World Animal Day – October 4 – It’s time for action!

World Animal Day is an international day of action for animal rights and welfare celebrated annually on October 4, the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and the environment. It started in 1931 at a convention of ecologists in Florence, Italy who wished to highlight the plight of endangered species.

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The new Living Planet Index reportfrom the World Wildlife Fund opens with a jaw-dropping statistic: we’ve killed roughly half of the world’s non-human vertebrate animal population since 1970.

Living Planet Index report

We’ve killed off half the world’s animals since 1970

WWF: World has lost more than half its wildlife in 40 years

“All creatures are created from the same paternal heartbeat of God. Not to hurt our humble brethren [the animals] is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission: to be of service to them whenever they require it. God requires that we assist the animals when they need our help. Each being (human or creature) has the same right of protection. If you have men who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.”

~St Francis of Assisi