It's so hot in the city, you'd think I'd be making another batch of lemonade—but I've got a hankering for some Internet Soup. It's been a while since the last batch, so dig in!

• Scientists know that pigs prefer a life like Arnold Ziffel's—full of Green Acres and some "luxuries" …
• … but this pug is partial to that other 60s hit, Batman.
• This video by Frank Strick has it all: A catchy song, an important question, and a big dash of cute—i.e., kid hugs turkey.
• Fisher nets baby black bear—but never fear! Mama to the rescue!
• We've said it before, but it bears repeating: Meat is never "green."
• Sure, beefcakes might make women swoon for a moment, but broccoli wins love for a lifetime.
• We know that Polly wants to fly. I'm guessing that Pauley wants to run.
• "Hummus: The Rap" has inspired me to finish my own masterpiece, Guacamole, A Concerto.
• Professor Turtle weighs in on how to be a hero.

Oof! I don't know about you, but I'm full after all that soup—and guac. This Special K needs a siesta. Until next time …

Written by Karin Bennett

Want to incite a media circus that almost—but not quite—descends into fisticuffs? Just put on a white sheet outside the AKC's biggest dog show and let the dog biscuits fall where they may. Check out these photos from the protest at Madison Square Garden:

No, there wasn't a biker convention going on. Apparently, some New Yorkers just love their black jackets made from cows. The focus of the media cameras (just outside the frame) is PETA spokesperson Michael McGraw, who was interviewed by tons of reporters.

Some folks looked like they expected Howie Mandel to jump out at them any moment. Others started talking about the whole thing on their cell phones.

The dour-looking woman to the right is a dog-breeder type attempting to stage a counter-protest—proving our point about the wealth of "Glamour Don'ts" to be found at Westminster.

Our star leaflet distributor was young Rose, who has no idea what the KKK is, but loves dogs of all sizes, shapes, and colors.

Written by Alisa Mullins

For years, scientists have been pushing fertility drugs to help increase the chances of conceiving, but can boosting one's "baby chances" be as simple as eating more greens? Well, blow me down, it might be! Results from a major Harvard University study suggest that going vegetarian may increase fertility.

To help spread this baby-mama buzz, we've created our own labor of love: a billboard touting vegetables as an essential dietary component to rev up the body's procreation potential. Those strategically placed veggies speak for themselves.

We hope to run the billboard in New Hampshire, which has one of the lowest birth rates in the nation.

Written by Jennifer Cierlitsky

If you watch the USA network, then you are probably aware that the Westminster dog show is next week. They're promoting it out the wazoo—I know this from being forced to sit through commercial breaks during House because the Best Cat in the Universe is snoozing on my lap.

Anyhoo, PETA wouldn't want to miss an opportunity to get dog breeders' dander up, so we'll be outside Madison Square Garden during the show.

Last year, we held giant posters bearing the image of a sad-eyed shelter dog and reading "Breeders Kill Shelter Dogs' Chances." This year, we're up to something different and thought-provoking: We'll show up dressed as Klansmen to point out some of the eerie similarities between the AKC and the KKK. Pure bloodlines, master race/master pedigree, woeful lack of fashion sense. Creepy, isn't it?

To give you a sneak peek, here's the leaflet that our "KKK recruiter" will hand out:

And here's the banner that our hooded henchmen will brandish:

Purebreds only? Wrong for people. Wrong for dogs.

Written by Alisa Mullins

When you have an epic battle as big as PETA's campaign to convince home improvement behemoth Lowe's to stop selling glue traps, you have to decide if you are "a man or a mouse," as the saying goes. Personally, I'm a mouse. I'm PETA's original "sexy mouse," in fact. Yes, that's me, writhing in a giant "glue trap" outside Lowe's annual meeting last year.

As a proud sexy-mouse veteran, I'm pleased to unveil the newest addition to our Lowe's campaign:

But don't worry! Our classic "sexy mice" are still hitting the streets to let shoppers know that animals stuck in glue traps can suffer for days before succumbing to starvation, dehydration, or suffocation.

Leave a comment and let us know which demonstration you like the most: the traditional sexy mouse, "Mickey" and "Minnie Mouse," or our giant rat and anti-Lowe's minivan. I think you can guess which one is my favorite.

Written by Liz Graffeo

In a huge victory for animals, a grand jury has issued 19 indictments for cruelty to animals against three former employees of Aviagen Turkeys, Inc. And it gets better—11 of the indictments are on felony charges. This marks the first time in U.S. history that factory-farm employees have faced felony cruelty-to-animals charges for abusing birds.

These indictments are the result of PETA's undercover investigation at Aviagen's factory farms in West Virginia, which uncovered workers stomping, kicking, throwing, and killing turkeys in unimaginably cruel ways. Our investigator's video footage was seen by the West Virginia State Police, whose investigator then conducted his own prompt and thorough investigation, leading to these indictments in Greenbrier County. Next stop: Monroe County, where we anticipate additional charges to be filed for similar acts committed there.

It's great to see the authorities take this case seriously. But Aviagen itself? Not so much.

As you may recall, a couple of weeks back, a whistleblower told us that some of the turkey torturers were still employed by Aviagen, despite the company's promise to fire all the workers caught violating its purported animal-welfare policies. PETA's letter to the company president about this has gone unanswered. And Aviagen has refused to give any specific details about the actions it claims to have taken. So, as far as we can tell, Aviagen hasn't yet implemented even one of the seven improvements we suggested to them. If you're as riled about this as we are, please take a minute to ask Aviagen executives to stop sitting on their thumbs and take some specific steps toward preventing the continued torture of birds in the company's sheds.

Bet these indictments have got them sitting up and paying attention, though. And not just at Aviagen (I'm looking at you, Butterball, Pilgrim's Pride, and Tyson). And I suspect the charges might make those drumsticks a little harder for some folks to swallow too.

Written by Jeff Mackey

Last week, PETA hosted a "human barbeque" on a Phoenix, Arizona, street to remind passersby that all animals have the same basic body parts. Check out these pictures of the demonstration:

Our bloody butcher set up his mock grill right in the middle of town. Although you may never have to see what happens on a factory farm, please remind everyone you know that those clean-looking meat packages in the grocery store were once part of living, breathing beings who felt pain and fear when they were slaughtered.

The barbequed babe was spray-painted red and orange to resemble the charred flesh of an animal.

Across the street, activists held a sign that read "Meat Is Murder." We can all agree that cannibalism is repulsive, so what's the big difference? Flesh is flesh.

It's easy to have a great barbeque without meat (animal or human)—check your local grocery store's freezer aisle for delicious faux-meat burgers!

Written by Liz Graffeo

Back in November, we were taken aback to learn that Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard planned a citywide initiative to improve residents' sex lives by distributing free Viagra to elderly men suffering from impotence. We sent a letter to let him know that most men don't need to pop pills to get some afternoon delight: They simply need to adopt a purely vegetarian diet.

Here's the response from the Mexican government:

So, Viagra might be a temporary fix—if you don't count the side effects, which can range from very uncomfy and embarrassing nether regions to a full-blown heart attack—but adopting a vegetarian lifestyle is the best long-term medicine for long, lonely nights. A vegan diet can immediately start reducing your risk of the main causes of impotence: clogged arteries to your organs. Not to mention that a healthy, vegan diet also makes for a leaner physique and increases overall energy, which can make you more attractive, gentlemen!

Yes, I think it's true: Vegetarians so have better sex!

Written by Liz Graffeo

Well, you can never say that PETA shies away from controversy. True to form, we're leaping into the fray—figuratively, and almost literally—by attempting to bring a message of nonviolence to the Middle East.

We're requesting that the Israeli Defense Ministry allow us to post a pro-vegetarian mural on both sides of the barriers that separate Israelis and Palestinians on the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The image we've proposed portrays Israeli and Palestinian families having dinner together under the words "Give Peas a Chance" and "Nonviolence Begins on Your Plate: Go Vegetarian" in English, Arabic, and Hebrew.

This isn't the first time we've tried to promote a nonviolent diet in the Middle East. In 2005, PETA President Ingrid Newkirk traveled to Bethlehem to address the International Nonviolence Conference. Her speech, titled "Nonviolence Includes Animals" (which you really should see), marked the first time that anyone had ever been invited to discuss animal rights at an international peace conference.

I know what you're thinking—choosing falafel over lamb chops isn't going to create peace in the Middle East overnight. But if we can inspire people to relate to the animals who wind up on their plates, maybe we can also inspire them to relate to the people on the other side of the barriers.

All across our great nation, bikini-clad PETA members have been out in full force, snatching media attention and educating the public about cruelty to animals. If only math classes used such brilliant strategies, we'd all be calculus whizzes!

From the International Putrid … excuse me, Poultry Expo in Atlanta to the slushy streets of Flint, Michigan, our bevy of beauties shared the facts with fascinated passersby. Take a peek at the action:

These ladies took up positions in their battery cages outside the International Poultry Expo to remind people that chicks suffer in the egg industry.

Our fierce "bunnies" braved freezing flurries in Flint to get out the fur-free message.

In South Carolina, this painted lady told circusgoers that wild animals don't belong behind bars.

The reception for our pro-chicken "chicks" was anything but chilly in Tucson, Arizona.

Impressive work, ladies! You braved the cold to help our voiceless friends. From my warm office, I raise my soy hot cocoa to you.

Written by Missy Lane