I am a normal human being who cannot stand to see animals abused. I can't go down to check on the animals every day, but surely, if permission is given for the animal souk to trade them, it must be someone's job to make sure the animals are humanely treated. Balloons are bad From Mr. C. Nacey, via e-mail. Around 2,000 children released tagged balloons to mark the start of the Abu Dhabi Festival of Sales yesterday, while the strong winds whipping through the Capital forced the cancellation of the Sir Baniyas trip, organised by the Federal Environment Agency as part of the activities for National Environment Day. Part of the U.A.E.'s natural heritage are the turtles and dolphins that inhabit these coastal waters.
Turtles eat jelly fish and often mistake plastic bags and deflated balloons as a tasty snack.
The plastic then blocks up their digestive track and the turtle dies a slow death from starvation. Dolphins sadly suffer a similar fate. As a recreational diver, a sighting of a turtle is a special treat. Hopefully I will not be able to claim the Dh1,999 prize for retrieving a tagged balloon from the body of a dead turtle. Shot in the foot From Mr. R. Birch, via e-mail.