When it comes to anti-fur topics, we often focus on fox, seals, horses, minks and many helpless exotic animals, even tigers. We must not forget about rabbits. Each year in China and France, millions of rabbits are slaughtered for fur. In these horrible conditions, rabbits are often inproperly electrically stunned and hung by their legs , while their throats are slit and bleeding out, they are often still alive, twitching, suffering in the most disheartening ways.

The following video is an undercover video, narrated by Gillian Andersen of the X-files. It exposes the unspeakable cruelty and horror of rabbit slaughter farms in China and France. Whether you’re a fan of PETA or not, this truth is out there. This targets particular Giorgio Armani, one of the largest patron of using rabbit fur for their fashion line. Please take action by filling out this guided letter template to be sent to the fashion house. Please spread the word to your friends, and please read the label on your winter jackets.

During his visit to the U.S. Pope Benedict XVI expressed his vision and compassion for all beings, including and particularly of farm animals. PETA has been in close communication with the Vatican about the welfare and exploitation of livestock for as early as the previous Pope. In his speech he said:

“Animals, too, are God’s creatures, and even if they do not have the same direct relation to God that man has, they are creatures of his will, creatures we must respect as companions in creation.”

Farm animals endure extreme cruelty, especially in America. As they are bred for consumption, factory farm industry workers often do not view them as living, breathing, feeling animals, and therefore treat them as objects that could be tortured, controlled, and killed without anesthesia. Cows live in stagnate positions in farms in their own filth for months and years. Their journeys to the slaughterhouse is atrocious, in assembly, with their throats cut, electrocuted, their heads bashed in order to stunned them. Often they die painfully and slowly while being butchered. Pigs live their entire lives in crates so small they cannot move and develop sores. Piglets are pulled from their mothers so early—they are castrated, branded without drugs, and also killed unmercifully. Among these are many other like veal, chickens, lambs (for wool) that suffer needlessly. It’s bad enough we eat them, the least we could do is show a little decency.

We are what we eat. The more suffering an animal endures, the higher the chance it is sick and bad for consumption. Think about it. If you must eat meat, avoid veal and go organic where animals receive kinder treatments, free of radicals and antibiotics, and have had better lives in roaming free.
For more information: visit PETA or Farm Santuary.

When I was a little kid, my summer camp instructor took us to the circus. I was overjoyed at seeing all the acrobats do all these amazing stunts. The show was full of animals and they performed gloriously at the snap of a finger, and I thought how wonderful it all was. I thought they were so obedient and had wondered if I could get my pets to do tricks too. Now that I’ve grown up I have come to the horrific conclusion that not only is animal performance unnatural, it is extremely cruel.

Elephants are captured in the wild either from Africa, Thailand or India, usually as infants kidnapped from their herd, and shipped back to our country to endure long, painful lives in chains. They are often beaten with bull hooks and starved when they don’t obey their handlers. Along with them, other animals such as bears, tigers, monkeys are forced to travel long hours, wear uncomfortable costumes, eat poor diets and abused in some way in order to perform tricks over and over again. Have you ever heard in the news where elephants or tigers that suddenly went crazy on their masters, even killing some of them, in order to escape? They are disheartened, sick, and hopeless creatures, living in fear each day for the rest of their lives.

Kindly consider this the next time you want to bring your kid to the circus. Do you want you child to learn that it is okay to treat animals in such a way for the sake of entertainment? Go see Cirque De Soleil, a people-only circus, among many nowadays which are all amazing. Boycott Ringling and Barneys- they are closely watched by PETA and many animal welfare organizations. Visit Performing Animals Welfare Society and learn more about the subject or make a donation!