PETA Germany, whose pleas to zoo officials to move Knut to a less stressful environment were ignored, has asked for a tribute to the tormented bear.  

PETA Germany wants to place this memorial plaque near the Brandenburg Gate. It reads, "Zoo: Not a single day in freedom, a life without dignity. Forgive us, Knut." 

Don't let the appeal of a specific animal blind you to the bleak lives they lead. If you care about animals, don't buy a ticket to any zoo.

Written by Jennifer O'Connor

Our lunch with Internet Soup has as many neat animals as Lunch With Soupy Sales, but nobody gets a pie in the face. We think he would still enjoy it anyway.

• Get your "Aww!" ready: baby polar bears at play.
• Just in case your cat needs to look something up.
• Harry Shum Jr. is Gleeful about his rescued pup.
• Norman the dog is perfecting his scooter skills before the next X Games.
• It's great how sharkingly friendly the Pacific Islands are.
• Creators of The Cove try to get people offboard.
• People are concerned that breast milk ice cream might have hepatitis. Cows respond, "Geez, if they only knew what's in ours …." 
• Guess what the 575-pound Heart Attack Grill spokesperson died of? (Hint: It's not what you think.)
• The Onion puts words in Michael Vick's mouth.
• Dior says "Galliano way" to a guy who was hurtful to people and animals alike.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Gaga's fashion-driven stunts are a feast for the imagination. The avant-garde, synth-pop superstar left me reeling after her spectacularly maniacal, glass-shattering AMA performance and the light-up get-up she rocked during it. I've had her new album on repeat ever since, and with the news that the polar bear coat Lady Gaga sets fire to in her epically trippy video for "Bad Romance" is cruelty-free (I was a bit concerned!), her tracks will forever dominate my shuffle. Fabulously faux, the coat was made by fur-free fashion designer Benjamin Cho in 2004 and was revamped specially for Gaga's video.

 

Haven't seen the video? Scroll to minute 4:30.

 

From her Kermit-crazy anti-fur commentary to the humane hotness of her "Bad Romance" video, Gaga's kooky couture makes the chart-topper a style genius and a kind role model, which is why we've asked her to take it all off to educate people about animals killed on fur farms. We're still waiting for her response, but we've already got some awesome ideas. Post-apocalyptic disco dreamscape, anyone?

Written by Logan Scherer

ClimateProgress / CC

... which is good for the polar bears, though not so good for us humans, as it’s the first time a species has made the list because its habitat is threatened by global warming. There’s more about that little tidbit on CNN.com. In the meantime, if you’re worried about the polar bears, the best thing you can do to help them out is to go vegetarian. I feel like I may have mentioned this point before on these pages, but it never hurts to say it again: Factory farming is the number 1 cause of global warming. Number 1. Like, top of the list.

So giving up meat helps polar bears. It also helps animals like cows, chickens, and pigs. Who also matter.