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When the M. Wells Dinette, which recently opened inside MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art) PS1 in Queens, announced plans to add horse meat to its menu, New Yorkers did not take it lying down. In fact, animal lovers all over the nation joined the ASPCA in speaking out against the idea—and we’re thrilled to share the news that the restaurant’s owners have graciously agreed to keep horse meat off the menu…permanently.

“We are thrilled that the outpouring of concern and outrage coupled with startling health concerns about the toxicity of horse meat won the day, and the M. Wells Dinette decided to step away from this idea,” says Nancy Perry, Senior Vice President of ASPCA Government Relations.

A national poll conducted earlier this year showed that 80% of American voters oppose the slaughter of U.S. horses for human consumption—and that sentiment was certainly borne out over the past week in New York City, where the M. Wells story ignited a firestorm of media coverage as well as hundreds of letters and phone calls directly to MoMA’s offices.

The ASPCA urges all Americans to contact their federal legislators in support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, which would prohibit the sale and transport of horses for slaughter in the United States, as well as across the border to Canada and Mexico. Passage of this critical legislation would end the current export and slaughter of approximately 100,000 American horses each year.

For more information and to join the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade, please visit our online Advocacy Center.

Listen up pooch parents: October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, and we’re kicking it off with our Cutest Dog Photo Contest. So, bring on those goofy grins and puppy dog eyes—it’s time to let Fido’s inner diva shine!

To enter, simply snap a great pic of your adopted dog and submit. The winner will receive an ASPCA tote bag loaded with treats for you and your pooch! Plus, the top 30 entries will be featured in a special Facebook photo album.

Entries will be accepted now through October 31, 2012—and the winner will be announced on November 2. So come on, enter your pup’s most adorable snapshot today!

We can’t wait to see them!

Guest blog post from Nancy Perry, Senior Vice President of ASPCA Government Relations.

Californians, your hard work has paid off! Yesterday, Governor Jerry Brown signed the state’s bill to ban hounding (S.B. 1221) into law. The new law bans the practice of releasing radio-collared dogs loose in the woods to chase and tree bears and bobcats, all so trophy “hunters” can shoot the terrified animals down from point-blank range. California now joins the more than 30 states that do not permit this blatant and needless form of animal cruelty.

We started work early on this legislation, partnering with the many groups and shelters that attended our 2012 California Humane Lobby Day. Hundreds of advocates flooded the Capitol, where we held a rally for the hound dogs and wildlife—and of course, hound hunters showed up to oppose us and the ban. They were determined to preserve this unsporting pastime despite ample evidence of the grotesque abuses inherent to hounding.

Even under such pressure, humane voices won the day. Every time we asked for your help, you responded in full force. Your work has changed your state forever and made it a safer haven for thousands of animals. If you live in California, please take a moment to thank Governor Brown.

In addition to the hounding ban, Governor Brown signed two other great bills for companion animals:
Declawing/devocalization (S.B. 1229): Landlords are now expressly prohibited from discouraging potential tenants from applying for housing if their pets are not declawed or devocalized.
Cost of care in animal abuse cases (S.B. 1500): This measure clarifies existing law so that anyone accused of animal abuse must provide for the cost of care for animals seized from them. This helps shelters tremendously, and also helps ensure that animals will not end up back in the hands of their abusers.

As a California native, I was thrilled to join our California advocates in-person and work on this legislation! But I’m excited to announce that we now have Sacramento-based Kevin O’Neill, our new Western Region State Legislative Director, aboard to guide us as we take on new challenges in California, Oregon, Washington and Nevada. Welcome, Kevin—may this be just the beginning of great things from your states!

Want help us change laws to protect animals? Join the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade!

Tennessee Walking Horses desperately need your help. These majestic and gentle-natured creatures are a breed of horse famous for their distinctive, smooth, high-stepping walk. Sadly, a cruel and illegal procedure called “soring” is all too frequently used to elicit an exaggerated movement, called the “big lick,” in order to win prizes at horse shows.

Soring is the gruesome practice of using chemicals and painful devices to injure a horse’s front limbs, making any contact with the ground so painful that the horse quickly jerks up his legs to relieve the pressure. Soring causes such intense pain that its victims often cannot stand for several days afterward.

Although soring was banned nationwide in 1970, inadequate legal penalties and lax enforcement have allowed this cruel practice to continue. A new bill, H.R. 6388, will address these inadequacies by amending the federal Horse Protection Act and improving protections for horses from soring, and we need your help in building support for this critical legislation!

What You Can Do
Please contact your U.S. representative and urge him/her to cosponsor H.R. 6388 and support strong amendments to the Horse Protection Act to better protect horses from soring.

Visit the ASPCA Advocacy Center online right now to contact your U.S. representative in Washington, D.C. There are only a few working days left in this Congress, so time is of the essence!