What happens in Vegas can land you in deep, um, craps, if it involves hurting an animal. A distraught woman called PETA to report that her neighbor was leaving his dog chained on his back porch, sometimes without water or shade from the sweltering Las Vegas sun. Animal control had received multiple calls about the dog, but it was only able to leave notices because the owner was always absent.
 

 
The woman continued to check on the dog, and one day, she found her with her chain tangled so tightly around exercise equipment that she could barely move. PETA alerted animal control to the dog's plight and demanded that she be seized. Officials took action, and now the happy pup is safe inside a cool kennel waiting for her forever home.
 

 
The dog's "lady luck" named her Yoshi and continues to check on her rescued friend regularly, bringing her treats and a bed to sleep on. As for Yoshi's owner, his luck ran out, and if he tries to get Yoshi back, he will face fines for cruelty. PETA is pushing for him to be fined regardless.
 

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Update: Since originally posting this, we were contacted by a representative of the family of two of the victims and asked to stop our campaign out of respect for the families. We are announcing that we are pulling the campaign out of deference to the family's wishes, although past victims of tragedies (and their families) have supported our educational campaigns. Our billboard was intended to turn a tragic and preventable occurrence into something positive by stopping further tragic and preventable heatstroke deaths. However, we understand the concerns of the family and will not be putting up our billboard in Sedona.

After a jury turned up the heat on self-help guru James Arthur Ray and convicted him of negligent homicide in connection with the deaths of three people who overheated in a Sedona, Arizona, sweat lodge, PETA hopes to erect a billboard in the sizzling Southwest town to remind people of the dangers dogs also face in the heat.
 

 
On a 90-degree day, the temperature inside a car can reach 160 degrees in 10 minutes. If you see a dog in a parked car on a warm day, call the police immediately. Don't leave until help arrives.    
 

Written by Jared Misner

According to The Smoking Gun Lady Gaga's caught in a new romance, and this one ain't so bad. The website got its hands on Gaga's latest concert rider, and the newest addition to it is a request for Yves vegan hot dogs. Maybe she’s trying to do right by Miss Piggy after wearing her boyfriend as a coat.

Written by Shawna Flavell

Mike Johnson - TheBusyBrain.com / CC by 2.0

Q: If "Happiness Is a Dead Animal," then what does that make a malnourished, exhausted, or mistreated animal?

A: A hot dog, according to the meat industry, which recently admitted that it uses dark, firm, and dry (DFD) meat—which "can be the result of prolonged stress in animals prior to slaughter, either because the animals have been underfed, or they are overly fatigued due to transportation and mishandling, or both"—to make "high-quality" products like hot dogs.

Makes perfect sense, right? If an animal is destined for slaughter, why bother treating him or her humanely when you can use his or her underfed and overly fatigued flesh to make hot dogs? I'm thinking that all the antibiotics, dioxins, and hormones that are loaded into meat have finally gotten to those industry officials' heads.

Instead of chowing down on DFD flesh, maybe they should try some DDF (that's "darn delicious faux") meat instead?

Written by Logan Scherer

When I was in high school, I took a peanut butter sandwich with me for lunch every day. Every. Single. Day. For four long years. My mother probably thought I was being stubborn just to annoy her, but the truth is that even before I stopped eating animals, I couldn't stomach the cafeteria's nauseating (and cholesterol-laden) options, such as greasy chicken nuggets and grayish-greenish Salisbury steak.

For lucky students at one Florida charter school, "mystery meat" is something they'll never have to suffer through. That's because the Alachua Learning Center only serves delicious vegetarian food, all of which is made daily from scratch. Not only is vegetarian food yummy, it's also healthy and is often cheaper than greasy, artery-clogging meat. More and more schools now serve vegetarian and vegan food—which is great news for kids and animals.

metrokids / CC

It can be tough to get kids to eat healthy meals, but I think black beans with corn and rice sounds way more appetizing than ground-up cow noses on a bun.

Written by Heather Drennan

Ladies and gentlemen, it's show time. We have a new video to add to our list of hard hitters—our "To Animals, It's Not Entertainment" video, which takes you behind the razzle-dazzle of the entertainment industry to let you witness the routine abuses that animals suffer in circuses and on film sets—abuses such as frequent beatings and solitary confinement in cages that are too small to allow the prisoners to turn around or take a single step in any direction.

After you've checked that out, take a minute to tune in to "Meet Your Meat" and learn about the mechanized madness that animals endure before they are killed and ground up for hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken nuggets; "Testing … One, Two, Three," which shows the ways that cruel and dangerous animal experiments hurt animals and people; and "Whose Skin Are You In?" which exposes the cruelty involved in the leather, wool, fur, and exotic-skins industries.

These videos pack punches. After you've watched them all, leave a comment letting us know which one inspired you to take action.

Written by Karin Bennett