Four costumed monkeys who were being used as photo props by a couple at a Mardi Gras celebration were confiscated by Louisiana wildlife officials.  

Despite taking money for allowing people to take photos with the monkeys, the woman claimed that the animals "help" her with her autism. PETA will be contacting the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to request that these four primates—who are suffering from diarrhea and rashes—aren't put back in harm's way.

Primates are extremely smart, and their complex social, physical, and psychological needs cannot be met in captivity. Baby monkeys are routinely ripped from their mothers, which is traumatic for both the babies and the mothers, in order to be "hand-raised" and sold as pets. You can dress them up, diaper them, and call them your "babies," but primates are meant to be in the jungles and rainforests, not on Bourbon Street or Main Street.

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Contact our Action Team to request materials to help you get a ban on exotic "pets" passed in your community.

Written by Jennifer O'Connor

It's Fat Tuesday, and New Orleans is alive with parades, costumes, and beads galore. People around the world are celebrating, too, indulging in king cake and other goodies before giving them up for Lent tomorrow.

But for many Americans and Canadians, while the face paint and masks may come off, the fat stays on. According to a new joint study by both countries, one in four Canadians and one in three Americans is obese, two-thirds of the people in both countries are overweight, and the numbers continue to rise faster than the piles of beads on a Louisiana sidewalk. A big part of the problem is our animal product–based diet, which is heavy in saturated fats. Because plant-based foods contain much less fat than animal-based ones (not to mention all those great vitamins), it's no surprise that meat-eaters have three times the obesity rate of vegetarians and nine times the obesity rate of vegans. Switching to a plant-based diet also reduces our risk of heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and cancer.

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So request your free vegetarian/vegan starter kit today, and at this time next year, you'll be celebrating Thin Tuesday. That might be cause for a parade.

Written by Michelle Sherrow