MEDIA RELEASE: Locals Slam SeaQuest Woodbridge for Animal Cruelty on Respect for Fish Day
WOODBRIDGE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (August 2, 2021) — In Defense of Animals and Stop SeaQuest Woodbridge protested the continued operation of SeaQuest at Woodbridge Center and other locations on Sunday, August 1, which was Respect for Fish Day. SeaQuest is responsible for egregious animal welfare violations, animal deaths, illegal activity, and injuries to the public.
“For Respect for Fish Day, we’re calling out the unacceptable treatment and exploitation of animals at SeaQuest Woodbridge. We urge the USDA to shut down all SeaQuest locations due to the ongoing animal welfare violations occurring nationwide,” said Julie Massa, Wild Animals campaigner for In Defense of Animals.
SeaQuest is consistently in the news for state and federal animal welfare violations involving hazardous conditions for animals, staff, and visitors alike. Visitors of all ages are encouraged to touch, feed and interact with animals, including a variety of fish, which puts all at risk of injury and the spread of zoonotic diseases.
Conditions observed by an In Defense of Animals investigator this May at the Woodbridge location support ongoing criticisms of this facility.
More than 7,000 people have signed In Defense of Animals’ alert urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to shut this and other SeaQuest locations down over concerns about the mistreatment and untimely and preventable deaths of hundreds of animals that are a result of negligence, inadequate care, and oversight.
The public is encouraged to learn more and take action: www.idausa.org/stopseaquest
Video and Images: Available on request
Contact: Julie Massa, Julie@idausa.org, 415-448-0048 x232
Respect for Fish Day is an annual event to raise awareness about the plight of fish, who are among the planet’s most widely abused animals, but their suffering receives the least attention. Trillions of fish are mistreated and killed every year in the food industry, for sport, in the pet trade, in laboratories, and for entertainment. Although scientific evidence indicates that fish are capable of feeling pain, fish are seldom covered by animal welfare legislation. Respect for Fish Day aims to change this by making the general public and lawmakers realize that fish are deserving of compassion and protection. www.respectforfish.org
In Defense of Animals is an international animal protection organization with over 250,000 supporters and a 38-year history of fighting for animals, people, and the environment through education and campaigns, as well as hands-on rescue facilities in India, South Korea, and rural Mississippi. www.idausa.org
Stop SeaQuest Woodbridge is a group of compassionate people working to close down SeaQuest Woodbridge over the poor living conditions of the resident animals. https://www.facebook.com/seaquestabuse
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