U.S. Humane Society CEO To Visit Ojai

By Misty Volaski

Saturday, Ojai’s Primavera Gallery is going to the dogs — and cats, chickens, owls, and mountain lions. Primavera owners Khaled and Sheryl Al-Awar will host a reception and book signing for Wayne Pacelle, the president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, this Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. Pacelle will also be touring Rancho Matilija, where residents banded together to successfully stop the use of toxic rodenticides which were killing off many more animals than intended. “It’s not possible to restrict (the toxins) to animals you’re trying to remove,” Pacelle said. “It cycles through the food chain. But people are becoming more aware of the ripple effect of rodenticides and other poisons used to kill wildlife. I’m looking forward to learning more about it (Rancho Matilija’s efforts).”

The Al-Awars are excited to offer locals an opportunity to meet the president of the world’s biggest group for animal protection. “We feel really privileged to have Mr. Pacelle come to the gallery to speak with the public, to do a book signing,” Khaled Al-Awar said. “He is a man of such heightened awareness.”

Pacelle’s Saturday visit to the valley is part of a national book tour for “The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them,” which has recently been on The Washington Post, The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times best-seller lists. Read More »