Written by Michelle Kretzer
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Don't call the female dolphins of Shark Bay, Australia, "fashion-obsessed." They just prefer to bond with gals who dress like they do. Dolphins who choose to wear sponges on their noses to root in the sand for fish generally hang out with other "spongers," while dolphins who prefer the sponge-free look bond with each other.
On Lake Shore Boulevard in Toronto, traffic moves slowly enough that people can see—and videotape—trucks filled with pigs on their way to slaughter. The horrifying videos have gone viral—now will viewers go vegan?
As if you needed one more reason to love Stella McCartney, the cruelty-free fashion phenom is now offering a scholarship to inspire young designers to follow in her well-heeled, animal-friendly footsteps.
Teamwork! A thoughtful and enterprising passerby helped three precocious bear cubs get out of a Dumpster.
Who said it? "Imagine how different the world would be if, in fact, it were 'reading, writing, arithmetic, empathy.'"
New Features
You despise the cruel slaughter of chickens, cows, and pigs with the fire of a thousand suns. So what to do about it? Try these suggestions.
You saw her naked anti-fur ad—now you can have a piece of designer Cornelia Guest all to yourself. Enter to win one of the elegant vegan bags that she's giving away only to PETA supporters.
New Action Alerts
Paul McCartney stopped Olympic rehearsals to do it. Would you take a moment to ask the forest minister of Maharashtra, India, to send an abused young elephant to a sanctuary?
Tell officials at Lagoon amusement park that keeping wild animals in filthy enclosures is not amusing, and ask them to retire the animals to sanctuaries and let parkgoers enjoy more rides and games instead.
Officials in Ottawa are considering using cruel steel-jaw and snare traps to kill beavers. Ask them to use any of the many proven humane beaver-control methods that are readily available instead.
Tell Groupon that circuses give animals a raw deal, and let the company know that you won't be using its services until it stops promoting the three rings of misery.
Sugar gliders, tiny nocturnal marsupials, prefer to live in groups of about 30 and spend their time climbing trees and exploring the forest. But a company called "Pocket Pets" is setting up mall kiosks and selling the animals one by one to anyone who wants an impulse "pet." Urge Bayer Properties to prohibit the sale of sugar gliders at its malls.
California's recent foie gras ban was a huge victory for animals, but a bill before Congress aims to gut it. Farm Bill Amendment 45 would force states to allow cruelly produced meat and dairy products across their borders, even if a state has already banned the product. Urge your representatives to oppose Amendment 45 and let states retain their right to protect animals.
Presidents, hip-hop moguls, and now PETA Senior Vice President Dan Mathews have taken the stage at New York arts-and-culture venue 92YTribeca. Dan, together with new "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" model Cornelia Guest, New York Times advertising columnist Stuart Elliott, and Newsweek and Daily Beast celebrity columnist Lloyd Grove, discussed how PETA's eye-catching naked campaigns and celebrity collaborations push animal rights issues into mainstream media outlets.
If the audience members came in with doubts or criticism, we're betting that they left with insight into PETA's tactics after hearing Dan explain that PETA has wonderful stories about building houses for "backyard dogs," rescuing animals from cruel circuses and laboratories, and much more—but what news outlets like Inside Edition want to cover is controversy, nudity, and celebrities.
Although he was there to serve as an unbiased voice, Stuart Elliott noted that PETA's ability to create "buzz" through naked ads and the use of celebrities in protests was decades ahead of modern social-media campaigns. He also commented that the success of PETA's "shockvertising" has persuaded other organizations to follow suit. I guess imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery.
Written by Heather Faraid Drennan
© Taylor Hill
What do you give a beautiful and charming New York socialite for her birthday? Fur coats, of course. At her birthday luncheon today, Cornelia Guest and her well-wishers donated dozens of their own coats—made from foxes, chinchillas, rabbits, minks, and other animals—to PETA's fur coat giveaway program for the homeless.
PETA Vice President Dan Mathews was on hand to collect the furs and said, "Fur used to be a uniform in high society, but that's all changing, and nobody illustrates that better than Cornelia."
After the vegan birthday cake was served, Cornelia spoke about the hideous cruelty of the fur industry. She said of fur-wearing among members of high society, "It's the fire-hydrant syndrome. Once one dog lifts his leg, they all follow!"
Cornelia also unveiled her new ad for PETA's iconic "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign to convince others to swear off fur furever. Her ad will hit New York's streets during the busy holiday-shopping season to remind shoppers that compassion is the fashion.
If you or anyone you know has fur coats moldering away in their closets, why not follow the example of Cornelia and her friends and donate them to PETA? We'll mark them so that they can't be resold and give them to the homeless for a little extra warmth this winter. Remember: Even a little bit of fur trim means a world of suffering for animals on fur farms or who are trapped in the wild.
Written by PETA
Photo: Gabrielle Revere
New York socialite and cruelty-free fashion connoisseur Cornelia Guest is taking her passion for helping animals to great lengths in a brand-new anti-fur ad for PETA:
Cornelia—who is the daughter of one of the best-dressed women of the 20th century, C.Z. Guest—used to wear fur, but she had a change of heart when she learned more about the heartless fur industry. Now, Cornelia shuns animal products of all kinds—she even launched her own line of nonleather handbags at Bloomingdale's.
At her birthday party on November 16, Cornelia will donate all her old furs to PETA, and she is encouraging her guests to do the same. PETA will mark the fur coats so that they can't be resold and will give them to the homeless so that they can be warmer this winter.
And for those of us who have ever wished for a guide to sophisticated vegan soirées, Cornelia has just finished a high-style vegan-entertaining book—replete with original recipes, decorating and party tips, and animal factoids—that will be published in May.
Follow Cornelia's compassionate lead and cleanse your closet of skins. Click here for PETA's guide to cruelty-free fashion.
Ellen DeGeneres, Gordon Ramsay, and Entourage star Adrian Grenier are among the many stars who have recently done something noteworthy for animals:
Written by Alisa Mullins
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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