I'm just as psyched about the holidays as anyone else. Free stuff, snow days (oh, right, we don't get those), e-cards— what's not to love? Well, I'll tell you. In certain cities across America, animals are being exposed to all sorts of danger for the sake of live Nativity scenes. Camels, sheep, and donkeys are casually put out in a pen in harsh weather and left unattended outside churches and in Christmas shows, where they are sometimes stolen, injured by passing dogs, or harassed by the public. They are often transported to and from the exhibits in cold, uncomfortable and scary conditions, and they can even spread salmonella and E. coli.

This is super scary, but there have even been cases of sexual abuse, injury in transport, and other cases of neglect and cruelty to animals used in Nativity scenes, which is why we have a better idea.

Instead of using live animals this Christmas, we suggest a lovely fiberglass display like the ones at Christmas Night Inc. These displays are cruelty-free, and they can be shoved into the back of a shed and reused year after year. Fake displays—with ultra-cute Baby Jesus statues—are much less expensive than "renting" real animals, so the money saved could go to a good cause (like vegetarian food for the hungry, perhaps?).

If you know of a live Nativity scene in or planned for your area, take action now, please! The following are a few things you can do to help:

• Contact the pastor of the church to voice your concerns and ask for a last minute change of plan. Talking with church administrators may encourage them to consider a more humane alternative in the future.


• Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper asking people to consider the cruelty involved in Nativity scene displays and to stay away from them.


• Contact your local humane society or animal control agency if you spot signs of neglect, abuse, or vulnerability. You can find their number in the blue pages of your phone book.

So this holiday season, consider peace on Earth and good will toward humans and animals.

Posted by Lianne Turner

It's time for your monthly installment of bits and baubles plucked from the sticky fibers of the Web. We've got a quite an impressive offering for you this month, so let's dive right in, shall we?

• Oh! Usually you hear urban legends about heroic animals, but rarely are they filmed and put on the news. A dog rescues another dog who has been hit by a car on a highway. Check out the video and be prepared to become a sniffling mess.
• 'Tis the season to be warm, fuzzy, and adorable. Paging peta2! Our awesome youth division has one unforgettable Christmas mission that you absolutely need to see.
• Payback is hell, anyone? You won't even believe this article. Let's just say the hunter is in touch with karma.
• This article is too ridiculous for words: a couple thinks their leather couch is literally haunted. Well, if my friends and I were kidnapped, not fed for weeks, and forced to travel hundreds of miles in a boxcar; had chili pepper rubbed in our eyes to compel us to move once exhaustion set in; and were then killed—in front of each other—you'd best believe we'd haunt the ugly couch they made us into too—if only to rebuke the tasteless people who'd own such an item. Oh, good grief!
• In true PETA fashion, we find a hero and accidental activist employing a unique alternative to eating animals—using them to keep the streets safe instead …
• Wait, you do eat animals!? Better hope you don't have worms for brains! This lady does, and the doctors are saying that brain worms could be caused by consuming pork. What was that karma thing again?
• Have you bought one of every item on PETACatalog.org (I recommend the fancy vegan chocolates!), but still have questions about our quirky ways? Or you don't really know jack about us but would prefer the Cliff's Notes version over a whole documentary? Well look no further to satisfy your jones—here's the scoop on Ingrid and PETA, in slick Hollywood Access–style packaging.

Now that you've recharged with this warm bowl of Internet soup, off you go to the next snarky blog!

Posted by Missy Lane

PETA and KIDS AND CARS are joining forces to raise awareness about the fact that a hot car is no place for any animal—whether a dog or a human child. Through this partnership, PETA and KIDS AND CARS hope to prevent many deaths each year.

KIDS AND CARS, a national nonprofit organization, is dedicated to preventing injuries and deaths of children in nontraffic, motor-vehicle–related events, including being left alone in a hot car. For years, PETA has been issuing hot-weather alerts and urging television and radio stations to broadcast summer advisories about why animals must never be left in parked cars. Now, PETA's alerts will also include information about KIDS AND CARS and why children need protection from the heat. In turn, KIDS AND CARS will include information about PETA's heat-wave alerts in its news releases.

Because dogs don't perspire as humans do and can only sweat through their footpads and cool themselves by panting, they can succumb to heatstroke in just 15 minutes. Human children are also very susceptible to heatstroke because their brains are not fully developed, so their body temperature cannot be regulated as efficiently as an adult's can.

If you see a dog (or a child) left alone in a car and there is enough time to do so, take down the car's color, model, make, and license-plate number and have the owner paged inside the store, or call local humane authorities or police right away. Do whatever is necessary to get the victim out of the car—his or her life may depend on it.

PETA's "Don't Let Your Dog Get Hot Under the Collar" leaflets can be placed on vehicles to remind people never to leave unattended animals inside cars (please make sure this is legal in your city first). Order or print yours today … and Sparky will thank you with grateful little puppy kisses.

Posted by Carrie Ann Harris

So today's a fairly slow news day (ya know, Labor Day weekend and all), but we wanted to be absolutely sure you all were fully prepped for your long weekends of not being at work! To give yourself one of those warm, fuzzy feelings, we thought we'd take a new direction with our videos and show you some cute videos for a change (instead of our typical videos that, ya know, make you think).

Enjoy!

Posted by Christine Doré

As you’ll be well aware if you live anywhere near here, our area got hit by a tornado yesterday. 200 people were injured, a lot of people had to leave their homes in a hurry, and …here we go again…animals were left behind, plus authorities have refused to let people who tried to go home after work return to their homes. We’ve been rushing around today trying to help those animals out. There’s plenty more info below about what you can do if you live in the area.

PETA, the Virginia Beach SPCA, and Suffolk Animal Control have joined forces to help local tornado victims. Because the storm hit suddenly, many people fled their homes leaving dogs, cats birds and other animals behind.

The Virginia Beach SPCA has set up an emergency response center at the Suffolk Animal Control Bureau, located at 124 Glen Forest Drive in Suffolk. The shelter will be staffed 24/7 to receive animals as long as there is a need.

If you know of an animal in need, whether lost or left behind, please call 757-409-7729, or email info@VBSPCA.com. PETA’s Community Animal Project is available to assist in rescuing animals who are trapped in or under homes and assist in capturing frightened animals running at large.

At least 100 birds have already been displaced by the storm and taken for emergency care. For information on how to help stranded wildlife, please visit VBSPCAWildlife.com.

Sacramento Kings forward Ron Artest is the star of a new PSA for PETA urging basketball fans to "have the balls to spay or neuter your dog." Artest has never been shy about speaking his mind, and, in addition to bringing him a fair share of headlines throughout his career, this trait has shown itself off the court through community involvement, charity work, and a willingness to speak up for those less fortunate than himself. This is what he had to say about his new ad for PETA.

Kathy Guillermo is the director of PETA’s Laboratory Investigations Department, where she works to expose the waste and cruelty of the multi-billion dollar animal experimentation industry. She also happens to be a damn fine writer, (and she’s got a great sense for snappy titles). This op-ed, about a recent study showing that some rodents can use tools, recently appeared in The Raleigh News Observer.

Some animals can use tools? Who cares?
-by Kathy Guillermo, PETA

Years ago, I had a wonderful companion animal named Angus. He was a remarkable little fellow who loved to greet visitors to my house and snuggle next to me on the sofa. His favorite food was Chinese carry-out, and he went bonkers when he saw the white cardboard containers come out of the plastic bag on the kitchen table. He was loyal and sweet-tempered - probably not so different from your own dog or cat.

Except that Angus wasn't a dog or cat. He was a rat. A brown rat with shiny black eyes and a long pink tail. He lived on a table-top in my home, where he never had to be shut in his cage. He liked to cruise around the house perched on my shoulder.

So it was with particular interest that I read the just-released study on rats, which found that rats can be trained to use tools, to understand the tools' functions and to choose the most appropriate tool when presented with more than one. Before this, the study says, it was thought that only primates and some birds, in addition to humans, were capable of figuring this out.

So here's my response, and I hope it's yours too: Who cares?

Should we change the way we view rats because some of them can be taught how to use a little rake to draw food toward themselves? Of course not. We should change our attitude toward rats because they are thinking, feeling, living beings with a sense of humor, an affectionate nature and a capacity for suffering that the human race should stop ignoring.

This study is just the latest in a long line of experiments that should have convinced us of this long ago. Last July, researchers at the University of Berne, Switzerland, announced that rats are influenced by the kindness of strangers. If rats have been assisted by rats they've never met before, they are more likely to help other rats in the future. A sort of rodent version of "Pay It Forward."

Other studies have shown that rats become distressed when they see other rats being electrically shocked. We shouldn't be surprised - though apparently the experimenters were - that the rats become even more agitated if they know or are related to the rat being shocked.

Scientists with special recording equipment have shown that rats laugh out loud in frequencies that can't be heard by the human ear. Young rats who are being tickled are the most likely to giggle. Rats have been shown to be altruistic and have risked their own lives to save other rats, especially when the rats in peril are babies.

All of these studies, including the latest on tool use, are published in journals, and news releases are sent out, and science bloggers chat online about them, but in the end, what difference does it make to rats?

Rats and mice, that other unfairly maligned species, are still used and killed by the tens of millions in U.S. laboratories every year. They are denied even the minimal coverage of the Animal Welfare Act, the only federal law offering any sort of protection to animals in laboratories.

So while it may pique the curiosity of some that rats can be taught to use tools, the more interesting result of this and all the studies that came before it is that experimenters apparently can't be taught to put the results of studies to good use. If experimenters had this ability - the sort of reasoning that should get one from A to B in a logical way - they'd read the evidence that rats can think, learn, feel, laugh, act altruistically and risk their lives for others, and they'd stop caging and hurting them in laboratories.

When a person knows that another being can suffer, and yet deliberately sets about causing that suffering, shouldn't we worry less about which species can use tools, and more about the callousness of some people?

PETA Demonstration Against Cruel Toxicity Testing in the ‘90s

You may have heard the news that the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Toxicology Program, and the National Institutes of Health have signed a "Memorandum of Understanding" to coordinate efforts on alternative methods to animal experimentation. This stuff is always more complicated than it sounds, so it’s not quite time to pop the champagne corks just yet (as some groups have been doing)—but feel free to put the bubbly on ice, because it’s a good sign that our hard work is paying off.

Courtesy of the good folks in PETA’s Regulatory Testing Division—who have been working behind the scenes with these agencies for years to get them to admit that their bloated animal testing programs (which are responsible for the suffering and death of hundreds of millions of animals) are outdated, ineffective, and, frankly, absurd—here’s a little rundown on what this all means, and how it came about:

First of all, this is a significant about-face for the NTP and the EPA—both of whom have been shockingly resistant to incorporating modern science into their toxicity testing programs. It looks like the United States is finally beginning to realize (as Europe has known for some time and as the animal protection community has been advocating for years) that the public and the environment can be better protected through non-animal in vitro tests based on well-understood biological principles than by throwing wads of cash and millions upon millions of lives into the bottomless pit of animal testing.

Fighting this entrenched, bureaucratic mentality over the past couple of decades hasn’t been easy—and, as usual, we’ve had to use a two-pronged attack to get it done: While our Regulatory Testing Division comments on each animal testing plan that the EPA and the NTP puts forward, works directly with top corporations doing the testing and finding alternatives, testifies at government workshops and before Congress, and, occasionally, sues the government to disclose their deliberations about promoting animal tests, our Campaigns Department gets out the billboards, the bullhorns, and the bunny suits and shouts about these ludicrous, wasteful experiments to anyone who will listen. During this time, PETA has convinced the Department of Transportation to stop testing corrosive substances on rabbits, followed Al Gore around on his campaign stops with a 10-foot rabbit to convince him to stop pushing EPA animal tests, and worked (ever-so-patiently) to persuade regulatory agencies which still believe that it’s important, for example, to keep testing asbestos on animals (the NTP) and which have failed to ban a single toxic industrial chemical in more than a decade (the EPA) that maybe it’s time to stop testing on animals and start using modern science instead. We’ve also funded the development and incorporation of non-animal test methods to the tune of more than ¾ million dollars in recent years.

This new collaboration is certainly something different, and it’s a promising step in the right direction—but it has to be backed up with Congressional will and funding if it’s going to get anywhere. A new entity must be created with the resources to get the job done—it can not be left to the EPA and the NTP. The fact that the head of the human genome project is involved with this is a good sign—it’s going to take an intense, focused effort on the scale of the human genome project to get the job done.

So we’re hoping that the prevailing wind surrounding the National Research Council’s vision and the newly announced collaboration between the NTP and the EPA will provide the momentum necessary to overcome the inertia that has characterized the American government’s attitude to toxicity testing for decades, and which causes the suffering and death of more than 15 million animals every year.

For more information on what you can do to help animals used for experimentation, check out StopAnimalTests.com.

Should anyone even care? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but check out what PETA’s Director of Research, Kathy Guillermo, had to say about them in this fantastic op-ed about animal experimentation.

Stop Squandering Resources on Pointless Animal Experiments
by KATHY GUILLERMO

Are worms gay? If they are, what does that mean for humans? Such questions may sound entirely irrelevant to anything in our lives, but some scientists, including Erik Jorgensen at the University of Utah, have apparently received money to study these questions. The worms—nematodes, really—are tiny, 1-millimeter-long creatures that live in soil. Most are hermaphrodites, which mean that each worm produces both sperm and eggs. The Times of London reported that Jorgensen activated a gene in the hermaphrodite worms' brains, which apparently convinced them to try to mate with other hermaphrodites rather than just with the male worms.

The conclusion, according to Jorgensen's quote in the Times: "We cannot say what this means for human sexual orientation, but it raises the possibility that sexual preference is wired in the brain."

Hey, there's something no one ever thought of before.

This study serves as a reminder that there are only so many research dollars available, and most of it comes from your taxes. Do you want to foot the bill for experiments that don't have anything to do with preventing or curing illness? Or for studies that are obviously redundant or pointless? Or for experiments that are so cruel that whatever is learned from them simply isn't worth the cost?

I'm opposed to using animals for experimentation on ethical grounds, and I believe—as science frequently shows—that most studies on animals aren't particularly relevant to humans. But even those who support research on animals should be careful about accepting the experimentation industry's claim that the use of animals in laboratories will help find cures for Alzheimer's, AIDS, Parkinson's, cancer and other diseases that are frightening just to contemplate. Consider first what some experimenters are paid big money to do.

In July, Johns Hopkins University announced that it was attempting to create a "schizophrenic" mouse by inserting a gene from the DNA of a human family with schizophrenic members into a mouse. Yet a diagnosis of schizophrenia hinges on the patient hearing voices that aren't there and seeing things others don't see. How exactly does an experimenter know if this is true of mice, even if a gene has been inserted?

At Oregon Health & Science University, experimenter Eliot Spindel injects the fetuses of pregnant monkeys with nicotine and then gives the mothers vitamin supplements to see if that makes it "safer" to smoke while pregnant. Yet we've known since 1972 that smoking is harmful to human fetuses. Spindel's money would have been better-spent convincing pregnant women not to smoke.

Under the guise of studying fetal alcohol syndrome, David J. Earnest at Texas A&M Health Science Center examined sleep problems in baby rats that were force-fed alcohol. Perhaps Earnest is unaware that human infants don't binge-drink after birth.

At universities and primate centers across the country, experimenters are still tearing infant monkeys from their mothers to observe the detachment and psychosis that result from this trauma. These are variations on the dreadful experiments conducted by Harry Harlow more than 40 years ago. How often do we need to prove that taking love and comfort from a baby monkey will destroy the animal's happiness and ability to cope with life?

I could go on and on—monkeys who have the tops of their skulls removed, electrodes stuck in their brains and wire coils implanted in their eyes to look at the connection between eye movement and the brain; birds whose testicles are sucked out so that experimenters can examine what happens to their songs; cats who have their backs cut open and weights attached to their spinal tissue and are then killed, supposedly to study lower back problems in people. The list seems endless.

These animals are caged for their entire lives, traumatized, physically and emotionally damaged, killed and cut up for experiments that don't even pretend to be about saving humans. Whether or not you agree with me that it's unethical to do this to animals for any reason, surely it's obvious that much experimentation on animals is a terrible waste of money and lives.

Who's ready for the new season of Dancing With the Stars? Me too. In fact, I believe that there are only two kinds of people in the world: DWTS fans, and those who are too embarrassed to admit that they are DWTS fans. I fall squarely into the first category, as any of my friends—and my downstairs neighbors—will tell you.

So, it’s a bit of an understatement to say I’m excited for tonight’s season premiere. And I’m even more excited because PETA pal Jennie Garth is on the show this season. Make sure to tune in to ABC at 8 EST, and in the meantime, check out this great ad she shot for us a while back.

umusic/Creative Commons

If you've been following Rob Zombie's career, you'll know that he's been successful in a number of different arenas, from his groundbreaking work with White Zombie in the '90s, when this blogger was a young alternative-music junkie ("More human than hu-man! More human than hu-man!") to his successful solo career, and more recently in his mega-hit slasher films House of 1,000 Corpses and Halloween. A lot of people who have watched the gore-fest that is this summer's Halloween get more squeamish when the young Michael Myers mutilates animals than they do when the killer graduates to human victims. Well, it so happens that this touches on one of PETA's major campaigns—to raise awareness about the well-documented link between cruelty to animals and crimes against humans.

With that in mind, PETA VP Dan Mathews wrote the following note to Mr. Zombie:

“We at PETA would like to thank you for making clear in Halloween that people who commit acts of cruelty to animals are likely to move on to humans. Although audiences wince during scenes showing the young Michael Myers mutilating animals, following it up with the school counselor articulating how this is the first step to becoming a maniac was perfectly done. Hopefully, with the attention focused by your movie on this link between animal cruelty and human violence, more people will recognize the warning signs among people they know and deal with it more forcefully.”

Not only was the cat used in this scene fake (of course), but guess what? Rob Zombie is an ethical vegetarian, and has been since 1982, when he saw slaughterhouse footage in high school. Turns out that some zombies don't eat flesh at all. Who knew?

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The words "poetic justice" spring to mind. If you missed the story, America's most notorious animal trainer, Jack Hanna, got stuck in an airport turnstile yesterday when he was trying to transport a flamingo in a crate like she was carry-on luggage. Hanna also had a leopard and a mongoose in tow, so the terrified animals had to sit there for God knows how long while firefighters worked to free the flamingo’s crate from the turnstile. Or as he put it:

"I was stuck like a worm. My eyes were as big as grapefruits. I can't describe the feeling in my stomach. I can't move up or down. The bars are on your face."

Boy, it must be really unpleasant to be stuck like that, Jack. I know it’s hard, but see if you can grind those mental gears just a little bit more and think about whether there might be something wrong with the fact that your entire career is based on putting animals through exactly the same kind of nightmare.

I know—those khaki pants and that corny sense of humor make Jack Hanna oh-so-likeable, but the bottom line is that he has a simply lousy track record when it comes to animals. It's abundantly clear from incidents like this one that the animals themselves aren't Hanna's first priority, since he clearly feels comfortable lugging them around in crates to be brought out and paraded around for people's amusement, and it shouldn't take a wildlife expert to figure out that this experience can be immensely stressful for the animals involved. You can click here for some more info about the tawdry exotic-pet trade, which Hanna helps to glamorize by pimping leopards and big snakes on TV.

For future reference, Jack, exotic animals don't belong in crates any more than they belong in a TV studio, no matter how much they pay you. Here's hoping that next time you end up behind bars, it's for good.

For years, singer-songwriter Melissa Ferrick has worn her emotions on her sleeve, and used her music to draw attention to issues that are important to her. Well, now she’s speaking up for the millions of homeless animals killed in shelters each year in this stunning new ad promoting responsible animal guardianship. The shot may look familiar to die-hard Ferrick fans; she donated the cover of her 2006 release, In the Eyes of Strangers, for us to use in the ad.

Speaking out on important issues is nothing new for Ferrick, who is openly gay and talks about it in her songs. She burst onto the national scene after she was booked to open for longtime PETA pal Morrissey in the early '90s, and later started her own label, Right On Records. Ferrick is currently gearing up for a fall tour with alt-folk icon Ani DiFranco.

I think it may be time for a Gladiator, Quills, and Walk the Line marathon this weekend, because two-time Oscar nominee Joaquin Phoenix has taken time away from promoting his upcoming films We Own the Night and Reservation Road to write to Australian Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran about the cruel treatment of sheep by the Australian wool industry.

Phoenix focused his letter on the two worst abuses sheep face in Australia: mulesing and live export. In case you’re not familiar with these two terms, here’s a quick explanation. Mulesing is a painful procedure in which gardening shears are used to cut skin and flesh from lambs' backsides without any painkillers. It is a crude and cheap effort to reduce maggot infestation, even though humane methods exist. Every year, millions of Australian sheep discarded by the wool industry are shipped to the Middle East and North Africa. They are crammed onto multi-tiered ships where they suffer amid the waste of thousands of other animals for weeks on end. Many suffer and die from smothering, starvation, heatstroke, injuries and disease. Each year, tens of thousands of animals die en route—almost 40,000 sheep died in 2005 alone.

Check out Phoenix’s full letter here, and join him in writing Peter McGauran here.

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It was with great sadness that we learned of the death of PETA booster Luciano Pavarotti this morning. In addition to his legendary voice and his pioneering work bringing an appreciation for opera and classical music to millions of new people around the world, Pavarotti was known for his kindness, his compassion, and his philanthropic work, raising his voice on behalf of animals on many occasions throughout his life.

In 1998, Pavarotti lent his name and his considerable influence to PETA’s campaign to raise animal welfare standards in Taiwan—where scores of homeless dogs were rounded up by garbage collectors to be poisoned, electrocuted, drowned or slowly starved. The cruelty touched Pavarotti deeply, and, with his help, the campaign resulted in the first ever animal welfare law in that country, which has since passed progressive legislation banning circuses and prohibiting the export of exotic animals as pets. Pavarotti also raised his voice for animals who are electrocuted, gassed, and drowned in the fur industry, having signed another PETA petition against fur following one of his performances at� LaScala.

Pavarotti's great voice will be missed around the world, and at PETA, he will be particularly missed as a powerful voice for animals.

At a weekend religious youth rally in Italy, Pope Benedict XVI told the more than 500,000 attendees that young Catholics should take the lead in the fight to save the earth. Check out what he said, “Before it's too late, we need to make courageous choices that will recreate a strong alliance between man and Earth … We need a decisive 'yes' to care for creation and a strong commitment to reverse those trends that risk making the situation of decay irreversible.” Amen to that.

Makes this ad even more apropos, eh?

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Paul McCartney is amazing. He has just announced that he will be boycotting any and all charities that conduct animal experimentation. This is even a bigger deal when you consider that the former Beatle has been a long-time supporter of numerous cancer charities since losing his first wife Linda to the disease in 1998. Here’s a quote:

"When Linda died I said I would support cancer charities. Animal rights groups wrote to me pointing out that many were heavily into vivisection - and it's true. A doctor we knew out in America just admitted it as a matter of fact, innocently, like 'Well, sure we do.' What he doesn't realise is that he won't get a donation out of me for that very fact. There are better alternatives but you're not allowed to challenge the status quo."

This sends a clear message to animal experimenters and the charities that fund them that it’s high time to pull their heads out of the sand and embrace modern effective non-animal research.

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As PETA Europe’s Alistair Currie put it: "Animal testing charities don't just miss out on big money; they miss out on medical progress. Animals are not furry little humans and their bodies cannot reliably predict results for human conditions. While we know a great deal about cancer in mice, we don't know anywhere near enough about cancer in humans. Thankfully there are plenty of charities that go for the triple win: they don't cause animal suffering; they do support modern non-animal research that increases the chance of finding cures for humans; and they get the money of smart, compassionate donors."

Couldn’t have said it better myself, Alistair.

For a list of charities that do and don’t fund animal experiments, check out this link.

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There was a really interesting article in The International Herald Tribune last week, which indirectly addressed a comment that I've heard surprisingly often since I started working in animal protection: "Animals don't have souls." I've never personally considered the question relevant to my work, since the only thing that matters to me is whether or not they're capable of suffering, which it should be obvious to anyone who's actually seen an animal that they are.

Anyway, the gist of the article was that as brain science becomes more advanced, scientists are discovering more and more evidence of actual physical processes that relate to feelings like empathy, disgust, or joy:

"That is, they are discovering physical bases for the feelings from which moral sense emerges - not just in people but in other animals as well… As biologists turn up evidence that animals can exhibit emotions and patterns of cognition once thought of as strictly human, Descartes's dictum, ‘I think, therefore I am,’ loses its force."

The article centers around the argument that it's simply false reasoning to attempt to distinguish humans from animals based on who has a soul and who doesn't. I'm still trying to wrap my head round the whole concept, honestly, but it's definitely worth a read if you have time—or if, like me you have people giving you weird jive about souls when you try to talk to them about animals. You can read the full article here.

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Generally, I would rather write about the paint drying outside our office than add another chapter to the increasingly tedious melodrama that is Britney Spears' biography, but when she does something stupid and irresponsible that involves animals (which is pretty much every time I check nowadays), I feel like I have to report on it. The latest on our Britney—pictured here with a stupid hat and a family of dead rabbits draped over her shoulders—is that she was spotted at a PETCO in Hollywood buying a caged parakeet to go with her prized collection of neglected children.

I totally understand that it must suck to be 25 years old and have the best years of your life well behind you, and I do realize she probably gets lonely at home between her stints in rehab, but somehow I just don’t think Britney Spears should be responsible for the care of another living thing. Seems to me she’s got enough on her plate just getting herself out of bed in the morning . . .

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Michael Moore on the animal rights movement: “This shit makes me want to kick my dog”

Phew. I spent a lot of time this weekend reviewing the hundreds of comments on Friday's Michael Moore blog, and they're still coming in! It's pretty clear that this letter brought out some strong reactions in people—both positive and negative—and that's always good. I figured it might be a good idea to elaborate on a few issues that have come up as a result of our publicizing Ingrid's letter.

First of all, if you know Michael Moore, you know he can take it. Seriously. The guy is not going to cry himself to sleep because we offered him some diet advice. For anyone who has seen a Michael Moore documentary or read one of his books, you'll know that he doesn't pull punches when it comes to issues he's passionate about, or miss an opportunity to take a potshot at those he disagrees with. Compared with the letters Michael Moore writes (see, for instance, this letter he wrote to the president), Ingrid's letter was incredibly polite.

Secondly, I should probably provide a little context to our own relationship with Michael Moore—which goes back a long way. We've written to him several times over the years, starting back in the days of Roger & Me with ever-so-polite appeals to embrace animal rights. We don't hold it against him, but the only response we ever got from him was when his people showed up outside the PETA building with a donkey, two goats, two sheep, a rabbit, a chicken, three dogs, a fish in a bowl(!), a guinea pig, two gerbils, and a rat in a cage "wearing" offensive signs, like “You are wasting your lives.” He arranged to haul these animals out on a hot day to taunt hard-working people just to get a cheap laugh for his show. In addition to that little stunt, whose real victims didn’t even have the luxury of understanding what was happening to them, Michael Moore has made comments throughout his career glorifying meat-eating and hunting, and mocking people who care about animals. Now, neither I nor any of my colleagues take those comments personally—we dish it out, and we can take it. But, like I said, so can Michael Moore.

Michael Moore has never responded with anything but sneering to PETA's requests that he address animal protection issues in one of his documentaries, but we're not giving up hope. And, even if he ignores this particular attempt to reach him in his own style—playful and provocative at the same time—we hope that some of the people who hear about this story will get the message: A vegetarian diet is the compassionate choice, it's the healthy choice, and it's the right choice—for us and for animals. I'm glad that this letter has given us the opportunity to say that again.

P.S. Judging from some of the comments I read yesterday, I should probably also point out for a few people that “elephant in the room” is an expression that means “an important issue that people are avoiding.” Not, like, an actual pachyderm in someone’s living space. Like this one.

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Yesterday, the Dalai Lama gave a speech in Australia with a very clear message about the way we as a society treat animals. In addition to criticizing companies that "remain indifferent" to animal rights by experimenting on them (see, for instance, Covance), the Dalai Lama made some powerful statements about the horrors and the inhumanity inherent in killing animals to eat them:

"Hunting. Beef, sheep farms. Piggeries. Millions, billions die. We can be so cruel to animals."

He went on to discuss vegetarianism—noting that he himself gave up meat, dairy, and eggs in 1965, though he has occasionally eaten meat since then. In my few years in the animal rights movement, I've learned from experience that animal issues like these can sometimes be tough for people to take on board. When you're asking a person, or an organization, to make a fundamental change in the way they've always done things, tensions are likely to flare, regardless of how compelling your argument is. Which is why moments like these are so important. If anyone's looking for advice on how to live a compassionate lifestyle, the Dalai Lama's a pretty solid choice for a consultation. We're so used to listening to experts when we make decisions about how to live our lives, and it follows that we should sit up and pay attention when an expert on something as essential as kindness makes a pronouncement. I hope a lot of people pay attention to this one.

News1130/Creative Commons

Apparently, the time is right for Bob Barker to step down from his throne as the king of daytime TV. The long-time host of The Price is Right has taped his final episode, which is scheduled to air on June 15. Nobody can argue that Barker’s career isn't impressive—50 years on TV, 35 years as the host of The Price is Right, the longest running television show in world history, 17 Emmy Awards (and he’s nominated for two more this year), need I say more?

But in addition to his amazing TV career, Barker has also been a long-time animal advocate. For years he has offered grants to spay and neuter clinics in all 50 states, he’s pushed all sorts of animal-friendly legislation including the current spay/neuter bill in California, since 2001

LC Shelter/Creative Commons

his foundation has given $8 million in grants to law schools to push along the field of animal law and of course, who can forget the way he’s ended his show every day for years on end: “Help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered.” He is the guardian of one dog and two rabbits—all rescues, of course—and his backyard has long been a safe haven for wildlife. He is also a long-time vegetarian, and the folks in our Communications department report that he’s doing surprisingly well in the World’s Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity contest . . .

He was always busy working behind the scenes as well. While I was researching this entry, I ran across this Forbes article that explains how Barker was able to influence the show’s prizes and advertising over the years. Because he is a vegetarian, they don’t advertise meat products on the show, and at his request, they also stopped giving away fur coats as prizes. Snap!

Given the scope of his animal work over the years, I’m slightly ashamed to admit that being the sports junkie that I am, my fondest Bob Barker moment will always be him kicking Adam Sandler’s ass in the classic “The price is wrong, bitch” scene in Happy Gilmore.

AllMoviePhoto/Creative Commons

Seriously though, I think this quote from MSNBC speaks volumes to what matters most to the man: “I think I would like to be remembered as a man who loved living things and did everything he could do to make it better for animals,” Barker said. “And when he had time, he did a lot of television shows, too.”

From all of us at PETA, cheers to you Bob Barker. Thank you for everything you’ve done throughout your career to help animals, and we can’t wait to see what’s next.

Here’s a letter PETA President Ingrid Newkirk wrote today when she heard that long-time animal rights activist Gretchen Wyler passed away over the weekend:

With the passing of Gretchen Wyler, who lost her battle with cancer over Memorial Day weekend� at her California home, animals and the people who care about them have lost a longstanding and true friend.

Wyler was known to many as a dazzling� television actress� and a star of� Broadway musicals, such as Guys and Dolls, Damn Yankees, and Silk Stockings. But it was the work that she did for animals that meant the most to her.� For more than 40 years—long before animal rights issues were bandied about by anyone other than philosophy scholars—she devoted herself to helping people understand that animals are complex beings who deserve our respect and protection. Her work ranged from the rebuilding of a decrepit animal shelter� in New York State to testifying for a bill to ban cruel animal traps in California. After serving on the boards of several national animal protection organizations, she founded her own group and launched the Genesis Awards, which recognize the media’s vital role in exposing cruelty to animals. She also blazed trails in exposing the barbaric treatment of animals used in films and television. A showbiz insider who loved Hollywood, Wyler couldn’t bear to see intelligent chimpanzees treated as nothing more than stage props.

Gretchen Wyler and Moby

What these many accomplishments can’t convey, however, is Wyler’s incredible energy and commanding presence. When she walked into a room, every eye turned toward her. She filled her life with achievements, illustrating the formidable power of kindness and leaving a legacy of compassion for all beings that will influence generations to come.

Ingrid E. Newkirk

Just a quick bit of good news for you to start off your Tuesday: According to last week’s Taipei Times, a new amendment to Taiwan’s Wildlife Conservation Law means that animal circuses are on the way out in Taiwan. When interviewed about the progressive new law, legislator Tien Chiu-Chin said, "Circuses do not need animals to be fun and successful. … Most important, by exposing our children to wild animals through circus acts, we are setting an incorrect example of how humans should interact with animals." 'Nuff said, Tien Chiu-Chin. Here's hoping the U.S. wakes up and follows Taiwan's example. You can read the full story here.

Just a few more little tidbits for you from the recent party that the influential political odd couple Mary Matalin and James Carville hosted for the launch of PETA VP Dan Mathews' new book.

Evidently, Mary—who is certainly no stranger to hosting big events—has never in her life received so many calls about what to wear to a party. I absolutely love the idea that all those Capitol Hill bigwigs were calling up anxiously the day before to find out where they could buy vegan shoes. Mary herself ended up going barefoot, just to be on the safe side, and as for James, well, James opted for hemp—announcing to the assembled partygoers, "I'm all hemped out like Woody Harrelson!"

Dan gave a speech about the history of animal welfare legislation in this country, which has been consistently bipartisan, with strong advances for animals coming from staunch conservatives just as often as card-carrying liberals, and to drive home the point, Mary observed that it was incredibly rare that she and James could host a party together—normally when she throws a bash for her republican pals, James hightails it out of there to take the kids to a movie, and vice versa (I bet those kids get to see a lot of movies).

Mary also pointed out something else that she and Dan Mathews have in common—they've both had the experience of having bologna thrown at them in Iowa. For the full context of that joke, you should check out Dan's book. If it can reconcile a crowd of hardcore democrats and republicans in Washington, you can bet it's well worth the cover price.

Click here for the full text of Dan’s speech.

Embarrassing as it is to get scooped by the peta2 blog on a story, this news is way too exciting to pass up. After negotiations with PETA, PepsiCo (the multibillion-dollar parent company of the Pepsi-Cola, Frito-Lay, Tropicana, Quaker Oats, and Gatorade brands) has pledged to end all animal testing. The company's official statement on the topic is just about as progressive as it gets—both a powerful endorsement of alternatives to animal testing and a strong warning to other companies that they need to embrace these alternatives if they want to survive in the marketplace:

“PepsiCo does not do any animal testing and does not directly fund testing using animals. … Where testing on animals is not required, PepsiCo strongly endorses efficient and effective research that does not include the use of animals. We will encourage our partners to use alternatives to animal testing and share this statement with organizations we believe to be involved in projects potentially involving animal research done on behalf of PepsiCo or with PepsiCo or PepsiCo Foundation funding.”

It goes without saying that this is a big step forward. For some more detailed information on the topic, you can check out PETA's PepsiCo victory feature here. And if all this good news puts you in the mood for some witty banter about vegan cupcakes and dreamy rock stars, you should check out the peta2 blog.

If you’re anything like me, you start getting psyched around Noon on Sunday just knowing that The Sopranos is going to be on later that night. Well last night, as Carmela and Tony had another one of their knock-down-drag-out fights (I’m with Carm on this one, the spec house was HER project, so the proceeds should be hers to do with as she pleases), it reminded me of the amazing PSA Edie Falco did for us, pointing out the link between violence to animals and domestic violence.

Even if you’re not a die-hard Sopranos fan, this PSA is powerful stuff. But really, the price of HBO is worth it for the Sopranos alone (I’d sell a kidney to pay the cable bill before I’d miss an episode), not to mention that it’s followed by Entourage. Sunday nights and the Sopranos, its just one of the little things that makes life worth living . . . especially with Edie absolutely killing it as Carmela every week.

As a former editor, I've spent a whole lot of time poring through a little tome called The Associated Press Stylebook. Along with its rival, The Chicago Manual of Style, the book is a thing of beauty, gleaming with helpful tips about when and when not to put an apostrophe after an "s" and whether it's ever OK to split an infinitive (the answer is sometimes, if you're feeling subversive). But there's one important issue the AP Style gurus haven't properly addressed, which bears directly on our work here: Animals are still commonly referred to as if they were inanimate objects. And since nobody likes being called an "it," we dashed off a little letter to them yesterday, which has already been getting some good coverage. My own letters to the AP asking them to ban the word "utilize" and take a stronger stance on misuse of the subjunctive have thus far been ignored, but I haven't given up hope yet. You can check out our letter below. I love that we included our own style guidelines for them to peruse.

April 26, 2007

Norm Goldstein, Editor
The Associated Press
450 W. 33rd St.
New York, NY 10001

Dear Mr. Goldstein:

On behalf of PETA’s more than 1.6 million members and supporters worldwide, I am writing to request that you revise The Associated Press Stylebook so that its grammatical rules reflect the fact that animals are living beings rather than inanimate objects. In magazine articles, popular literature, and advertising, writers are using “he,” “she,” and “who” to refer to animals—instead of the outdated and inaccurate “it” and “which.” Won’t you consider making this transition as well?

As “the essential global news network,” the Associated Press (AP) should take a progressive step and give animals the respect that they deserve by revising AP style guidelines to reflect the usage of personal pronouns for all animals.

While the world accelerates through the 21st century, progressive ideas are challenging and changing conventional perspectives. Recently, the American legal system recognized that nonhuman animals deserve legal status beyond that of mere “property” and that abusive treatment of animals is more than simple vandalism.

The public now recognizes that whales, who sing across oceans; great apes, who share more than 98 percent of our DNA; sheep, who can recognize as many as 50 faces after not having seen them for two years; and pigs and chickens, who can learn to operate switches in order to control heat and light in factory-farm sheds, are feeling, intelligent individuals—not objects. Our language should reflect this.

I would greatly appreciate hearing your decision on this matter. Enclosed is a copy of “PETA Writing Style and Guidelines,” which explains how to avoid language that portrays animals in a negative light.

Thank you very much for your time.

Sincerely,

Anna West
Director of Written Communications

Burger King has announced a series of animal welfare improvements that put it right at the forefront of the fast-food industry in terms of holding its suppliers accountable for the way they treat their animals. As of today, the company will be requiring 2 percent of its eggs to come from hens who are not confined to battery cages, buying 10 percent of its pork from farms that don't use gestation crates, and rewarding suppliers that use "controlled atmosphere killing" (by far the most humane method available) instead of killing chickens by slitting their throats and dragging them through scalding tanks. These percentages, which amount to a huge number of animals, could be doubled by the end of the year.

These changes have been a long time coming. You may remember PETA's "Murder King" Campaign, which we called off in 2001 after the company agreed to make significant improvements in its standards, including conducting periodic animal welfare audits. Since then, PETA has been working behind the scenes with the company to improve conditions for the animals it uses for its restaurants. This new animal welfare plan makes Burger King an industry leader, and it sends a strong message to other fast-food companies (including one company which will remain nameless, but whose initials could stand for Killing Friendly Chickens) that are now going to have to play catch-up in a big way, which means good things for animals across the board.

For anyone whose reaction to this news is all, "WTF? That still means that 98 percent of BK's eggs come from battery cages and 90 percent of its pork comes from gestation crates," the short answer is that we're working on it, and that going vegetarian (and gently encouraging your friends to do the same) really is a fantastic way to opt out of all that unhappiness. But in the meantime, props up to Burger King for getting the ball rolling in a big way. Here are a few resources if you want some more info on this huge victory for animals:

• The New York Times Reports on the Story
• PETA's Victory Feature
• The History of the Murder King Campaign
• Extremely Cute Video With Pigs in It, Which Will Make You Give Up Pork Altogether if You Haven't Already
• Take the Veg Pledge

P.S. Burger King also has a veggie burger.

I know I was just talking about how cool Simon Cowell is, but he is at it again.

This time he’s got some choice advice for American Idol hopefuls: Be kind to animals. Everyone knows Simon is notoriously harsh when Idol contestants deserve it, but he’s got a big soft spot for animal advocates. Simon opened up on the set of his new PETA ad, which is due out early this summer, saying:

“The people I work with … are all animal lovers. That’s part of the criteria for judging the show, you’ve got to like animals.”

And he applies the same standard to wannabe contestants as well:

“I once had an incident with a guy who auditioned who actually admitted that he likes killing animals. Didn’t go through.”

Considering that Cowell raked in a reported $36 million last year and has been ranked the second-highest-paid person on TV by OK! magazine, it might be wise to heed his suggestion . . .

Jonathan Babineaux, defensive tackle for the Atlanta Falcons, is facing felony charges in Gwinnett County Court, stemming from his alleged February 18 fatal attack on a dog. Evidently, after arguing with his girlfriend, the 286 pound lineman inflicted blunt force trauma on her dog, Kilo. According to news sources, Kilo vomited blood en route to an emergency vet clinic, and was pronounced dead there.

We're calling on the Falcons to suspend Babineaux without pay until the courts can do their thing, and if he is found guilty we have asked the Falcons to release him from the team. But as if this case isn’t disturbing enough, there have been repeated instances of animal abuse by NFL players in the past. In December, six pit bulls belonging to the Chicago Bears' Tank Johnson were said to have been the subject of public and official concern in Illinois. Leshon Johnson, who played running back for three NFL teams, faced felony charges with 21 others in 2004 stemming from their alleged involvement in a massive dogfighting ring. Former Eagles' safety Damon Moore was accused in 2001 of abandoning his puppy in a soccer field in New Jersey, and former Eagles’ running back Thomas Hamner was twice convicted of beating his dog.

Given the seeming pattern of abuse here, we’ve also written to Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL, asking him to implement a strict, clear no-tolerance policy on players' abuse of animals. Surely this issue deserves as much attention from the league as any other illegal or violent player activity, which he swore to crack down on in a recent press conference.

At least there are some NFL players who get it. Check out Giants lineman Michael Strahan’s ad here.

Arizona resident Alice Cooper

I'm never entirely sure whether one should say "a historic day" or "an historic day," but either way, yesterday was effin' historic, thanks in large part to the good people of Arizona, who in the past have brought us Alice Cooper, the 1 and 7 Arizona Cardinals, and cactuses (that's all that I could come up with that Arizona's famous for on short notice—I'm sure they've got more stuff). But the point is that yesterday, by 61 percent of the vote, gestation crates and veal crates were banned in the state! The measure will protect countless pigs and calves from excruciating confinement in these torture devices. This was despite the morally bereft but well-funded ass-hats in the agribusiness industry spending $2.5 million to defeat the proposition.

In the meantime, the consistently popular and well-liked state of Michigan, which is historically responsible for Lake Michigan and Three Men and a Baby's Tom Selleck (OK, sorry, I suck at this), voted overwhelmingly to support the 100-year tradition of protecting mourning doves from target shooting. This is a huge victory for birds and a nice little slap in the face for people who think it's a good idea to frickin' shoot at doves.

Michigan's state bird, the Mourning Dove

So if you know anyone from Arizona or Michigan, be sure to thank them for making such huge strides on behalf of animals, and if you are from AZ or MI yourself, great work! Now see what you can't do about getting some proper celebrities from your states.