Just what exactly is PETA doing to help combat the animal overpopulation crisis and provide vulnerable animals with assistance? This infographic breaks it down:

What You Can Do

Help animals in your neighborhood as well as low-income areas get spayed and neutered, promote adoption from animal shelters instead of buying from breeders or pet stores, and demand appropriate animal-care standards in your community.

Visit PETASaves.com for more information.

Update 2: 

Well, the results are in, and the friends of felines have carried the day: The new Monopoly token will be a cat—inspired by a real-life rescued kitty (see below)—to replace the older iron token.

Thank you to all you Monopoly fans who cast your votes in recognition of the fact that no one wins when people breed and buy animals. Remember: The best way to show more than a token interest in helping homeless cats is always to adopt them from shelters or rescues and make sure they're spayed or neutered. 

Update:

Following PETA's appeal to replace the current purebred "Scottie dog" token in Monopoly with one representing a rescued mutt (see original post below), Hasbro Gaming Senior Vice President and Global Brand Leader Eric Nyman responded in a letter to PETA, saying:

You can vote for the new cat token here. 

Originally posted on January 16th:

Monopoly players can be fanatical about their token of choice—I always have to play as the dog. Now, Hasbro is shaking things up with plans to retire one of the traditional Monopoly tokens, with the decision based on online voting. It looks like the little pooch will make the cut, so PETA is urging the company to make another change that could save real dogs by altering the token's look and referring to it as a "rescued mutt" instead of a purebred "Scottie dog."

Breeding Hurts—and Kills

How would this switch help dogs? Including a dog who is clearly a mixed breed would remind players that these canines are just as lovable, loyal, and deserving as any purebred and that every time someone chooses to buy a dog from a pet store or breeder, a homeless animal loses his or her chance at finding a home. For millions of dogs in shelters, there is no "Get out of jail free" card. Approximately half of the 6 to 8 million animals who enter shelters every year are euthanized, largely for lack of a good home.

Purebred dogs are also more likely to suffer from debilitating conditions and painful congenital disorders. Scotties, for example, are often affected by a hereditary disorder called "Scotty cramp," which can significantly impair their ability to run or even walk normally. Because they are not bred to produce specific physical traits, mixed-breed dogs have a lower risk for respiratory problems, bone disease, hemophilia, cataracts, hip dysplasia, and other disorders.

What You Can Do

 Please never buy any animal from a breeder or pet store. Instead, give a shelter mutt a "Chance"—you'll gain a wonderful companion while also helping to alleviate animal overpopulation, which causes so much misery.

Floyd was purchased from a California breeder, and like so many of the purebreds sold as mere "inventory" by puppy mills and other animal peddlers, the bulldog puppy's health suffered because the breeder focused on the bottom line rather than proper care.

So Young, So Much Suffering

By mating related dogs, breeders are essentially inbreeders, leading to a host of hereditary defects —it's estimated that one in four purebred dogs suffers from serious congenital health problems. After two veterinarians diagnosed Floyd with congenital kidney disease, his guardian urged the breeder to stop breeding the puppy's parents and notify the other people who had bought puppies from the same litter. The breeder callously dismissed her concerns, so she contacted officials with the American Kennel Club, but they merely suggested that she give the breeder a bad review online.

By the time PETA learned of Floyd's condition, the puppy was desperately ill, vomiting, lethargic, and barely able to eat or drink. Since he suffered from other health problems as well, a veterinarian determined that Floyd was a poor candidate for a transplant, the only treatment for his disease.

PETA's caseworker explained to Floyd's guardian that breeders frequently sell sick dogs and that the law often protects breeders more than the animals and their guardians. Floyd's guardian made the difficult but merciful decision to prevent Floyd from enduring further misery by having him euthanized.

What You Can Do

There is no such thing as a responsible breeder. Aside from the health problems that purebred dogs have, each dog and cat bred and sold by a breeder takes a home away from another animal waiting to be adopted at an animal shelter. Please don't contribute to the animal overpopulation crisis by buying animals from pet shops or breeders—always adopt from a reputable animal shelter or rescue.