Going Vegan

Act on behalf of those who have no voice – the trillions of animals each year who are denied basic rights and are confined, made to suffer and killed for humans.

Looking to go vegan? Order a VegStarterPack.com

Looking to volunteer with or donate to NARN? Vegan outreach is a great, rewarding way to spend time — in community with fellow vegans, and sharing information and resources about veganism. Find out more about volunteering with NARN and how to donate.

Looking for more? There’s a wide range of meaningful, rewarding activities for vegans, beyond eating delicious vegan meals. Here are good places to start:

Be a Good Animal Steward

  • Take care of your emotional and mental health.
  • Buy products that are free of animal ingredients and are cruelty free.
  • Don’t attend circuses, fairs, marine parks, zoos and rodeos that use animals for entertainment.
  • Keep phone numbers in your phone or otherwise handy for local veterinarians, shelters, rescues and local offices of the Department of Wildlife in case you find an injured animal.
  • Spay and neuter your companion animals! This will help reduce the number of unwanted and homeless animals. Countless animals languish in shelters or roam wild in the streets, and there’s no excuse for contributing to this large-scale, avoidable problem.
  • Never buy non-shelter animals from pet stores. This only supports the horrific conditions of the pet trade, breeders and puppy mills. Many pet stores also traffic in “exotic” pets, which only contributes to their endangerment. Instead, adopt from shelters or rescues. And take full responsibility for the animals you bring into your life. All too often, animals are brought in on a whim or as a gift, later to be returned, taken to a shelter, or simply abandoned.
  • Foster an animal.
  • Sponsor an animal. Many sanctuaries have a sponsorship program you can participate in, like Farm Sanctuary and Best Friends. Other sanctuaries also offer a monthly donation program.
  • Object to animal dissection in your science class, college or university. There are alternatives.
  • Lights off! Ask your office to turn their lights off at night, which will help reduce the high number of birds killed each year when they fly into lit windows. At home, paste black-silhouetted shapes to your windows so that birds will swerve instead of hit the hard surface.
  • Drive less; motorists are jeopardizing animal habitats all over the globe by contributing to greenhouse gasses. Help stop climate change by choosing to walk, bicycle or use public transit as your mode of transportation.
  • While abroad, don’t buy the body parts of endangered animals such as ivory and skins. Don’t eat the meat of endangered animals, which are sold to tourists as exotic and exciting. Let the vendors know that you disagree with selling endangered animal meat/parts.
  • Be an animal-friendly tourist by learning about the cruelty of animal tourism.  Don’t support shows and places that encourage animals to perform in a non-natural way.  Activities such as swimming with dolphins, elephant riding, and places like the Tiger Temple Thailand all contribute to the suffering of these majestic beings we adore.
Frog held gently in hands
Stop Eating animals stop sign

Educate Others

  • Ask restaurants and cafeterias if they can provide more vegan options. If they have comment cards available, fill them out with your request.
  • When dining out, thank restaurants and let them know how great it is that they are providing vegan options.  You can order thank you dining cards online or make your own.
  • Be a witness to the suffering of animals. While it may be hard to watch, it’s important to see videos like Farm to Fridge and Earthlings so we can attest to the amount of cruelty that animals undergo in service of human demand, and can describe it to those who are likely not going to see these films. Share these films with others.
  • Invite Humane Educators to your school, library or community center. You yourself can give a talk, or you can sponsor a speaker to come and talk about animal-related issues, or about living compassionately.
  • Leave literature and leaflets about compassion towards animals at your local laundromat, dentist and doctor’s office. You can order a variety of outreach materials from Vegan Outreach.
  • Write a letter to the editor to rebut newspaper or news blog articles that support any form of animal cruelty.
  • Host an animal documentary night at your house, school, library or community center.

Get involved

  • Join your local animal rights group. If you’re in the Western Washington area, get involved with us.
  • Protest! Gather a few friends, make a few signs, and picket circuses, fur retailers, fast food restaurants, etc.
  • Speak up against animal cruelty. If you see a situation of cruelty, neglect or abuse, talk to the perpetrator or call the authorities, such as your local Animal Control. We so often assume someone else will deal with the problem. If we don’t speak up, who will? Keep a log of what you witnessed, date/time/place of what occurred, who perpetrated it, and take pictures if you can; this will greatly help your case when you call the authorities. Take note of any recurring patterns of abuse, and keep calling until authorities take action.
  • Contact your local animal shelter or sanctuary and ask them about volunteer opportunities. You might be able to help with any number of programs, from fundraising to dog walking to cleanup and feeding.
  • Write to your legislators and representatives. If you are asking for them to support or oppose a bill, give the number and title of the bill as well as asking them to support or oppose it. Personalize it by explaining why the issue is important to you; it has more impact than a generic statement. If you live in Washington State, find your legislators here.
  • Sign petitions. There are many petitions on animal issues at Change.org and Care2.com.
Animal rights protest
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