45 Victories in 45 Years: PETA’s Landmark Wins for Animals
On August 21, 1980, PETA was born in a tiny basement office in Maryland—and what’s now the world’s largest animal liberation organization was on its way to change history forever. In the 45 years since, PETA has secured a tidal wave of victories that have put animal liberation on the map: the first-ever confiscation of animals from a laboratory, the historic Silver Spring monkeys case that marked the first U.S. Supreme Court win for animals, animal-testing bans by thousands of personal-care companies, Ringling Bros. going animal-free, and fur-free fashion policies from nearly every major designer. From shutting down roadside zoos to speaking out against animal-abusing circuses to popularizing being vegan, PETA’s relentless campaigns have reshaped society and inspired millions to take action for animals.
To celebrate our 45th anniversary, here are 45 landmark victories in no particular order that prove what’s possible when we speak up for animals.
- Our first investigation sparked a movement. PETA’s first-ever undercover investigation, which became known as the historic Silver Spring Monkeys Case, thrust the animal liberation movement into mainstream consciousness. It led to many firsts: the first search-and-seizure warrant to be served on a U.S. laboratory, the first confiscation of abused animals from a laboratory, and the first cruelty-to-animals conviction of an experimenter.
2. Fur is a thing of the past. Thanks in large part to PETA’s massive campaigns—like the now retired iconic “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign—nearly every major designer has gone fur-free, including Calvin Klein, Chanel, Dolce and Gabbana, Gucci, Michael Kors, Valentino, and Versace.
3. Lab workers faced felony charges. For the first time in U.S. history, laboratory staff were hit with felony cruelty charges for the abuse and neglect of animals in a laboratory after PETA’s explosive investigation into Professional Laboratory and Research Services (PLRS).
4. Circuses are ditching animal acts. PETA’s relentless campaign against Ringling Bros. helped expose the circus’s cruelty, leading to its shutdown after 146 years of exploiting animals. Now, many circuses that were once cruel like Ringling, including UniverSoul and Circus Vargas, no longer use animals.
5. Plant milks have gone mainstream. What used to be a specialty item found only in a few stores is now widely available in flavors like oat, pea, macadamia, rice, hemp, soy, almond, and coconut—thanks in part to PETA’s work to popularize delicious, dairy-free options.
6. Experiments on chimpanzees are over. After pressure from PETA, the National Institutes of Health stopped funding most invasive tests on chimpanzees and agreed to retire them to sanctuaries.
7. Roadside zoos are shuttering at an exponential rate. One of the worst roadside zoos in the U.S.—Waccatee Zoological Farm—closed down following a PETA lawsuit, and we helped get some of the animals to true sanctuaries.
8. The largest animal seizure in history happened. After PETA’s investigation into notorious animal dealer U.S. Global Exotics, authorities seized more than 26,000 animals.
9. Factory farm cruelty brought felony charges. For the first time, farm employees faced felony cruelty-to-birds charges after PETA’s undercover investigation at Aviagen Turkeys’ factory farms.
10. Nearly 4,000 beagles were liberated. A beagle-breeding facility was shut down following PETA’s investigation into Envigo, which bred and sold animals for cruel experiments in laboratories.
11. SeaWorld ended its sordid orca-breeding program. PETA’s persistent pressure ensured that the orcas there will be the last to ever be held captive in the U.S.
12. These university experiments on cats and monkeys are done. After PETA campaigns, the University of Wisconsin-Madison ended its pointless and cruel sleep experiment on marmoset monkeys and sound-localization experiments on cats.
13. Historic factory-farming charges. Based on overwhelming evidence gathered during PETA’s undercover investigation, a dozen former Plainville Farms workers were charged with a total of 141 counts of cruelty to animals—the largest number ever in a U.S. factory-farm case.
14. Wool industry workers were charged with cruelty to animals. Following a PETA exposé, sheep shearers in Australia were charged with at least 70 counts of cruelty to animals—the first-ever charges anywhere in the world against wool-industry workers for abusing sheep.
15. Police raided a factory farm for the first time. PETA’s undercover investigation into foie gras production prompted the first-ever police raid there in 1992.
16. Chimpanzees disappeared from greeting cards. Hallmark and American Greeting Cards—the largest greeting card companies in the world—stopped producing and selling cards featuring degrading images of chimpanzees.
17. We’ve spayed or neutered more than 236,150 animals. PETA’s mobile clinics and community outreach help curb the deadly companion animal overpopulation and homelessness crisis.
18. Coffee chains dropped the vegan milk upcharge. After an intensive campaign, Starbucks, and then Dunkin’, Tim Hortons, Scooter’s Coffee, and other major coffee chains stopped charging extra for sustainable, compassionate dairy-free milks.
19. India banned animal testing for cosmetics and cleaners. After a spirited PETA entity campaign, India became the second nation to end these experiments.
20. Colombia moved to prevent bull slaughter. The country passed a nationwide bullfighting ban.
21. Leather made from animal skins is on its way out. From pineapple leaves to apple peels, PETA has helped push the fashion world toward vegan leathers that are stylish, sustainable, and animal-free.
22. Whole Foods stopped carrying coconut milk from suppliers that used forced monkey labor. While the grocer did nothing, PETA worked with Whole Foods’ coconut supplier, Thailand’s Merit Food Products, to eliminate monkey labor from the supply chain.
23. A baby monkey laboratory closed down. Following an intensive year-long PETA campaign, the National Institutes of Health ended the cruel psychological experiments on baby monkeys conducted by Stephen Suomi.
24. San Antonio banned horse-drawn carriages. In 2024, the city became the first in Texas to institute a ban on horse-drawn carriage rides.
25. Luxury designers shun exotic skins. Many luxury designers, including Marc Jacobs, Burberry, and Chanel, have banned the use of reptile skins and other wild-animal skins.
26. A pig slaughterhouse closed. Southern Quality Meats, Inc. shut down after PETA released whistleblower footage showing workers jabbing pigs with electric prongs.
27. Army ferret tests stopped. Brain damage experiment on ferrets ended more than six months ahead of schedule at Michigan’s Wayne State University after the military branch heard our public plea to end it.
28. Budweiser stopped mutilating Clydesdales. Following a massive PETA campaign, Anheuser-Busch InBev—the parent company of iconic American beer brand Budweiser, and the largest brewer in the world—agreed to stop cutting the tailbones off Clydesdale horses.
29. Chinchilla breeding facilities shut down. Farms that bred, sold, exploited, and slaughtered chinchillas for their fur—like Adams Valley View Chinchilla Ranch—were shut down following bombshell PETA investigations.
30. Fast food chains embraced vegan options. KFC Canada added vegan chicken to their menu in 2008, and since then, many major restaurant and pizza chains have added vegan options.
31. Automakers stopped using animals in crash tests. General Motors—the largest automaker in the U.S.—ended its use of animals in car-crash tests.
32. POM Wonderful ditched animal tests. The pomegranate products company ended all tests on animals.
33. Cruel pet store owners were found guilty. The owners of Jurassic Pets, a Colorado pet store, were convicted of cruelty to animals after PETA released eyewitness footage.
34. Hundreds of brands banned angora wool. Adidas, Free People, Old Navy, The North Face, Ralph Lauren, H&M, and Gucci no longer sell it after PETA’s exposé on rabbit farms.
35. We got foie gras off store shelves. Giant Eagle, a grocery chain with hundreds of stores in the U.S., stopped selling it.
36. A dog blood farm shut down. PETA’s exposé led to the closure of The Pet Blood Bank in Texas, the release of 151 greyhounds, and the greyhound racing industry adopting a long-overdue policy on blood banks.
37. Animals were spared from space experiments. After PETA blasted the Iranian Space Agency over its plans to use animals in its space program, the agency confirmed that “no real animals were used” during its space capsule launch and that it instead opted for humane “simulation kits and sensors … to gather the necessary data.”
38. The 2024 Victoria’s Secret fashion show featured wings made from only faux feathers. The company previously used up to 620,000 feathers—from chickens, Chinese pheasants, and ostriches—for models’ Angel wings in a single fashion show.
39. Vegan creamer landed on airplanes. American Airlines, the world’s largest airline by daily flights, agreed to offer a vegan creamer option on its in-flight beverage menu. Most others have since followed suit.
40. Frog dissection is being replaced in schools. TeachKind Science’s Kind Frog—a silicone-based dissection model—is transforming science education in classrooms nationwide.
41. Harvard’s primate laboratory shut down. PETA’s advocacy helped force one of the country’s most notorious primate labs, New England Primate Center, to close its doors.
42. We spared millions of birds and bats from painful deaths. PETA persuaded Mobil, Texaco, Pennzoil, Shell, and other oil companies to cover their exhaust stacks after showing how millions of birds and bats had become trapped in them and burned to death.
43. Ad agencies stopped promoting breathing-impaired dogs. Wieden+Kennedy, one of the largest independent ad agencies in the world, committed to leaving out images of pugs, bulldogs, or other flat-faced, breathing-impaired dog breeds from its newly produced ads.
44. Dove banned animal tests. Dove, one of the world’s most widely available personal care brands, joined the more than 6,000 companies on PETA’s Ultimate Cruelty-Free list.
45. PETA dethroned these Tiger King and Chimp Crazy villains. Joe Exotic, Tonia Haddix, Tim Stark, Jeff Lowe, and Bhagavan “Doc” Antle are all locked up, convicted, and/or out of the animal-exploiting business. We also helped secure the rescue of hundreds of animals from their associated miserable facilities.
Here’s to Many More Victories!
For 45 years, PETA has been breaking barriers and setting new precedents for animal advocacy—and we’re just getting started. Every victory was made possible by compassionate humans like you. If you want to help us secure even more wins for animals, join PETA’s Action Team and make a donation today—because together, we can make history for animals all over again.
