GorillaHaven/Creative Commons

Here are links to the stories.

Cry of the Wild

Gorilla Warfare

Hugely Vulnerable- Q&A with Richard Leakey

Falcons Owner Arthur Blank gave a press conference this afternoon to present the Falcons’ official position on the Vick case. Here’s what PETA told the media about our reaction:

OK, this one's from a few years ago, but these things are so damn popular that I thought I'd post it. A little context—this is the letter that PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich sent to Michael in 2004 to ask him to reconsider his anti-animal stance. The sad truth is that Bruce’s decidedly less sensational letter never received any attention at all—least of all from Michael Moore, who refused even to acknowledge receipt. But it's a cracking good letter, nonetheless. You can check it out here.

Sorry Canadians. I know I'm a day late on this one, but hopefully you'll forgive me since I'm bringing you this amazing shot of PETA activists Lucas Soloway and Andree Silcok, after they snuck into Montreal's Canada Day Parade yesterday. They look like they’re having a blast, and check out the people in the crowd; they can't take their eyes off of them. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I think the guy talking to them is asking if there is room inside the banner for him too . . .

AP PHOTO/Peter McCabe, CP

The coolest thing about this picture is that despite not having permission beforehand, the two were allowed to complete the whole parade, reminding thousands of Canadians that it's time to stop the cruel seal hunt.

Way to go Lucas and Andree!

For those that want to get in on PETA Europe's annual Running of the Nudes festivities but can't make the trip to Pamplona, Spain, here is the next best thing to being there. PETA Europe is holding a contest to give away 10 of these cool pens featuring supermodel Annamarie Lytle, along with a signed poster.

OK, so the pens look pretty cool, eh? Well they're even cooler in person, because when you flip them upside down, Lytle is wearing nothing more than plastic bull horns and the traditional red scarf they wear in Pamplona . . . Man, is it getting hot in here or is it just me?

You can enter the contest here, and for more information on bullfights, which is where the bulls that are run through the streets of Pamplona wind up, click here.

Much as it pains me to pamper the egos of those too-cool-for-school scene queens over at peta2, I was really impressed with this interview that my friend Dan (who runs the show in PETA’s Youth Outreach division) just did with MTV Canada. I’ve been trying to get on MTV since I dreamed of auditioning for MTV’s The Grind in the early '90s (if you haven’t heard of that show, don’t worry about it. You’re better off.), but it looks like I’m going to have to settle for living vicariously through Dan’s achievement. Watch how he reels off hip bands like he’s Carson Daly or something. You can click the screenshot below to watch the video on MTV’s site. Enjoy!

According to its website, the Telly Awards “ . . . is the premiere award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions” so we are thrilled to have won three “Tellies” this year.

Each of the following spots took the bronze in the Public Service category:

Country music icon Loretta Lynn donated her classic song “I Wanna Be Free” for this PSA reminding everyone that "Life on a chain is no life at all."

John McEnroe—winner of three Wimbledon singles victories and four U.S. Open singles championships—offered his famous voice to push spaying and neutering in a humorous play on his famous temper.

The third winner takes a decidedly more somber tack. This ad is shot from the point of view of a dog stranded in flood waters in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and pleads “Have a plan. Save your pet."

A big shout out goes to PETA’s Communications and A/V departments for making these, and the rest of our PSAs, happen. Congrats guys.

There is little in life I hate more than being scooped by the hipper-than-thou scenesters over at the peta2 blog, or “blizzy,” as they call it. But, it happened here in a big way, and I’m man enough to admit it. They reported on the PB&J Campaign, oh, like a month ago, but it’s so cool I wanted to give it a shout out here too.

I love the PB&J Campaign’s mission statement. So simple and to the point: "The PB&J Campaign is working to combat environmental destruction and improve animal welfare by reducing the amount of animal products people eat. The PB&J Campaign approaches positive change one meal at a time by illuminating the differences one single dining decision can make."

Get With the Program/Creative Commons

What's the best reason of all to make a PB&J instead of, oh, say, a chicken breast? As their Web site states: "Saving water, fighting global warming, and preserving habitat are all great reasons to have a PB&J for lunch, but, if you like animals, there's the added benefit of not killing them. It takes about 16 PB&J sandwiches to save a chicken's life, for example."

To read more, check out their Web site here.

Our media maid got a call yesterday from ING, you know, the bench people. They called to ask us—ever so nicely—to remove their logo and the ad we made with Ingrid Newkirk sitting on a bench with a cat looking up at her in the style of their iconic “Life’s Easier on the Bench” ads from the web. We’re all a bit sad to take it down, as we still get a lot of positive remarks about it, but alas, down it shall come.

Ingrid’s response when she heard we had to take her ING ad down . . .

When I asked Ingrid if this turn of events would sway her from her staunch support of the ING/Renault Formula 1 team, she was adamant that “it most certainly will not” and admonished me for even thinking such a thing. She said the “very polite lad” from ING was complimentary of our work, and that the company will actually consider sponsoring our doghouse and SNIP programs. With beloved dogs in many car commercials these days, and a duck working out investments for another company, that would fit perfectly.

Ingrid in training . . .

And of course it doesn’t hurt that among the drivers she roots for are Renault/ING’s Giancarlo Fisichella (who she once let take her taxi in the rain) and Heikki Kovalainen, who recorded the difficult pronunciation of his name for her website, and that she still fantasizes about running off to Magny-Cours to change tires for a living once this whole animal rights thing is taken care of.

OK, I had to admit that I had my doubts when I heard the first rumblings about a giant “fish quilt” we were making to raise awareness about the fact that fish are intelligent, intriguing animals who feel pain just as all other animals do and that they don’t deserve to be violently killed for food, painfully hooked for “sport,” or cruelly confined in aquariums. But now that I see the finished product, I have to admit that it’s pretty cool.

Lucy of Cuba, Missouri’s square.

Each square was handmade for the quilt by PETA members and supporters across the country. Some people also submitted stories about why they no longer support cruelty to fish, including the following:

• A Girl Scout troop from Austin, Texas, submitted several patches. The troop members were inspired by a discussion with a former commercial fisher, who had since gone vegetarian, about the damage that fishing does to animals and the environment.
• A quilter from Winnipeg, Manitoba, shared a story about how she and her grandfather stopped fishing because of the cruelty involved. They found other ways to spend quality time together instead.
• Several quilters made patches that bear the PETA slogan that Finding Nemo made famous: "Fish Are Friends, Not Food!"

From Amanda in St. Catharine’s, Ontario, Canada.

The giant fish quilt is now on a nationwide tour a la the aids quilt, so keep your eye out for it. Click here to see the full quilt. Here’s a shot from its opening display in Manhattan last week.