One of North America's Largest Banks Shows a Big Heart for Small Animals

For Immediate Release:
April 10, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Chicago -- BMO Financial, with its U.S. operations based in Chicago, is getting an award for a practice that has nothing to do with dollars and cents. That's because after learning from PETA about the cruelty of using sticky glue traps to kill mice, BMO banned the devices from its approximately 700 locations nationwide. For rejecting the cruel pest-control method, BMO Financial will receive a Compassionate Company Award from PETA and a big box of vegan chocolates shaped like mice.

"It's wonderful to see one of the largest banks in the country take the suffering of the smallest and most vulnerable animals into consideration," says PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. "Thanks to BMO's decision to ban glue traps, mice, birds, and other small animals will be spared a terrifying and painful end."

Glue traps are pieces of plastic or cardboard coated with a strong adhesive. After getting caught in the traps, panicked animals struggle to escape—often breaking their bones and ripping the flesh, fur, or feathers off their bodies in the process. Some animals chew off their own limbs in an attempt to free themselves, and others get their noses, mouths, or beaks stuck in the glue. The more the animals struggle, the more they stick to the traps, only to die from exhaustion, injury, shock, dehydration, asphyxiation, or blood loss. Glue traps are also ineffective because they fail to address the source of the problem—more mice simply move in to take the place of the animals who have been killed.

BMO Financial's decision means that 22 of the nation's top 30 financial institutions contacted by PETA have now agreed not to use glue traps.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Group Wants New Hampshire Motorists to Switch to Humane, Healthy, and Earth-Friendly 'Fuel'

For Immediate Release:
April 10, 2013

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382 

Concord, N.H. -- PETA has just sent a letter to the New Hampshire Department of Transportation and the state Department of Resources and Economic Development offering to purchase the naming rights of a highway rest stop should the proposal to sell those rights be passed by the state legislature. PETA's sign would read, "Rest Easy. Stop Cruelty. Go Vegan Area." PETA's point? That going vegan is the best way for people to help stop animal suffering, safeguard the planet, and protect their own health.

"Drivers pay attention to what they put in their gas tanks, but they routinely fill their own bodies with foods that are murder on animals and that make themselves sick," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "Our message could have motorists treating their bodies with the respect that they deserve and running like well-tuned machines."

Consumption of meat, eggs, and dairy products has been linked to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and other ailments. Also, raising animals for food is a leading cause of water consumption and pollution, land degradation, and the greenhouse-gas emissions that contribute to climate change. Moreover, everyone who goes vegan saves more than 100 animals each year from suffering on industrialized farms and a painful, terrifying death in slaughterhouses.

For more information, please visit PETA.org. 

PETA's letter to the New Hampshire Department of Transportation and the Department of Resources and Economic Development follows.

April 10, 2013

Chris Clement, Commissioner
Department of Transportation

Jeffrey J. Jones, Acting Commissioner
Department of Resources and Economic Development

Dear Messrs. Clement and Jones:

I'm writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 3 million members and supporters, including thousands across New Hampshire. If the current bill to allow the sale of rest-area naming rights becomes law, we'd like to offer to pay to rename one of the stops the "Rest Easy. Stop Cruelty. Go Vegan Area."

Every traveler who decides to go vegan after visiting our stop would be able to rest easy knowing that he or she will be saving the lives of more than 100 animals each year as well as sparing his or her arteries and being environmentally responsible. Animals used by the meat, egg, and dairy industries are subjected to intensive confinement, routine mutilations, and painful and frightening deaths in slaughterhouses. Cows exploited for their milk, for example, are genetically manipulated and often drugged in order to force them to produce up to four and a half times the amount of milk that they would naturally make for their calves, and they commonly have their sensitive horn tissue burned out of their heads with a red-hot iron. Chickens on egg factory farms have the sensitive tips of their beaks cut off with a hot blade and are crammed into cages so small that they can't even stretch their wings. When their egg production declines, they are sent to a violent slaughter.

Vegan travelers' eating habits help offset the greenhouse-gas emissions produced by their vehicles since, according to researchers at the University of Chicago, switching from a standard American diet to a vegan diet is a more effective way to combat climate change than switching from a standard American car to a hybrid. And by cutting meat, eggs, and dairy products out of their diets, New Hampshire residents and tourists would get on the road to good health. Vegans are, on average, 18 percent thinner than meat-eaters, and according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, they are also less prone to obesity, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

If the bill passes, please let us know how we can speed up our application, as our sponsorship would help get New Hampshire in the fast lane to fiscal stability and a clear conscience.

Sincerely,

Chris Holbein
Associate Director

Group Will Give Students a Feel for Intensive Confinement That May Have Them Going Vegan 

For Immediate Release:
April 11, 2013

Contact:
Shakira Croce 202-483-7382 

Plymouth, N.H. -- Most students at Plymouth State University have probably never been to a factory farm, so peta2—PETA's youth division—is bringing factory farms to them. As part of a national college tour, the group will set up a 20-foot-by-30-foot inflatable tent, inside of which students can confine themselves to sow gestation crates—which are so small that pregnant pigs can't even turn around or take two steps—and watch "Glass Walls," a video exposé of the meat industry narrated by PETA pal Paul McCartney, who famously said, "If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian." Students will also receive samples of vegan foods and free vegetarian/vegan starter kits with recipes and tips for helping the Earth, animals, and their own arteries by going meat- and dairy-free.

When:   Friday, April 12, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.

Where:  HUB Alumni Green, Plymouth State University

"College is the time to consider new ideas, and peta2's factory-farm display gives students an idea of how much suffering goes into a chicken nugget or a beef burger," says peta2 Director Marta Holmberg. "Once students see what cows, chickens, and other animals go through on factory farms, in transit, and in slaughterhouses, they'll want to load up their cafeteria trays with humane vegan selections."

Pigs, chickens, fish, and cows feel pain and fear just as intensely as do the animals who share our homes with us, yet they are abused in ways that would be illegal if dogs and cats were the victims. Chickens and turkeys have their throats cut while they're still conscious, piglets are castrated and have their tails cut off without being given any painkillers, and calves raised for their milk have their horns burned out of their skulls. On the decks of fishing boats, fish suffocate or are cut open while they're still alive.

For more information, please visit peta2.com.

Group Suspects Foul Play in Sudden Deaths of Thoroughbreds at California Tracks

For Immediate Release:
April 11, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382 

Los Angeles County, Calif. -- Since July 2011, at least 26 apparently healthy thoroughbreds have suddenly and unexpectedly dropped dead at California racetracks. Seven of the horses who died in recent months were trained by Bob Baffert. State racing officials are concerned and investigating incidents, but PETA would like to add an incentive for any whistleblowers to come forward with information. Necropsies of some of the horses show cardiac failure or  internal bleeding, and in one of Baffert's horses massive internal bleeding , but the necropsy results are reportedly inconclusive. PETA is betting that if foul play was involved, a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for these animals' deaths will do some real good.

Would you please consider sharing this information with your audience? It might be the only way to get to the bottom of the unexplained deaths.

This spate of sudden, unexplained deaths comes as the horseracing industry is under fire for widespread drug use. As reported in last year's New York Times exposé, trainers pump horses full of drugs to keep them running when they should be resting, contributing to the number of deadly breakdowns that claim the lives of more than three horses every day on U.S. racetracks.

"Horses die every day in racing, but a sudden spike in the number of unexplained deaths is a red flag that can signal foul play," says PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo. "PETA urges anyone with information about these horses' deaths to come forward before any more animals die."

Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact PETA at 757-962-8383.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Kids and Teens Brought Supplies for Homeless Animals and Got a Chance to Meet Their Favorite Animal-Loving Stars 

For Immediate Release:
April 12, 2013

Contact:
Wendy Wegner 202-483-7382

Los Angeles — On Thursday evening, some of Hollywood's hottest and kindest young stars teamed up with peta2 and PETA Kids—PETA's youth and child divisions—for a fun-filled event to benefit the homeless animals in Los Angeles Animal Services' shelters. Kids who brought an old blanket, towel, leash, collar, or other supplies to PETA's Bob Barker Building joined peta2 supportersFivel Stewart, Pia Toscano, Christian Serratos, Haley Pullos, Bret Lockett of the N.Y. Jets, and others as they made catnip-filled toys, learned about other ways to help homeless animals, and more. Attendees were also treated to a very special live performance by Renee Olstead of The Secret Life of the American Teenager and an appearance by famed entertainer Randall, author of Honey Badger Don't Care.

Photos of Thursday's event are available here.

"Kids are constantly asking peta2 and PETA Kids what they can do to help animals," says peta2 Director Marta Holmberg. "We're teaching teach this new generation of animal advocates that everyone can make a difference—whether it's by adopting a homeless animal, volunteering at a local animal shelter, or encouraging friends and family always to spay and neuter their dogs and cats."

Every year in the U.S., more than 6 to 8 million lost, abandoned, or unwanted dogs and cats enter animal shelters, and more than half of them must be euthanized because there are not enough homes for them. To help, PETA Kids and peta2 encourages all families to always spay and neuter their dogs and cats—the only way to stop the companion animal overpopulation crisis at its roots—and to always adopt dogs and cats from animal shelters, rather than buying them from breeders and pet stores that contribute to the problem.

For more information, please visit PETA.org or peta2.com.

Thrifty Move Would Cut Government Spending and Healthcare Costs, Saving Taxpayers Money

For Immediate Release:
 April 12, 2013 

Contact: 
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382 

Topeka, Kan. -- A PETA activist decked out in a pig costume will be outside the IRS office in Topeka on Monday to educate all passersby about the need for a federal excise tax on meat. The PETA porker's point? That eating meat can increase a person's risk of developing cancer and heart disease—thereby driving healthcare costs through the roof. PETA says that meat should be taxed at 10 cents per pound to offset its staggering costs, just as alcohol, tobacco, gasoline, and other items are subject to a "sin" tax.

When:   Monday, April 15, 12 noon

Where:  At the corner of S.E. Sixth and S. Kansas avenues, Topeka

In addition to killing animals and humans with its unhealthy and cruel products, the meat industry is killing American pocketbooks. The federal government has a long history of giving away massive subsidies for livestock feed. Also, recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture bought $40 million of chicken products to try to reduce a surplus. Surely, we can all agree—it's time to "cut the pork!" In addition, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics determined that vegetarians have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity than meat-eaters do.

"The health problems caused by eating meat—not to mention the subsidies that the meat industry receives—take a huge bite out of the U.S. budget," says PETA Vice President Dan Mathews. "Slapping a long-overdue tax on meat would save countless lives—including those of animals."

For more information, please visit TaxMeat.com.

Beauty in Full-Length Gown of Leaves Will Target Tourists

For Immediate Release:
April 12, 2013

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382 

New York -- Wearing a luxurious gown made entirely of lettuce leaves and holding signs that read, "Go Vegan. It's a Sign of the Times"—in English, French, German, Spanish, Arabic, Hindi, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean—PETA "Lettuce Lady" Mary Lopresti will be in Times Square on Tuesday. Her point? That the best thing people can do for animals, the environment, and their own body is to go vegan.

When:   Tuesday, April 16, 12 noon

Where:  Times Square, 46^th Street, between Broadway and Seventh Avenue, New York

"We're asking people of all nations to kick the meat habit and go vegan," says Lopresti. "With so many delicious alternatives to meat available, it's easier than ever to enjoy great food without causing animal suffering, fouling the environment, and making yourself sick."

Raising animals for food requires massive amounts of land, food, energy, and water. The byproducts of animal agriculture pollute the air and waterways. Also, raising animals for food is a leading cause of the greenhouse-gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

In addition to causing animal suffering on a massive scale, eating meat, eggs, and dairy products has been conclusively linked to heart disease, strokes, diabetes, cancer, and obesity. Also, vegans are, on average, fitter and trimmer than meat-eaters are. Moreover, if the millions of tons of nutritious plant-based foods that are fed to farmed animals every year were instead used to feed humans, world hunger would virtually cease to exist.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Thrifty Move Would Cut Government Spending and Healthcare Costs, Saving Taxpayers Money

For Immediate Release:
 April 12, 2013 

Contact: 
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382 

Topeka, Kan. -- A PETA activist decked out in a pig costume will be outside the IRS office in Topeka on Monday to educate all passersby about the need for a federal excise tax on meat. The PETA porker's point? That eating meat can increase a person's risk of developing cancer and heart disease—thereby driving healthcare costs through the roof. PETA says that meat should be taxed at 10 cents per pound to offset its staggering costs, just as alcohol, tobacco, gasoline, and other items are subject to a "sin" tax.

When:   Monday, April 15, 12 noon

Where:  At the corner of S.E. Sixth and S. Kansas avenues, Topeka

In addition to killing animals and humans with its unhealthy and cruel products, the meat industry is killing American pocketbooks. The federal government has a long history of giving away massive subsidies for livestock feed. Also, recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture bought $40 million of chicken products to try to reduce a surplus. Surely, we can all agree—it's time to "cut the pork!" In addition, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics determined that vegetarians have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity than meat-eaters do.

"The health problems caused by eating meat—not to mention the subsidies that the meat industry receives—take a huge bite out of the U.S. budget," says PETA Vice President Dan Mathews. "Slapping a long-overdue tax on meat would save countless lives—including those of animals."

For more information, please visit TaxMeat.com.

Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Illicit Loot Passes Hands With Impunity While Thousands of Birds Pay the Ultimate Price

For Immediate Release:
April 15, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382 

Tampa, Fla. -- This morning, PETA sent an urgent letter to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement urging it immediately to launch a criminal investigation into two pigeon-racing clubs for running illegal high-stakes gambling operations. According to records of the Gulfcoast Homing Club (GHC)—the largest single pigeon-racing club in the U.S.—it pays out approximately $350,000 in its annual "Classic" race, which will be held in December. In 2004, the last time that the American Racing Pigeon Union (AU) held its annual convention in Florida—which it plans to do again in Tampa in November, hosted by the GHC—the payout exceeded $750,000 between these two races. PETA's letter comes in the wake of charges filed in Oklahoma against three pigeon-race organizers—including the executive director of the AU—for felony commercial gambling following a PETA investigation.

"These clubs have been engaged in flagrant illegal gambling right under the noses of law-enforcement officials and have also been getting away with it for years," says general counsel to PETA Jeff Kerr. "And the worst part is that they have even less regard for the pigeons—who die or are killed in massive numbers—than they do for the law."

High-stakes pigeon racing isn't only illegal, it's also exceedingly cruel. PETA's investigations of pigeon races across the U.S. have revealed that more than half of the birds often never make it back to their lofts or mates because of extreme weather, raptors, electric lines, foul play, and exhaustion. Birds who return but who consistently finish out of the money are typically killed by suffocation, drowning, or decapitation. One racer told PETA's investigators that when a person starts out in pigeon racing, "The first thing you have to learn—how to kill pigeons."

To view video footage from PETA's pigeon-racing investigations, pleaseclick here.For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Committee Dominated by Animal Experimenters Will Hurt Animals and Hinder Progress for Humans, Says Group

For Immediate Release:
April 15, 2013

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382 

Washington -- After learning that 16 of 17 members appointed to lead President Barack Obama's ambitious $100 million Brain Research Through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative are people who experiment on monkeys, cats, mice, and other animals, PETA submitted a request to National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Dr. Francis S. Collins and his Advisory Council urging them to take immediate action to remedy the dramatic bias among the Working Group members.

As PETA points out in its letter, the goal of the project is to offer insight intohuman brain function and behavior, and NIH states that groups such as the one tasked with leading the BRAIN Initiative should have "Balanced Expertise [and] Points of View."

"It's mind-boggling that our nation's leading human brain research program is being led almost entirely by people—including the committee co-chair—who drill holes into monkeys' and other animals' skulls instead of by progressive scientists who actually do research with humans," says PETA Senior Vice President of Laboratory Investigations Kathy Guillermo. "PETA is urging NIH to reform this committee before its members' limited perspective hinders developments in human health and also costs animals their lives."

Ethical, human-based research methods—such as advanced imaging and other technology—have offered insights into the brain that are not possible through experiments on animals, which have consistently failed to find cures for human brain disorders because of fundamental biological differences In a recent Reuters article on the BRAIN Initiative, Eli Lilly and Co’s vice president of neuroscience research Dr. Christer Nordstedt commented "We've been handicapped by the fact that we have been studying diseases in animals that don't really exist in animals. Mice don't get depression. They don't get schizophrenia. They don't get Alzheimer's disease."

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Nickelodeon Star Unveils New Vegan Campaign at Fort Lauderdale's Sublime Restaurant

For Immediate Release:
April 15, 2013

Contact:
Wendy Wegner 202-483-7382 

Los Angeles -- At a special reception at South Florida's gourmet vegan restaurant Sublime, Nickelodeon star Daniella Monet unveiled her brand-new "Try to Relate to Who's on Your Plate" ad campaign for peta2, PETA's youth division, in which she appears underwater as a mermaid above the words "Try to Relate to Who's on Your Plate." The ad, which was shot underwater by top celebrity photographer Jack Guy, is available here, and photos of the unveiling are available here.

Monet also sat down for an exclusive peta2 interview, in which she discussed people who say that they're vegetarians—but still eat fish. "They forget that fish have feelings, too," she says. "Fish aren't veggies. Fish have feelings, and fish are trying to live and breathe." In the interview, Monet also opens up about what first prompted her to go vegetarian at age 5—"I went to a dude ranch with my family, and I asked a lot of questions"—and describes how going vegan as a young teen helped her feel her best.

Scientific studies show that fish are intelligent, sensitive animals who experience pain and fear when they are hooked or netted and pulled from the water. A recent issue of the journal Fish and Fisheries cited more than 500 research papers on fish intelligence that prove that fish are smart, can use tools, and have impressive long-term memories and sophisticated social structures. Vegans spare fish and other animals from immense suffering and also safeguard their own health: A recent study found unsafe mercury levels in 84 percent of all fish. And according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, vegans are less prone to heart disease, cancer, obesity, and stroke than meat-eaters are.

Monet is part of a long list of celebrities—including Lea Michele, Megan Park, Torrey DeVitto, Sarah Hyland, Kellan Lutz, Cody Simpson, and Pink—who have teamed up with peta2 to promote kindness to animals.

For more information about Monet's campaign, please visit peta2.com. More information about Sunday's reception at Sublime Restaurant is available here. 

Group Rallies Its Supporters to Call for Removal of Netting on Petaluma River Bridge That Has Reportedly Killed Dozens of Cliff Swallows

For Immediate Release:
April 15, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382 

Petaluma, Calif. -- Netting on the Petaluma River Bridge—reportedly installed by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and construction company C.C. Myers in an effort to deter a colony of cliff swallows who have nested there for decades—has reportedly killed dozens of birds who have become entangled in the netting and died from dehydration, stress, and exposure. Some trapped birds are even being attacked by crows. Although PETA has informed Caltrans and C.C. Myers of humane nesting deterrents and urged law-enforcement officials to take immediate action to save the birds' lives, the netting remains in place and video footage shows that birds are continuing to become trapped.

PETA has now posted an action alert on its popular website encouraging supporters to contact Caltrans, C.C. Myers, and state and federal law-enforcement authorities and urge them to remove the netting immediately.

"Every day that this netting remains in place is one more day that federally protected birds face slow, agonizing deaths," says PETA Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. "PETA is urging officials to tear this netting down immediately."

On Sunday, concerned local citizens held a protest near the bridge, which is located on Highway 101, with signs reading, "Caltrans: Take Down the Nets." Safe nesting deterrents include Teflon sheeting, which prevents nesting because its surface is too slick for the swallows' mud nests to stick to.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Group Warns Against Leaving Animals Outside in Freezing Temperatures

For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Natrona County, Wyo. -- Every year, PETA receives thousands of complaints about people who leave dogs outside in the cold. Although they are equipped with fur coats, dogs and other animals can still suffer from frostbite and exposure, and they can become dehydrated when water sources freeze. Cold weather spells extra hardship for "backyard dogs," who often go without adequate food, water, shelter, or veterinary care, and it can also pose challenges for wildlife.

As Winter Storm Yogi delivers snow and low temperatures to the greater Casper area, would you please consider sharing the following information with your audience in order to help protect animals?

• Keep animals indoors. This is absolutely critical when it comes to puppies and kittens, elderly animals, small animals, and dogs with short hair, including pointers, beagles, pit bulls, Rottweilers, and Doberman pinschers. Short-haired animals will also benefit from a warm sweater or a coat on walks.
• Don't allow your cat or dog to roam outdoors. During winter weather, cats sometimes climb under the hoods of cars to be near warm engines and are badly injured or killed when the car is started.
• Wipe off your dogs' or cats' legs, feet, and stomachs after they come in from the snow. Salt and other chemicals can make your animals sick if they ingest them. You should also increase animals' food rations during the colder months because they burn more calories in an effort to stay warm.
• Keep an eye out for stray animals. Take unidentified animals indoors until you can find their guardians or take them to an animal shelter. If strays are skittish or otherwise unapproachable, provide food and water and call your local humane society for assistance in trapping them and getting them indoors.
• If you see animals left outside without shelter from the elements, please notify authorities. For information on what constitutes adequate shelter, click here.
• During extreme winter weather, birds and other animals may have trouble finding food and water. Offer rations to wildlife who are caught in storms or white-outs by spreading birdseed on the ground. Provide access to liquid water by filling a heavy water bowl and breaking the surface ice twice a day. Remember to remove the food once the weather improves to encourage the animals to move on to warmer areas.

PETA's cold-weather public service announcement featuring Justin Theroux is available to link to or download here.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Group Warns Against Leaving Animals Outside in Freezing Temperatures

For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Pennington County, S.D. -- Every year, PETA receives thousands of complaints about people who leave dogs outside in the cold. Although they are equipped with fur coats, dogs and other animals can still suffer from frostbite and exposure, and they can become dehydrated when water sources freeze. Cold weather spells extra hardship for "backyard dogs," who often go without adequate food, water, shelter, or veterinary care, and it can also pose challenges for wildlife.

As Winter Storm Yogi delivers snow and low temperatures to the greater Rapid City area, would you please consider sharing the following information with your audience in order to help protect animals?

• Keep animals indoors. This is absolutely critical when it comes to puppies and kittens, elderly animals, small animals, and dogs with short hair, including pointers, beagles, pit bulls, Rottweilers, and Doberman pinschers. Short-haired animals will also benefit from a warm sweater or a coat on walks.
• Don't allow your cat or dog to roam outdoors. During winter weather, cats sometimes climb under the hoods of cars to be near warm engines and are badly injured or killed when the car is started.
• Wipe off your dogs' or cats' legs, feet, and stomachs after they come in from the snow. Salt and other chemicals can make your animals sick if they ingest them. You should also increase animals' food rations during the colder months because they burn more calories in an effort to stay warm.
• Keep an eye out for stray animals. Take unidentified animals indoors until you can find their guardians or take them to an animal shelter. If strays are skittish or otherwise unapproachable, provide food and water and call your local humane society for assistance in trapping them and getting them indoors.
• If you see animals left outside without shelter from the elements, please notify authorities. For information on what constitutes adequate shelter, click here.
• During extreme winter weather, birds and other animals may have trouble finding food and water. Offer rations to wildlife who are caught in storms or white-outs by spreading birdseed on the ground. Provide access to liquid water by filling a heavy water bowl and breaking the surface ice twice a day. Remember to remove the food once the weather improves to encourage the animals to move on to warmer areas.

PETA's cold-weather public service announcement featuring Justin Theroux is available to link to or download here.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Bad News for Karl Mitchell, Good News for Big Cats as Appeal Falls Flat

For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Pahrump, Nev. -- After receiving information from PETA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Nye County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) today upheld the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission's (RPC) February 13 unanimous vote to revoke notorious animal abuser Karl Mitchell's conditional use permit (CUP) to keep exotic animals in the jurisdiction. Mitchell, who owns a disgraceful tiger menagerie called Big Cat Encounters and had appealed the RPC's permit revocation, has been exhibiting big cats, even though he has not held the requisite USDA license since his was permanently revoked in 2001. These violations of federal law mean that Mitchell should never have been issued a CUP by the county.

"Karl Mitchell's days of terrorizing big cats in Nye County are numbered," says PETA Foundation Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Delcianna Winders. "PETA thanks the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission and the Board of County Commissioners for making clear that animal abuse and defiance of the law will not stand."

In February 2012, PETA called on the USDA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to file criminal charges against Mitchell for exhibiting tigers and transporting them across state lines without a license. The federal investigations are still pending.

Over the years, Mitchell has been cited repeatedly by the USDA for a litany of Animal Welfare Act violations. They include—but are not limited to—failing to provide animals with adequate veterinary care, living conditions, and palatable food and water; cruelly withholding water as a training technique; and continuing to exhibit big cats illegally. He has also been slapped with three cease-and-desist orders—which he failed to comply with—and more than $100,000 in fines.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Dancer Says: It's Cruelty-Free or Nothing at All

For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2013

Contact:
Wendy Wegner 202-483-7382

Los Angeles -- Wearing nothing but a smile and holding a bunny, Dancing With the Stars' Kym Johnson is the star of a brand-new PETA campaign that reads, "Be a Bunny's Belle of the Ballroom: Choose Cruelty-Free," and encourages shoppers to buy cosmetics and household products only from companies that never test on animals. The ad, which was shot by top celebrity photographer Robert Sebree, is available here.

In an exclusive PETA interview, Johnson explains that she never considered how her cosmetics were being tested until she saw Dave Navarro's PETA campaign. "I was so disturbed by what I saw," she says. "I didn't realize that animal testing was still being done, and it really shocked me, and it really made me think, what am I putting on my face?" So she decided to see for herself how animals suffer in cosmetics testing—and what she found disturbed her. "Living their lives in cages, being injected in their eyes, and being blinded—it's terrifying the footage that you see, and no animal should have to suffer that way for our vanity."

These archaic animal tests are banned in the European Union and not required by the U.S., and more than 1,300 companies have pledged to PETA that they will use only non-animal test methods. A list of these cruelty-free companies is available on PETA's Beauty Without Bunnies website, where consumers can also order a free copy of PETA's global cruelty-free shopping guide.

Johnson joins a long list of celebrities—including DWTS alumniElisabetta Canalis, Joanna Krupa, Pamela Anderson, Steve-O,Kelly Osbourne, Wendy Williams, Cloris Leachman, and Lance Bass as well as judge Carrie Ann Inaba—who have teamed up with PETA to promote kindness to animals.

For more information, please visitPETA.org. A broadcast-quality version of Johnson's PETA interview can be downloaded here.

Group Joins Shelton Police in Effort to Bring Animal Abuser to Justice

For Immediate Release:
April 17, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Shelton, Conn. -- A beloved fixture of Huntington Branch Library in Shelton—a corn snake named Peaches—endured chemical burns and kidney damage for a week before dying from her injuries after someone poured Goof Off cleaning solvent into her tank around March 18. Peaches was "the nicest, friendliest snake," her former guardian told news sources. "She didn't deserve to die and she definitely didn't deserve to suffer the way she did." Police have yet to make any arrests in connection with the fatal attack on Peaches. That's why PETA is offering up to $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for this crime.

Would you please consider sharing this information with your audience? It might be the only way to apprehend those responsible for this heinous act.

"Animal abusers are cowards," says PETA Director Martin Mersereau. "They take their issues out on the most defenseless beings available to them. Area residents have good reason to be concerned. According to law-enforcement agencies and leading mental-health professionals, perpetrators of violent acts against animals are often repeat offenders who pose a serious threat to all animals—including humans."

Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact Detective Richard Bango with the Shelton Police Department at 203-924-1544.

For more information, please visit PETA.org. To view PETA's anti-violence public service announcement featuring Inglourious Basterds star and Hostel director Eli Roth, please visit http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=eli_roth_violence_link_psa_peta.

Group Will Give Students a Feel for Intensive Confinement That May Have Them Going Vegan 

For Immediate Release:
April 17, 2013

Contact:
Shakira Croce 202-483-7382

Rochester -- Most students at the University of Rochester have probably never been to a factory farm, so peta2—PETA's youth division—is bringing factory farms to them. As part of a national college tour, the group will set up a 20-foot-by-30-foot inflatable tent, inside of which students can confine themselves to sow gestation crates—which are so small that pregnant pigs can't even turn around or take two steps—and watch "Glass Walls," a video exposé of the meat industry narrated by PETA pal Paul McCartney, who famously said, "If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian." Students will also receive samples of vegan foods and free vegetarian/vegan starter kits with recipes and tips for helping the Earth, animals, and their own arteries by going meat- and dairy-free.

When:   Thursday, April 18, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.

Where:  Wilson Quadrangle, University of Rochester, Rochester

"College is the time to consider new ideas, and peta2's factory-farm display gives students an idea of how much suffering goes into a chicken nugget or a beef burger," says peta2 Director Marta Holmberg. "Once students see what cows, chickens, and other animals go through on factory farms, in transit, and in slaughterhouses, they'll want to load up their cafeteria trays with humane vegan selections."

Pigs, chickens, fish, and cows feel pain and fear just as intensely as do the animals who share our homes with us, yet they are abused in ways that would be illegal if dogs and cats were the victims. Chickens and turkeys have their throats cut while they're still conscious, piglets are castrated and have their tails cut off without being given any painkillers, and calves raised for their milk have their horns burned out of their skulls. On the decks of fishing boats, fish suffocate or are cut open while they're still alive.

For more information, please visitpeta2.com.

Group Will Grill Company Execs at Annual Meeting About Painful Dehorning of Calves

For Immediate Release:
April 17, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Denver -- WhiteWave's 2013 annual meeting will include a statement and question from a representative of PETA, which owns stock in the company. The group will call on WhiteWave to require that the dairy suppliers for its Horizon Organic milk line begin phasing out dehorning, a painful process in which calves have their horns gouged out or horn tissue burned out of their heads. PETA will point out how breeding for naturally hornless, or polled, cows eliminates one of the most painful things done to cows on dairy farms.

When:   Wednesday, April 17, 9:30 a.m.

Where:  Denver Museum of Nature & Science, Ricketson Auditorium, 2001 Colorado Blvd., Denver

"Everything from commonsense to scientific studies tells us that calves suffer excruciating pain when their horns are gouged out or sensitive horn tissue is burned off with a hot iron," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "WhiteWave's claim that it's made up of 'animal lovers' rings hollow as long as it refuses to take action to phase out this painful mutilation of baby cows."

As shown in PETA's dehorning video exposé, narrated by Academy Award nominee Casey Affleck, workers on dairy farms burn searing-hot irons into calves' heads to destroy horn tissue or use sharp instruments or other tools to saw, gouge, or cut out the horn and sometimes the surrounding tissue. Cows struggle desperately and cry out in pain during these procedures, which are routinely performed without giving them any painkillers. By breeding for polled cattle—which causes at least half the calves to be born hornless—dairy farmers can eliminate this cruel procedure.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

Group Will Remind Passersby in Run-Up to Earth Day That if They Really Want to Go Green, They'll Buy a Rain Barrel and Go Vegan

For Immediate Release:
April 17, 2013

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382

Dover, Del. -- Naked behind a banner that reads, "Clean Your Conscience: Go Vegan! 1 lb. of Meat Equals 6 Months of Showers," two PETA beauties will shower together on a sidewalk in Dover just four days before Earth Day to let consumers know that the best way to conserve water and help the environment is to go vegan. The action will coincide with an initiative by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, which will be selling repurposed barrels just up the street at a discounted rate for residents to use to collect rainwater.

When:   Thursday, April 18, 12 noon

Where:  Intersection of S. State and W. Loockerman streets, Dover

Going vegan is an easy way to cut down on personal water usage, and it's the best thing that anyone can do to help stop animal suffering. According to the United Nations, raising animals for food is "a top contributor to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global." In its report, the U.N. found that the meat industry causes local and global environmental problems even beyond climate change. It said that the meat industry should be a main focus in every discussion of water shortages and pollution, land degradation, air pollution, and loss of biodiversity.

"Between gobbling up our natural resources and polluting the soil, water, and air, the meat industry is as toxic to the Earth as it is to human health," says PETA beauty Ashley Byrne. "PETA wants Dover residents to know that rain barrels are a great start, but each of us can save water—and animals' lives—simply by going vegan."

For more information, please visit PETA.org.