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A conversation with a pioneer of non-animal testing Dr Carol Treasure. Carol is a founder of XCellR8, a laboratory exclusively devoted to animal-free safety and efficacy tests for the cosmetics, personal care and chemical industries. XCellR8’s clients include high street retail brands, large ingredient manufacturers and fast growth SMEs.  Many of XCellR8’s tests are for moisturisers, soaps and shampoos – in fact, if you use a product from Lush, chances are its components were tested for how they will react with your skin by Carol and her team right here in the north of England… There are two parts to our chat: the first takes place in the XCellR8 lab itself, and the second in a much quieter meeting room upstairs. We cover quite a range of issues ranging from the ethical to the scientific and the commercial – all with Carol’s good humour and infectious enthusiasm to the fore. But first of all, let’s get over that tricky first introduction… Website https://x-cellr8.comDonate - https://x-cellr8.com/about-xcellr8/donate-to-xcellr8/Twitter - https://twitter.com/XCellR8_LabsFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/XCellR8Carol on Twitter - https://twitter.com/DrCarolTreasureAnne-Marie Barton 24hr Crate of Loneliness - https://www.gofundme.com/f/24hr-crate-of-lonelinessFRAME website – https://frame.org.ukAnimal Aid - https://www.animalaid.org.uk/

Charlie Moores and Dominic Dyer discuss attempts  by fox-hunting supporters. to intimidate activists. It's nothing new of course, but it should always be called out. In this particular instance, fox hunting supporters are making threats towards a hotel in Peterborough where the League Against Cruel Sports is hosting their next Enough is Enough event on June 17th and at which Dominic will be speaking... Register for free for ‘Enough is Enough’ at The Bull Hotel and Conference Centre, Peterborough, June 17th starting at 19:00.League Against Cruel Sports Website and Twitter feed

"I've tried to write the book that I felt I needed to read when I was younger, but I hope it appeals to all age groups." Trust me Sophie, it does... A conversation with zoologist and science communicator Sophie Pavelle, about her first book, Forget Me Not, which is subtitled “Finding the forgotten species of climate change Britain”. We spoke shortly before Forget Me Not’s launch date and discussed what the book is about, Sophie’s modern and fresh writing style (a style that I think makes her a unique and very important voice), and the lessons she’d learnt travelling the length and breadth of Britain looking for species ranging from seagrass and salmon to Mountain Hares and Marsh Fritillaries.  I began though by asking Sophie about something she’d said in the epilogue to Forget Me Not that had really caught my attention: “Thank you to Dr Ruth Tingay for lifting me away from the dreaded imposter syndrome”. Sophie has packed a massive amount into a very short time. She’s a presenter, a writer, an ambassador for the Wildlife Trusts, sits on the RSPB Advisory Committee for England, has done an enormous hike for charity, and was now being published by Bloomsbury! In what sense, I asked her, could she possibly be called an ‘imposter’ – an overachiever perhaps, but not an imposter...? Bloomsbury Publishing Forget Me Not (Available from 09 June 2022)Sophie Pavelle Instagram and Twitter feedsBeaver Trust Website and Twitter feed

In the latest episode of The Off the leash Podcast Charlie Moores and Dominic Dyer look at the latest on the badger cull - in other words, a climbdown by Defra; the findings of the Foreign Affairs Committee on Afghanistan & Nowzad - basically the most senior civil servants were found to be uncooperative and evasive; Dominic’s upcoming documentary which starts filming very soon; but we start with the submission Dominic and Born Free made to the EFRA Committee (the committee which examines the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and its associated public bodies) on trade with the Faroes in relation to the Grind and the slaughter of pilot whales and other marine mammals - total trade in goods and services (exports plus imports) between the UK and Faroe Islands was a staggering £881 million in the four quarters to the end of Q4 2021, an increase of 90.3% or £418 million from the four quarters to the end of Q4 2020! Gov Committee Role - Environment, Food and Rural Affairs CommitteeSea Shepherd Operation Bloody Fjords 2022DTI Trade and Investment Factsheets Faroe Islands (May 2022)Gov Committee Missing in action: UK leadership and the withdrawal from Afghanistan (May 2022)Vet Record Analysis of the impact of badger culling on bovine tuberculosis in cattle in the high-risk area of England, 2009–2020Off the Leash Interview #23 Tom Langton and Dr Mark Jones | Badger Culling ResearchOff the Leash Interview #27 Keep the Ban | Skydiving to Expose CubbingShit Lawns Twitter feedOff the Leash Interview #25 Saffron Gloyne | Animal Welfare Party Candidate 

"As one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, Britain has a long way to go. Somerset’s super nature reserve is a great start; but it must also be an opportunity to change the way we regard and manage the countryside for the 21st century." (Stephen Moss, Observer Comment,  22 May 22) A conversation with birder, award-winning author, bird tour leader, BAFTA award-winning television producer, a stalwart of the British Birdfair, President of the Somerset Wildlife Trust, teacher of an MA in Travel and Nature Writing at Bath Spa University -  and journalist - Stephen Moss.  Stephen and I have been talking about having a chat for a podcast for a while but when I heard last week that Natural Egland and the government had declared a new 'super National Nature Reserve' on the Somerset Levels - which is right on Stephen's doorstep - and moments later read an Observer Comment piece online written by him on this exact same subject ( that quote at the start of this podcast came from that piece) - well, the stars had surely aligned! Just days later we met up at the RSPB's Ham Wall reserve - part of The Somerset Wetlands National Nature Reserve, famed for its huge wintering starling flocks and for being the first reserve in climate-change Britain where three previously vagrant heron species - great white egret, cattle egret, and little bittern - have all bred.  So what is a 'super national nature reserve', what function should sites like this have in terms of conservation, public access, and public good, do conservation organisations develop wetland sites like Ham Wall because they're powerless to halt climate change, and will I be able to edit a recording where we were constantly interrupting ourselves to look at Marsh Harriers and Bitterns?  I'll give it a go... Stephen Moss Website and Twitter feedObserver Comment This ‘super reserve’ is not just for the birds (Stephen MossGovernment press-release New ‘super’ National Nature Reserve created to protect rare wildlife (19 May 22)RSPB Reserves Ham WallFor more audio - and blogs -  on wildlife, animal rights, and the environment, please go to offtheleash.substack.com

A conversation with pro-wildlife campaigner Rob Pownall, founder of Keep the Ban.  We’re talking shortly before Rob jumps out of an aeroplane 10000’ above the Kent countryside to raise funds for a very special project to raise public awareness about one of fox hunting’s dirtiest secrets – cubbing. Cubbing, as you’ll hear us discuss, is a disgusting form of animal abuse, a wildlife crime where – to put it simply - fox hunters train their hounds by setting them on fox cubs. Rob is absolutely determined – and I’m absolutely determined with him – to talk about this issue so much and in so many spaces that – eventually – there will not be a single member of the public who doesn’t know what cubbing is and who doesn’t want it stopped… Crowdfunder Rob’s Skydive to Expose CubbingKeep the Ban Website and Twitter feedCharlie Moores Shortcast #34 Cubbing

"I think what my life has taught me so far is that hardly anything is impossible if you work hard enough and you are passionate enough about. It is incredible the difference one person can make..." (Sam Hutchinson) A conversation between Off the Leash’s Dominic Dyer and Sam Hutchinson, the founder of the animal welfare charity Power of One, which is described as a "platform which gives small charities and teams across the world a voice and the opportunity to connect with people like you, who want to help in the treatment, neutering and rehoming of dogs who have been neglected, abused or abandoned in some of the worst conditions imaginable".  Dominic is an ambassador for Power of One, and spoke at the charity's official launch at Westminster's Church House on the 30th of April this year, when an incredible £40,000 was raised. In their discussion, Sam and Dominic talk about that glittering lanch and Sam's hopes for her new charity, but Dominic began by asking Sam about her background and the drive that took her from reputedly the largest council estate in Europe to studying law at Manchester Unversity and on to an outstanding career in fund finance: Sam joined prestigious legal firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in 2018 and has now advised on some of the largest subscription and leverage deals in the market... For more information please go to the Power of One website, Facebook page, and Twitter feed

A short conversation between Charlie Moores and Dominic Dyer about the Queen's Speech and animal welfare legislation.  Yesterday, May 10th, the Queen’s Speech, which sets out the government’s legislative agenda for the next parliamentary year, was given in the House of  Lords. It was - according to most commentators - a drab affair, a mix of new plans, long-made pledges and a handful of held-over bills. On animal welfare legislation, though, it was universally slammed with promises broken and pledges abandoned. The Government did say that it is still committed to legislation to ban the import of hunting trophies, with The Secretary of State for Defra George Eustice quoted by a senior Conservative Mp Sir Roger Gale saying that it "will go ahead and be tougher than the manifesto commitment" but it has cancelled the flagship Animals Abroad Bill that would have outlawed trade in fur, stopped advertisers promoting exploitative animal events like elephant rides, and the import of foie gras....reportedly because MPs like Jacob Rees-Mogg said it was 'un-Conservative' to restrict choice - and by that he means his choice to eat foie gras rather than the choice of geese not to be force-fed grain until their livers explode... Government website Transcript of the Queen's Speech 2022

"Talk to your candidates...find out if they really care." A conversation with powerhouse campaigner Saffron Gloyne, who has been selected to represent the Animal Welfare Party in the May local elections. Saffron is one of thirteen candidates in Croydon’s Addiscombe West ward where three seats are available. According to the Animal Welfare Party's website, Saffron will focus her campaign on standing up against wildlife crime in Croydon, championing the borough’s ability to become a nationwide leader in the battle against single-use plastic, and opposing cruel duckling & chick hatching projects in the borough’s schools.  She says of standing as a candidate for the Animal Welfare Party “This felt like a natural progression for me. In order to effect widespread, tangible progress and improve conditions for the animals and people in our community, there needs to be a voice in the council speaking up for those who cannot speak for themselves. I hope to galvanise the local community and the council in making choices that benefit all of us and ensure the future of our environment.” Animal Welfare Party Website and Twitter feed Animal Welfare Party Candidates 2022 Saffron Gloyne Twitter feed Jane Smith (elected Animal Welfare Party councillor) Twitter feedCharlie Moores Twitter feed 

 I woke up this morning to a thrush’s liquid song cascading from the top of an oak tree about 100m away. Phrase after phrase, loud and clear. Not the repetitive song of a Song Thrush, nor the more mellow conversation of a Blackbird, but the melodious outpouring of a Mistle Thrush. Perched, typically, in the open, bold as brass, daring the local Sparrowhawk to interrupt, swept up in the power of his own remarkable voice as it bounced around off the stone walls of our home. During lockdown I bought a parabolic reflector for moments just like this, and over the last few weeks I’ve been wandering around recording bird songs and layering them together. Common species (at least around here), including Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Great and Blue T**s, Nuthatch, and Wren. I’ve caught snippets of the drumming of a Great Spotted Woodpecker, the first Chiffchaff of the spring, a pair of Wood Pigeons sitting in the sun, our local Rooks flying overhead. I even went out on a frosty morning and caught a barking Roe Deer echoing through a piece of woodland I can see from my window. And now was a perfect time to record that beautiful Mistle Thrush. The result is only short (less than six minutes) and to be honest no one morning sounds exactly like this, but forgive me for any ‘audio licence’ because I hope - as it does for me - this brief dawn chorus transports you to somewhere soothing, a place of abundance, and far, far from the headlines.

Dominic Dyer speaking at a PETA UK reception, where to quote PETA, “MPs had the opportunity to see and feel the world’s first faux bear fur, a fabric that has been expertly created by luxury faux furrier ECOPEL to replace the bearskins used to make the Queen’s Guard’s caps”  Dominic and I have discussed this issue in numerous podcasts before (eg Shortcast #53 Dominic Dyer | Bear Hats and Ben Wallace ), but essentially – exactly as that quote from PETA explains – the Ministry of Defence have been asked to replace the bearskin ‘caps’ made from Canadian-slaughtered Black Bears worn by the Queen’s Guards. The MoD came up with five ‘conditions’ that needed to be met before they would even discuss replacing ‘tradition’ with an animal-rights sourced faux-fur no matter how environmentally sound it is.  Petition: Replace the real bearskins used for the Queen’s Guard’s caps with faux fur

A slightly truncated Off the Leash Podcast this time around, as Charlie Moores and Dominic Dyer focus on why they’ve been saying ‘Off the leash Podcasts is dead, long live Off the Leash’  this week (Charlie posted a shortcast explaining about the upcoming changes earlier this week, but we wanted to discuss it at more length),' we outline upcoming events this week, including a Parliamentary reception organised by PETA UK as part of the ongoing campaign against the fur caps worn by the Queen's Guards; and we name our Heroes and Villains of the week (this time lauding PC Claire Dinsdale QPM and slating the cabal of interests that have sidelined her and the investigation in Dorset into the death of a young White-tailed Eagle from the Isle of Wight reintroduction project). Shortcast #82 Charlie Moores | Off the Leash Podcasts is dead, long live Off the LeashPETA UK  Stop Bear Slaughter: PETA Unveils Faux-Fur Queen’s Guard CapPC Claire Dinsdale Twitter feedThe Guardian   Disbanding of Dorset wildlife crime team puts birds of prey ‘at risk’Raptor Persecution UK  Chris Packham submits FoI requests to Dorset Police & the Crime Commissioner