She's blue about being pimped out to a circus and a zoo! Meet Sydney—the pachyderm protagonist in Sanctuary Song, a new opera opening this summer in Toronto. A dynamic combination of song, dance, and theater, this ele-friendly opera follows Sydney as she recounts her life during a journey to a sanctuary in Tennessee. Discussing her abduction by poachers and her years spent in a circus and a zoo, she relives the fond memories of her friends and family as well as the fearful memories of captivity. Will Sydney be reunited with her childhood friend in the last act? No spoiler alert here! Like they say, it's not over until the elephant sings.

cityparent / CC

Can't make it to Toronto to see Sanctuary Song? Put on your favorite aria, and check out the lovely ladies at this real-life Tennessee sanctuary.

─JenPosted by Jennifer Cierlitsky

The USDA just completed an investigation of a Butterball turkey slaughterhouse in Arkansas that confirmed PETA's findings of intentional cruelty to animals, including punching, kicking, and tormenting turkeys destined for slaughter. So what happens next? Well, not much, as far as the law’s concerned: Because there simply aren’t any federal legal protections for chickens and turkeys. None. The only thing that can be done is to take matters into our own hands and put pressure on places like Butterball to make changes that will benefit the animals they profit from. And, more importantly, boycott these companies by going vegetarian. Here’s the video of the Butterball supplier’s abuses:

--ChristinePosted by Christine Dore

The photo speaks for itself. OK, OK, I may have doctored it a bit to get the point across, but COME ON! As you can see, Jessica Simpson was recently caught wearing a "Real Girls Eat Meat" T-shirt. Puhleeze!

For a gal who's best known for her less-than-stellar brains (Chicken of the Sea, anyone?) and her ability to proportionately fill out daisy dukes, I'm gonna go on record saying that if anyone had to wear a ridiculous shirt like this, I'm glad it was Jessica—as people are more likely to follow the opposite of her lead ... ya know, since she's so well respected and all (yes, that was difficult to type without tossing in a hefty LOL). Maybe the meat-eaters of the world will be embarrassed to be categorized in the same field as Jessica Simpson. Ecorazzi has more on the story.

Just for funsies, here are the top five reasons that only stupid girls brag about eating meat:

1. Meat increases the risk of breast cancer. A 2007 study of 35,000 women published in the British Journal of Cancer found that women who ate meat were far more likely to develop breast cancer than women who consumed none. Will Jessica's next t-shirt will say, "Real Girls Smoke 3 Packs a Day"?2. Real girls don't support animal abuse. Compassion is super sexy, if the huge number of hot celebs ditching meat is any indication. Young women turn vegetarian in droves when they learn that the meat industry cuts the sensitive beaks off newborn chicks and cuts off the tails of baby piglets.3. The meat industry is destroying the Earth. The only thing that's hot about the meat industry is that it's toasting the planet. According to the United Nations, raising animals for food causes more greenhouse-gas emissions than all the cars, trucks, SUVs, planes, and ships in the world combined. 4. Meat will make you fat. All the saturated fat and cholesterol in chicken wings, pork chops, and steak eventually leads to flabby thighs and love handles. I hope the upcoming "Jessica Simpson's Intimates" line comes in plus sizes! Going vegetarian is the best way to get slim and stay that way. 5. Eating meat steals food from starving kids. Jessica's trip to help kids in Africa got a lot of media buzz, but by gnawing on meat, she's essentially stealing food from the mouths of starving children since it takes up to 16 pounds of grain to produce just 1 pound of meat. If more people went vegetarian, we'd free up enough grain to feed every person in the world. —ChristinePosted by Christine Dore

Today Canada, tomorrow the world (insert maniacal laughter here). We were totally spent from doing a victory dance over our recent KFC campaign triumph in Canada, but we've rested up and now we're ready to get back to kicking the Colonel's bucket. Continuing our Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign in other countries, including the U.S., we're not going to let up until KFC cries uncle and agrees to make some serious changes to the way its suppliers treat chickens.

Speaking of our campaign, we were recently reminiscing—while recovering from our V dance—about all the actions we've taken against KFC. We couldn't decide which one was our fave, so we thought we'd ask for your input. I'm partial to the completely unappetizing but utterly inspiring, demo-licious Bucket of Blood. Then again, Pam Anderson's video is pretty cool. See why we need your help? Check out our list below, and vote for your favorite by leaving us a comment.

1. PETA staffer changes his name to KentuckyFriedCruelty.com2. Pam Anderson video3. Super Chick Sisters video game4. The Rev. Al Sharpton's video5. Bucket of Blood 6. 'Crippled Chicken Crosses the Road' demos7. KFC sign generator8. Kentucky Fried Cruelty: The Movie9. Colonel Sanders headstone10. Kentucky Fried Cruelty HQ

—AmyPosted by Amy Elizabeth

If you have plans that don’t involve watching 30 Days, first of all, how dare you? I told you it was going to be on. And second of all, you should immediately cancel them. ‘Cuz the show’s going to be really interesting, and it has my friend Melissa in it. And a very funny hunter dude named George.

For those of you who were already planning to watch the show, well, I’m glad that some people are listening to me. You guys get a gold star. To recap:

Cool?






--ChristinePosted by Christine Dore

Since 2001, PETA's mobile "Spay and Neuter Immediately, Please" (SNIP) clinic has been providing free and low-cost spay-and-neuter surgeries (nearly 45,000!) in Virginia's Hampton Roads area, where PETA is located. Earlier this week, we doubled the size of our lifesaving fleet, rolling out a second animal birth control mobile clinic.

Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim, who was on hand to cut the ribbon during the official unveiling of the clinic, praised PETA's approach to the companion animal overpopulation crisis as intelligent and humane. That's right—we've got smarts!

Check out these pictures of the new lifesaving clinic!

Simon says…we're sorry we couldn't resist the clichéd reference to a certain kids' game.

Ingrid is especially happy because the unveiling was on her birthday. What a wonderful present!

Check out the size of those scissors! They're HUGE! Was Mayor Fraim expecting the clinic to be wrapped in steel? Really, it's a bit much—my toenail clippers could have finished off this ribbon!

Kimora will be stunning people with her beauty wherever the clinic travels.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that a boatload of cats and dogs (4 million) are killed every year in the U.S. because there just aren't homes for these animals. And you also know that when people don't sterilize their animals, that contributes to the problem.

We've all seen the population pyramids: one fertile cat can produce 12 to 18 kittens every year, and one fertile dog can produce 12 to 20 puppies every year (not doing it together, of course). When you do the math, that can translate to more than 11,000 cats and more than 12,000 dogs in five years. The flipside of these overwhelming numbers is that we can stop a lot of suffering just by spaying or neutering one animal. And when we spay or neuter more animals, the savings multiply.

—Grace

Posted by Grace Friedan

Every once in a while, someone notices that women are featured in PETA's provocative ads and demonstrations more often than men are. It's not that PETA, as an organization, doesn't appreciate animal-loving, nearly naked men—it's just that usually the ads and demonstrations make more sense or will garner more attention to animal rights issues with women as the stars.

For instance, if young chickens were called "dudes," "guys," or "homeboys," I personally assure you that we would have called out the Broccoli Boys and there would have been a couple of male PETA volunteers at our recent scalding-tank reenactment demos (photos below). Alas, young chickens (the chickens killed for KFC are only about 45 days old when they are slaughtered) are called chicks. As are women. Global conspiracy or convenient protest idea? I can't say—but it is one thing we have to work with in the battle against KFC.

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PETA's latest demonstration highlights that while chickens killed for KFCs in Canada will soon be killed using the least cruel slaughter method available, birds killed for KFC in the U.S. are still scalded to death. It costs KFC more money, and it's just plain cruel.

Here are some details from our news release (it's not that I'm lazy—I just thought it was already well explained):

Great demo, Colleen and Shawn. And happy birthday, Colleen! I'm sorry you share it with the gruesome twosome.

More photos, wonderful photos:

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—Joel Bartlett

Here at PETA, we get undeniably excited when we receive new costumes in the mail. It virtually turns into a reenactment of little kids on their birthdays—without all the "gimme gimmes" and grabbing fingers. Well, maybe. Anyway, the point is we were very excited when our new nugget costume arrived. Now, if you don't know who Nugget is, check this out. But all you really need to know is that Nugget is ruler of the "I Am Not a Nugget" campaign and an ally of our good buddies over at peta2.

Well, the costume was glorious! But before we tried it on, we found an extra surprise at the bottom of the box: instructions!

These instructions were especially amusing to us given that the costume consists of four parts: the main body, tights, and two feet. Now, I know that I, too, put my shoes on the wrong feet sometimes—but in my defense, this is usually before my morning cup of tea—and this really shouldn't be so difficult! Alas, we couldn't contain our curiosity and checked them over:

• The wearer should be of average build and approximately 5'4" to 5'8" tall.
• The wearer should be of reasonable strength and stamina. The costume is bulky and will get very warm while worn.
• It's best to wear a T-shirt under the costume. The wearer should drink plenty of liquids before and after the event.
• The costume should be worn without shoes.
• Be sure to have a dress rehearsal. It takes two people about 10 to 15 minutes to put on the costume. Becoming comfortable before the event will ensure the best performance.

And the finished result? So gosh darn adorable you almost can't take it, right? Well, Nugget is a tough warrior for animal rights. After all, it's a tough job when you've got 9 billion chickens to speak up for. Thank you, Nugget!

-Jen

Posted by Jennifer Cierlitsky

The next time someone tries to tell you that a vegan diet isn't healthy, just mention Mary Bukowiec to them. Who is she? Ms. Bukowiec is a breast cancer survivor who credits her change to a vegan diet with the complete disappearance of her cancer. Following an earlier diagnosis, she had followed the conventional course of treatment. But when the cancer reappeared, she decided that a different approach was called for. Michigan's Morning Sun reports:

Of course, eating meat, dairy products, and other food from dead, tortured animals is clearly linked to a higher risk of cancer as well as heart disease, strokes, diabetes, and lots of other things you don't want to get in the first place. So if you haven't done the vegan thing yet, it's time to get with it already—it could even keep you from developing a certain condition (wink, wink) that isn't life-threatening but might ruin a guy's social life!

-Jeff

Posted by Jeff Mackey

An early version of the “Meet Jack” picture for the PETA Files had more of a “getting things done!” feel to it. In the end, we decided to go with “simpering idiot” instead.

Some of you may have noticed that recent posts on these here PETA Files have been written by people who are not me. If you didn’t notice that, or had already repressed the memory of a time when most posts were in fact written by me, you may be excused from reading this particular entry. There will not be a quiz on this material.

For everyone else, I wanted to take a very few minutes of your time to say thanks for sticking around during the last year or so. It’s been a fantastic experience being a writer for the PETA Files, and I’m very much looking forward to settling into being a reader. In fact, I have every intention of leaving longwinded, self-important comments on every post until Christine (who, bless her heart, has taken over moderating duties) politely begs me to stop.

While I still have a soapbox, I figured this would be a good time for a quick retrospective in the form of my Top 5 moments working at this amazing organization, so here goes:

Since coming to PETA four years ago, I have:

• Performed search-and-rescue operations for abandoned animals in post-Katrina New Orleans.
• Stood, naked, painted like a Union Jack, in front of the British embassy in DC to protest the Queen’s Guards’ bearskin hats.
• Toured the country with The Alkaline Trio on behalf of peta2.
• Starred in a special “episode” of Full House that was featured on The O’Reilly Factor.
• Written (roughly) 1,200 entries and approved more than 30,000 comments for this blog. Thank you to everyone who’s been a part of that.

The good news is that this is the last week that any of us will have to put up with that nauseatingly smug version of me quite clearly sleeping on the job up in this blog’s banner. Word on the street is that (fittingly enough) I am being replaced by a chicken.

And I’ll leave you with that thought. See you in the comments!

-Jack