Jodie Wiederkehr–veteran animal advocate and Founder-Executive Director of the Chicago Alliance for Animals (CAA)—recounts details of how CAA was formed, in 2015. 
(She has recalled in a previous “Talking Animals” conversation how her earliest professional animal
advocacy work began in 1997.) Wiederkehr explained that she and her initial CAA cohort decided that aiming to ban horse-drawn carriages would be “an easy target” for their first campaign, and an ideal way to get started, while occasionally shifting to an anti-circus strategy when a circus rolled into town. But after a period of flyering and generally gentle efforts to raise awareness, Wiederkehr remembered that while she and a colleague were working the CAA booth at an Animal Rights conference in Washington D.C., and began chatting about the carriage campaign, they realized it was too mild, and decided they needed to “up their game.” Not long after they returned to Chicago, (incidentally: while not the intention going into the interview, this conversation unfolded into what might be labeled “Anatomy Of A Victorious, Major
Animal Rights Campaign”), Wiederkehr and company implemented the more rigorous version of the campaign, including spending 12 or more hours a day documenting how the carriage horses were being treated relative to the city’s regulations for them: how many hours per day, how many rides, what are the temperatures, and so on. She goes on to chronicle challenges and delays involved with engaging the City 
Council, and how one key alderperson—whose district included the horse carriage rides—refused to meet with Wiederkehr or return her calls, yet persuaded by CAA’s research and media coverage, yet ultimately proceeded to introduce legislation to ban horse-drawn carriages. Wiederkehr has helped others elsewhere tackle this issue by forming the Partnership to Ban Horse Carriages Worldwide, by offering guidance to those running such campaigns. We covered some other topics, among them, current CAA campaigns, such as “Free Spur,” an ongoing effort to gain release of the titular Spur. an African tortoise who’s been cooped up in a small display case in Chicago for more than 30 years. Additionally, we touched on “If Cage Walls Could Talk,” Wiederkehr’s weekly radio show, focused on animal rights issues and leaders, airing Saturdays, 5-6pm CT on WCPT. (https://heartlandsignal.com/wcpt820/, https://www.facebook.com/ChiAnimalRights/, https://www.instagram.com/chicago_alliance_for_animals/, https://www.facebook.com/groups/partnershiptobanhorsecarriagesworldwide)
ALSO: I spoke briefly with Myriam Parham, co-founder and president of Florida Voices for Animals (FVA), the longtime Tampa-based animal rights organization. FVA pursues a multifaceted agenda, placing a premium on educating the public about animal abuse and promoting veganism. Regarding the latter objective, FVA serves as the organizer of the Tampa Bay Veg Fest, a nationally-acclaimed annual event typically held in early November. Unfortunately, the chief reason Myriam appeared on the show today was to discuss the news that—owing to the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton—this year’s Veg Fest (the 13th annual edition) had to be canceled. She explained that, with the wide array of folks who sustained damage from the devastating storms—including Veg Fest organizers, vendors, and volunteers—it was impractical to proceed with this year’s festival. But going forward, Parham makes it clear that FVA intends to resume presenting the Tampa Bay Veg Fest next year, and meanwhile, is forging ahead with its slate of other events, including the annual ThanksVegan Potluck, on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, at Unitarian Universalist of Tampa, 11400 Morris Bridge Road, Tampa. More Info: [email protected] (https://www.floridavoicesforanimals.org/, https://www.tampabayvegfest.com/)
COMEDY CORNER: In the interest of having more time to speak with Myriam Parham, we decided to forgo today’s “Comedy Corner”
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
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