I'm excited to let you know that we've got a copy of the stunning Oceans DVD to give away. So read on to find out how you could be checking out some of the most amazing animals under the sea.

Don't you agree, there's something nice about watching fish swim? You know at first glance it's easy to believe there isn't too much thinking going on upstairs in fish, but keep watching and it's amazing how you start to notice how each animal has her own personality and quirks.

A lot of people seem to find watching fish calming -- or more precisely, see fish as a calming 'decoration'. Why else would so many houses and offices install fish tanks, and why else would Google offer this very cute gadget (below). But to be honest, I much prefer watching fish swim in their natural environment -- not a fish tank. And not surprisingly, it turns out fish prefer this too.

Researchers recently compared the behaviour of fish in the wild; in a large artificial 'stream' in a zoo; and in smaller tanks used by pet owners. What they found is that the smaller the tank, and the less 'complex' (ie. no rocks, plants, hiding places, etc) the tank was the more aggressive the fish became -- sometimes even escalating to nipping and attacking other fish.

When you think about it, it's not really that surprising. If you put me in a small empty room, I'd be pretty annoyed as well. Obviously, like us fish feel pain. And when you consider all the other amazing things scientists have discovered about fish, it makes sense that they might experience boredom and frustration too.

For example, did you know that fish communicate with each other using squeaks and squeals that you and I can only hear with special instruments? Or that in some species the older fish teach the youngens -- about things like predators, and even to recognise the sound of trawling boats. Or that some fish use tools... such as stingsrays working out how to extract food from plastic tubes by shooting jets of water; or blackspot tuskfish using a rock to open a clam's shell.

And don't even get me started on how cool cuttlefish are (although technically they're not a fish)! Ahem ... I guess what I'm trying to say is: Sea animals is pretty amazing! And there's a whole lot more going on upstairs in the animals that live down below than we often give them credit for.

Oceans DVD Giveaway!

The Disney doco, Oceans, is about to be released on DVD and we have a copy that could be yours. All you need to do to enter is leave a comment below and tell us one good reason people should care about fish.

UPDATE You guys are all so awesome for knowing how awesome fish are! These responses are all fabulous! Unfortunately there can only be one winner ..... And the DVD goes to *drumroll* Liz2! Well done Liz! And massive THANK YOUs to everyone for entering!

The wonderful people at Hopscotch Films have given Unleashed a stack of double passes to see advance screenings of the latest Disney blockbuster, Oceans.

Doesn't it look amazing? What a great way to give people a glimpse into the lives of sea animals!

The oceans have been plundered by outdated and cruel fishing methods driving many species to the brink of extinction. This movie shows that a lot of these animals aren't all that different to us - they form amazing bonds and play and protect each other… We should be doing all we can to protect them!

Tell us below what you're going to do to protect our oceans and you could win a double pass to see this spectacular movie before anyone else!

Hurry, comp closes noon Monday May 16th so don't plod along like a walrus!

PS The tickets are only valid for Friday 20th, Saturday 21st, Sunday 22nd May (not valid after 5pm on Saturday) at the following cinemas :
Sydney – Palace Verona & Palace Norton Street Cinemas
Melbourne – Palace Como Cinemas
Brisbane – Palace Barracks Cinemas
Adelaide – Palace Eastend Cinemas
Perth – Cinema Paradiso Cinemas
Canberra – Greater Union Manuka Cinemas
So please only enter if you can make it to a screening! ;)

Unleashed recently had it's second birthday. To celebrate we've got some treats on the way for you :)

As Karen mentioned on the forum, we'll be giving Unleashed a makeover. Your ideas for the new look for Unleashed were great, and having seen a sneak peek of the new Unleashed I can tell it's hot!

But before we give the site a change of skin, we need your advice on one more thing. This year, we're not only going to give Unleashed a makeover, we're going to give you 3 wallpapers so that you can give your computer a makeover too!

So we need you to help to make the big decision. By now you've probably entered (and hopefully won) our monthly sticker give away. So you've probably worked out which of these 12 stickers is your fave. So tell us: Which of these stickers would you like to have as a wallpaper for your computer and why?

Then stay tuned... because the brand new look for Unleashed won't be long now ;)

What's better than a radio interview with acclaimed author Jonathan Safran Foer? A radio interview with Jonathan and ME! :) We were both recently guests on the program Uncovering the Real Costs of Factory Farming on Voice America's Social Myth Busting show. Yep, I certainly keep some good company! You can listen to our show here:

With an hour up our sleeves we almost covered it all -- from factory farming and environmental impacts of meat-eating, to crazy nasty diet-related diseases. But it's not all doom and gloom because I was quite vocal about how we can all change this!

If you don't know who JSF is, he's the author of an amazing book, Eating Animals, which is a super eye-opening look at the way we eat. The book gained lots of attention worldwide because it could change your life, like it did for Natalie Portman! Want more proof? Check out how fans of our favourite vegan talkshow queen Ellen DeGeneres reacted after reading Jonathan's book:

I know you're just wishing that we'd put copies of Eating Animals under YOUR seat... Sorry! But we have done the next best thing. You can grab a copy of Eating Animals right now in the Unleashed shop or ... you can win a copy if you head over here to our big sister site Animals Australia and tell us what you'll do this year to help end factory farming.

Oh and you should tell me here too, so I can pass it on to my new BFF, JSF!

Want to kick off the new year in style? Well we've got just the thing! Read on and you could win a specky new treat for your feet.

We all know that Macbeth make rad shoes. For starters, they were co-founded by Tom DeLonge, of Blink 182 fame. Not to mention they've got musicians like Mike Dirnt of Green Day designing moshpit stompers for them. And last but definitely not least, most of their shoes are leather free. So you can strut in style whilst leaving the cows to be cows.

We were chuffed to learn recently that one of our fave people, Aussie guitar maestro Jona Weinhofen from Bring Me the Horizon (+ ex-Bleeding Through, + ex-I Killed the Prom Queen) has got on board with Macbeth to promote their vegan range.

So to celebrate all things stylish, cruelty-free and that rock your socks off, we've got 2 pairs of Wallister Macbeths to give away! Just check out our exclusive interview with Jona (from back in his Bleeding Through days), and then to enter leave a comment to tell us how you plan to step up and make a difference in 2011 (winners will be announced in mid January).

Check out these fabulous photos of our Rise Against Comp winner Timothy with his feathered friends! Wouldn't it be wonderful if all chooks could enjoy this kind of life – have you ever seen happier hens?
Cheers for the pics, Tim!

The other lucky winners were Jen, Darth Vegan, and Arieluxable. Congratulations guys! Guard the autographed Unleashed T shirts with your life (and no, we wouldn't advise wearing it to the Big Day Out!) ;)

Big thanks go to the Rise Against guys for being so generous and happy to speak up for animals. In case you missed the band's exclusive interview, here it is for you to enjoy:

Don't fret if you didn't win this awesome comp, 'cause we love to give away goodies and signed stuff from awesome artists. Make sure you enter to win a copy of the new book 'Meat is for Pussies', from Cro-Mags front man and author John Joseph. Don't forget to enter the free stickers giveaway this month too!

So keep checking back to Unleashed to win cool stuff …and remember we LOVE seeing your photos posted to the community too!

If you are anything like me, when a new book on veganism/vegetarianism/animal rights (in a nutshell) is released, I am super keen to check it out and the new book by frontman for the Cro-Mags, John Joseph was no exception…

When I first read the title Meat is for Pussies I really didn't know what to expect, but I can confidently say now that I am most impressed!

As claimed on the cover 'A how-to guide for dudes …' and well 'yes' it is aimed more towards you guys out there, but as a chick who has read it I can tell you that it works for both, I totally enjoyed reading it!

In the first few pages it is obvious that author John Joseph doesn't sugar coat his words, he speaks to the reader in a raw, matter-of-fact style that can not be mistaken. Coming from a rough and ready background of NYC, he draws on his own experiences to inform the reader that there is much to be gained by adopting a plant based diet and he quickly squashes any misconceptions that vegetarians and vegans are weedy or wimpy.

Meat is for Pussies outlines a number of 'truths' that have been well hidden from consumers in order to protect the industries that thrive and profit at the expense of millions of innocent, suffering animals each year.

So Meat is for Pussies definitely is worth a read! And you're in luck, cause we've got a copy of this great book to give away. Check out our exclusive interview with John Joseph and enter to win!

Have you read Meat is for Pussies? What did you think? Got any other animal rights books you'd recommend? Leave a comment.

So I just went out and saw a great movie. I didn't feel much like eating the popcorn though (I'll tell you why in a sec). Believe me, you MUST see Food, Inc. SO it's lucky that we've got 5 double passes to give away!

I don't think I need to tell you how cruel factory farms are. In fact, I'm sure you tell other people about this all the time. And no doubt you've come across at least one person who seemed not to care. Well, maybe they'd care if they knew they might literally be eating sh!t!

I've had the misfortune of visiting a feedlot. I saw how they pile up the dung in the middle of each pen to provide – get this – "enrichment for the cows"! Many of the cows I've seen in feedlots were caked in each others faeces from nose to tail, so it's really no surprise that some of that finds its stinky way into the meat people eat. I know... YUCK! It sounds like I'm making this up, I wish I was. But this is actually a reality! In fact, Food, Inc. features a 2 year old, who died after eating a hamburger infected with E.coli from traces of cow dung in the meat.

Oh yeah, the popcorn. I learnt today that if the massive amount of corn grown isn't used for livestock, it's used for nearly everything else. As high-fructose corn syrup, you can find it in cakes, cheese, yoghurt, Coca-Cola, bread, orange juice, even in batteries and charcoal. They grow too much corn, because of government subsidies and so they end up putting it in charcoal?!? Don't they realise there are people starving in Africa!? And here we all are wondering why people make corny puns, we can't help it - there's an excess of corn to go round!

Even if you've already made the healthy switch to being veg or vegan, there is still so much to learn about the food you consume. There are moments in this film that will have you throwing that popcorn at the screen in frustration, but it's an excellent film and well worth checking out!

If you care about animals, people, the environment or yourself, this film is a must see. And here's how you could WIN a free double pass: Leave a comment below to tell us what makes you hungry for change and you could win! The competition ends next Monday (31/05/10), so be quick if you don't want to miss out!

UPDATE: Congrats to the winners who each get a double pass to see this amazing movie. Well done to sarahwithanh27, Carly, Sammy, Sabavana and Nikkikats. Enjoy watching Food, Inc. (with or without the popcorn)!

You'll never forget the first time you see EARTHLINGS.

It's a journey into a world that most people never get to see. Using hidden cameras and never-before-seen footage, EARTHLINGS is the most comprehensive film ever made about the ways people use animals for food, clothing, experimentation and entertainment.

Think you know where pets come from? How cows are turned into leather jackets? Or how meat actually gets from inside a pig and onto a plate? Well most people actually have no idea! And believe me, the truth is more shocking than you could ever imagine.

That's why gutsy filmmakers Nation Earth teamed up with Academy Award® nominee Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator) and platinum-selling record artist Moby to create EARTHLINGS – a wake-up call to all of humankind. Though it took six long years and lots of money to make, the filmmakers believe its message is so important that you can now see the film right now online, for free.

Are you ready for the truth?

To mark the release of EARTHLINGS online, Unleashed is giving away a free EARTHLINGS DVD in original high quality. It could be yours! Just comment below to tell us who in the world would you most like to show EARTHLINGS to, and why?

UPDATE Wow, Earthlings has certainly stirred up the passion in everyone with some amazing and very creative answers. We all agree this incredible movie needs to be shown to everyone from friends and family to Oprah, the Obamas and Kevin Rudd. Ryan wants to travel back in time and show his younger self, while Hayley W wants to show her ethics class. All wonderful ideas and we hope you can do it (Ryan may have a bit of trouble though!). It was a tough decision but Celia won the vote with her poignant answer: "I would like to show it to that little, vulnerable, curious child inside every one of us that does care, that does hear the screaming, that does feel their pain, that does want to and knows that we CAN make a difference". Well done Celia!

And remember, everyone wins here! Because we can all keep sharing this important movie with our friends. The more people that see Earthlings, the better!

I was never a huge fan of science in school. The lab always smelled funny and those goggles and aprons were never as flattering as our science teacher made them out to be. But as torturous as that all was, I actually had it pretty easy...

Can you imagine having to spend your entire life in a science laboratory?

That's the reality for millions of rabbits, mice, cats, dogs and other animals. But there's no safety equipment for these little guys. To test consumer products such as hairspray, toilet cleaner and cosmetics, lab animals have nasty chemicals dripped directly into their eyes, and are given chemical burns to their skin. Others are forced to ingest harmful substances that cause painful poisoning and worse – death.

Sadly this isn't science fiction – it's a real-life horror story. But with your help we can give the animals a happy ending...

Not many people know that some of the most well-known companies like Colgate/Palmolive, Procter & Gamble (who own Braun, CoverGirl, Gillette, Pantene,Wella, Herbal Essences, Vidal Sassoon, Duracell and more) and Unilever (who own Dove, Rexona, Lynx, SunSilk, Impulse, Lux, Vaseline, Domestos and more) still fund deadly tests on animals overseas before sending their products down under for us to buy. If you have any of their products at home, you have a great opportunity to help end animal testing by calling their customer feedback number (usually on the pack), and politely letting them know that you won't buy their products again after learning that their company funds animal tests.

Now, we know that your lips might get a little chapped if you have to make a few calls, so to show our thanks, and to celebrate how amazing cruelty-free cosmetics are, we're giving away FREE Vanilla Bean Lip Balm from Perfect Potion to five courageous callers!

To be in the draw simply comment below and tell us who you called, and how it went :-)

UPDATE: Thank you so much to everyone who phoned, emailed or sent letters to companies telling them to leave the animals alone! Unleashed certainly has some outspoken members who should be very proud of themselves! In the end the lip-smacking winners of the Vanilla Bean Lip-Balm are brookeb, angelaartsstudent, AlanaRama, Tracy and Katie2. Thanks again and well done to all of you who entered, and don't forget to always speak up for animals!

Do you just *LOVE* those sunny days chillaxing on the beach and catching some waves ... but HATE the way your drink always dribbles condensation all over your hand, and warms to an unpleasant temperature WAY before you've reached the bottom?

I know I do. Aside from the heatwaves, my wilting vegetable garden and sunburn, that's pretty much my #1 complaint about the Aussie sun. Well we can't do a lot about the heat, but now there IS a way to manage all your drinking needs in style...

That's right, it's the Unleashed drink cooler, loved by people, and dogs!

If you want to get your hands around one of these numbers then here are your options:

1) Grab a credit/debit card and buy one online right now, or
2) Enter our cooler comp to win one for free!

What's this about a cooler comp you say?? Well I'm glad you asked! See, I was so inspired by my trip to the beach that I felt the need to share the cooler love a little further. So I convinced the office pixies to let us give away three Unleashed coolers for free! I know, cool huh? ;) All you need to do is comment below and tell us what the Unleashed cooler is cooler than.

All the coolness could be yours...

UPDATE: Gee the competition was hot! But the coolest entries have finally been picked. So congrats to Tweesa, diane77 and ecochick1800 for scoring themselves an Unleashed cooler!

Not long ago we unveiled to you the 3 cutest badges in the world. To celebrate we asked you where you would pin these animal activist accessories, and promised to make five lucky entrants very very happy by sending them out a pack of all 3. Well today's the day... so the question is: Are you feeling lucky?

Without further ado, congratulations to tomatoslater for wanting to add some flare to her cruelty free kicks; to Rainer for suggesting she'd turn her piggy companions into advocates; and to Georgie who is going put a smile on sick kids' faces when she shows off her cute new badges. We also loved the idea that the student's in Vic's math class would learn that 'animal + exploitation = sucks', not to mention 'teacher + Unleashed badges = cool teacher'. Finally congrats to corkface for not only coming up with some great spots to sport these badges, but being so eager to get her hands on them that she just kept on coming back with more great ideas.

And if it wasn't your lucky day, then a quick trip to the Unleashed shop can set things straight ;)

Do you ever get that feeling there's something missing in your life?
Does that nagging feeling keep you up at night?
Fortunately we've got the remedy... Unleashed BADGES!

That's right. Bling for people who care. A drum roll for the cutest badges in the world... Here are the 3 winning designs (voted by you):

To celebrate their arrival, we're giving you the chance to be one of the very first people to win a set of all 3. To enter all you have to do is comment below to tell us where you'll pin the badges if you win. Our fave five entrants will be in badge heaven!

And if you just can't wait to find out if you've won, you can always head over to the Unleashed Shop and pick up a value pack of all 3 right now.

After much deliberation, the winners of the new Unleashed poster comp have been decided. With so many awesome entries it was impossible for us to pick just one winner.

So we didn't!

A drum roll please...

Congrats to Georgie for setting a stellar example to other med students and future patients of how to live a healthy and cruelty free life. And a big 'hoorah!' to nAoMi for her kick ass creativity! We admire any (super)hero for the animals who dresses for the occasion :-P Not to mention the fact we think this poster will look hot in your environmental/animal club headquarters.

All of the entries would have made worthy winners. So if you didn't win, you don't need to miss out. Why not reward yourself with a set of all 3 of our shiny new posters from the Unleashed shop.

So, last week, whilst everyone was busy uploading their latest mug shots and attending jumps racing protests, a little milestone happened ... the thousandth member joined Unleashed :-)

Yep — we're now more than 1,000 members strong with recent recruits from every corner of Aus and even a few blow-ins from around the world. With so many new and caring voices for animals we think it's time to celebrate! And to mark the occasion we've created three brand new Unleashed posters (in 42cm x 42cm glory) for your viewing pleasure:

If you like what you see you can head on over to the Unleashed Shop and pick up a value-pack of all 3 today. Or, if you've already blown your spending money this week (like I have), then leave a comment below to tell us how you kick ass for the animals and you could score yourself a spankin new 'Kicking Ass' Poster! We'll be judging entries on flair, creativity, and general kick-ass-ness.

You learn something new every day... unfortunately!

So I thought by now I was pretty aware of international animal cruelty, but a new documentary I saw last week really shocked me. The Cove, which is being launched in Australia next week, exposes the mass slaughter of Dolphins in a little Japanese town called Taiji.

"Mass dolphin slaughter?? What the!!" Yes, that's right, each year, starting on the 1st of September a whopping 23,000 terrified dolphins are herded into a secret cove. They are netted in, unable to escape and are slowly speared or stabbed to death!

And why haven't we heard of this before? Because the Japanese Government has gone to painstaking efforts to keep the slaughter a secret, even from it's own people. Dolphin meat is being labelled and sold as other types of seafood and the vast majority of Japanese citizens have no idea this is happening, or that they are eating it!

International dolphin expert and former trainer Richard O'Barry has gone to incredible efforts to expose this terrible secret. In creating The Cove he took an elite team of scientists, filmmakers and free-divers to Taiji. He hopes the international outrage The Cove will create will put a stop to this barbaric practice... HOPEFULLY before this September's slaughter begins.

So what can you do? Fortunately, as Australians we're in a unique position to help! Taiji just so happens to be the Sister-City of Broome in WA. By putting pressure on Broome to sever it's ties with Taiji we will expose the slaughter and shame Japan. The good news is that most Japanese people see dolphins the same way westerners do – as intelligent, graceful animals who should never be hurt or eaten – but whilst the slaughter remains a secret sadly it will continue.

[UPDATE: Some great news! After a flood of letters, Broome Councilors met over the weekend and decided to sever their ties with the Japanese town of Taiji.

We still have a couple of 2-for-1 passes to giveaway to see The Cove (opening this week)! If you want to score yourself a pass then please write to Broome to thank them for taking a stand against the dolphin slaughter in Japan and severing their ties with Taiji. Then leave a comment below to let us know you've written.

Broome Shire Council: shire@broome.wa.gov.au

Thanks to everyone who helped in this campaign!]

Earlier in the week we appealed to the chocolate admirers out there with the promise of free Constant Craving Truffles. So began the hunt for Unleashed's most worthy chocoholic. But sheesh – you didn't make it easy on us – the competition was fierce! After reading the responses from so many worthy candidates, we were so overwhelmed by the heartfelt pleas for chocolate that we realised we couldn't choose just one winner...

So it's time to congratulate our two most worthy chocoholics, Matt.Y, who promises to give the chockies to his Mum (we want photographic evidence, Matt), and chaha33, the super-keen-vegan-cocoa-bean-eating-poetry-machine! Congratulations Matt.Y and chacha33 – your bundle of 10 Constant Craving Truffles are zooming from the Unleashed office to your doorstep right now! But that's not all. We've also thrown in some free stickers for good measure :-)

In truth we believe everybody deserves chocolate, and really there's no reason to miss out. If all this chocolate-talk has you salivating at your keyboard, then follow me to the Unleashed shop where you can pick up your own bag of truffles for just $10 (or $20 if you're really serious). All the money raised through the shop goes towards helping animals and fighting animal cruelty.

And just for you lovely folks, postage is free :-)

I can hardly contain my excitement as I write this... There has been so much chatter about dairy-free chocolate on the forum recently that we thought we would share the love even further and give away some vegan chocolate.

That's right – FREE CHOCOLATE!

In fact, we've all gone a little chocolate-mad with two new chocolate gift packs for sale in the Unleashed shop. And believe me, there's a good reason they call them 'Constant Craving' truffles. If you want to impress someone, I promise you, the only thing you'll ever need to do is get them some of these...

Constant Craving Truffles - 5 pack ($10)

Constant Craving Truffles - 10 pack ($20)

Each pack includes five dreamy varieties including Jaffa Delight, Coffee, Scorched Almond, Coconut, and Apricot Dream.

Ok ok ok, back to the free chocolate :-) If you want to get your hands on free pack of these melt-in-your-mouth truffles simply leave a comment below and tell us why you deserve them. We'll send the most worthy candidate a chock-filled gift to satiate those constant cravings...

Update: most worthy chocoholics announced! Click here to find out who won.