The actor and activist said that she went vegetarian at the age of nine because she was “very attached to animals,” and added that the environmental impact of factory farming became more of a priority as she got older. Portman first adopted a vegan diet around 2011.

“I think it’s basic empathy that I understood as a child, and understanding […] animals as like myself,” said Portman. She highlighted the role of anthropomorphized characters in cartoons in evoking empathy for animals, an idea that some research papers echo.

She also noted how animal rights and welfare intersect with “so many” other issues, including feminism, labor struggles, and migrant’s rights, including through the industry’s treatment of workers, animals, and specifically in its violent treatment of “female bodies.”

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Portman made the comments while appearing during the closing ceremony of Change NOW’s 2025 conference in conversation with CEO and founder Santiago Lefebvre. The event was a three-day “summit” focused on networking and the discussion of sustainability, resources, and “inclusion.” Other attendees included Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson and Earthshot Prize CEO Hannah Jones, along with other activists and prominent figures.

Read more: ‘I Tried Natalie Portman’s Favorite Vegan Weekday Dish’

‘Every time you eat, you’re thinking about your commitment’

In April, a new study by two of the UK’s leading plant-based healthcare professionals – PBHP’s Dr Shireen Kassam and Dr Laura Jane Smith – highlighted how promoting meat-free diets could help tackle the “intertwined crises” of poor health, food shortages, climate change, biodiversity loss and social injustice, all of which are driven by human activities.

“It’s so connected to so many other issues that it has become a very big part of my life,” Portman told Lefebvre. “And also is a way, I think, you can express your commitment three times a day. […]. Every time you eat, you’re thinking about your commitment to the environment, to nature, to animals, to your values.”

Read more: Is Natalie Portman Vegan? Everything She’s Said About The Movement

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

The team was led by scientists from the University of Exeter in the UK, who filmed “the repeated ingestion and sharing” of naturally fermented breadfruit by various combinations of chimpanzees at the Cantanhez National Park in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa.

The researchers employed motion-activated cameras to capture footage of chimpanzees sharing alcoholic fruit on 10 different occasions. Their work was published in Current Biology last month and builds on previous studies that document alcohol drinking amongst chimps.

Chimpanzees do not always share food with one another. One previous study suggested that apes have the same reciprocal willingness to share as young children, meaning they do it primarily with those who have shared food with them first.

The new footage implies that the sharing of fermented fruit, in particular, may be a bonding activity comparable to human alcohol consumption. The accompanying study notes that the sharing of alcoholic fruits “may have played a long-standing role in hominoid societies.”

Read more: Spanish Government Finally Opens Period Of Consultation For ‘Great Ape Law’

Use of alcohol ‘rooted in our deep evolutionary history’

The team’s work noted that late ripe fruits – with significantly higher alcohol content – were prioritized by chimps in 50 percent of the filmed interactions. In two out of the 10 interactions, the fruits that were not selected by chimpanzees were “clearly” less fermented. The most alcoholic fruits were only around 0.61 percent ABV, which is relatively low, but researchers said this could be the “tip of the iceberg” as the bulk of chimps’ diet is made up of fruit.

“Social eating and alcohol consumption comprise two key components of feasting behaviour in humans,” wrote the Exeter-based researchers. “But do the origins of feasting behaviour derive from a shared common ancestor? Our data provide the first evidence for ethanolic food sharing and feeding by wild nonhuman great apes, and supports the idea that the use of alcohol by humans is not ‘recent’ but rather rooted in our deep evolutionary history.”

In October of last year, an analysis of existing research on non-human alcohol consumption summarized how widespread the phenomenon is amongst wildlife, including chimpanzees and other apes. In addition to ethanol, naturally fermented fruits are rich in calories and vitamins, and their consumption is both “ecologically relevant” and potentially ancient.

Read more: Conservation Funding Prioritizes Large Mammals Over More Threatened Species, Study Finds

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

The findings indicate that the dominant, pastoral image of animal farming in marketing does not represent reality. In fact, most farmed animals – around 85 percent in the UK – are raised on factory farms.

Food Chain Misinformation was published this week by The Animal Law Foundation, a UK-based legal research charity and lawyer collective. In a statement sent to Plant Based News, The Animal Law Foundation’s executive director Edie Bowles noted that “something has clearly gone wrong,” particularly when so many British consumers care about animal welfare. Posting about the report on X, Animal Law Foundation said Brits are being “systematically misled” about their food.

Relevant provisions under the Digital Markets, Competition, and Consumers Act of 2024 are due to come into effect from April 2025. The new act explicitly prohibits unfair commercial practices such as providing false or misleading information to sell a product. Its predecessor, The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, also prohibits misleading action and omission.

Read more: The ‘Shocking’ Rise In US-Style Mega-Farms In The UK

‘We need urgent action’

To produce the report, researchers reviewed the websites, advertisements, and products of 47 producers and processors of dairy and eggs, as well as chicken, duck, turkey, pig, and lamb meat. Only three of these did not use photos of animals on their website. Of the 44 producers that did use animals, 84 percent used imagery of animals living outdoors. While 61 percent showed images of animals indoors, all of the animals appeared healthy, and nearly 30 percent depicted spacious conditions. Forty-eight percent also used blurry, cropped, or unclear imagery.

All major supermarket websites feature images of apparently healthy animals living outdoors, and almost 67 percent used imagery of animals alongside farmers. Three out of the nine supermarkets did not show imagery of animals living indoors. Of those that did, the animals appeared to be healthy. The indoor imagery showed a cow alongside her calf, well-lit barns, and clean hay. Just two supermarkets depicted animals indoors in “what could be characterised as standard commercial conditions,” the report said.

According to Animal Law Foundation, dairy pooling, where milk from multiple farms is processed together, means that it is extremely difficult for consumers to find out if the cows that produced the milk they purchase were ever grazed outdoors, unless that milk is organic. Meanwhile, the law in England, Scotland, and Wales is set to be updated to loosen the requirements for a “free range” label due to bird flu. This means that a so-called free-range hen could potentially spend her entire life inside.

“Just as regulators are cracking down on greenwashing, we need urgent action to address ‘humane-washing’ in animal agriculture,” said Bowles. “Consumers must be able to trust the claims made on the food they buy, and authorities must ensure that those who partake in misleading practices are held to account.”

Read more: More Than Half Of Brits Unaware Cows Must Be Impregnated To Produce Milk, Survey Finds

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

The YouGov survey, commissioned by animal rights group Animal Justice Project (AJP), found that 52 percent of the public was unaware that “cows are impregnated annually to enable milk production.” According to AJP, this survey highlights “a societal ignorance of the fundamental link between pregnancy and milk production.” Cows, like humans, are mammals who produce milk to feed their young. These findings build on a separate 2021 survey from charity Viva! that found that 59 percent of Brits don’t know cows must give birth to produce milk.

Elsewhere in the AJP survey, 83 percent of respondents were not aware that calves were removed from their mothers within 24 hours of birth. This is standard practice in farms, so humans can take the milk intended for them. Despite having a lifespan of 20 to 30 years, dairy cows are typically slaughtered when they are between five and seven years old, but only 82 percent of people were aware of this. 

“In 2025, it is absurd that most people still don’t realise that, just like humans, cows must be pregnant to lactate,” said AJP founder Claire Palmer. “But it’s also no surprise, given the systematic disinformation the dairy industry has spread for decades.”

Read more: Anti-Dairy Ad To Be Screened At Cinemas In ‘UK First’

A hidden industry

The vast majority of the UK consumes dairy products. But the reality of the industry has been well-hidden from the public. Children’s books often depict dairy cows in green fields being milked by smiling farmers, and industry marketing uses terms like “high welfare” and “humane” without giving any details about what actually happens to cows on farms. 

When they are around 15 months old, dairy cows are impregnated through artificial insemination for the first time. After they give birth, their calf will be taken from them within hours. Cows form powerful bonds with their babies just like humans do, and they often cry out and bellow for days after they’re gone. If the calf is female, she will be put in solitary confinement and eventually raised for dairy too. If the calf is male, he may be killed or sold for meat. Lactating mothers are often hooked up to milking machines and milked regularly before they’re ready to be made pregnant again. This cycle will continue until her milk dries up, at which point she’ll be killed for low-grade beef. 

Read more: New Exposé Shines Light On Lameness ‘Epidemic’ Among Dairy Cows

Multiple investigations have uncovered huge suffering on dairy farms, including cows being hit by workers, having their legs shackled, and being subjected to extreme temperatures. According to the AJP survey, only 17 percent of people agree that dairy companies provide consumers with enough information about how dairy is produced.

AJP commissioned the survey to mark International Women’s Day, which falls on Saturday, March 8, and the charity is urging the public to remember that “cows are mothers too.”

“Like human mothers, they love their babies immensely,” said Palmer. “The suffering they endure when those calves are torn away within hours of birth is unimaginable. We don’t need to consume milk – but baby cows do. It’s made for them, not us.”

Read more: New Investigation Warns Of Factory Farming’s ‘Silent Takeover’ In UK Dairy

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

The study drew on data from 14,566 conservation projects with a combined fund of USD $1.963 billion. An analysis showed that 82.9 percent of the funding and 84 percent of the projects were focused on vertebrates. This is 10 to 40 percent more than reported in previous studies. Among vertebrates, birds and mammals receive 85 percent of funding, while amphibians receive just 2.8 percent.

Large mammals such as elephants and rhinos are even more overrepresented in conservation projects. Though they account for only a third of threatened mammals, 86 percent of funding is dedicated to them. Meanwhile, funding for other mammals that are classed as endangered such as rodents, bats, and hedgehogs is limited. Overall, funding supports around six percent of species classified as threatened, and 29 percent of the funding was used for species of “least concern.”

Read more: ‘Old And Wise’ Animals Essential For Species Survival, Study Finds

“Both governments and nongovernmental stakeholders urgently need new approaches to help tackle the biodiversity crisis,” the researchers write. This includes “realigning funding priorities to ensure representative funding across taxa toward vulnerable and currently neglected species.”

Small species and plants neglected

Plants and invertebrates receive hardly any conservation attention, the research found. Each accounts for only 6.6 percent ($129 million) of funding and 7.8 percent and 5.7 percent of conservation projects, respectively. This is despite 45 percent of flowering plant species being threatened with extinction, and invertebrates accounting for around 97 percent of all animals on the planet. Fungi and algae are even more neglected, accounting for less than 0.2 percent of funding each.

Part of the problem is that a relatively small number of these species have assessed for their conservation status. While 80 percent of vertebrates have been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), only 18 percent of plants, 1.8 percent of invertebrates, and 0.4 percent of fungi have been. Many of these species remain undocumented by science.

A further problem, according to the new research, is that the majority of conservation projects target single species instead of multiple species. This means habitats and ecosystems that support many “less conspicuous species” don’t get as much support.

“Future allocation of funding needs to address these biases by distributing resources to a wider range of vulnerable species,” the researchers write.

Read more: Wild Fish Can Tell Humans Apart By Their Clothing, Study Finds

This article was written by Claire Hamlett on the PBN Website.

Nature groups will finally be allowed to release beavers into English waterways after years of rewilding advocacy and debate. According to the Guardian, it’s believed that Downing Street initially blocked beaver release plans because Labour government officials viewed it as a legacy of the previous Tory government that would “needlessly upset farmers.”

The Department for Environment, Food, & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and Natural England published a roadmap today that includes a detailed plan for licensing and long-term population management, including for already established beaver colonies.

“The beaver’s ability to transform and revitalize our degraded landscape is extraordinary,” said Stuart Otway, Principal Officer in Natural England’s Complex Cases Unit, and Delphine Pouget, Principal Officer in Natural England’s Species Recovery & Reintroductions Team.

“Natural England believes that their successful reintroduction will play a vital part in restoring rivers and wetlands, addressing the nature crisis, and contributing to the delivery of national biodiversity targets including the creation of wildlife-rich habitats,” they added.

Read more: UK Government ‘Won’t Be Commenting’ On Pre-Election Pledge To Ban Foie Gras

Wild beavers will bring a ‘wealth of ecological benefits’ to England

Beavers are large, semi-aquatic rodents. They were hunted to extinction nearly half a century ago, but 20 years of carefully licensed beaver releases into enclosures, several escapees, and some illegal rewilding created today’s thriving current population of around 400 animals.

Beavers are a keystone species, meaning they help to define their entire ecosystem, and their presence is extremely beneficial for the environment. The 30 families who now live in Somerset’s River Otter – previously the only licensed population in the country – have had a measurable positive impact on their home in the years since the trial began.

Research published by the University of Exeter in 2024 found that beaver-made wetlands promote other wildlife like kingfishers and otters. They also alleviate the impact of flooding and drought, with Devon’s four wild beaver territories storing over 24 million liters of water.

According to the Wildlife Trusts, beavers also clean their water and reduce siltation, something that England’s polluted, frequently lifeless rivers desperately need. Beaver wetlands also sequester carbon, another much-needed ecosystem service.

“After centuries of absence, beavers are beginning to reclaim their rightful place in the English landscape,” said Otway and Pouget. “These industrious mammals, once hunted to extinction, are now being returned to our rivers and wetlands, bringing with them a wealth of ecological benefits.”

Read more: UK Rewilding Group Could Bring Rare White Storks To London

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Researchers observed fish using visual cues like diving gear color to tell humans apart. The saddled sea bream and black sea bream used in the study possess “acute color vision,” which they successfully used to distinguish between divers with different colored clothing.

This phenomenon was observed at both a population level and within identifiable individuals. However, when divers wore matching gear, correct identification was “greatly diminished.”

Maëlan Tomasek of Germany’s Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour led the study, alongside Katinka Soller and Alex Jordan. The study – titled “Wild fish use visual cues to recognize individual divers” – was published in the journal Biology Letters earlier this month.

The new study noted that evidence from captive conditions suggests many aquatic species – such as octopuses and archerfish – can recognize different humans. In this case, however, researchers studied the bream within their natural habitat, the Mediterranean Sea.

Read more: Crabs And Other Crustaceans Do Feel Pain, Scientists Say

‘Maybe it’s time we that we can care about them, too’

Speaking to the Guardian, Tomasek suggested that his team’s research could prompt a reconsideration of how humans treat fish and other aquatic animals.

“It’s very human to not want to care about them, but the fact that they can care about us, maybe it’s time that we can care about them, too,” said Tomasek.

Separate research from 2023 found that certain fish can recognize themselves in pictures and reflective surfaces, which the authors suggested could indicate self-awareness. Another study, also from 2023, indicated that individuals from the tiny, tropical bluestreak cleaner wrasse species may check their size in a reflection before attacking other fish.

In 2024, other scientists from the Max Planck Institute captured footage of octopuses and fish hunting cooperatively. Speaking to NBC at the time, the study’s co-author Eduardo Sampaio noted that humans are “very similar to these animals,” and “closer than we think.”

Read more: Aquaculture Kills More Wild Fish Than Previously Thought, Study Finds

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said cats became ill after consuming raw animal products. The H5N1 virus is particularly lethal to cats, and the FDA plans to order the manufacturers of raw food for companion animals to take additional measures.

“The FDA is aware of reports of death or illness associated with uncooked food in 13 domestic cats in eight households, 1 exotic cat in one household, and an unknown number of animals at two sanctuaries for large felids,” said the FDA, as reported by CBS News.

The new feline cases were reported in California, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington State. It is not yet clear how the bird flu virus has spread to food for companion animals, however, a strain of bird flu detected in an infected cat – and raw food – was linked to a turkey flock.

Read more: Leading Veterinary Professor: ‘Vegan Diets Can Be Safe For Cats Too!’

Cat H5N1 genomes show ‘unique mutations’

The news about infected cats comes shortly after the first reported human death from H5N1 in the US. There have been 66 confirmed human cases so far, and infections are most common among dairy farmers and other agricultural workers.

H5N1 has now been detected in more than 200 mammals, including farmed cows, in addition to more than 13 million commercial and backyard poultry birds, like turkeys. In late December, zoos in Arizona, San Francisco, and Seattle reported infections and deaths among their resident animals, including exotic birds as well as a cheetah and a tiger.

At least 60 cats have tested positive for H5N1 so far. In 2024, 12 barn cats died after drinking unpasteurized milk from infected cows. While it has not yet been detected in US dogs, other countries have reported fatal canine cases of the highly transmissible virus.

The American Veterinary Association (AVMA) notes that signs in cats are currently better known, but if your cat or dog has a low appetite, inflamed eyes, difficulty breathing, lethargy, nose discharge, a fever, or other “neurological signs,” seek veterinary care.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the current public health risk remains low, with zero cases reported as spreading human-to-human. However, a 2023 study suggested that cat H5N1 genomes had “unique mutations,” suggesting that feline infections could help the virus adapt and “serve as a bridge” to other species.

Read more: Bird Flu Pandemic ‘Very Likely’, Warns Former CDC Director

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Read more: Bird Flu Found In Raw Milk In The US, Officials Say

Earlier this month, the Wildlife World Zoo in Litchfield Park, Arizona, reported that a cheetah, mountain lion, swamphen, Indian goose, and a kookaburra all died from exposure to H5N1, or bird flu. A white tiger also tested positive at the zoo but is responding to treatment.

According to The Arizona Republic, this is the third instance of bird flu infecting animals in the state and the second instance in Maricopa County alone. Two farm workers from the neighboring Pinal County have contracted the virus from infected poultry.

KQED reported that The San Francisco Zoo has temporarily closed its indoor bird exhibits after a wild red-shouldered hawk who lived on the grounds died and tested positive for bird flu, also earlier this month. So far, none of the zoo’s resident animals have been infected.

In November, Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo reported the death of a red-breasted goose who tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAIV). The zoo said it would be implementing “additional health and safety precautions” to protect its birds, staff, and guests.

Read more: Wildlife Populations Have Plunged 73% In 50 Years

Bird flu, zoos, and disease

The H5N1 virus has notably spread from wild birds to farmed poultry to dairy cows, and while there has been no documented human-to-human transmission so far there have been at least 44 human cases. The virus has also infected a range of wild and domestic animals.

As the H5N1 epidemic spreads, the possibility of another bird flu pandemic becomes more likely. As on animal farms, zoos provide a unique opportunity for the virus to spread amongst different species, including the endangered animals that zoos purport to protect.

Zoos are increasingly controversial. Animal advocacy groups like Freedom For Animals believe that keeping animals captive is both cruel and unjustifiable. The majority of animals bred in zoos are not threatened in the wild, and breeding programs often result in low levels of genetic diversity and disease, much like factory-farmed food animals.

The presence of bird flu at US zoos follows the deaths of 47 tigers, three lions, and a panther at zoos in South Vietnam, as reported by the BBC. Zoos remain a likely source of future zoonotic outbreaks as they are home to a variety of species, typically at a high density.

Read more: Zoo Links Baby Red Panda’s Death To Fireworks

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Read more: Britain’s Wild Bird Numbers Keep Dropping

It’s understood that elephants, primates, whales, and other pack animals often rely on the older generations to pass down knowledge and maintain social structures. In elephant communities, for example, it is the older females who are best equipped to recognize potential dangers. Under the “grandmother hypothesis,” it’s also believed that, much like humans, some animals like elephants and orcas help their children care for their own offspring. 

These “old, wise” animals play a key role in their communities. But they are also quickly declining, the research warns.

Wildlife numbers are decreasing all over the world. Many animals don’t make it to old age, and those who do are prime targets for hunters as they are larger, and may have big tusks or horns. 

Read more: Scientists Capture Footage Of Octopuses And Fishes Hunting Cooperatively

‘Cultural transmission’

Culture is often associated with humans, rather than non-human animals, but this study adds to a growing body of research indicating that animal lives are considerably more complex than we think. The researchers highlight the concept of “cultural transmission,” meaning animals are passing on knowledge to each other. 

“A term that has definitely pretty much only been used for people in the past is ‘wisdom’, and we’ve used that term – wise – in the title [of the study],” researcher Keller Kopf said, as reported by the Guardian. He, alongside his co-authors, is calling for greater legal protections for older animals to help species survive in an increasingly threatening environment. “Old animals play a vital role in the maintenance of biodiversity and ecosystem services and therefore … require dedicated policy directives, political motivation and careful management,” the authors said. 

Animal agriculture is a leading cause of biodiversity loss and species extinction. It uses around 75 percent of agricultural land, which has destroyed habitats and displaced wildlife. A study published last year found that plant-based diets cut wildlife destruction by 66 percent. 

Read more: Chimpanzees Seen ‘Self-Medicating’ With Healing Plants

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Read more: Death Threats Made Against Opponents Of Jeremy Clarkson’s Farm Expansion

Clarkson first started farming around five years ago and went on to star in the reality TV show Clarkson’s Farm for Amazon Prime. The program documents his initial attempts to manage the “Diddly Squat Farm” in Oxfordshire, where Clarkson rears sheeps*, pigs, and cows.

In an interview for The Sun Showbiz, Clarkson described the difficulties of raising animals for food, including unpredictable illness and death as well as taking them to slaughter.

“When your animals are sickly or dying, it’s awful,” said Clarkson. “I don’t particularly like sending them off to market, or to the slaughterhouse, to be brutally honest.”

In the interview, he also discussed his recent heart health scare. He said that having stents placed in his arteries means he can no longer eat certain animal products, which have been repeatedly linked to elevated heart disease risk.

“It all has to stop. I mean really, all of it,” he continued. “I’m not allowed now to eat sausages, bacon, beef, pork, lamb, anything fried, apparently egg yellows are bad.”

Read more: ‘What Food History Tells Us About Living Longer’

Slaughtering animals ‘phenomenally difficult’

Despite repeatedly expressing disdain for people who choose not to eat animal products, the new interview is not the first time Clarkson has described the reality of farming animals for food – and inevitably having them slaughtered – as a challenging experience.

In 2023, he described feeling “gut-wrenching loss” when taking animals to slaughter, saying it was “bad enough with the sheep and worse with the cows.” When taking pigs to slaughter, Clarkson added that he can “never” sleep properly the night before. “All the way to the slaughterhouse I have what feels like a hot cricket ball in the pit of my stomach.”

In 2021, ahead of the launch of Clarkson’s Farm, there were reports that Clarkson found his first experience of taking animals to the slaughterhouse “phenomenally difficult.”

Read more: ‘Why I Quit The Carnivore Diet’

*While the English language usually refers to multiple sheeps as “sheep”, we use “sheeps” to emphasize that they are individuals.

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Read more: Spanish Government Finally Opens Period Of Consultation For ‘Great Ape Law’

The new study’s authors reviewed a selection of already published research papers on animals and their interactions with ethanol for their analysis, which they say “challenges the current belief” that humans are the only vertebrate that regularly consumes alcohol.

“The Evolutionary Ecology Of Ethanol” was published in Trends in Ecology & Evolution earlier this week. It details how widespread alcohol consumption is in the natural world and explores how imbibing it serves different purposes for different species.

For example, some animals simply gain a few additional calories by consuming naturally occurring alcohol, whereas others can use it to protect themselves from parasites. Some other species are less able to tolerate it but may encounter and ingest it anyway.

Low-level ethanol ingestion is also linked with certain medicinal properties, while its cognitive influence likely includes the same potential risks and benefits for primates as for humans.

Read more: Wildlife Populations Have Plunged 73% In 50 Years

Ethanol consumption is ‘ecologically relevant,’ say authors

According to the analysis, sugar-rich fleshy fruits like mangos, plums, and apples have supported fermentation and natural ethanol production since the Cretaceous period. As a result, the new study’s authors believe alcohol consumption may be “just as ancient.”

Beetles, honey bees, wasps, and the vinegar fly – the latter of which processes ethanol extremely efficiently – have all been documented consuming alcohol. There are also many anecdotal accounts of mammals eating fermented, alcoholic fruit, including elephants, baboons, and one notable case of a drunk, tree-climbing moose.

The analysis details how wild chimpanzees “repeatedly” ingest fermented palm, while spider monkeys feed on fermented yellow mombin fruits. One of the difficulties of assessing ethanol consumption in the wild is measuring alcohol by volume (ABV) and tolerance across species.

For example, pen-tailed treeshrews showed no signs of intoxication despite “prodigious ethanol consumption” via wild bertam palm nectar. The authors acknowledge that “it is unclear how an inebriated treeshrew would behave,” but suggest that the animals likely have an “enhanced ethanol metabolism” with a to-be-determined evolutionary history.

“We conclude that ethanol is ecologically relevant and that it has shaped the evolution of many species and structured symbiotic relationships among organisms, including plants, yeast, bacteria, insects, and mammals,” write the study’s authors.

Read more: Scientists Capture Footage Of Octopuses And Fishes Hunting Cooperatively

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Read more: ‘World First’ Cat Food Made With Cultivated Chicken Is Here

Unicorn Pate combines lentils, potatoes, peas, carrots, marine microalgae, and cranberries, and is fortified with all of the vitamins and minerals that cats need. It exceeds the nutritional standards dictated by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).

While cats are obligate carnivores, Wild Earth’s vegan cat food notably includes the essential amino acid taurine, which is vital for feline health and historically only found in animal-derived proteins. Even meat-based cat food is fortified with additional taurine.

“Our team is incredibly proud to launch a new category leader that we hope will catalyze change in the entire Pet Food industry,” said Wild Earth CEO Ryan Bethencourt. “Nutritionally complete Vegan Cat food has been a long time coming and we’re very thankful to be able to launch a whole new category of products.”

Wild Earth has been making plant-based food for companion animals since 2017, and appeared on SharkTank in 2019 where the company secured investment from Mark Cuban. In 2021, the company closed a significant USD $23 million funding round.

Read more: Pets Choice Acquires Vegan Dog Food Brand HOWND

Nutritionally sound vegan food ‘may be healthier overall’ for cats

In a blog post, Wild Earth described the existing pet food category as “outdated,” and said that its new vegan cat food product marks another step towards cruelty-free and sustainable food “for all.” The brand also noted that a growing body of data supports plant-based diets for cats, with several particularly notable positive health outcomes.

For example, a study published in the journal Plos One last year found a 14.9 percent medication reduction, a 54.7 percent reduction in progression onto therapeutic diets, a 22.8 percent reduction in severe illness, and a 7.3 reduction in veterinary visits in plant-based cats who were fed appropriate nutrients.

Emphasizing the importance of nutritional completeness in any companion animal’s diet, lead study author Andrew Knight wrote: “The pooled evidence to date from our study, and from others in this field, indicate that cats fed nutritionally sound vegan diets may be healthier overall, than those fed meat-based diets.”

Read more: Further Foods Could Receive ‘Imminent’ FDA Approval For Cultivated Meat Dog Food

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Read more: British Veterinary Association Ends Longstanding Opposition To Plant-Based Diets For Dogs

Italian luxury fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana recently unveiled “Fefé,” a scent for dogs that costs €99 (USD $109) per bottle. The fragrance is named after cofounder Domenico Dolce’s famous companion dog. The alcohol-free scented mist for dogs is described as “delicate, authentic, charismatic” in an advertising campaign.

But PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk, who is the author of book Let’s Have a Dog Party, told Plant Based News that perfumes can be hugely distressing for dogs due to their reliance on their sense of smell. “Dogs have an extraordinarily sensitive sense of smell – they have hundreds of millions more receptors in their nostrils and can smell 10,000 to 100,000 times better than humans – and can pick up scents a mile away, so squirting them with a fragrance designed to please humans, as this is, can upset them greatly,” she said.

Read more: Hot Weather Poses ‘Huge Threat’ To Flat Faced Dogs, Charity Warns

Newkirk added that, due to the fact dogs are unable to shake it off, the perfume scent can “cause them irritation and distress and interfere with their ability to detect other smells in their environment and communicate with other animals they encounter.”

“PETA advises dog guardians never to apply any scented sprays to their animal companions and reminds people to consider that our dogs love us just as we are – and we should extend the same courtesy to them,” she added. 

Demand for dog perfume

There are a number of dog perfumes already on the market. They can be found around the world in “pet” stores, groomers, and even the British Royal Estate of Sandringham’s online store. 

According to Dolce & Gabbana, the market has “reacted well” to the latest launch. “Everyone went crazy at the announcement,” Stefano Gabbana, the company’s other cofounder, told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The brand has also claimed that the perfume is “vet approved” and certified by an Italian companion animal safety company named Safe Pet Cosmetics.

Read more: Animal Testing Lab Transforms Into Rescued Animal Sanctuary

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Read more: Don’t Buy Taylor Swift’s Breed Of Cat, Warns Animal Charity

BIBs include pugs, French bulldogs, English bulldogs, boxers, Boston terriers, and other brachycephalic breeds. PETA has said that the summer months can pose a “huge threat” to the welfare of these dogs. This is because they are twice as likely to get heatstroke due to their small airways and breathing impairment. They are also 14 times more likely to develop a heat-related illness than a labrador. 

“Gasping, shortness of breath, and laboured, open-mouthed breathing are not normal for dogs – and BIBs are at grave risk of harm in hot weather,” PETA Vice President of Programmes Elisa Allen said in a statement. “PETA urges everyone to stop buying or breeding dogs with these horrific, life-threatening deformities and to take precautions to protect those they are already responsible for during the heatwave.”

Read more: Animal Rescues ‘At Breaking Point’ Due To Influx Of Dogs

The problem with BIBs

Humans bred flat faced dogs into existence due to the fact that they can be sold for a lot of money. This is because their flat faces have long been considered “cute” and “trendy” by prospective “pet” buyers. Celebrities and social media has fuelled demand for brachycephalic dogs, with pugs in particular being hugely trendy in popular culture over the last decade. 

But many people buying these dogs aren’t aware of the huge – and lifelong – health issues they face. Because they have been bred to have the sought-after flat faces, their airways are far shorter than they should be. This means that they spend their lives struggling to breathe. Many flat faced dogs can’t run, chase a ball, or even walk without experiencing pain. Fainting and heart failure are common occurrences in these breeds, as they live in a near-constant state of breathlessness. 

While there has been some decline in their popularity in recent years, thousands are still sold by breeders in the UK. Animal organizations have long warned the public against buying them, and The Royal Veterinary College recently stated that they cannot be considered “typical dogs” because of their issues. 

PETA is urging the government to ban the breeding and sale of flat faced dogs.

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This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.