I just love seeing a big, burly bloke go all Superman to help an innocent animal, don't you? Well, Damien Mander's story is just that. And it's got buffalos and elephants and snares and rangers and special ops and ... how about I just let him tell you about it:

Wow! What a great question Mander poses to everyone at the end! Now I know, as an Unleashed member, you're brave enough to speak up for animals, so I'd like to pose a different question to you:

What are you going to do this week to make a difference for animals?

I love happy endings! Don't you? I can't think of a better way to finish the year than with a happy ending.

We've shared a few rescued animal videos with you recently. First there were apes, then turkeys (those videos are a must watch btw) and now ... check out the amazing first moments of freedom for 9 beagles who were rescued from an animal lab in the USA earlier this year:

Quite the tear-jerker, isn't it!

2011 has been a pretty amazing year all round. If you don't know what I'm talking about then check out our year in review video and you'll soon get the picture: animal rights has never been such a hot topic in Australia as it is right now. What a way to start the new year!

Here's to making an even bigger impact for animals in 2012, and giving even more animals a happy ending, like these beagles! (Needing a few ideas for new year's resolutions to help animals: click here.)

So what have you got planned for 2012?

I always love hearing about how people got into animal rights. For me, it was discovering how animals are raised for food. Lots of people just always loved animals. But how can someone go from being scared of animals to rescuing them and campaigning for them?

That's exactly what happened to New York activist, Eddie Lama. To find out how someone can make such an incredible transformation, check out this great doco (called "The Witness") about his inspiring story.

(Btw, you can watch the full doco online here. So once you've checked out the trailer below, grab some popcorn and a friend to watch the full film! And just be warned that while most of the doco is inspiring and positive, there are a few graphic scenes.)

Click here to watch the full film online now.

So what did you think? Feeling inspired? Now tell me... How did you get into animal rights?