shadowscope / CC

Residents of Salem, Oregon, were stunned to find out that their neighbor, 41-year-old Todd Marcum, was using a shock collar to torment his four children—who range from age 3 to age 9. At a trial this week, Marcum pleaded guilty to four counts of criminal mistreatment and was sentenced to three years of probation.

The lieutenant who worked on the case said that Marcum "got great entertainment from chasing his younger child around the house with a dog collar to the point the child was crying and afraid the shock was going to come."

Shock collars hurt, and they shouldn't be used on anyone for any reason. That's exactly why PETA is calling on the mayor of Salem to ban shock collars in the city completely. No human or animal should live in fear of being shocked. In addition to causing animals physical pain and potential injury, shock collars can terrify and lead to psychological problems, including severe anxiety and displaced aggression. The anxiety and confusion caused by repeated shocks can lead to changes in heart or respiration rate as well as gastrointestinal disorders.

I think that most parents are smart enough to know not to shock their kids—but many people get fooled by dominance trainers into thinking that shock collars are the only way to discipline their dog. Please always remember that there are more effective, humane ways to train your dog.

Posted by Liz Graffeo

It looks like Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus isn't anxious for PETA to capture any more footage of its goons employees whacking elephants with bullhooks. How else would you explain the ugly incident that happened this past Tuesday in which a burly, 200-something-pound Ringling worker apparently shoved and almost knocked down PETA staffer Amanda Fortino—who stands 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weighs 120 pounds soaking wet—while she was videotaping elephants who were being led from a Ringling train to the Rose Garden arena prior to the circus's performance in Portland, Oregon.

His friends must have been worried that Mr. "Tact and Diplomacy" was in danger of being overpowered by the deceptively slight Amanda (she does have super-vegan powers, you know), Amanda reports that several of the thug's cohorts bounded to his assistance and surrounded her, effectively blocking her view of the elephants.

Not the smartest move, because another activist was holding the aforementioned video camera and caught the whole thing on tape. We promptly turned the tape over to Portland police, who have opened an investigation into the incident.

Posted by Alisa Mullins

A sign in the window of Schumacher Furs during a lawful protest against the cruelty of the fur industry
Greenisthenewred/Creative Commons

You may remember that the good people over at Schumacher Furs saw fit to sue PETA when their store in downtown Portland was closed following regular protests by local activists and concerned citizens. There were a number of good reasons why the Schumachers didn’t have a leg to stand on with their lawsuit, such as the fact that the protests against the furriers weren’t even PETA demonstrations (not to mention that whole first amendment thing).

Well, last week, the judge in the case ordered Schumacher Furs to pay PETA more than $40,000 as reimbursement for legal fees incurred fighting the lawsuit (which he called "an extraordinary abuse of the litigation process"), and his statement in the ruling just about says it all:

"I find that awarding fees in this case will properly serve to deter putative plaintiffs from filing multimillion-dollar suits against nonprofit groups and private citizens engaged in First Amendment activities ...."

So there you have it—a victory for animals and for free speech all in one go. The cash is a nice bonus, too.

I posted yesterday about two “scientists” at the Oregon National Primate Research Center who have squandered tens of millions of taxpayer dollars on hideously cruel experiments that achieve nothing more than reaffirming painfully obvious truths such as that children suffer when they are deprived of maternal affection.

What I didn’t mention is that PETA has had an investigator inside these notorious labs this year, who spent four months documenting egregious abuses of the animals who are used for ONPRC’s experiments. Among other standard abuses, the animals at ONPRC were forced to eat food from their waste trays; they were terrorized when they were chased and caught in group cages; and they suffered such severe psychological trauma that at least one monkey, Megatron, resorted to self-mutilation. As PETA President Ingrid Newkirk puts it:

"PETA's investigator documented ONPRC's complete disregard for animals and for the laws that should protect them. These animals live in terror every second of every day—they are shut in metal boxes and killed for nicotine and alcohol experiments as well as other wasteful and repetitive studies."

As I said yesterday, we’re working on getting these people shut down. You can watch our investigator’s video below, and then please click here to ask the USDA to launch a full investigation into this hellhole.

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