Mary Ann - I totally agree w/ donating to local shelters, and also rescues...or anything that feels like a good fit. And if you donate time like writing letters etc, even better. I also agree w/ the unending need for funds toward direct care of animals -- it is by far one of the issues I'm most passionate about in my life. I can't really articulate my bond w/ animals...so I sure hope we see more progress in our lifetimes toward how animals are treated.
I also agree that some of PETA's adds/campaigns are utterly ridiculous and alienating -- no arguments there
. What I do like about PETA is what they've done in undercover investigations (filming etc), and especially things like advocating for not crash-testing dogs in the auto industry (w/out PETA, dogs would still be crash-tested
), the awareness of vivisection in our society, the decrease in cosmetic testing w/ rabbits, the exposure of chimp labs and beagle labs etcetera. There are so many I could name...and those are the types of things that no other organization has accomplished in the way PETA has.
There is much about PETA that rubs me the wrong way too, but there is so much they've done that I'm grateful for.