A PETA member found a fun way for her little car to send a big message in the Big Apple.

New York resident Emily McCoy wants NYC to go v-e-g to save animals and the planet. Switching to a vegan diet is easier than navigating bridge-and-tunnel traffic and more effective in preventing climate change than switching to a hybrid car. So we can have our vegan cake and our classic cars too.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

It just got harder to get away with cowardly acts of cruelty to animals. In New York City, abusers were recently convicted in two separate cases because DNA evidence from their victims linked them to their crimes. One case involved a cat named Scruffy who was doused in lighter fluid and set on fire, leaving the cat severely burned down to the muscles in his legs. The other case involved a cat named Madea, who was beaten so viciously that her lungs were lacerated and she had to be euthanized.

Collecting and using animals' DNA to convict abusers is becoming more common among law-enforcement agencies. Authorities now even have a national DNA database of dogs used in fights to help them track down dogfighters. Penalties for cruelty to animals get harsher every year. And as more people become aware of "the link"—animal  abusers' tendency to take their issues out on human victims as well—more people are coming forward and notifying authorities of cruelty, even when it means blowing the whistle on a friend or family member.

DNA testing wasn’t necessary to convict Big Girl’s abuser. PETA staffers found her, barely breathing, right in his backyard

 
If you suspect an animal is being abused, call the authorities right away. Animals can’t be saved—and their abusers can’t be brought to justice—if no one reports the crime.

Why were horses still pulling carriages through dangerously icy and snowy New York City streets after Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared a weather emergency? The city was buried in more than a foot and a half of snow, prompting the mayor to plead with motorists to stay off the streets so that plows could get through, yet carriage operators were out soliciting customers. Even without the severe conditions, New York's streets are dangerous for horses: NYC has the highest carriage accident rate in the country.

Donny Moss, who documented the cruel conditions that horses endure in NYC's carriage industry in Blinders: The Truth Behind the Tradition, took these photos of horses who were on the streets during the emergency. Even the horses' water trough was buried under snow.

The ASPCA—the agency that monitors the carriages and enforces anti-cruelty laws—told callers that the rides were suspended, yet horses were still working the streets. Please ask the ASPCA under what conditions the horses are protected.

Please, never, ever take a carriage ride in New York City or anywhere else that these cruel operations still exist.

Written by Jennifer O'Connor

On Tuesday, the New York City Council passed two vital bills—one that bans the chaining of dogs for longer than three hours and another that nearly triples the licensing fees for unaltered animals. Both these measures will undoubtedly spare countless dogs and cats an enormous amount of suffering.

Project Runway's Tim Gunn and comedian Joan Rivers had both championed the bills on PETA's behalf. In a strongly worded letter to the City Council, Rivers wrote, "I hope this Tethering Bill passes not just for the sake of the poor dogs tied up outside in the cold, but for the sake of the sons of b*****s who do this—because what I'd do to the creeps would be far worse than what any police officer would do!"

Councilmember Christine C. Quinn expressed her support in less colorful terms. "Tethering an animal for an extended period of time is cruel and unusual," she said. "This bill will not only prevent this type of unnecessary cruelty, but also increase public safety for pedestrians throughout the City."

The law makes New York City one of more than 100 localities throughout the U.S. that have restricted or banned chaining. You can help by working to get a chaining ban passed in your town.

Glee actor and PETA supporter Lea Michele is once again showing that she's got a heart to match her lovely voice by calling for an end to the "dangerous" and "scary" horse-drawn carriage industry in new video and print PSAs for PETA. Horses who are forced to pull carriages endure long workdays while exposed to extreme temperatures and dangerous traffic and are often denied adequate rest, water, and food.

Lea sat down for an interview with PETA to discuss the miserable conditions that she's seen these animals endure, and she hopes that others will join her in the campaign to shut down the horse-drawn carriage industry.

This isn't the first time that Lea has spoken out for horses—she appeared in another PETA ad against the horse-drawn carriage industry back when she was starring in Spring Awakening on Broadway and saw horses toiling at New York's Central Park. The multitalented star is also a vegan (she credits her healthy diet with giving her the energy to keep up with her bubbly Glee character, Rachel) and is a vocal opponent of fur. 

Written by Michelle Sherrow

PETA pal Joan Rivers is using her unmistakable voice to support two important dog-related bills that are under consideration by the New York City Council. Today, Joan fired off a letter to City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, expressing her support for bills that would encourage New Yorkers to get lifesaving spay and neuter surgeries for their dogs and would protect dogs from being chained up like old bicycles for longer than three hours in any 12-hour period.

Check out what Joan has to say about people who force their dogs to live outdoors in the cold!

Fur-free fashion guru Tim Gunn also sent a personal note to Speaker Quinn in favor of these bills, so support is building. If you live in the Big Apple, be sure to encourage your City Council member to vote in favor of these vital bills!

Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post

Yoga devotee Donna Karan is going to have to spend a lot of time meditating with her eyes closed if she hopes to miss the hundreds of posters plastered all over Manhattan that point out the designer's less-than-enlightened use of rabbit fur in her fashions.

Those same posters recently put in an appearance outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Karan was cohosting the "Change Begins Within" benefit.

That's right, Donna. Change begins within—and charity begins at home. It seems like it would be a good idea to put your own (fashion) house in order if you want to try to show others the path to spiritual healing.

Written by Alisa Mullins

bludgeoner86/CC by 2.0

I think it's time for me to pay a visit to my best friend in New York City. It's not just that I love seeing her smiling face (or that she's an awesome cook)—it's because I want to go to 7-Eleven.

Yep, 7-Eleven. As if the scores of vegan-friendly restaurants in the Big Apple weren't enough, now eight 7-Eleven locations in NYC are offering vegan options including artichoke-spinach noodles, vegetable lo mein, and dumplings. Wow!

And you thought that Slurpees were enough of a reason to go to 7-Eleven! It's a sign of the times. One day, when this trend spreads nationwide, people will be discussing where to go for dinner with their friends and everyone will excitedly shout, "7-Eleven!" Who'd have thunk that 10 years ago? Three cheers for 7-Eleven!

Written by Heather Moore

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jillclardy/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Well, it's not the law of our dreams, but we're happy to report that one part of a bill that has just been passed in New York City (and maybe just the one part) should improve living conditions for horses who are used to pull carriages. Under the new legislation, carriage operators are required to provide horses with larger stalls in which they can finally turn around and lie down (the current stalls couldn't be smaller unless you built them through the horses' flanks) as well as to allow the horses to come off the roads and spend five weeks out of every year at a stable with a paddock or a pasture.

A hike in fares has also been enacted. It probably won't make a difference, but it might decrease the number of misguided tourists who want to take horses for a ride. After all, it's the animals who pay the ultimate price in this money-hungry industry: Horses are forced to pull heavy loads in all weather extremes while walking on hard pavement, dodging loud traffic, and inhaling exhaust fumes that cause damage to their lungs comparable to that which heavy smokers experience. Does that sound even remotely romantic to you?

Anyone who has seen or thought about this wretched excuse for amusement knows that it's past time for the horse-drawn carriage industry to be put out to pasture permanently. Tel Aviv has done it, and now it's time for New York to do it. Please join us in asking New York City officials to ban horse-drawn carriages as a blight on the city. Thanks!

Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lecates/ / CC BY 2.0

Showing cruelty of gastronomical proportions, restaurants in Queens (Sik Gaek and East Seafood Restaurant) are chopping up and serving live octopuses to customers. Octopuses have their tentacles cut off while they are still conscious and are then served, writhing, while their hearts are still beating. Others are slowly steamed alive in front of customers before their tentacles and upper bodies are cut into small pieces with scissors.

Since we can't "release the Kraken" on these animal abusers, we're unleashing our legal team on the district attorney—calling on the DAs to file cruelty charges against the restaurants. Because octopuses have sophisticated nervous systems and feel pain just as acutely as mammals do, we feel that the restaurants' practices clearly violate the state's anti-cruelty statute.

Recently, octopuses were observed carrying around coconut shells to use as shelter—making these complex cephalopods the first known invertebrate animals to use tools. These "deep" thinkers are also fond of decorating. They decorate their dens with bottle caps, stones, and other objects that they find on the ocean floor. They are so smart that they can also learn how to do things such as unscrew jars by watching someone else do it—once!

Let's hope that the district attorney in this case is just as smart and sentient. You can call or fax the Queens County District Attorney's Office and politely ask that they take action against these restaurateurs. We'll keep you posted. Until then, take this octopus-inspired poll.

Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth