Sure, I'm kind of bummed that summer is winding down—no more lazy days at the beach or Saturday afternoon veggie barbecues. But then I remember how awesome fall can be—long walks under canopies of changing leaves, followed by warm apple cider. Bring it on.

For this week's "Win It" Wednesday, we've got just the prize to help you ease back into work and back to school—PETA stencils that will help you jazz up that plain T-shirt, boring school binder, or blank wall—virtually any flat surface—with a lifesaving message for others to consider. Add a little fabric paint, spray paint, or Sharpie strokes, and you've got instant style and action for animals.

You can win a stencil set by sharing your favorite simple way to get others to think about animals. Maybe you've got an animal-friendly message on your car's vanity plate, or maybe you rock a different PETA shirt every time you go to the gym. Share in the comments section below.

We've got one set to give away. The contest ends on September 23, 2009, and we'll choose the most inspiring comment on September 25, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting. Good luck!

Posted by Karin Bennett

"Why is PETA always doing crazy stunts and demonstrations?" As a PETA Foundation employee, this is probably the number-one question I get asked. So, if you are one of those curious folks—or even if you just don't know what I'm talking about when I say "wacky PETA stunts"—you're in for a treat, because I'm about to give you the rundown of the wackiest of the wacky things that PETA and its affiliates have pulled off over the years.

Brace yourself.

10. Wienermobile Takeover
    
    Long before the Wienermobile nearly brought about its own demise by crashing into a suburban home, we trailed it around the country as it conducted a talent search for children to sing the Oscar Mayer theme song. At one stop, our "pig" even managed to clamber aboard the Wienermobile, and he was poised to take the fiberglass frank for a spin when he was apprehended by the authorities.
9. Grim Fairy Tale
   
   Mother Goose doesn't take it too kindly when her feathered brethren are force-fed so that their grotesquely enlarged livers can be sliced up and served on toast points. When she took her case to a foie gras convention in NYC, bemused police officers felt obliged to arrest her and insisted that she keep her head on during booking so that everybody in the precinct could get a "gander" at their unusual collar.
8. Cannibal Comparison
   
   Way back in 1991, when newspapers were abuzz with stories about Jeffrey Dahmer, we ran what is arguably our most controversial ad ever. In it, we made the point that people who are creeped out by a cannibalistic serial killer should also be creeped out by the serial killings of thousands of animals in slaughterhouses every day. Strangely, some folks found this inconvenient truth a little hard to, er, swallow.
7. KKKrazy About Dogs
   
   Ever notice the eerie similarities between the AKC and the KKK? No? Well, our fiendishly funny "Wrong Meeting?" TV ad, in which a Klansman shows up at an AKC meeting, spells it all out.
6. Milk Gone Wild
   
   When PETA's "Milk Gone Wild" spoof was rejected by Super Bowl censors, so many people flocked to MilkGoneWild.com to see what could possibly be racier than Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction that they temporarily crashed our servers.
5. Unhappy Mother's Day
   
   How do you spend Mother's Day if you are eight months pregnant? How about by baring it all in London to protest the filthy, cramped gestation crates that pregnant sows are forced to live in?
4. The M-Word
   
   After celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey served horse meat on his U.K. show The F-Word, PETA Europe made sure that everyone knew Ramsey was "full of it" when they dumped a ton of manure at his restaurant's doorstep.
3. Rest in Pieces
   
   PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk gave people food for thought when she released the contents of her will, which stipulates, among other things, that her feet be made into umbrella stands and that her pointing finger (no, not that finger) be mounted and sent to Ringling chief Kenneth Feld as a reminder of who's to blame for the deaths of 26 elephants (and counting).
2. Putting the 'Ma' in 'Vermont'
   
   When we told Ben and Jerry's that "breast is best" and asked them to start making their ice cream with (human) mother's milk, it turned into a breast-milk brouhaha.
1. Faux Father Furor
   
   PETA V.P. Dan Mathews was a man (of the cloth) on a mission when he talked his way into furry designer Gianfranco Ferré's 2004 Milan fashion show and leaped onto the catwalk. As security guards tackled him and tried to drag him off, they were attacked by outraged Italians who swatted them with their programs while shouting, "Leave the priest alone!"

smh.com.au / CC

If all this has left you wondering, "Why pick on cranky chefs and giant hot dogs, PETA?" you should check out The PETA Practical Guide to Animal Rights. The book explains why our passion for animal rights drives us to push the envelope—and push compassion into the public consciousness.

So which is your favorite PETA stunt? Spill it below.

Posted by Alisa Mullins

So most people know PETA for our flashy naked protests and work with celebrities to speak out against cruelty to animals. If you live in the Norfolk, Virginia area, you may know PETA as the group that drives around the mobile low-cost spay/neuter clinic or delivers free dog houses to low-income areas.

But unless you’re the CEO or executive of one of the more than 80 unfortunate companies we target through our “shareholder advocacy” program, you may not know about the behind-the-scenes work PETA does to improve the lives of animals worldwide. Through this program, we purchase small amounts of stock in companies that abuse animals in some way—whether for food or clothing or in animal tests—and then use our position as stockholders to submit shareholder resolutions calling on the companies to adopt better animal welfare standards (or in the case of some companies, to adopt any animal welfare standards). We’ve won major victories for animals through using this tactic, like getting Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s to adopt improve their animal welfare practices and getting Dow Chemical to reduce the number of animals killed in its tests.

Our work in this area was recently recognized when As You Sow—an organization dedicated to promoting corporate responsibility—named PETA the most active group in shareholder activism…a title we’ve now held for the fourth straight year in a row. That means that PETA submits more of these shareholder resolutions than any other non-profit organization in the country, regardless of the issue.

These efforts were also discussed in a recent Orlando Sentinel article about PETA, which you might want to check out.

Oh, and don’t worry: while we may not show up to companies’ shareholder meetings in the buff, our “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign won’t be going away any time soon.

--Matt

Posted by Matt Prescott, Assistant Director of Corporate Affairs