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New Mexico's motto is currently "Land of Enchantment," but the state's Tourism Department officials have become, well, disenchanted with it. They feel it doesn't accurately convey New Mexico's considerable appeal to potential tourists, so they're looking to rebrand the state with a new slogan. PETA's suggestion? Replace "Land of Enchantment" with the vegan- and animal-friendly slogan "New Mexico: You've Bean Wantin' to Visit Us." 

Having vacationed there myself not long ago, I can confirm that New Mexico is full of animal-friendly folks—like the dedicated people I met who run a prairie-dog rescue organization—and tempting vegetarian food. Albuquerque was named one of PETA's Most Veg-Friendly Cities, and it's no accident: In a part of the country with a strong agrarian heritage, New Mexico is a major producer of plant-based foods, including nuts and beans (hence our proposed slogan) as well as their famous piñons and green chilies.

Wherever you live, PETA's database of great veggie recipes can help you enjoy mouthwatering, animal-friendly Southwestern foods, not to mention many other cuisines. And if "you've bean wantin'" to go vegan, PETA can help with that too.

Two hundred and some chimpanzees—previously used in experiments and kept in tiny cells, alone, isolated, and with nothing but a cement slab to sleep on and nothing to see or do, but who have been undergoing rehabilitation and socialization with each other—have been spared from their imminent transfer back into NIH laboratories. These chimpanzees, whom PETA president Ingrid E. Newkirk wrote about on The Huffington Post in 2010, had been about to be shipped out, but the National Institutes of Health has just announced—no doubt because of New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson's protests and those of many members of Congress and groups like PETA—that the chimpanzees will not be moved, at least until a study has been conducted, which will take two years.

Fourteen of the chimpanzees were not that lucky and have already been shipped out. Please join us in asking that they not be used and that all the chimpanzees be allowed to go to a sanctuary early in 2011. Meanwhile, pop a cork for our friends at Alamogordo, who have just scraped by under the wire! Thanks to all of you who wrote and called and helped to make this a happier New Year's Eve for these animals.

We have met the enemy and the enemy is … E.T.? At least, that's what astrophysicist Stephen Hawking says. He warns that extraterrestrials could be like … well, like humans, who never seem to have met an "alien" life form that they didn't want to capture, enslave, experiment on, or even eat alive.

Inspired by Hawking's warning, we're running this ad in Roswell, New Mexico—the location of the alleged and legendary ("allegendary"?) alien crash-landing and the setting of numerous X-Files episodes—as a reminder that being abducted by "superior beings" for experiments is real for animals in laboratories.

NASA space capsules reportedly read, "We Come in Peace," on the side, but as PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk has pointed out, judging by the way we treat the other beings with whom we share this planet, they should continue, "Unless You're Less Powerful Than We Are, in Which Case You're Lunch!" Here's hoping that E.T. does as Earthlings say, not as we do, and that we'll soon see the error of our ways.

Written by Alisa Mullins

Here is a story that answers the question, "What's wrong with supporting 'free-range' farms?"

PETA caseworkers recently worked on a case in New Mexico involving a mother cow who suffered for days after she became stuck in the mud around a watering hole.

The cow was part of a small cattle herd living on a ranch. There was no caretaker residing on the property to watch over the animals. The cow was pregnant when she became stuck in the mud, and she was forced to give birth while she was trapped. Her newborn calf became stuck as well.

PETA contacted local authorities as soon as we were alerted to this cow's plight, but the officials refused to help the cow until they could locate the owners. The decomposing bodies and bones of other cattle around this watering hole were evidence that this was not the first time that the negligent owners had left animals to die. The owners reportedly rent the property as a place to "store" their cattle, and they don't make regular visits to care for them.

Luckily, a concerned individual in the region was able to free the calf from the mud and tend to his suffering mother—who was languishing in the blazing sun and was only able to move her head—while we continued to try to find her the help she needed.

Our calls to state and local authorities finally resulted in action, and the inspectors who were sent out to the farm were quickly able to euthanize the suffering animal.

This is not an isolated case. Animals on farms all over the country face starvation, disease, and exposure to all weather extremes. Farmers often consider these animals to be as disposable as light bulbs. It's not always profitable to monitor and provide specialized care for individual members of herds, and this can result in agonizing and lonely deaths for many animals.

Fortunately, this mother cow and her calf were spared such a fate thanks to the kindness of a caring citizen and PETA's intervention. Please, don't support an industry that treats animals as nothing more than parts on a cheap-meat (dis)assembly line.

Written by Heather Drennan

sheltersurvivors / CC

Awesome news for animals today! For more than a year, commissioners of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, have been in debates over improvements to their animal control ordinance, and we are so very excited to announce that last Tuesday the animal-friendly bill was approved by a 4-0 vote. The county hereby bans cat and dog sales at pet stores (yay!) and goes one step further to give farm animals better living conditions (double yay!). Of course there are a few exceptions, but you can read about the specifics of the ordinance here.

This means that those awful pet stores won't be allowed to sell cats or dogs anymore, and breeders who try to make a profit off kittens and puppies won't have it so easy either. It's just too bad that Joe Biden didn't get the memo …

The new bill cuts the license fee in half for a spayed or neutered animal companion and bans the chaining of backyard dogs! But wait, there's more! Not only do the good people of Bernalillo County care about companion animals, but the legislation states that animals on farms must be given food, water, veterinary care, and shelter. Seems pretty basic, but now it's the law.

Possibly the coolest thing about this legislation is the fact that the changes were made because of regular people. Commission Chairman Alan Armijo said, "We've had tons and tons of input. The commissioners have tried to accommodate the different points of view," and an audience of about two dozen people cheered the amendment's passage. Know what that means? Anyone can do it! Seriously. You can contact your legislator right now and make a real difference in the lives of animals all over your district!

Well, what're you waiting for? Visit HelpingAnimals.com for more info. The animals (and PETA) thank you!

Written by Lianne Turner

After literally decades of work by concerned citizens and celebrities like Rue McClanahan and Bill Maher and the relentless dedication of Senator Mary Jane Garcia, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has signed a bill to ban cockfighting in the state. This was Garcia's 20th year introducing the bill to ban the vicious bloodsport, so this is a massive victory for her, for everyone who worked to raise awareness about this issue, and of course for the countless birds who are forced to fight to the death for the amusement of onlookers every year.

I'd love to say that this means that cockfighting is illegal throughout the United States, but unfortunately there's still one holdout: Everybody's looking at you, Louisiana.

Needless to say, this is pretty huge, and a lot of people have been working really hard to make this happen. If you'd like to take a moment to thank Sen. Garcia for her dedication to helping birds in New Mexico and Gov. Richardson for his compassion in signing this bill into law, their contact info is below. And if you live in Louisiana, you can click here to contact your legislators and ask them (politely) what's the big holdup.

The Honorable Mary Jane M. Garcia
New Mexico Senate
Box 22
Dona Ana, NM 88032
maryjane.garcia@nmlegis.gov

The Honorable Bill RichardsonOffice of the Governor490 Old Santa Fe Trl., Rm. 400Santa Fe, NM 87501E-mail