peta2Flickr / cc

While there’s an obvious flaw in this competition, since Isaiah is disqualified from entry (nepotism, schmepotism), you should still check out PETA Kids’ Cutest Vegetarian Kid Contest and vote for your favorite tyke.

In addition to being pretty freakin’ cute, these kids have all gotten an early start on animal advocacy, from sharing vegan food with their friends to saving cicadas to sponsoring rescued animals at local sanctuaries. Read all about them at PETAKids.com and vote, then consider following in their considerable footsteps by taking a night off from SYTYCD and organizing a demonstration, joining PETA’s Action Team, or drafting a couple of letters to animal abusers.

Order a free copy today!

Jealous, hungry, inspired. That’s what I felt the instant I started paging through PETA’s new Kids’ Guide to Helping Animals, the free magazine from PETA that will help kids channel their passion for animals into easy everyday actions.

Jealous—because as an animal-loving kid with no idea how to put that to good use, I spent a lot of time crying at Old Yeller and missed out on tons of opportunities to make a real difference (and yes, in case you have any doubts, kids can make a difference). Designed for the not-quite-tween, the Kids’ Guide has tips and tricks for all aspects and phases of a kid’s school and social life. From what to do if your school is planning a field trip to the zoo to cruelty-free shopping tips.

Hungry—because of the luscious photos of vegan snack goodness (and because it’s close to lunchtime).

Inspired—to provide my son with as many opportunities as possible to make choices that will help cultivate his innate sense of compassion. Sure, he can’t read yet, but it’s never too early to start talking about helping animals!

One of my esteemed colleagues sent me this video today. It was so cute that I had to share.

Send your photos and help elephants!

Far too soon for my taste, my little boy is cruising around the house—walking, running, tripping, and falling into just about everything I wish he’d stay away from. Yesterday, he got his first bloody nose, and it just about broke my heart. I imagine I’m not alone in wanting to shield my kid from pain, whether that’s a minor head wound or the worst the world has to offer, which is why I’ll never, ever take him to an animal circus.

PETA released an undercover investigation of Ringling Bros. circus a couple of weeks ago. The footage was deeply disturbing. Elephants, many of whom were ripped from their homes in the wild only to spend decades crammed into boxcars, chained for hours and hours every day, forced to breed and then bear the pain of having their babies taken away … these sensitive, intelligent animals are whipped, beaten, and screamed at by Ringling employees. Again and again, handlers and trainers sink the sharp points of heavy metal bullhooks into elephants’ tender skin, often just minutes before the elephants go on stage. Night after night, the venue changed, but the beatings and intimidation didn’t.

There are so many cruelty-free alternatives to circuses with animals and so many better ways to spend time with our children: take a nature walk, have a game night at home, volunteer at a wildlife rehabilitation center, or visit an animal-free circus featuring willing human performers, like Circus of the Kids or Circus Finelli. And talk your kids (and to other moms and dads!) about why you won’t visit Ringling when it comes to town. If your child’s school plans a field trip to the circus every year, talk with your child’s teacher and the principal about the violence inherent in animal circuses and urge them to consider alternatives.

I know I won’t be able to protect Isaiah from every bad thing, but there are decisions I can make as a parent to help him grow into a kind, compassionate man. Avoiding circuses that use and repeatedly abuse animals is just one small step I can take toward that goal.

PETA’s Mom of the Year:
Andrea Kahn Eisenberg!

Happy Mother’s Day and a big congratulations to Andrea Kahn Eisenberg, who’s just been named PETA’s first-ever Mom of the Year! I hope I can be half the wonderful influence that she’s been on her family and community. It’s my first Mother’s Day as a mother, and I’m a little wigged out about getting cards and coupons in the mail for things like massages and haircuts (do moms really have time for fun like that?), but I won’t say “No” to breakfast in bed (hint, hint!).

Our Campaigns Department has been hammering away at our anti–seal slaughter campaign this spring—and even though seals have scored a big victory this week, the details of the slaughter would break any mother’s heart.

Since animal moms get the short end of the stick in our world, I thought I’d take a few minutes to remind our dear readers that some of the best moms in the world are found in the animal kingdom. Check out the following animal moms:

• Seals: Human mothers tuned in to “Channel Mom” may find themselves responding to anybody’s child when they hear someone calling the “M” word, but seals never make this mistake. Fresh from foraging for food, moms have to find their young quickly in a sea of hundreds—or possibly thousands—of seals, so both mother and pup depend on their uncanny powers of vocal recognition to find one another. Both will call out and answer, responding selectively to one another until they are reunited.

• Elephants: The TLC that these mammoth mothers bestow on their babies is among their most endearing qualities. Always ready to give an affectionate caress, a gentle nudge in the right direction, or a cool bath to help their babies beat the heat, doting moms maintain constant touch with their young ones, never allowing them to stray too far from their side. Mothers even stay in touch with their adult kids and enjoy close relationships with their daughters that can last up to 50 years.

• Cows: For cows and their calves, it’s love at first sight. The first minutes after birth are spent developing a bond that will last a lifetime. Throughout life, mother and child maintain social contact and regularly enjoy each other’s companionship. Their attachment and affection for each other is so deep that if they are forced apart, they both suffer severe stress. Moms have been known to escape their enclosures and travel for miles looking for their calves.

• Dolphins: Dolphins are known for graceful synchronized swimming, but dolphin mothers and their babies also synchronize their breathing for the first few weeks following the babies’ birth. These dedicated moms may nurse their young for up to 10 years and will also mentor less experienced females by allowing them to babysit as practice for when they have babies of their own.

• Cheetahs: Let’s hear it for single moms! These lightning-fast felines have their paws full caring for their cubs all on their own. Not only does mom protect her children from predators while she is nursing them, she also hunts for them from the time they are weaned until they are 14 to 18 months old. Overly active offspring can make the task of hunting even harder: Cubs often scare hunted animals away with their animated antics, leaving mom so worn out that she sometimes falls asleep in the middle of a hunt.

• Chickens: Nurturing begins in the nest for these caring moms. Mother hens will turn their eggs as many as five times an hour and cluck softly to their unborn chicks, who chirp back to her and to one another from within their shells! Once chicks hatch, devoted moms use their wings to shield their babies from predators and have been known to refuse to leave their nests during a fire if they have newly hatched peeps.

This Mother’s Day, please take a moment to recognize the unique bond between mothers and children of all species. For more tips on practicing kindness and compassion in honor of all animal moms, check out more PETA Living articles.

whatscookingamerica / cc

In that brief period of bliss between poorly named “morning” sickness and third-trimester there’s-no-room-for-my-organs and I-can’t-eat-more-than-two-bites-at-a-time bloatedness, you can enjoy an abundance of tasty, nutritious, and energizing food that will benefit yourself and your baby. You may have already answered a few of the absurd questions that people ask about being vegan while pregnant, but during the time that you’re not turning green at the thought of food, your friends and family may start digging into the specifics of your diet. Here’s what I told ‘em about mine:

There’s plenty of protein in soy milk, tempeh, tofu, fake meats, beans, hummus, peanut butter, and other foods that aren’t derived from animals. Eat some of these protein sources at every meal, and you’ll get plenty. When preggo, the average woman needs just 60 grams per day.

Women need calcium throughout pregnancy but should ramp it up in the third trimester when babies’ bones go into developmental overdrive. The average woman needs about 1,000 milligrams a day, which you can easily get through dark green leafy vegetables, fortified orange juice, or a few cups of soy milk. (One cup of soy milk has about 30 percent of the minimum daily requirement for calcium.)

Many vegetarian foods are fortified with the essential nutrient B12, including some brands of nutritional yeast (sprinkle some on salad or your mashed potatoes, mmmmm), but whether you’re pregnant or not, take a sublingual vegan B12 tablet daily for good measure.

My naysayer friends and midwives were all put in their place when I passed my mid-pregnancy iron test with flying colors. Again, dark green leafy foods (try braised kale with a little garlic) along with beans, other legumes, and dried fruit are all packed with iron. A great snack for us pregnant gals on the go is dried fruit mixed with nuts—it’s filling and packs a nutritional punch.

As for prenatal vitamins and DHA—there are great vegan supplements available. Both the prenatal and DHA supplement were one-a-day but easy on my morning sickness–ravaged stomach.

More questions? Check out this article from the Vegetarian Resource Group.

That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals

A book made its way across my desk recently that immediately captured my attention (hard to do, these days!). It’s a creatively illustrated, well-written little book called That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals: A Book About Vegans, Vegetarians, and All Living Things by Ruby Roth, and it’s designed to help kids understand how their food choices affect other living beings and the planet. I went vegan as an adult, after reading about the horrors of factory farming, and my decision was cemented after a viewing of “Meat Your Meat.” But it’s hard to explain to little kids why I’m vegan without painting the kind of nightmarish word picture that will land them in therapy for years to come. This book successfully tackles this tough subject with grace and clarity.

Roth’s book emphasizes the importance of family, something that most kids can relate to. Roth fills the book to the brim with fascinating facts about our furry and feathered friends, such as, “Pigs need the sight, sound, and touch of one another. Sometimes they snuggle so close that it’s hard to get them apart. Love is part of their nature.” And about turkeys: “They’re so sensitive that they even blush. Their snoods change color depending on their mood.” Children have a natural empathy for animals, of course, but these types of details reinforce that empathy and help kids to understand why it’s important to treat animals with kindness and respect.

The book covers the basics of factory farming in a way that is real but not overly frightening for young readers. In a discussion of factory farmed birds, Roth says, “Crowded together, they can’t follow their instincts, so they grow sick and scared.” The accompanying illustrations are appropriately sad—but not graphic, and not traumatizing. This is a great addition to any compassionate kid’s library and will make a wonderful gift for any parents in your life who want to talk to their kids about animals but need a little help getting started.

I would never presume to replace the original, but there’s a book that’s basically become my baby bible. It’s called Raising Vegetarian Children by Joanne Stepaniak and Vesanto Melina, and if you are a vegetarian parent or a parent who’s thinking about going vegetarian or you have a friend with kids who’s vegetarian, you should purchase it immediately!

The book is packed with solid nutritional information for vegetarian parents, from infancy (including specific dietary guidelines and menu suggestions for nursing moms) through the teen years. It’s a resource that you (or your friend or your friend’s friend) will use for years.

OMG! Animal Rights +
Infant Wear = Super-Fun!

I was cruising through PETA’s Merchandise Department the other day and saw these jaw-droppingly cute onesies. My dude is a little small for the 6-month size, but I couldn’t resist, and I’m glad I didn’t! This morning when I dropped him off at the church pre-school where he spends a few hours a day, the ladies went nuts! In addition to the fact that he’s handsome and perfect, the “Give Peas a Chance ―Go Vegetarian” onesie is just too adorable―look closely and you’ll see that one of the little pea-pod babies has a binky!

Anyway, his little onesie helped start a couple of conversations about being vegetarian, and then one of the gals wanted to know where she could get some sweet PETA gear for her nieces … it was a whole lot of pro-animal fun. Next up, it’s the “Animals Are Our Friends” bib to protect the onesie from food disasters.

unc / cc

When my son was a couple of weeks old, I began to panic because, in my sleep-deprived state, I hadn’t yet started actively encouraging his intellectual development. If he’s going to start playing Trivial Pursuit on Friday nights with Mom and Dad, I’d better get going on the early learning, right?

So, I went out and bought a couple of books, including one of nursery rhymes (subtitled A Crash Course in 80 Nursery Rhymes for Clueless Moms and Dads) that came with an accompanying CD (funsies!). I kinda knew “Itsy Bitsy Spider”—about a strong, resilient spider who beats the odds to climb up the water spout—and “This Old Man,” who gives his dog a bone, but little did I know of the horrors hidden in many of the cutesy verses sung by generations of parents to their children.

Cases-in-point: “Alouette”—a pleasant ditty I learned to play on the piano in elementary school. But translated from the French? It’s about plucking a pheasant in preparation for dinner! Then there’s “To Market, to Market to Buy a Fat Pig” (yikes!); a farmer’s wife cuts the tails off “Three Blind Mice”; if you “Sing a Song of Sixpence,” you’ll condemn 24 blackbirds to death baked inside a pie; and “Old Mother Hubbard’s” dog starves to death. At least the black sheep is asked for his wool, instead of having it stolen!

Happily, there are some animal-friendly alternatives (kiddies can go “to market, to market, to buy a ripe plum”), but if they aren’t readily available, you can always improvise on the fly (”this little piggy ate tofu”!). The point is, keep an eye out for opportunities to be kind while you’re teaching your kids to be creative. I leave you with the words of the wonderful little Spanish lullaby “Pio, Pio, Pio” (which is also the chorus sung by baby chicks) translated into English:

The baby chicks say, “Pio, pio, pio,”
Whenever they are hungry
Whenever they are chilly.

Then hens look for corn and wheat
For the baby chicks. “Pio, pio, pio.”

They give them food
And keep them warm
For the baby chicks. “Pio, pio, pio.”

Cute, huh? For more information on chickens, please read this.