Jada Pinkett Smith and Other Celebs Standing Up for Animals

As you probably have heard, Proposition 2 passed in California, which means that farm animals will be raised free of cruel practices. According to Farm Sanctuary, "This law phases out some of the most restrictive confinement systems used by factory farms ... affecting 20 million farm animals in the state by simply granting them space to stand up, stretch their limbs, turn around and lie down comfortably." And while this is great news for farm animals, other animals are getting some support from a few famous faces, too.

For example, Jada Pinkett Smith has spoken out against caging animals in the home. Her family currently has a pet snake, Beauty, but Jada said, "I think I'll never get an animal like a snake again where I have to keep her in an aquarium. We have this whole thing for Beauty outside ... to be in a natural habitat. But at the end of the day, she knows she's caged into her aquarium."

Shelter animals are making news, too, thanks to our new President-elect Barack Obama. He publicly stated that the family would prefer to adopt a shelter dog, but there are two issues. "One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic. There are a number of breeds that are hypoallergenic. On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but, obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me. So whether we're going to be able to balance those things I think is a pressing issue on the Obama household," he told the press.

The Obamas aren't the only ones considering a presidential pooch — Vice President-elect Joe Biden might also be adopting. He apparently used pictures of large-breed dogs as motivation when he began his presidential campaign, and was told by his wife that the only way he'd get a dog was by becoming president. Now that he's going to be vice president, the issue may be revisited, and with his pro-animal legislation track record, it would be shocking indeed if he didn't go with a rescue!

How about you? Are you considering adopting, or have you made any personal commitments to animals? If not, think about doing something simple — volunteer, donate money or other needed items to shelters, or find another way to help your cause!