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Animal advocates in Maryland will probably recognize a familiar face or two in this public service announcement, scheduled to premier this week at Maryland Humane Lobby Day.

The video was created by Save Maryland Pets, in association with Maryland Votes for Animals, in support of legislation that would establish a statewide funding mechanism for spaying and neutering.

The PSA will officially premier on Thursday, Feb. 21st, during the Maryland Humane Lobby Day event at the Maryland Statehouse and Legislative Buildings in Annapolis.

The event will include awards, briefings, and an opportunity for people who care about animals to meet directly with their elected officials.

Supporters of the spay/neuter legislation — you can sign a petition for it here — say it will save thousands of lives in Maryland, and money, too. 

Thirty-four states have established funding mechanisms to support spay/neuter programs, leading to significant reductions in their euthanasia rates. New Jersey witnessed a 61 percent decrease and New Hampshire saw a 75 percent decrease after implementing state programs. In  New Hampshire, statistics showed for every dollar invested, $3.15 was saved in reduced costs for shelter care and euthanasia.

The Save Maryland Pets Spay Awareness PSA, directed and produced by Dani Englander, features some of Maryland’s  most dedicated animal advocates, workers, officers, and friends.

Appearances are made by Del. Barbara Frush, sponsor of the Maryland spay/neuter legislation, and Sen. John Astle and Del. Ron George, co-sponsors of the bills.

Among the other animal lovers and advocates who appear are Carolyn Kilborn, Tami Santelli, Matt Wieters, Valerie Leonard, Michelle Kownacki, Caroline Griffin, and Wendy Cozzone. The video was filmed in Annapolis and  Baltimore.

Watching an Italian supermodel suffer in a hot car may not spur exactly the same emotions as watching a dog trapped in one, but we’ve got to give PETA credit at least for keeping this issue in the forefront.

Elisabetta Canalis, who previously posed for PETA in an anti-fur ad, braves the heat again in this new public service announcement reminding people not to leave their dogs in parked cars.

“… Elisabetta endures the panic and pain that a dog feels when left in a car on a summer day — even with the windows open a crack,” PETA says. “…. As panic and anxiety set in, Elisabetta’s condition deteriorates rapidly with the addition of excessive thirst, lethargy, lack of coordination, and a rapid heartbeat.”

Elisabetta aside, the facts are these: On even a 78-degree day, the temperature inside a shaded car can rise to 90 degrees; in the sun it can climb to 160 — and in just a matter of minutes.

Animals can quickly suffer heatstroke, sustain brain damage and die in as little as 15 minutes.

Here’s PETA’s advice should you ever confront a dog in that situation:

After rattling off a farcical list of “problems” for which there is no cure — infantile baldness, bulimic insomnia, backwards baseball caps — comedian-actor Kevin Nealon makes it clear to viewers of this public service announcement that there is one we can do something about:

The senseless killing of thousands of adoptable animals each year in Los Angeles city shelters.

In this spot for No-Kill Los Angeles, Nealon brings a little humor to a serious situation. Using his deadpan style, accompanied by poignant piano music, he reels off a long list of “unsolveable” problems, then he  makes his plea:

“There are a lot of problems out there,” Nealon says. “Here is one you can do something about — homeless pets. Go to NKLA.org to find out more about how you can help. Let’s make LA a no-kill city forever.”

NKLA is a campaign of Best Friends Animal Society and its goal is to end the killing of animals in Los Angeles shelters by 2017. About 17,000 animals die in city shelters every year.

NKLA billboards can be found across Los Angeles, featuring the larger-than life faces of dogs and cats, flanked by the initials NKLA, an acronym for “No Kill Los Angeles.”

Nealon spent nine years on the cast of “Saturday Night Live,” appeared in movies such as “Anger Management,” “Joe Dirt,” and the “Wedding Singer,” and is a regular on the Showtime series, “Weeds.”

The NKLA spot was produced by Let There Be Dragons, which is affiliated with the advertising agency TBWA\Chiat\Day.

iN aPRIL, Nealon, along with Oscar winner Hilary Swank and other celebrities, helped roll out the NKLA campaign, which includes a broad coalition of animal rescue groups and shelters led by Best Friends Animal Society, with support from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the LA City Council, and LA City Animal Services General Manager Brenda Barnette.

Members of the NKLA coalition include Found Animals Foundation, Kitten Rescue, Stray Cat Alliance, Downtown Dog Rescue, FixNation, Karma Rescue, and Best Friends.

Hoping to make Los Angeles a no-kill city, a new coalition of animal welfare and rescue groups has come together to try and stop the killing of homeless pets.

It hopes to reach that goal in five years, and that, by ending euthanasia of healthy pets in Los Angeles city animal shelters, it will pave the way for other cities to follow.

Last year more than 17,000 healthy pets were killed in Los Angeles.

Led by Best Friends Animal Society, No-Kill LA (NKLA) is a coalition of animal rescue organizations, city shelters and individuals. It launched last week.

“Our plan is straightforward,” NKLA says on its website. “Provide spay/neuter services where they are needed most so fewer animals go into shelters, and increase adoptions through the combined efforts of the NKLA coalition so more animals come out of the shelters and go into new homes.

“Best Friends is providing grants to coalition partners for every pet they adopt to a new home over the number they adopted last year, as well as finding spay/neuter projects for pet owners who can’t afford to have their pets fixed.

“We’re making this happen because the animals deserve it. Standing united toward this singular goal, our mission will become reality.”

The Shelter Pet Project has unveiled a new series of public service ads, all featuring pets talking about their owner’s quirks.

As a follow up to its “Mutts” ads – a stylish series of animations by Patrick McDonnell, creator of the “Mutts” comics — the Shelter Pet Project campaign shifts from portraying the heartwarming benefits of adopting animals to looking at humans through pets eyes.

In the one above, two dogs comment on the flirtatious behavior of their humans. Below, a dog wonders if his human truly understands the game of hide and seek.

The ads end with the tagline: “A person is the best thing to happen to a shelter pet. Be that person.”

The Shelter Pet Project is a public service ad campaign sponsored by The Humane Society of the United States and Maddie’s Fund in partnership with the Ad Council.

You can see all the new ads here.

(All of our “Woof in Advertising” selections can be found archived here.)

The Shelter Pet Project was launched about two years ago, and quickly teamed up with Patrick McDonnell, creator of Mutts comics.

The series of animated ads they’ve produced are aimed at encouraging pet adoptions, and reducing the 3 million deaths of cats in shelters each year.

In the one above — and they are all equal parts sweet and funny – an old dog finds a home.

In another, a Boston Terrier watches while his owner gets arrested for insider trading. “He’s going to jail and I’m going to a shelter. And no, they’re not the same thing.”

The Shelter Pet Project is a joint effort between the Humane Society of the United States, Maddie’s Fund, and the Ad Council.

The Shelter Pet Project marks the first Ad Council campaign to focus on pets.

In addition to the animated “Mutts” ads, the campaign has produced some pretty memorable non-animated ads as well. Here’s one, called “Ditched.”

(All of our “Woof in Advertising” selections can be found archived here.)

Bob Barker has made a new public service annoucement for PETA, aimed at calling attention to the suffering of animals used for product testing.

Many animals are poisoned, blinded, and killed every year in product tests for cosmetics, personal-care products, and household cleaning products — even though non-animal tests are available.

On top of that, the results of animal tests are often unreliable or not applicable to humans, PETA says.

Barker urges consumers to research before they buy, and suggests visiting PETA’s website to order the organization’s free cruelty-free shopper’s guide.

“The price is never right on products tested on animals,” Barker says.

Eva LaRue and Omar Miller, stars of TV’s “CSI: Miami” are teaming with Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Pet Foods, PETCO™ and independent pet stores to celebrate National Guide Dog Month in September.

The goal is to  raise money and awareness for guide dog organizations across the country.

“We want people to realize that this is more than just a fundraiser for a good cause,” said Miller. “This is really about empowering the visually impaired with the life-changing gift of a guide dog. Guide dogs and training are provided at no cost to qualified applicants who are blind or visually impaired. With 10 million visually impaired people in the U.S., the demand for guide dogs continues to grow.”

“Every seven minutes someone in America becomes blind or visually impaired,” said LaRue. “Guide dogs are heroes, providing safe mobility, loving companionship and restoring confidence to their handlers.”

You can see the public service announcement they made here.

Throughout September, pet owners can visit any of PETCO’s locations as well as select independent retailers of Natural Balance to help support National Guide Dog Month.

Shoppers can purchase specially marked bags of Natural Balance to donate $1 of the purchase price to participating guide dog schools.

Petco shoppers can also “round up” their purchases at the register or make donations directly online at  www.petco.com.

Recipients of the money raised will include: Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., Guide Dogs of the Desert, Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, Inc., Southeastern Guide Dogs, Leader Dogs for the Blind, The Seeing Eye, Inc., Freedom Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind, Guiding Eyes for the Blind and Guide Dogs of Texas, Inc.

PETA, knowing better than most how much cute and fuzzy things appeal to the public, has tapped Justin Bieber to start in his second public service announcement for the organization.

Justin sings the praises of adopting pets in a PSA whose tagline is, “Animals Can Make U Smile. Adopt From Your Local Shelter.”

According to PETA, Bieber wants his fans to know that buying a dog or a cat from a pet store or a breeder takes a home away from a shelter animal,  3 to 4 million of which end up euthanized in America each year. Buying a dog, PETA says, supports puppy mills, operations in which dogs are raised in cramped, crude, and filthy conditions.

While preparing for the release of his debut album, My World, Bieber devoted some time to talk to peta2 about compassion for animals — something he says his dog Sam helped instill in him. ”We moved to a city where we didn’t really know anybody, so I kinda wanted a friend around. And Sam was kinda like that friend.”

Bieber appears not with Sam, but with a dog named Bijoux in the newest PETA spot.

“It’s really important that people adopt,” Bieber says. “I really encourage going out to an animal shelter or a place where you can get a dog that has been abandoned or doesn’t have a home.”

You can learn more about Justin Bieber and his public service announcement at peta2.com

I’m all for giving dogs a voice, I just get a little creeped out when it’s a human one.

Talking dog movies, for example, strike me as another example of making them (dogs) more like us (humans), when they are perfect just as they are — and when they’re not, it’s usually because of something we humans imposed on them.

Nevertheless, this public service announcement from KnockOutDogFighting.org is so well done, and rings so true, and is for such a good cause, it’s worth a look.

The Knock Out Dog Fighting program is an award-winning anti-dogfighting campaign that makes use of professional athletes – professional boxers and fighters who partner with schools, juvenile detention facilities, community centers, community-based organizations, dog trainers, law enforcement agencies and gang prevention task forces with the goal of stopping cruelty and abuse.

The program identifies the underlying reasons kids and young adults are fighting dogs and provides resources and youth intervention programs to address those issues, working to help at-risk youth make better choices and develop empathy for animals.