After allowing a lion named Casimiro—who had spent nearly three decades in captivity—to suffer an agonizingly slow and painful death, a zoo in Maturín, Venezuela, is now reportedly planning to acquire several new lions to "replace" Casimiro. This would sentence another generation of lions—smart and sensitive animals who long to be free—to the frustration, boredom, and loneliness of life in a barren concrete cell.

Well, not if María Conchita Alonso has anything to say about it. The actor and former Miss Venezuela has fired off a letter on behalf of PETA to Maturín Mayor José Vicente Maicavares, writing the following: 

Of course, this isn't the only zoo where animals have suffered and died because of disrespect for their nature, blatant neglect, inadequate living environments, or improper care. Please join María in objecting to the suffering that animals like Casimiro endure in captivity by refusing to set foot inside zoos and urging everyone you know to do the same. You can also write a polite letter to the mayor to encourage him to use his influence to urge the zoo to forgo any future lion displays:

       The Honorable José Vicente Maicavares|
       Mayor of Maturín
       Palacio Municipal, entre Av. Bolívar y Azcúe
       Piso 1
       Maturín, Venezuela

Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post

commons.wikimedia / CC

Apparently he wasn't content with going all "crocodile hunter" on an anaconda, as he did during the last off-season. Now Texas Rangers infielder Omar Vizquel has expressed the desire to take up bullfighting in his home country of Venezuela during this year's off-season. He has also said that he hopes to attend all the Triple Crown horse races after he retires.

Is there no animal safe from Omar's down time?

Upon hearing about Omar's ghoulish vacation plans, we dashed off a letter to the aging shortstop asking him to solve his midlife crisis in a way that doesn't involve torturing and killing animals.

Buy a convertible, go skydiving, date a woman half your age—just don't drag animals into it, OK, Omar?

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