Wendy Huntbatch, World Parrot Refuge; & Denise Swanson, vegan food activism via cooking classes

In this episode, we start with a call for help for anyone who is able and willing to give a “forever” home to spent battery hens belonging to an Abbotsford, BC egg farmer. He has agreed to spare them from the slaughterhouse if they can be taken off his hands. Like 98% of all battery hens, these chickens have spent their entire lives cramped up in tiny cages and have not ever seen the light of day or felt the earth beneath their feet. Please contact Joanne at joanne@liberationbc.org if you can be of some help.

And Alissa presents a discussion of this recent Huffington Post article entitled “But Plants Have Feelings, Too!”, taking on that ever-so-intelligent argument that killing plants is akin to killing animals. We give our thoughts on this issue, and welcome yours as well!

Wendy Huntbatch, World Parrot Refuge

Our feature interview is with Wendy Huntbatch, who is the President of the World Parrot Refuge, which is a non-profit organization based in the community of Coombs on Vancouver Island, and houses a 23,000 square foot educational facility that provides a “Home for Life” for 800 ex-breeding and previously owned pet parrots. Wendy shares with us everything you always wanted to know about the unfamiliar world of parrots, including the welfare issues faced in keeping parrots as pets, the interpersonal lives of parrots, and the work that the staff and volunteers do at the Refuge.

To see a short video of some of the rescue stories of the birds at the sanctuary, please check this out:

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Denise Swanson, Vegan Food Activism Via Cooking Classes!

Our first interview today is with local Vancouver activist, Denise Swanson, who you may remember from being our show several months ago when she came on to give her Top Animal Rights Film Recommendations, in promotion of the Focus on Food film series that she was putting on throughout the summer.

Denise has recently taken on yet another endeavour of vegan outreach to educate the public on issues pertaining to choosing food options that are healthier for us and, of course, for the animals. Denise will be teaching a series of vegan cooking classes this fall at various venues around Vancouver, and she is here to speak with us about that and vegan food activism for the animals.

Information on Denise’s upcoming vegan cooking classes in the city of Vancouver:

  • Kerrisdale Community Centre – Registration info here.
    • Wednesdays 6:30 – 9:30pm,  September 14 – November 9. 8 Sess/$160.
  • Mt. Pleasant Community CentreRegistration info here.
    • Thursdays 1:30 – 4:30pm, September 22 – October 13. 4 Sess/$82.50.
    • Thursdays 1:30 – 4:30pm, October 20 – November 10. 4 Sess/$82.50.
  • False Creek Community CentreRegistration info here.
    • (1) Sundays 1:00 – 3:30pm, September 11/18/25.  1 Sess/$10.
    • (2) Mondays 10:00am – 1:00pm,  September 12/November 14/ December 12. 1 Sess/$25 or 3 Sess/$7.
    • (3) Saturdays 12:00 – 3:30pm, October 15 – December 3. 7 Sess/$70.
  • Langara CollegeRegistration info here.
    • Saturday, October 1, 1:00 – 5:00pm. 1 Sess/$85.

Download this episode.

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