If I were to list the most interesting experiences I've had in my 26 years of life, I'd say that eating a meal of vegan fried chicken with the president of the company that coordinates the purchasing of chickens for all Canadian KFCs at the PETA HQ—in the midst of our bitter five-year battle with the chicken chain—would make the top 10.

That was back in December. Six months later, I'm happy to report that our bread-breaking (along with negotiations, dozens of e-mails and phone calls, and a meeting in Toronto that preceded my "chicken" dinner) was successful: PETA has officially ended our Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign in Canada. Our decision came with a new animal welfare plan that will affect all chickens killed for KFCs in Canada.

For one thing, 100 percent of the chickens killed for Canadian KFCs will be purchased—through a phase-in program—from suppliers that use "controlled-atmosphere killing" (CAK), the least cruel method of bird slaughter available. CAK works by replacing birds' oxygen with a mixture of nonpoisonous inert gasses to gently put them "to sleep." It may sound horrible—because killing animals for a fleeting taste sensation always is—but for animals killed for food, it's a 180° turnaround. Gone will be the days of broken bones, abuse by workers (because with CAK, workers never handle live birds), electric shocks, and live throat slitting and scalding.

The conditions for animals on farms will also be improved. In addition, the company that coordinates the purchasing of chickens for all Canadian KFCs will encourage the chicken companies supplying Canadian KFCs to move away from the cruelest breeding and farming practices and will also form an animal welfare advisory council.

But I haven't even gotten to the best news yet. That vegan fried-chicken meal that I ate with the head honcho in December might not be his last. Most KFCs in Canada will now be adding a vegan chicken item to their menus. That means that at least 65 percent of KFCs in Canada will now have a totally cruelty-free option (ask for the item, called the Classic Vegetarian Sandwich, in a wrap and with no mayo to make it vegan). Not too paltry, huh? (Get it?)

As for our campaign against KFC, it continues in full force everywhere else. In fact, I sent a letter to the CEO of KFC's parent company, Yum! Brands, today urging him to make the same changes that are being made in Canada.

Thank you to everyone who helped us win this historic victory by staging protests, writing letters, and forwarding videos (among other things).

To everyone who has yet to help: Lend a hand by logging on to KentuckyFriedCruelty.com and signing our petition urging KFC to improve animal welfare worldwide.

—Matt

Posted by Matt Prescott, Assistant Director of Corporate Affairs

If you’re one of those upstanding animal lovers who’s been digging in and taking your pet-related business elsewhere until the PetSmart people stop selling live animals, here’s an opportunity to take some credit for it. If you still have that old PetSmart Pet Perks card, you can finally dust it off and do something useful with it: We’re looking for pics and video of you cutting up your PetSmart cards, and we’ll post any good ones we receive on our Flickr page, so you can bask in the warm glow if Internet celebrity while you pat yourselves on the back for having done the right thing. You can send pics or video here.

If you’re looking for a little inspiration (or if you’re in the mood to irretrievably lose two minutes of your precious time), the Princess and I have put together this neat little instructional video.

We've all been there—holding our signs, chanting our protest slogans, passing out our leaflets, and smiling and waving until we felt like the bloody Queen of England. And then some person who's having a bad day decides to take it out on you because you're an easy target.

He or she says something mean or stupid—or, ingeniously, both—and you need a comeback … fast. Here's the catch: Your comeback has to be polite. And since you're not going to change the person with one quick-witted quip, you need to try to engage him or her by making a quick point and then asking questions so that you can have a conversation about the issues. Seem like too tall of an order? Not at all! Check out our top 10 comebacks at a protest (to keep it simple, let's say it's a pro-vegetarian protest). Keep in mind, there's no "right answer." Basically, you want to open the person's mind to the fact that animals suffer terribly and he or she can do something about it.

1. Comment: "What do you think about abortion?"
   Response: "I believe in protecting innocent life. That's why I'm vegetarian. If people did to dogs and cats the sorts of things that are done to animals on factory farms, they'd go to jail for cruelty to animals. Did you know that there's no legal protection for these animals?"
2. Comment: "I like chicken!"
   Response: "I didn't give up meat because I didn't like how it tastes. I gave it up because I saw how horribly animals suffered for my plate. Have you ever seen what happens on factory farms?"
3. Comment: "If God didn't want us to eat animals, why'd he make them so tasty?"
   Response: "That's funny. [Sometimes you say something's funny when really it's the most unimaginative and stupid thing that a person could say.] But you know, there are a lot of things that are really delicious that don't require animals to suffer and die. Have you ever seen how much animals are abused on factory farms?"
4. Comment: "We've always eaten meat."
   Response: "That's true. [You don't lose anything by affirming someone else's beliefs and it may make the person more receptive to your perspective.] But there are many things that we've done historically that we no longer think are OK. We used to think that slavery was OK, that it was OK to treat women like second-class citizens, and that it was OK to beat children, but we don't think any of those things are OK today. In the past, we didn't really understand other animals, but the more we learn about other animals, the more we see that they're very much like us, especially in their capacity to suffer. Do you see what I mean?"
5. Comment: "Animals eat each other, so why shouldn't we eat them?"
   Response: "I see your point, but we don't really take our moral cues from other animals, do we? Some animals fight territorial battles to the death, some eat their young, and some kill their partners after having sex. We don't follow animals in those behaviors, so why would we follow the behavior of some animals to eat other animals?"
6. Comment: "It's a free country, and people should be allowed to make choices. If you want to eat tofu, that's fine. I want to eat steak."
   Response: You're right: It is a free country. We're just saying that people should make informed choices. The meat industry isn't bending over backward to let consumers know where their meat comes from, so we're here to offer that information. The meat industry doesn't want you to know that animals are packed together so tightly on filthy factory farms that they often can't turn around or spread a single wing or take a single step. They don't want you to know that these animals take their first breath of fresh air when they're on the back of a truck headed to slaughter. Did you know there are no legal protections for animals on factory farms?"
7. Comment: "The Bible gives us dominion over animals."
   Response: "That's true. [Even if you don't believe in the Bible, there's no reason to take on the person's faith along with their dietary habits.] But The Queen of England has dominion over her subjects, and that doesn't give her the right to torture and kill them. 'Dominion' doesn't give us a right to do what we want to animals; it means that we should have reverence for them and protect them. Does this make sense?"
   Alternate Response: "That's true, but God endowed animals with certain abilities that are totally frustrated on today's factory farms. Animals are taken away from their mothers at birth. They're crowded into sheds and cages so tightly that they can't take one step or spread one wing. Surely, God didn't want His animals abused so hideously. Do you see my point?"
8. Comment: "What about the screaming broccoli, you plant-killing hypocrite?"
   Response: "I hear what you're saying. But surely you'll agree that there is a fundamental difference between tearing up a head of lettuce and bashing in a dog's head with a baseball bat. The ability to feel pain requires a brain, a central nervous system, and pain receptors. All mammals, birds, and fish have these things; plants do not. Animals feel pain, just as we do. As far as we know, plants don't. Would you agree?"
9. Comment: "It must be really boring to eat only vegan foods."
   Response: "I thought it might be boring, too, when I first went vegan, but I was surprised by the great variety of vegan foods. These days, with so much demand for healthy, delicious, cruelty-free foods, you don't have to give up anything in the way of taste or texture to go vegan. Whether you're looking for veggie burgers and dogs, faux-chicken patties, faux dairy products … even faux shrimp cocktail—it's out there. And there's a world of cuisines based around grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables. If you like to cook, you should definitely check out VegCooking.com for hundreds of great recipes!"
10. Comment: "Where do you get your protein?"
    Response: "I worried about protein when I first went vegan, but then I learned that vegetarian Americans get 150 percent of their recommended daily allowance of protein. Protein is in so many foods—beans, grains, tofu, faux meats, soy milk, and also a lot of vegetables and fruits. Plus, do you really know anyone with a protein deficiency?"

—Grace

Posted by Grace Friedan, Researcher

Update 12/22/2008: Donna Karan has announced that her fall 2009 lines will be fur-free and that she has "no plans" to use fur in the future! Read more.

I'm not quite sure what Sag Harbor Village, New York—a self-proclaimed "spiritually oriented" town—is thinking by welcoming Donna Karan into their peace circle. But they have, and they are allowing her to set up shop near the wharf. So amongst the yoga shops and raw-food eateries, there will soon be Urban Zen, DK's yoga-inspired store, which plans to sell DK's fashions, amongst other things. Catch the details here.

The nagging question on deck is: Why would someone so relentless in the promotion of fur and the killing of innocent animals for their skins have any interest in associating herself with yoga and its quintessential beliefs? One just doesn't seem to go with the other. Yoga is, after all, a spiritual awakening and a practice of love and nonviolence. (Forgive me for getting all "hippie" on you, but it is.)

Somehow, I just don't think the practice of yoga will cleanse the karma of a desperate, bunny-butchering fashion designer who continues to use real fur in her collections when there are so many great alternatives out there. There's no violence in yoga, DK. And there definitely isn't any peace for animals who are skinned alive and anally electrocuted for your clothes. However, we do have a suggestion for you to turn your bad karma good: Stop killing animals! I know, you've never heard that before, right?

—Jen

Posted by Jennifer Cierlitsky, Membership Correspondence Coordinator

The guy’s leading the charge to invigorate global warming advocacy, he’s consistently getting attention for the issue in the mainstream media, and he’s setting the agenda by which people think about global warming and its effect on our lives. So why the hell is PETA publicly rebuking him? Well, honestly, it’s for pretty much those same reasons. It’s great that he cares —; it really is — but for him to leave factory farming (i.e., the number one cause of the problem in the first place) out of the debate just because it doesn’t seem particularly convenient to him to have to reevaluate his lifestyle is irresponsible to a degree that’s almost unfathomable in light of the influence that he has on public opinion about this issue.

Of course, if you’ve been reading this blog more or less regularly, you will have already heard variations on this theme—but I’m bringing it up again today to highlight a really fantastic article by PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich in yesterday’s Huffington Post. Here’s an excerpt:

I think Bruce nails it with this one, so be sure to check out the full article here, and feel free to comment with your perspective. I know this issue’s a bit controversial, but it’s a vitally important discussion to have.

-Jack