Educate. Smile, be
friendly and be patient! Talking to you may be the first time someone
was ever exposed to the idea that there might be another way to behave
toward animals. Even if someone seems unsympathetic, you're planting
seeds that can lead to later change.
Is your neighbor's dog always
tied outdoors alone? Use PETA's chained-dog
leaflets (Adobe Acrobat reader is required to view this file - click
here to download a free copy.) to explain that isolation is hell for
dogs, who crave social interaction, and offer walks and play sessions.
Provide your City Council
members with info on why the circus is dangerous to humans and even worse
for the animals.
Donate only to health charities
that don't fund animal experiments, and write to the ones that still do to
explain why you've decided to take your contributions elsewhere.
Include an animal rights
leaflet with every bill payment.
Ask local librarians to write
to PETA on library letterhead to receive PETA's free library pack or to
request books, videos, fact sheets and display boards.
Record an animal rights message
on your answering machine.
Complain to managers of stores
and restaurants that display live lobster tanks.
If you're enrolled in a class
that involves dissection, insist on better, animal-free ways to learn.
Collect products tested on
animals and return them to the manufacturers. Demand a
Write or call companies that
test on animals to let them know that you won't purchase their products
until they declare a permanent ban on animal tests.
Don't shop in stores that carry
fur clothing or accessories. Let store managers know that you won't be
back until the store catches up with the times.
Use animal rights stickers on
all outgoing mail, and put them anywhere else they'll be seen. (PETA
notes that, "We are not suggesting that you put them on
tollbooths, escalators, pay phones, drive-in order boards or bathroom stall
Encourage people with fur coats
to put them in permanent "storage" with PETA. They can get
tax deductions, and their coats will be used to educate and stop cruelty.
List your legislators' phone
numbers in your address book so that you can easily contact them about
animal rights issues.
Ask grocery stores to designate
a cart for shoppers to use to donate dog and cat food to the local animal
Persuade your neighbor or
coworker to spay or neuter their animal, or pay for it yourself.
Locate and join your local
animal rights group (PETA can help), or start one yourself.
Complain to the sponsors of
circuses, rodeos, or other cruel events.
Take tasty vegetarian food
samples to work, along with recipe cards to hand out.
Stock your car with an animal
rescue kit (nonperishable food for hungry strays, bottled water, a cardboard
cat carrier, a leash, a towel, a bandage to use as a muzzle and emergency
phone numbers of vets and animal shelters).
Ask the editor of your local
newspaper to run a photo of a shelter animal up for adoption each
week. (The Arizona Republic already does this - yea!)
Sign a young friend up for a
free subscription to Grrr!, PETA's kids' magazine.
Hold a yard sale! Donate
the proceeds to PETA or a local animal group.
Leave Animal Times and
other animal rights literature in the seat pockets on planes. People
are always looking for something to read while traveling!
Pledge never to buy any more
leather shoes, belts or wallets, and start shopping for canvas, fabric or
Use suggestion boxes and
consumer comment cards to educate about animals.
Spend an afternoon - or one
day a week - helping lonely shelter animals. Walk or groom dogs, play
with animals or donate treats, toys and comfy bedding.
Never leave strays on the
street, where they can fall victim to disease, starvation, cars and cruelty
- as well as add to the overpopulation crisis.
Keep a stack of stamped
postcards by your television, along with the addresses of major networks and
local stations. When a show promotes animal abuse or is
animal-friendly, jot down a brief, polite message to the producers.
Don't let fur-wearers pass
you by without mentioning how animals suffered for their coats.
(Shy? Write to us for a free supply of fur cards.)
Put leaflets in library books
and videos when you return them.
Check PETA's action hotline
(757-622-7382) or Web site (PETA-online.org)
regularly for action alerts. Vow to write at least three letters every
Whatever the situation, never
assume that someone else will take care of it, and never underestimate what
you can accomplish. Don't worry that you won't know what to say or do
- just try! Talk, educate, object, write, hand out a leaflet, make a
fuss, hold your ground, suggest an alternative.
Help non-vegetarian friends
"meet their meat" with PETA's educational videos.