Meet Pete. He's from Australia. April 24, 2009

Posted by Rachel-O at April 24, 2009 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 14 ) | TrackBack

If you're still wearing wool, I'm about to give you five reasons to stop.

Their names are Faith, Lily, Mae, Pete, and Lucy, and they are five sheep from Australia who were exploited for the wool industry.

Australia produces 25% of the world's wool—this wool comes from sheep like Pete.

Pete was unable to move and close to death when the investigators found him. His only water supply was a black puddle that was contaminated by a rotting sheep's carcass. Pete is the face of the wool industry.

Pete died about an hour after this picture was taken, having suffered alone for weeks.

In Australia, sheep are specifically bred to have extra wrinkly skin, which means farmers can get more wool from each animal. This obviously makes it much hotter, and it causes animals to die of heat exhaustion in the summer. The wrinkles also collect urine and moisture—which attract flies, who then lay eggs in the sheep's skin. This is called flystrike, and the maggots can actually eat the sheep alive, like they did Pete.

Australian ranchers perform a barbaric operation—mulesing—carving pieces of skin off of the sheep. This is done to cause smooth, scarred skin that won't harbor fly eggs, yet the bloody wounds often get flystrike before they heal and the cycle continues.

After years of this abuse, Australian sheep are crammed onto filthy boats for live export to the Middle East—a trip that many do not survive—where they are dragged to slaughter and have their throats cut while they are conscious and struggling. Their flesh is then sold to be eaten.

How can you help animals like Pete? Don't buy wool! Too many people think sheep just can't survive without someone coming along to shear them (just like a cow needs to be milked, right?). Know your facts and pass them on!

I never want an animal to have to suffer so I can wear a sweater, do you?

Meet Bianca and "Open Your Eyes" December 10, 2008

Posted by Marta at December 10, 2008 8:07 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 6 ) | TrackBack

I absolutely love watching people play the piano. Maybe it's because I took lessons for many years, but I just love watching other people play the piano—especially when they have amazing lyrics to go along with the song. Bianca, an amazing 16-year-old from Australia sent us the video she made below, called "Open Your Eyes." I love it. Check it out for yourself, then read the quick interview I did with her.

How long have you been vegetarian/vegan? I've only been vegetarian for a few months, but it started after seeing the videos on PETA's YouTube.

What inspired you to write the song? The song was inspired by a couple of the videos I watched—in particular the anti-fur video "Whose Skin Are You In?". I was so disgusted with what I saw that I wrote the song so that people that listened to my music would hopefully hear it and take something useful away from it.

How long have you been playing the piano? I played a bit when I was younger but I only started playing properly at the end of last year so I could start writing songs by myself.

What's your favorite vegetarian dish to eat during the holiday season? I LOVE stir fry veggies with sweet chili tofu. yummm :)

Don't you just love her?

Adidas Scores, Big Time, for Australian Sheep! June 4, 2008

Posted by Ryan at June 4, 2008 4:38 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 22 ) | TrackBack

We are proud to announce yet another victory for Australian sheep! Adidas—the second-largest sporting-goods manufacturer in the world—has just taken steps to reduce the suffering of sheep in its supply chain.

Following nearly four months of discussions with PETA, Adidas has now decided to boycott all wool from mulesed lambs—including those mulesed using clips.

As you may already know, mulesing is a standard mutilation used by Australian woolgrowers, in which lambs have huge chunks of skin and flesh carved from their backsides with big, metal shears (like gardening shears). This is a crude attempt to "protect" sheep from maggot infestation, despite the fact that humane methods exist.

Could you imagine having part of your butt cut off with a giant pair of scissors? OUCH!

The decision really makes Australia's Federal Minister for Agriculture, Tony Burke, look like a fool. It was just one week ago that he sent a letter to Adidas, thanking them for supporting Australian wool and trying to justify their cruel mulesing ways. Sucks to be him! :)

Anyways, if you haven't already had a chance to sign our petition against mulesing, make sure to sign it!

Let's keep the pressure on them, so that no more butts get cut!

- Ryan!