We're delighted to announce a crucial victory in PETA's AirCruelty campaign. This morning, China Eastern Airlines informed PETA that as of March 1, 2013, it will no longer ship primates to laboratories to be used in experiments!  

This ends the export of monkeys from China for use in laboratories! Prior to this exciting development, the majority of primates imported into the United States for experimental use were from China—in 2012, more than 10,000 primates destined for U.S. laboratories came from China. After both China Southern and Air China stopped primate shipments for experiments following pressure from PETA, China Eastern was left as the sole transporter of monkeys from that country to laboratories. Its compassionate new policy means that animal experimenters are left without a single airline to transport primates from China and PETA has now been successful in shutting down this market.

In recent months, PETA had stepped up pressure on China Eastern by encouraging our members and supporters to contact the airline via phone and e-mail. More than 100,000 of you took action. (Thank you!) Local activists with Empty Cages Los Angeles and other groups also helped increase pressure recently by conducting protests at China Eastern offices around the world.

What You Can Do

This is an important advance in keeping primates away from experimenters, but PETA won't rest until these smart and sensitive animals are safe once and for all—and we hope you're in it for the long haul, too! Please urge the last three remaining holdouts to follow China Eastern's example and adopt a formal policy prohibiting the transport of primates destined for laboratories.

Pro athletes don't do anything halfway. So studly New York Jets safety Bret Lockett wasn't content simply to pose with a strategically placed faux-leather football for his PETA anti-fur campaign. Instead, he decided to play spread offense and turn his ad unveiling into a whole weekend. First, he helped PETA dedicate our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters to longtime supporter and Hollywood heavyweight Sam Simon. 

Later that evening, Bret hosted an unveiling party at Hampton Roads hotspot the Granby Theater, greeted fans, and talked about why fur should be sidelined. "What really hurt me was when I saw that an animal was still able to move and lift [his] head up after he was completely skinned," he said. "It brought tears to my eyes."

© Charles Long Photography/PETA

And the next night, he went with the PETA gang to laugh aloud as Bill Maher made fun of hunters and other animal abusers in his stand-up performance. All weekend, wherever he went, Bret dined on vegan food, sported PETA T-shirts, and enthusiastically discussed animal rights issues with fans who approached him.

It's easy to see why No. 26 is No. 1 for animals.

PETA's Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters has a new moniker—the Sam Simon Center—in honor of entertainment giant Sam Simon, the multiple Emmy Award–winning co-creator of The Simpsons and the writing genius behind hit shows like Taxi, Barney Miller, Cheers, The Tracey Ullman Show, The Drew Carey Show, and Charlie Sheen's new FX series, Anger Management. Accompanied by a Dixieland jazz band, Simon arrived by boat to cut the ribbon at a dedication ceremony today, which was also attended by New York Jets safety Bret Lockett and other luminaries, including the glamorous Jennifer Tilly, TV host and producer Mark Thompson, and World Series of Poker champion Phil Laak.

Simon, who serves on PETA's Executive Committee, has been a vegetarian since he was 19 and a vegan since joining PETA years later. He is known for his work with The Sam Simon Foundation, which rescues dogs from shelters and trains them to help soldiers who return from war with physical and mental trauma. He attacks animal homelessness at its roots by sponsoring spay and neuter surgeries in low-income areas of Los Angeles. He also helped PETA launch our newest mobile spay-and-neuter clinic and hosts annual PETA fundraisers at his home in L.A.

Perhaps because he works in the entertainment industry, the plight of animals in entertainment is especially close to Simon's heart. He is an outspoken opponent of cruelty in circuses, roadside zoos, and marine parks, and he recently attended a PETA news conference with Bob Barker to call attention to the plight of animals on TV and movie sets. "[I]f you can't afford the CGI [computer-generated imagery], either do a rewrite," he said, "or do a cartoon show like I did."

Simon once donated his fee for an episode of The Drew Carey Show to PETA because the plot involved greyhound racing, and he felt that he could not in good conscience keep the money. As if he's not busy enough, Simon also hosts a weekly Friday Internet radio show on Radioio.com in which he always keeps animal issues in the spotlight.

"Sam Simon may be a big Hollywood figure, but it's his big heart that makes him a PETA soulmate," said PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk.

How tweet it is: Ricky Martin announced to fans over Twitter that he's gone vegetarian! To help the singer get his bon-bon in top form, PETA sent him a vegetarian/vegan starter kit, copies of "Glass Walls" in both English and Spanish, and a cookbook of vegan recipes for Latin food lovers, Viva Vegan. 

A little birdie also told us that many other celebrities were tweeting for animals this week as well:

Maybe Ricky will start his twin sons out on the healthy veggie path, too? Emily Deschanel is doing just that with her little one, Henry: She told Mother Nature Network, "We are raising Henry vegetarian; he will be mostly vegan and always have a choice in the matter, but we will educate him about why we make the choices we do with our food." 

And vegan racecar driver Leilani Münter is putting her cause célèbre on the fast track. After the success of her Cove–themed racecar last season, this year Leilani is aiming to burn rubber in a vegan-themed car that will expose 80 million NASCAR fans to the benefits of plant-based foods.

After we're done cheering for Leilani, we'll be switching the channel over to this season of Dancing With the Stars to root for our buds Andy Dick and Kellie Pickler. 

And when the cameras were pointed at Russell Simmons during New York Fashion Week, they may have gotten more than they bargained for. One of animals' greatest defenders, Simmons took the opportunity to express his feelings about fur:

To keep up with what Russell and all your favorite stars are doing for animals, follow @PETA on Twitter. 

Whether the new month is coming in like a lion or a lamb, March 1 is National Pig Day, which, according to its cofounder, has been set aside "to accord the pig its rightful, though generally unrecognized, place" as a smart and social animal. George Clooney and his dear departed companion pig would agree.

And while there are plenty of great ways to celebrate our curly-tailed pals, none of them involves eating pork. Pigs raised and killed for meat spend their entire lives in cramped, filthy warehouses under the constant stress of intense confinement and are denied everything that is natural and important to them before being violently slaughtered.

Now, some folks would like you to believe that you can have your (nonfakin') bacon and a clear conscience, too—but that's a bigger load of, um, manure than even a factory farm generates. Long story short: There is no such thing as "humane meat."

But here's PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk to explain that (and read a cute poem):

The good news is that March is also the month for the annual observance of Meatout, so there's no better time than right now to kick the cruelty habit in favor of healthy and humane vegan foods—and PETA can help you get started! 

The pomp and pageantry of the Westminster dog show is over. Many of the dogs have been shipped back to their breeders after living in their handlers' crates for years. Now, the females will be forced to bear litter after litter of puppies, only to have them all taken away to be sold. Every year following Westminster, there is a rush to buy dogs of the winning breed and other "designer dogs" who appeared on the screen. And breeders and pet stores are happy to oblige, taking as many orders as they can get and raking in money hand over fist.

In an industry in which dogs are viewed as commodities, their health and well-being matter less than the bottom line. To minimize expenses, breeders and puppy mills commonly warehouse breeder dogs in tiny, filthy cages; deny them veterinary care; and repeatedly get them pregnant, until the dogs can no longer produce puppies—at which point, they are often auctioned off, discarded at shelters, or killed.

Just this month, in yet another horror story, authorities raided a breeder and dog-show judge's home and found 38 dogs living in small crates that were caked with feces and fur. The cages were piled on top of one another in the dark basement, and a radio blared to drown out the sound of barking. Many of the dogs were malnourished and suffering from eye diseases and severe periodontal disease. They were so sick that 13 of them had to be euthanized immediately.

People who buy dogs from breeders or pet stores keep these puppy pimps in business. They also kill a shelter dog's chance at a home. Please, urge anyone you know who is considering buying a dog to adopt instead.

Whether counseling celebrities (including PETA pal Courtney Stodden) on VH1's Couples Therapy, offering advice to callers on her SiriusXM radio show, penning bestselling books, or working with patients in her private practice, marriage, family, and child therapist Dr. Jenn Berman has helped bring many families closer together.

Now, in an exclusive interview with PETA, Dr. Jenn explains why raising vegan kids has proved to be a winning approach for her own family:

The soundness of Dr. Jenn's family plan is supported by another famous family doctor—acclaimed pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock—who explained in his classic book, Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care, that children raised on plant foods "are less likely to develop weight problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, and some forms of cancer."

No matter whether you have kids, grandkids, or "fur kids" or just remain a kid at heart, eating delicious vegan food is the ideal prescription for animals, for your health, and for our planet. 

For more information about raising kind, responsible children and living with compassion, check out PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk's book Making Kind Choices. 

The 2013 Iditarod dogsled race is approaching, and it has been preceded by a string of canine deaths in other races, illustrating yet again why PETA works to stop this miserable "sport," which can be grueling and even deadly for the animals forced to pull heavy loads over long distances at high speeds, often in extreme weather conditions.

But what you might not know is that the dogs used for pulling sleds live miserable lives off the trail, too. When they aren't pulling heavy sleds, they're often tethered by short chains to plastic doghouses or ramshackle sheds, living on small patches of dirt amid their own urine and feces. Chained dogs are at the mercy of the elements and susceptible to attacks by dangerous wildlife. Recently, for instance, a pack of chained dogs used for pulling sleds in Alaska was attacked by a musk ox.

Many dog-sledding operators shamelessly admit that, to them, dogs are little more than disposable "equipment" and are often denied adequate food, shelter, veterinary care, and even humane euthanasia. The following are just a few examples:

• In April 2010, 100 dogs had their throats slit or were shot when a sled operator no longer needed them.
• In 2009, 100 dogs were found emaciated, chained, and near death in Québec, Canada, and three dead dogs who had been used for sledding were found chained to stakes and frozen to the ground in Canada's Northwest Territory.
• In April 2008, a Montana dog-sledding operator pleaded guilty to cruelty to animals after abandoning 33 chained dogs and allowing them to starve.
• In May 2006, authorities in British Columbia seized 51 emaciated, dehydrated, and sick dogs from a kennel that provided dogs for sledding.
  • In 2005, Krabloonik Kennels in Colorado—the largest dog-sledding operation in the continental U.S.—generated a considerable public outcry when its manager admitted that dogs who didn't "work out" were killed by a gunshot to the head and dumped into a waste pit. Krabloonik's manager shrugged off the killings, saying, "[Culling dates] back hundreds of years. This is nothing new. … This is part of the circle of life for the dog-sled dog."

What You Can Do

Like our adored animal companions, dogs used for pulling sleds are highly social pack animals who need to be part of a family, not treated like snowmobiles with fur. Please help them by sharing the above photo on Facebook and Twitter—especially with any friends or family members who might be inclined to support the cruel and deadly Iditarod.

Today is World Spay Day, which people celebrate by leafleting, assisting at low-cost spay-and-neuter clinics, and doing their part to combat the animal-homelessness crisis. Of course, for PETA's Mobile Clinics Division, every day is Spay Day. The clinics travel to underserved areas surrounding PETA's Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters seven days a week to provide low-cost spay and neuter surgeries and vaccinations—and we even supply transportation to and from appointments when necessary.

Here are just a handful of the animals the clinics have helped recently:

1. 

Tyga lives indoors, but she had somehow managed to become pregnant before her PETA clinic appointment. Still, we were able to spay her in time, before she could bring more puppies into a world already overwhelmed with animals who need good homes.

2. 

We aren't sure who's more adorable, Mese or her human. But one thing's certain: They are both definitely happier since we drove Mese to our clinic and spayed her for free.

3. 

Puddin' is just as sweet as his name would suggest, and making sure that he got neutered was pretty sweet, too.

4. 

We spayed Lexie's sister in December, and that dog's guardians recommended our services so highly that we ended up sterilizing the entire litter!

So far this year, the clinics have spayed or neutered 1,672 animals! Considering that one unaltered female dog and her offspring and their offspring and their offspring, etc., can produce 67,000 puppies in just six years and that in seven years, one unaltered female cat and her offspring, etc., can produce 370,000 kittens, we were able to prevent hundreds of thousands of unwanted animals from being born.

Spay Day is the perfect opportunity to sponsor a surgery at one of PETA's clinics or learn how you can volunteer to help get animals in your own area spayed and neutered—and help make every day Spay Day. 

Update: PETA has filed a lawsuit against the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets under the state's Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) seeking records relating to Adirondack Farms, LLC—the subject of last year's undercover PETA investigation that revealed routine abuse and neglect of cows (see below for details).

© Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals

Despite these abuses, the department certified Adirondack under its Cattle Health Assurance Program, which is meant to protect the health and welfare of cows on dairy farms. Records relating to a farm's participation in this program are supposed to be open to the general public under FOIL, but the department has improperly denied PETA access to many of these records. Since this information is of vital interest to anyone who wants to see farmed animals treated with the respect and care that they deserve, PETA was left with no choice but to sue to obtain the withheld records.

Originally posted on April 11, 2012:

The dairy farm manager who repeatedly electro-shocked a cow in the face and brushed off the fact that his workers hit cows with poles and canes by saying that they sometimes "get carried away" is still employed as a manager at the farm—a month after PETA notified the farm's owners of the cruelty and released video evidence of the abuse.

More Cruelty Caught on Video

The same manager at Adirondack Farms, LLC, in Peru, New York, was recorded jabbing a downed cow in the ribs with a screwdriver and dragging her behind a skid steer. He cursed at her—calling her a "dumb b***h" and asking how the "f**k" she was unable to stand. You may remember that this man stated that when a cow's uterus prolapses during calving, workers simply "put [the uterus] back in and hope she lives … long enough for the beef truck to come get her."

Farm Silent on Ending Abuse

Before we went public with the video footage that we gathered during our undercover investigation, we asked the farm's owners to take immediate disciplinary action, including termination, against the employees who were documented abusing animals. We gave the owners a detailed list of men and explained what they did. We followed up. Four weeks later, the owners remain silent. Even after eye-opening news reports on the case, neither Adirondack Farms nor Agri-Mark, the company that it supplies with milk, has announced taking a single meaningful step to improve their animal welfare standards. And that this manager is still on the job at the farm suggests that it's cruel business as usual there and beyond in the dairy industry.

What You Can Do

•  Urge Agri-Mark CEO Dr. Richard Stammer  to implement PETA's recommendations immediately to end the most egregious abuses of cows on cooperative members' farms.  
• Send a polite e-mail to Jon Rulfs, an owner of Adirondack Farms, LLC, asking him to discipline and/or terminate the employees PETA documented hitting, whipping, shocking, jabbing, dragging, and neglecting his cows.
• For calcium without the cruelty, check out PETA's list of delicious dairy replacements. 

We love Jimmy Fallon around here. He's funny but not mean, has a keen musical sense, and is still boyishly charming. He's totally adorbs. So what's not to like? Well, there is one thing we'd change—and PETA has sent Jimmy a letter explaining why.

© StarMaxInc.com

For some inexplicable reason, a frequent guest on Late Night has been animal exhibitor Jeff Musial. Unlike the amiable Mr. Fallon, Musial is unlikeable, disrespectful, and clearly more interested in scaring Jimmy and giving the audience cheap laughs than taking care of the animals he treats like props. Musial handles the animals roughly, causing them additional anxiety in an already stressful situation.

So, what gives, Jimmy? After staying up late to watch you, we want to go to bed with a smile, not toss and turn with nightmares about cruelty to animals. And we're not alone: PETA has received many complaints from viewers who were upset by how Musial mishandles terrified animals. We really hope that you'll make the compassionate decision never again to feature Musial's squalid animal act on Late Night.

What You Can Do

Animals and showbiz go together like gasoline and matches—a disaster waiting to happen. Please never support any animal act by buying a ticket.

Update: Today, The Washington Post ran a cover story highlighting PETA's efforts to stop the U.S. military from killing thousands of goats and pigs each year in crude medical training drills. As the newspaper points out, a bill that was signed into law last month requires the Department of Defense to submit to Congress by the end of this week a detailed strategy and timeline for the phase-out of these deadly exercises. This is the first time in history that Congress has passed a bill that protects animals from abuse in military training exercises. Please take a moment to write to the Department of Defense and urge it to act quickly to phase out these barbaric exercises.

Originally posted on January 4th: 

The year has just begun, but already 2013 has seen an exciting first for animals! President Barack Obama has just signed into law a bill that requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to create a strategy for replacing the shooting, stabbing, and dismembering of animals in military training drills with non-animal methods. This is the first time in history that Congress has passed a bill that seeks to protect animals from being abused in military training exercises.

tintedglass | cc by 2.0 

The Camera Shot Seen 'Round the World

Last year, people were outraged when PETA released disturbing, never-before-seen undercover footage showing live goats as they were stabbed, had their organs yanked out, and had their limbs broken and cut off with tree trimmers during a military training drill, all while the animals moaned and kicked.

Multitudes of you contacted your representatives demanding that these archaic forms of "training" end and that the abusers who were caught on video be held accountable. You won. Under a provision in the newly signed National Defense Authorization Act, the secretary of defense has less than two months to present Congress with a strategy for phasing out the use of animals in trauma training. And the people who were caught on camera abusing goats were cited for violations of the Animal Welfare Act. 

Dummies Are Smarter

High-profile military veterans Oliver Stone, Bob Barker, and Gideon Raff have all joined you in asking the DOD to modernize its training program by replacing its deadly animal laboratories with more reliable methods such as human-patient simulators. These realistic models can breathe, bleed, talk, and even "die," and trainees can perform procedures on them over and over again until they master lifesaving skills.

While this monumental law requires the secretary of defense to create a plan to phase out the use of animals, it does not mandate a specific date by which animal training methods must end. Help us keep the pressure on by e-mailing the secretary of defense and other DOD and Department of Homeland Security officials and urging them to switch to superior non-animal training methods immediately.

As Hollywood's brightest arrived at last night's Academy Awards, they were sure to be asked, "Who are you wearing?" But the real story is who they weren't wearing since cruelly produced animal fur was noticeably absent from the red carpet once again. 

© StarMaxInc.com

The lovely Anne Hathaway won a well-deserved Oscar for her heart-rending performance in Les Miserables, but this vegan superstar is a winner for animals every day. Anne has been turning it out all through awards season, and this time was no exception, landing solidly on best-dressed lists in custom vegan heels from Giuseppe Zanotti. That no animals lost their skin to the leather trade for her look gives us even more reason to cheer the spectacular success that Anne calls "the cherry on top of a wonderful, wonderful dish of vegan ice cream."

Although his pro-fish ad for PETA was deemed too controversial for the Oscar broadcast, Best Actor nominee Joaquin Phoenix was also on the scene. Indeed, PETA faves abounded both inside and outside the Dolby Theatre, from Best Actress nominee and vegan Jessica Chastain and animal adoption advocate Charlize Theron (who showed off some impressive dance skills during the show) to the stunning anti-fur crusader Olivia Munn and a glowing Jenna Dewan-Tatum. The media stars in attendance included PETA pals Kelly Osbourne and Michael Strahan.

So congratulations to the winners—including the animals who didn't end up on the shapely shoulders and elegant tootsies of the attendees!

Two PETA staffers were delivering straw bedding to cold "outdoor dogs" in rural Virginia when they spotted a thin young beagle dangerously close to the highway. The staffers had barely gotten out of the car when the friendly dog came bounding up to them. He was wearing a collar with a phone number, so the staffers called the owner after first taking the pup back to PETA's Norfolk headquarters for a much-needed warm bath and good meal.

The man said that he no longer wanted the dog—whom he had never even bothered to name—because, as the saying goes, "That dog don't hunt." (It's not uncommon for hunters simply to abandon unwanted dogs.) But the owner was willing to drive an hour and a half to our headquarters to retrieve the dog's collar.

PETA staffers knew that the gentle dog with the soulful eyes would make someone an ideal animal companion. Not long after he was vaccinated, neutered, treated for Lyme disease and internal parasites, and put up for adoption, Augie found his perfect forever home with a PETA staffer and his family.

The staffer has a 14-year-old son who is now Augie's best friend. And Augie comes to work at the PETA office, brightening everyone's days with his buoyant personality.

As it turned out, the dog who had been cast aside because he wasn't a good hunter had no trouble sniffing out a lovely new life. 

Los Angeles' STAPLES Center will become the city's vegetarian center when Morrissey plays there March 1. The music legend has asked that no "flesh as food" be served at his shows, but fans will have plenty of festive fare, including vegan sloppy Joes, vegan sushi, and grilled veggie sandwiches, to munch on while they rock out to "Meat Is Murder." And as an extra nod to animals, Moz also required that McCruelty shutter its doors for the day.

© StarMaxInc.com

Beyoncé took a page out of Morrissey's songbook when she wanted to drop her baby weight. Bey started eating one vegan meal a day, and she's kept it up. Maybe since she's eating fewer animals, she'll consider wearing fewer animals, too?

That's what PETA is asking the Buffalo Sabres to do. When the hockey team started awarding the "player of the game" with a fur coat, we wrote to the Sabres' owner, Terry Pegula, urging him to do away with these vile gifts as the team scrambles to reinvent itself as winners after the highly publicized firing of head coach Lindy Ruff.

Usually it's Canadian sealers that seals have to worry about, but recently two young women were caught on camera hitting and kicking seals who were resting on a California beach. People were outraged, and Ian Somerhalder, along with many others, took to Twitter to defend the seals as well as other animals:

Miley Cyrus is always full of sweet tweets, so of course, she and dad Billy Ray Cyrus were on board to compete in the Twitter for the Critters Celebrity Challenge, a Twitter competition that is raising money for several animal shelters and sanctuaries.

Soon Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith's household may rival Miley's in number of rescued dogs. The couple adopted two Labrador-shepherd mixes, a brother and sister. PETA helped welcome the pups to their new home with toys, treats, and a copy of Let's Have a Dog Party! 

Fellow screen legend James Cromwell has also had an exciting month. He was arrested while helping PETA disrupt a meeting at the University of Wisconsin–Madison to protest the school's painful and deadly experiments on cats. Then he joined awesome animal advocate Jane Velez-Mitchell on her show to publicize the school's crimes against cats even more.

To keep up with what all your favorite stars are doing for animals, follow @PETA on Twitter. 

From Abigail Adams' dogs, Juno and Satan, to Bo Obama, the animal companions who live at the White House become such a part of our country's collective culture (there is even a Presidential Pet Museum!) that everyone, regardless of political affiliation, mourns their passing.

When we heard that President George W. Bush's dog Barney, famous for his annual "BarneyCam" Christmas videos, died, PETA sent a letter of condolence to the Bush family, mentioning that a leaf with Barney's name engraved on it would be added to the Tree of Life memorial sculpture at our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters:

PETA received this gracious response from President Bush:

Whether you're an ordinary Joe (or Jane) or the leader of the free world, when a dog takes hold of your heart, it's the start of something very special. Make sure that your dogs know just how special they are to you before they turn off the lights forever by treating them right—and that includes making a proper fuss over them on a regular basis.

Pretty, pleasant Pia Toscano bears a striking resemblance to another PETA pal—Lea Michele—and the similarities don't stop at their lovely faces, with voices to match and rhyming monikers. Like Lea, Pia jumped at the chance to use her platform to help stop cruelty to animals.

In her debut single, "This Time," Pia bids a powerful adieu to a bad boyfriend. And she thinks it's time that everyone broke up with two businesses that are bad for animals: the fur industry and circuses. 

In an exclusive interview with PETA, Pia expounded, "It was very difficult for me to watch the videos on how fur coats are made and how these animals are brutally beaten and skinned alive. There's no excuse for that." And when talk turned to the circus, she was quick to express her disgust. "I'm a performer, and I make a conscious decision every time I get up on that stage to do what I love, but these animals, they don't have a choice, they don't have a voice, and they are not choosing this lifestyle." 

Since animals don't get to choose not to be forced to perform or killed for their fur, as Pia notes, it's up to us to add our voices to the ever-growing chorus of people speaking up for them.

"Tell all your friends I'm kind." That's what 6-year-old Catherine Hubbard used to say to insects, in the hope that they would all feel welcome and safe, according to her mother, Jenny. The thoughtful, introspective redhead was one of the 26 children and educators tragically gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in December.

To honor Catherine, PETA is inscribing a leaf on the Tree of Life monument at our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters that reads:

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

CATHERINE VIOLET HUBBARD

FRIEND TO ALL ANIMALS

Catherine loved to watch baby birds in their nests and reveled in having butterflies land on her. She doted on her beloved rabbit, Flopsy, and would help her elderly, arthritis-stricken dog, Samantha, to her feet when she struggled. Before Catherine's funeral, her parents asked that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to The Animal Center in Newtown, an organization that rescues homeless animals and provides them with foster care. So far, more than $200,000 has been donated in Catherine's name. Catherine had dreamed of establishing her own animal shelter one day, and The Animal Center plans to use the money raised in her name to build the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary, where children can visit and learn about animals rescued from abusive situations.

Each of us can pay tribute to Catherine by trying to live like she would—by taking a stray cat to a shelter, stopping to help a turtle cross the road, or walking a neighbor's dog. These are the kinds of things that Catherine would do if she were here—and the things she would teach others to do by her example.

PETA invites parents who want to raise compassionate kids like Catherine to visit PETAKids.com. And urge your kids to take a page from Catherine's book and tell all their friends that they're kind.

More good news on the international product testing front: After discussions with PETA, Pangea Organics is ending all sales of its products in China, where animal tests for cosmetics are required. For choosing principles over profits and vowing not to pay for animal tests anywhere in the world, PETA is proud to honor Pangea Organics with our Courage in Commerce Award.

© iStockPhoto.com/zoshyii 

Pangea Organics has been a member of PETA's Beauty Without Bunnies program and will stay on PETA's cruelty-free list along with more than 1,300 cosmetics companies and personal-care and household products companies that are committed to compassion.

Pangea joins a growing list of companies that are choosing to stay true to their cruelty-free roots. Last year, Paul Mitchell Systems became the first company to pull out of China rather than harming animals after learning from PETA that selling in that country would mean painful and deadly tests on animals, and other companies, such as Dermalogica, have followed suit. Urban Decay also reversed its decision to enter the Chinese market after hearing from thousands of PETA supporters. And NYX, Paula's Choice, Yes To Carrots, and Jack Black have all said, "No, thanks!" to the Chinese market until tests on animals are no longer required—and that day is coming closer. PETA is helping to fund the efforts of the Institute for In Vitro Sciences, which is working to help Chinese scientists and government officials accept superior, non-animal methods, and China is poised to approve its first non-animal test. 

Please help us congratulate Pangea Organics, and show your support for cruelty-free living by using PETA's brand-new global Cruelty-Free Shopping Guide every time you shop! Order a free copy or use PETA's Beauty Without Bunnies database to find compassionate companies that refuse to pay for animal tests anywhere in the world.  

It is with deep sadness that we report the passing of Pat Derby, the former animal trainer who saw the error of the entertainment industry's ways and spent the rest of her life helping captive animals by providing them with safe havens at her three spacious Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) sanctuaries in California. Pat died at her home on Friday.

Pat assisted PETA with many of our campaigns, most recently by providing Ben, the bear we pried out of the clutches of the abysmal Jambbas Ranch, with a permanent home. I defy you not to tear up at footage of Ben splashing happily in a pond at a PAWS sanctuary after spending years in a cramped, barren cage:

In 2007, PAWS also opened its gates to Maggie, a wild-caught African elephant who spent 24 years largely confined to a concrete barn at the Alaska Zoo—10 of those years alone after the zoo's other elephant died. Maggie reportedly collapsed twice in one week and had to be hoisted to her feet with the aid of a winch. She was then suspended in a sling to prevent her from collapsing again. After years of pressure from PETA, the zoo finally allowed her to be moved to a more suitable climate and to live in the company of other elephants, and she has been thriving since her move to PAWS.

PAWS is also home to Nicholas and Gypsy, the last two elephants of the 16 the Hawthorn Corporation was forced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to relinquish after PETA filed repeated complaints with the agency about abuse and neglect at Hawthorn. PETA continues to keep up the pressure on Hawthorn, a supplier of animals to circuses, since it still has tigers and other animals in its custody.

On behalf of Ben, Maggie, Nicholas, Gypsy, and so many others, we thank Pat for her lifelong crusade. Pat may be gone, but her spirit lives on—as do the animals—in the heaven that she created here on Earth.