy and has now spread around the world, celebrating not just endangered and rare species, but all kinds of animal life.
And the date 4 October is no coincidence - it is the same day as the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.

Many people feel drawn to advocate for animals because even though they can feel pain and suffer just as we do, they do not have a way to advocate for their own welfare. In fact, animals are viewed by many as nothing more than property to be treated however the owner wishes. This view has created an inhumane situation for billions of animals that share our world.

- many of the world's 60 billion farm animals are not treated humanely

- 80% of the world's 1 billion cats and dogs are stray or neglected

- millions of wild animals are killed or sold illegally on the black market worth $10 billion a year

- animals suffer greatly and are often forgotten during natural disasters

 READ MORE:
Do One Thing - World Animal Day - October 4:

 The official World Animal Day website, has loads of ideas to get you started and going wild for wildlife on World Animal Day!



Collected below are 41 photographs of animals around the world, at play, at rest, at work and more, taken over the past several weeks
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/world_animal_day_2009.html

ACTIVITIES FOR  CHILDREN:
http://www.wildlifefun4kids.com/children/