Written by Michelle Kretzer
When PETA learned about a horse in Washington state who appeared very thin and sickly, we contacted animal control, which refused to help him. Fortunately, we knew a local humane investigator who agreed to go and check on the horse.
The horse's owners said they were giving him plenty of food and water but that he was still losing weight. A checkup by a veterinarian the humane investigator had brought along revealed a simple solution: The horse's teeth had become overgrown, so he needed to have them filed down so that he could chew properly. After getting the much-needed veterinary care, the relieved horse began to eat. He has subsequently gained weight and is looking much healthier.
People often acquire animals on a whim, without knowing how to care for them properly. When your friends and family are thinking about bringing home a new animal, offer them PETA's factsheet along with that new toy or treats so that they know what they're getting into—and so that the animal goes to a home that's prepared.
In what is sure to become the most barked about book at animal shelters and dog parks across the country this year, America's canine sweetheart, Uggie, has inked a deal for his memoir, Uggie: My Story, which is set to be released in October.
Everyone knows how his story turns out: a meteoric rise to fame in The Artist and oodles of awards and accolades. But like every great success story, Uggie had his share of struggles. The energetic pup was relinquished by two families before he found his forever home. He encourages his fans always to adopt, never buy in his new ad for PETA:
The next great actor, novelist, philanthropist, or best friend could be waiting at your local animal shelter. If you're thinking about opening your home to a four-legged companion, give a dog like Uggie his big break.
Written by Jeff Mackey
Check this out: U.S. Representative Robert E. Andrews of New Jersey has introduced a bill in Congress (H.R. 220) that would designate the first Saturday in October as “National Animal Rescue Day” to encourage adoption, spaying and neutering, and creating a “humane environment” for companion animals.
This is such a wonderful idea and how appropriate that a member of Congress from the Garden State would be instrumental in trying to get us a bit closer to a Garden of Eden for animals in need!
Please do your part to make National Animal Rescue Day a reality—encourage your federal representative to support H.R. 220 today, and urge your friends and family to push their members of Congress to do the same!
Scene-stealing canine star Uggie won people's hearts in the award-winning film The Artist. Now the world's favorite pup is the star of a PETA campaign encouraging everyone always to adopt—never buy. Before Uggie was a Palm Dog Award winner at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, he was just another statistic—an unwanted dog, who was passed off by two families before he found a wonderful permanent home. Every animal deserves the same happy ending that Uggie experienced.
When you are ready to welcome an animal into the family, please don't support pet stores or breeders, who are largely responsible for the 3 to 4 million animals who must be euthanized in animal shelters every year because there are not enough homes for them. Remember always to adopt—never buy.
Good news out of New York: Following September's flood in which nearly 100 animals died when they were left to drown, PETCO has announced that its Johnson City store will not sell any animals upon reopening this month. The announcement is music to the ears of Johnson City residents, dozens of whom joined a PETA-led demonstration last September aimed at keeping PETCO from reopening.
This decision will save many animals from being bred and warehoused to supply the store, which seems appropriate considering all those terrified animals who perished in the dark, cold waters. But PETCO still doesn't deserve our business until it does the right thing and stops selling animals in all its stores nationwide, given the neglect and cruelty that occur at those locations and that are rife within the chain's animal suppliers, in addition to the fact that the animal-homelessness crisis—which PETCO itself cites at its dog and cat adoption events—affects the very species the chain sells, too.
Kudos to Johnson City for forging such progress for animals in the pet trade from the devastation that struck there. And remember, folks—there's still a criminal investigation pending concerning the events leading up to those animals' horrible deaths …
How You Can Help Animals in Pet Stores
Please buy supplies for your companions only from retailers that do not sell animals.
Written by PETA
A West Virginia man faces 29 charges of cruelty to animals after allegedly using various tools to torture and kill at least 29 dogs and puppies over the course of several months. According to reports, Jeffrey Nally Jr. told police that he got the dogs from ads in the local newspaper and that the animals were all free or just a few dollars. Apparently illustrating the link between cruelty to animals and cruelty to people, Nally is also charged with allegedly keeping his former girlfriend captive in the home for months, forcing her to watch him torture the animals, and then making her clean up the mess. West Virginia State Police rescued the woman, along with three live puppies whom they believe were slated to be killed.
As horrific as it sounds, cases like this are not uncommon. Perhaps the most famous case is that of Barry Herbeck, who tortured, sodomized, and killed nearly two dozen animals whom he obtained through "free to a good home" ads. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Classified ads are magnets for abusers who would not be approved for adoption from animal shelters. (Nally was reportedly a convicted criminal under home confinement when he allegedly obtained the dogs.) Animal dealers also target such ads as sources of animals they later sell to laboratories for experiments.
If your local newspaper runs "free to a good home" ads, please contact the paper's editors, warn them about the dangers of these ads, and ask them to stop running them. And if you see such ads, call the number listed and urge the animals' guardians to take the animals to an animal shelter instead.
Written by Michelle Sherrow
Earlier this week, following PETA's undercover investigation of a Myrtle Beach–area hoarding facility that had been warehousing hundreds of cats and an arthritic dog named Hope in storage units, roughly 240 cats and the dog were seized from Elizabeth Owen by order of a Horry County judge. Roughly half the cats who were seized were so ill that they had to be put out of their misery.
The cats had been "stored," some for most or all of their lives, in filthy, cramped cages, unable to get away from their own waste or even stretch or walk, let alone enjoy life. Dozens of cats were suffering from chronic, painful conditions such as anal maggots, herpes, tumors, seizures, multiple abdominal abscesses, severe gum disease, and more. Some people are criticizing county officials for euthanizing the sickest cats, but the real outrage is that these cats had been allowed to suffer and languish for so long with no quality of life whatsoever. If the cats were too far gone to save, it is because of the long-term neglect that Owen subjected them to—neglect that merits state-level cruelty-to-animals charges and a prohibition on obtaining any more animals. Hoarders are notorious for starting back up where they left off if such judicial measures aren't taken.
Unfortunately, after Owen's attorney told the judge that Hope and about 30 of the cats were Owen's "personal pets," the judge agreed to have them returned to Owen's custody, following a medical exam by the county's contract veterinarian. Hope, who is old and suffering from painful arthritis, is mostly kept in one of the storage units in a small pen and on a cold, hard cement floor or tethered outside in front of the warehouse. Owen has been ordered to provide the animals with veterinary care at her own expense, but it remains to be seen if she will do so. Owen couldn't manage to keep the facility stocked with litter or food, let alone take ailing and even dying animals for veterinary care or euthanasia. Her current registration to solicit charitable funds has been suspended by the Office of the Secretary of State, which means she cannot lawfully solicit donations or items to sell in her thrift store. If the medical condition of the 107 cats whom the county was forced to euthanize are any indication, the 30 animals who went back to that hellhole are doomed.
Not surprisingly, the 101 feline survivors who remain in the county's temporary shelter facility are also sick. The county is providing veterinary care for them, and PETA is hopeful that once they recover, they will find happiness with responsible families who will give them all the love, attention, and catnip they need and deserve.
Written by Daphna Nachminovitch
People visiting Birmingham, England, to attend the world's largest dog show, Crufts, now have something to think about, thanks to a provocative new PETA U.K. ad at a bus stop in town.
Dog shows like Crufts encourage people to breed and buy purebred dogs even in the face of the companion animal overpopulation crisis. Every time someone buys a dog from a breeder or pet store, a shelter dog loses a chance at a home. Making people realize this might make them squirm, but if it encourages someone to adopt an animal instead of buying, it saves a life.
And shelter mutts aren't the only ones in peril—widespread inbreeding ensures that many purebred dogs are plagued by painful and deadly health problems. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in the U.K. dropped its support of Crufts, calling the breeding of deformed and disabled dogs "morally and ethically unjustifiable." Agreed.
For those of us who repeatedly put Robert Pattinson's shirtless scene in New Moon on "pause" are fans of Robert Pattinson, there's a new reason to swoon. While he was filming The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn in Louisiana, the ultimate heartthrob went to the ultimate place to find a new best friend—an animal shelter—and rescued a puppy, who was traveling on a private plane with him the next day. "There is a deep connection between me and dogs," Rob noted, adding that if he could swap his human form for anything, it would be a dog.
Rob's new pup might be scampering around the Twilight set with Kellan Lutz's pal Kola, who posed with the actor in his super-cute "Adopt, Don't Buy" ad for PETA. And they'll have plenty to talk about with Christian Serratos, who would rather go naked than wear fur.
Rob, I would love to have an "Adopt, Don't Buy" ad to hang up next to my "Sixteen Months of Robert Pattinson" calendar (hint, hint). But if you'd rather go naked than wear fur, I'm fine with that too.
Star light, star bright, adopting animals left and right.
Denise Richards is in love again—with her new rescued buddy, Chocolate Chip. When the homeless terrier mix appeared on a dog-themed episode of The View that Richards was co-hosting, she curled up in the actor's lap—and never left. That did it for Richards, and soon Chocolate Chip was on a sweet trip to L.A. to meet her new fur siblings.
Emmy Rossum, star of the new Showtime drama Shameless, isn't ashamed to admit that she's a sucker for a cute stray-cat strut. While in Chicago shooting street scenes for the show, Rossum encountered a bedraggled stray cat, scooped her up, got her some much-needed veterinary care, and carted her off to L.A. to live happily ever after.
Speaking of saving lives, today is Spay Day! You can help end the animal overpopulation crisis by texting "PETA" to 27722 in order to donate $10. Message and data rates apply.
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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