Things that nonbelievers thought were never going to happen but did: "Octomom" saying "Yes" to our spay-and-neuter billboard, the Large Hadron Collider smashing proton beams into one another, and (drumroll, please) author, social entrepreneur, and longtime vegetarian Michael Mann agreeing to donate his half of the hotly sought-after $50 million domain Sex.com to PETA (pending IRS approval of this tax-deductible donation, of course).

Mann's offer to donate his share of Sex.com has us poised to tell the world that a vegan diet supports a lifetime of good health and great sex. If all goes as planned, visitors to the new site will see our sizzling ads such as "Veggie Love" and get information that will help turn on carnivores to the power of "veggie Viagra." Mike's generosity makes everyone a winner: He'll score a huge tax write-off, meat-loving men who tend to limp through their later years (thanks to their artery-clogging diets) will learn how to make their sex lives sizzle by going vegan, and countless animals will be saved from the horrors of factory farms and slaughterhouses.

Written by Karin Bennett

The recent theft of bleachers from Chicago's Orr High School has left students without seating and robbed them of their school spirit. "It felt good to be out there beating on the drum, rooting the team on. All the people from the community coming to support us and everything. And now you wake up and all the seats are gone," said one student.

Well, PETA has just the thing to raise morale at Orr High and the community's awareness of the suffering that's endured by chickens who are killed for McNuggets. We're offering the school $5,000 and a veggie-burger lunch in exchange for placing this McCruelty ad on its new bleachers:

If there's one thing rivaling teams and fans can agree on, it's that scalding chickens in defeathering tanks is a real fumble. By spreading the message that McDonald's needs to push its suppliers to adopt controlled-atmosphere killing (CAK)—a less cruel method of slaughtering chickens—Orr High could rally for chickens every day of the week.

Written by Logan Scherer

© Star Max Inc.

While at the premiere of Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too? the stars were asked to spill about their favorite restaurants. Janet Jackson, who not only stars in the movie but whose new track, "Nothing," is on the movie's soundtrack, said, "I go to Café Sunflower. It's a vegan restaurant. Everything is good there. It really is. And there's another vegan restaurant called Veggieland—very good," while her costar Cicely Tyson proudly declared, "I'm a vegan—a vegetarian."

So now, not only do I want to see the movie, I want to sample Atlanta's cruelty-free fare. Thanks, ladies.

Written by Logan Scherer

"I can only think of sex, sex, and more sex. The dirtier the better!"
—Judge Bruno Tonioli on Pamela Anderson's first Dancing With the Stars performance

You know you've awed the hard-to-please Dancing With the Stars judges when Bruno is so tongue-tied that he can't even come up with innuendo. Our response to Pamela's cha-cha-cha with partner Damian Whitewood? Ooo-la-lah!

This stunner will always get our seal of approval (and our vote), and we can't wait to see what she comes up with on the dance floor tonight. Don't forget to go to ABC's Web site and vote for Pamela tonight.

Written by Logan Scherer

This is a handsome bullock named Houshya. He is—or, rather, was—a working bullock in India. "Working" for him meant spending 18 long years pulling a heavy cart loaded with bricks, oil drums, or whatever other goods his impoverished family was paid to move. But now, Houshya (which means "Hush!") is old and tired, and he no longer has the strength to pull the heavy loads along the pitted dirt roads as quickly as he once did. His owner considered selling him but knew that it wouldn't be long before Houshya slowed down so much that his new owner would send him to the slaughterhouse to be killed for his meat and skin.

So even though the deeply poor family could have used the money from selling Houshya, they agreed that it wouldn't be right and sacrificed their income in order to save him. He has now been donated to Animal Rahat, where he will spend the rest of his life in retirement, under a shade tree, grazing and drinking water at will. He will also be given vitamins to help ease him into old age. The look on his face shows that he can't quite believe his new life!

Already, his nose rope, which has left its mark, has been replaced with a fine white halter. Piercing animals' nostrils is painful, and over time the rope cuts into the bull's sensitive skin.

Animal Rahat—a PETA-supported organization that provides veterinary care to working animals in India—is one of PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk's favorite projects. She recently traveled to India and paid a visit to Sangli, where Animal Rahat works hard to provide relief for bullocks like Houshya who toil long days hauling goods ranging from sugar cane to gasoline. You can read more about her trip on her blog, and you can help these gentle animals by making a donation to Animal Rahat.

Written by Alisa Mullins

© Star Max Inc.

"Well, there was a time when we used to sacrifice goats, but then we all became vegans, so we've been sacrificing tofu before the shows!"
—Jared Leto on 30 Seconds to Mars' rock star lifestyle

Jared Leto is a heartthrob. Ever since blue-eyed Jordan Catalano caught Angela's eye on My So-Called Life, I've been captivated (don't lie, so have you). Since then, I've followed him from Prefontaine to 30 Seconds to Mars. Now that Jared and the rest of his band are vegan (and so are their pre-performance rituals), I'm hoping my "Tofu Never Screams" tee will help me score backstage passes at their next show.

Written by Shawna Flavell

Update: On Saturday, March 27, Utah's governor signed the bill into law, formally amending the state's pound-seizure law. This means that animal shelters are no longer required to turn over animals for use in cruel experiments. Hooray!

Thanks in large part to e-mails, letters, and phone calls from thousands of compassionate supporters, Utah legislators voted by an overwhelming majority to amend a state law so that government-run animal shelters will not be forced to sell dogs and cats to laboratories for use in cruel and deadly experiments upon request. Once the governor signs the bill, Utah will no longer have the dubious distinction of being one of only three states in the country that still mandate that animal shelters engage in this shameful practice. The new law also lengthens the required holding period for animals in shelters and mandates that shelters make greater efforts to find the guardians of lost animals.

These positive changes come on the heels of a recent PETA undercover investigation inside laboratories at the University of Utah. The shocking investigation revealed that each year, more than 100 homeless cats and dogs from government-run animal shelters in Utah are sold to the university for use in invasive, painful, and deadly experiments. In one instance, the university bought a pregnant cat from a local animal shelter and injected chemicals into her kitten's brains, causing fluid to build up inside their heads. All the kittens died.

With this new law, companion animals in Utah—and the people who care for them—can rest a little easier.

Please take a moment to contact the University of Utah and urge it to stop buying animals from animal shelters once and for all.

Written by Shawna Flavell

Say you want to take a protest against SeaWorld's mistreatment of captive orca Tilly beyond letters and boycotts. What's a performance artist to do?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdickert/ / CC BY 2.0

Brian Feldman came up with a brilliant action that he's calling "Tilikunundrum": Starting at 6 a.m. tomorrow, he will spend 18 hours in a bathtub at SeaHouse, a private residence in Orlando. Each hour in the tub will represent one of the 18 long years of Tilly's captivity, during which he's been forced to eat, sleep, swim, defecate, and perform in pools that, to an orca, are equivalent in size to a bathtub.

Brian says, "If you think that's wrong, you're right." We say, "Right on!"

You're invited to volunteer at the event—and if you'd like to watch but can't make it in person, the event will be streamed live.

Now that Brian Feldman has shared his caring and clever plan to protest SeaWorld's cruelties, describe the awesome action(s) you'll be orcastrating* on Tilly's behalf.

Written by Karin Bennett

*Must. Stop. Punning.

In a recent fire on an Ohio egg farm, 250,000 hens died after they were left in two sheds that had the electricity knocked out in order to battle the fire. Once the fire was squelched, all the birds were "euthanized" (we don't know how they were killed) because, according to a spokeswoman for Ohio Fresh Eggs, it was the "humane thing to do."

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aleutia/ / CC BY 2.0

First, take a minute to soak in the fact that there were more than 250,000 hens crammed into two sheds. Chickens on egg farms are packed into battery cages so tightly that they don't even have enough room to lie down, and the cages are stacked from floor to ceiling. They have their beaks seared off without being given any painkillers, and for up to two years they endure relentless cycles of egg-laying. When they become too weak to produce eggs they are trucked to slaughterhouses, where their legs are slammed into metal shackles and they have their throats cut while they are still conscious and able to feel pain.

Animals who are crammed by the thousands into warehouse-like buildings are often out of luck when disaster strikes, because it's not cost-effective for farm operators (and they certainly don't care enough) to take the time to implement evacuation plans. The loss of life caused by fires, floods, and other disasters is all too common on factory farms.

Of course, any animal who has suffered through a tragedy like this should be given a humane release from pain, but the representative also declined to comment on the method that was used to kill these poor chickens. If it's anything like the way many egg farms "euthanize" their male chicks—by leaving them to suffocate in plastic bags or by sending them through giant meat grinders while they are still alive—then I would say that "humane" isn't part of the equation.

Want to make sure that tragedies like these don't continue to occur? Go vegan.

Written by Heather Drennan

Cops in Spokane are searching for a frustrated pop who is believed to have put his screaming son up for sale on Craigslist. Apparently the dad didn't know that the "baby & kid stuff" section is intended for the sale of clothing, furniture, and accessories only—and that peddling children is a felony.

But dogs and cats, well, they're a different story. While Craigslist agreed to post a warning about the dangers of "free to a good home" ads few years ago, it has refused to disallow them, so a quick scan of the "free stuff" listings reveals dozens of unwanted, unloved, and "inconvenient" soon-to-be homeless animals. And many of these ads read almost identical to daddy dearest's "free toddler" post: "I don't know what else to do other than find a good family with kids or a couple that wants a son. I just won't give him to anyone."

http://www.flickr.com/photos/psycho-pics/ / CC BY 2.0

Make no mistake: PETA encourages adoptions of dogs, cats, rabbits, gerbils, and other companion animals to responsible, thoughtful, competent, and loving adult guardians—but not just anyone. Simply to hand the leash—and the dog—to the first smiling stranger who pulls into the driveway is not enough to ensure the safety of the animal. Anyone who offers an animal up for adoption should personally visit the home of the potential guardian beforehand and follow up on the adoption later. Bunchers and other cruel humans are all too eager to get their hands on cast-aside cats and dogs from unsuspecting persons looking to find new homes for animals—and the fates of these "free" animals are often tragic.

We've contacted Craigslist about this important issue, and now the site's managers need to hear from you.

Written by Karin Bennett