Our Hen House: Vegan & Animal Rights Movement | Stories from the Frontlines of Animal Liberation

In this episode of The Animal Law Podcast, Mariann Sullivan speaks with Rebecca Cary and Melissa Alpert, attorneys at Humane World for Animals, about the federal government’s unprecedented lawsuits challenging California’s Proposition 12 and Michigan’s cage-free egg law. The government argues that the Egg Products Inspection Act — a 1970 statute about inspecting liquid and dried egg products for adulteration — expressly preempts state-level farm animal welfare sales bans. The discussion covers the government’s novel and contested theory of sovereign standing, the surprising split between the California and Michigan courts, and why the egg industry has broken ranks with the pork industry to side with animal advocates in these cases.

• Prop 12’s legal history and the Supreme Court victory in NPPC v. Ross: a recap of California’s evolving farm animal welfare laws from Proposition 2 (2008) through Proposition 12 (2018), and the Supreme Court’s unanimous 2023 decision upholding the pork sales ban against dormant commerce clause challenges
• The federal government’s EPIA preemption argument explained: how the government relies on a single preemption clause about egg grading standards (size, quality, condition) to claim that cage-free hen housing requirements are preempted, despite the Egg Products Inspection Act having nothing to do with on-farm animal welfare
• Constitutional standing and the sovereign injury theory: why the government’s standing allegations are remarkably thin, how the California court found standing but certified the question for interlocutory appeal to the Ninth Circuit, and why the Michigan court dismissed the case entirely for lack of injury
• The egg industry’s shift from opposition to alliance: how the egg industry, after losing early challenges to Prop 2 and California’s AB 1437, pivoted to embrace cage-free production as a market opportunity and is now intervening alongside animal advocates against the federal government’s lawsuits
• The Save Our Bacon Act and broader threats to state animal welfare laws: the latest version of the decades-old King Amendment effort to federally preempt state agricultural sales bans, its inclusion in the House farm bill, and what it means for the future of farm animal protection legislation

Rebecca Cary is a managing attorney within the Animal Protection Law section of Humane World for Animals, where she has worked since 2010. Her practice includes farm animal welfare and constitutional defense issues, and she has been the lead attorney on multiple challenges to state farm animal confinement and sales initiatives, including the NPPC v. Ross case in which the Supreme Court upheld California’s Proposition 12 against a pork industry challenge. Rebecca is a 2009 graduate of Northeastern University School of Law and a 2005 graduate of the University of California San Diego, where she was a founder of a student animal welfare group. She has taught animal law courses at George Mason University and George Washington University, and she is the co-chair of the District of Columbia Bar’s animal law section. Rebecca lives in Maryland with her two rescue cats.

Melissa Alpert is a Staff Attorney within the Animal Protection Law section of Humane World for Animals, focused on farm animal issues. She is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, and joined Humane World for Animals in 2024 after working at large law firms in Washington, DC, and Pittsburgh, PA. At Humane World for Animals, she has been active in litigation related to farm animal confinement laws, including the defense of California’s Proposition 12.

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You can listen to the Animal Law Podcast directly on our website (at the top of this page) or you can listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher. Also, if you like what you hear, please rate it on Apple Podcasts, and don’t forget to leave us a friendly comment!

Of course, we would be thrilled if you would consider making a donation or becoming a member of our flock (especially if you’re a regular listener). All donations made before December 31 will be DOUBLED, up to $25,000 if we reach our goal. Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Don’t forget to also listen to the award-winning,  weekly signature OHH podcast — now in its fifteenth glorious year!

In this episode of The Hen Report, Jasmin and Mariann cover a packed slate of animal advocacy news and community stories. Jasmin shares highlights from emceeing a fundraiser for My Dog Is My Home—an organization helping people experiencing houselessness keep their companion animals—and reflects on the passage of New York City’s horse carriage ban. The hosts discuss Animal Rising’s Free Luna campaign to rescue a single pig from a UK factory farm, explore how Ghent, Belgium transformed into a plant-based paradise with 83% of residents identifying as flexitarian, and dig into the USDA’s new push to crack down on dog fighting and unlawful breeders. They also remember activist Howard Lyman, author of Mad Cowboy and the center of Oprah’s infamous food libel trial, and share updates on the March to Abolish Animal Testing expanding to university campuses, the upcoming Veganic Summit, and the opening of Planted Bloomington—a vegan restaurant tied to The Goat Conspiracy sanctuary. Plus, the launch of Our Hen House’s year-end fundraiser with matching gifts through December 31st.

• Free Luna Campaign by Animal Rising: Learn how Animal Rising is using a single pig’s story to clarify factory farming, including Rose Patterson’s remarkable letter offering a £5,000 donation to a farmer mental health charity in exchange for Luna’s safe rehoming. Sign the petition at animalrising.org.
• Ghent, Belgium’s Plant-Based Transformation: Discover how climate-focused policy, school “Veggie Thursdays,” default oat milk, and the Green Deal Protein Shift made 83% of Ghent’s population flexitarian, a model for cities worldwide.
• USDA Cracks Down on Dog Fighting & Unlawful Breeders: The USDA’s new Animal Protection Bureau is increasing investigators by 20%, reviewing surrendered breeder licenses, and denying licenses to repeat violators under the Animal Welfare Act.
• March to Abolish Animal Testing Goes to Campuses: Following the 207-mile walk last September, volunteer-led demonstrations are being organized at universities nationwide on December 3rd. No organizing experience needed. Sign up at marchforanimals.org.
• Veganic Summit (Nov 6–8) & Planted Bloomington Opening: A free online summit on animal-free farming methods, plus the newly opened vegan restaurant in Bloomington, Indiana, affiliated with The Goat Conspiracy sanctuary — a model for how vegan restaurants and sanctuaries serve as vital community organizing spaces.

A Note from Jasmin: Tomorrow, October 30, is my birthday, and it’s also the launch of our year-end fundraiser. Thanks to our Barnyard Benefactors, every gift you give is doubled, as long as we reach $25,000 by December 31. Next week, we record our 1,000th episode, and we’ve passed 3.1 million listens, all because of you. If you’re able, make a gift for the animals in honor of my birthday, or join the Flock starting at $10 a month. Head to OurHenHouse.org/support. Thank you for changing the world for animals with us.

• • • • • Buy A Series of Opinionated Animals & A Portion Will Go To Our Hen House!
        • UW-Madison alum says he misrepresented public footage as campus pig gas chamber
        • Planted Bloomington
        • Free Luna- Red Court Farm has the power to release Luna into sanctuary to live safe and free for the rest of her life
        • Animals Rising on Bluesky
        • Veggie Thursdays and vegan surprises! How Ghent became a plant-based paradise
        • USDA TARGETS DOGFIGHTING AND UNLAWFUL BREEDERS TO STRENGTHEN ANIMAL PROTECTION
        • March for Animals- University Days of Action
        • Mad Cowboy from Bookshop.org

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The Veganic Summit is a free online event from November 6th-8th, 2026. You’ll learn how plant foods can be grown using techniques that are both vegan and organic, without any chemical fertilizers or any animal byproducts like manure or bonemeal. If you’d like to start your own veganic garden or learn about sustainable plant-based farming, sign up for the Veganic Summit today at https://veganicsummit.com/

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

This week, we cover a parasitic worm inching through Texas via a dead elk on a game ranch, ChatGPT’s suspicious habit of painting factory farms as pastoral paradises, a Tyson mobile barn designed to gaslight children, the UK’s surprising willingness to ditch meat for food security, and a New York Post columnist who thinks banning carriage horses is socialism. Also: factory farms are legally exempt from telling you they’re poisoning the air, and yes, you did read that correctly.

• Screwworm hits wildlife: The parasite showed up in an elk on a Texas game ranch, and one USDA strategy seems to be asking hunters to “stay alert,” which should work out great
• AI is laundering factory farm imagery: ChatGPT quietly rewrites prompts to generate idyllic farm scenes instead of the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) users actually asked for. Very convenient for an industry that already spends millions on the same illusion
• Tyson’s “Talks Turkey” mobile barn: A traveling exhibit that shows kids a tiny cart with a few turkeys and calls it representative of poultry production; one child asked if the birds would be “murdered,” and the welfare specialist did not share his answer
• UK food security & plant-based diets: A Vegan Society poll found 69% of Brits would reduce meat and dairy to improve food security, the argument that might actually stick when climate and health haven’t
• Factory farms exempt from air pollution reporting: The EPA lets CAFOs skip reporting ammonia and hydrogen sulfide emissions, both of which can hospitalize or kill you, while every other industry has to disclose

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. 

Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of the Our Hen House interview, Jasmin and Mariann sit down with animal lawyer, rescuer, and activist Michelle Lerner to discuss her new book A Series of Opinionated Animals (Bancroft Press). Michelle shares how a childhood bond with a rescue horse named Shire set her on the path to Harvard Law School, where she co-founded the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund and helped lobby for the school’s first animal law course — despite facing intense hostility from some classmates. The conversation explores how Michelle uses humor and individual animal stories — from a neurologically impaired squirrel named Monster to a bossy chicken named Stephanie — as a Trojan horse for deeper policy issues around wildlife rehabilitation laws, the legal status of animals as property, and the power of recognizing animals as individuals rather than abstract species. The episode also features an Our Hen House exclusive: the never-before-told story of Isaac, Michelle’s 22-pound cat and the elaborate enclosure system she built to keep everyone safe.

• From Harvard Law to animal law pioneer: Michelle recounts putting an animal rights sticker on her locker at Harvard Law School, the hostile backlash it triggered, and how she channeled that experience into founding one of the first Student Animal Legal Defense Fund chapters — paving the way for what is now the Harvard Animal Law and Policy Program’s 25th anniversary.
• Storytelling as activism and the case for animal personhood: Michelle explains why she shifted focus from changing animals’ legal status as property to showing readers that animals already possess genuine personhood, using individual biographies — funny, heartbreaking, and specific — to break through in ways that graphic factory farming footage often cannot.
• Wildlife rescue and the law: The story of Monster, a neurologically impaired squirrel Michelle illegally took in after discovering how state fish and game councils — dominated by hunters and trappers — systematically undercut wildlife rehabilitation, leaving disabled wild animals with nowhere to go.
• Grief, love, and the cost of caring for animals: Michelle opens up about how losing her horse Shire shaped her understanding of grief, how those experiences informed her novel Ring (longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize), and why the depth of her relationships with animals makes the inevitable loss worth it.
• Where to find the book: A Series of Opinionated Animals is available in hardcover, e-book, and audiobook. Click here to buy the book and Our Hen House will receive $10 per hardcover or $5 per e-book sale!

Michelle Lerner is a former public interest attorney, animal law pioneer, and author. A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School, she co-founded the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, successfully lobbying for Harvard’s first animal law class. She later drafted municipal and state legislation, co-chaired the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Animal Law Committee, and founded a local rescue that achieved no-kill status. After a disabling illness, she turned to writing stories. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, Ring, was published in 2025 and her latest book, A Series of Opinionated Animals, is available now from Bancroft Press.

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Contributions of any amount are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of The Hen Report from Our Hen House, Jasmin and Mariann cover major developments in animal welfare and the vegan movement, including the Ridglan Farms beagle rescue court updates, Wyoming becoming the sixth no-kill state, the Trump administration’s animal welfare agenda (and its exclusion of farm animals), the upcoming free Veganic Summit, and a heartwarming story of a young Spider-Man who released resort lobsters back into the ocean. Plus, a conversation about bridging the gap between companion animal advocacy and farmed animal rights, and a preview of Friday’s interview with Michelle Lerner, author of A Series of Opinionated Animals.

• Ridglan Farms Beagle Rescue Court Update: All 47 advocates who rescued beagles from the Wisconsin breeding facility appeared in court, with attorneys arguing they acted as rescuers — not thieves. Rep. Mark Pocan has called on the Dane County DA to drop all charges, and the Beagle Freedom Project reports 85% of the 498 released beagles had abnormal veterinary findings.
• Wyoming Joins No-Kill States: Wyoming is now the sixth U.S. state to achieve no-kill shelter status (90% live release rate), joining Delaware, Idaho, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont — thanks in part to special-needs cat rescues like Second Chance Sheridan.
• Trump’s Animal Welfare Agenda & Farm Animals: Jessica Scott-Reid writes in Sentient Media that while the administration is reportedly expanding protections for companion animals through USDA and FDA updates, the new era of animal welfare still excludes nearly all of the 10 billion land animals farmed for food each year.
• Veganic Summit (Free, Nov 6–8): A free online event teaching how to grow plant foods using vegan, organic techniques — no chemical fertilizers or animal byproducts like manure or bone meal. Register at veganicsummit.com.
• The Kids Are All Right: A young boy in Mexico donned a Spider-Man mask and released $400 worth of resort lobsters into the ocean, and a bipartisan Michigan bill — inspired by fourth graders — would designate shelter pets as the state’s official pet.

• • • • • Buy A Series of Opinionated Animals & A Portion Will Go To Our Hen House!
        • Ridglan Farms beagles: Animal rights advocates appear in court
        • Wyoming is Now a No-Kill State
        • Trump’s ‘New Era of Animal Welfare’ Excludes Almost All Farm Animals
        • A young boy wearing a Spider-Man mask released approximately $400 worth of live lobsters
        • Thanks, Matthew Bierlein – State Representative for introducing a bill designating shelter pets as Michigan’s official pet.
        • Beyond VegFest: Making Healthy Connections
        • My Dog Is My Home, A Seat at the Table benefit

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The Veganic Summit is a free online event from November 6th-8th, 2026. You’ll learn how plant foods can be grown using techniques that are both vegan and organic, without any chemical fertilizers or any animal byproducts like manure or bonemeal. If you’d like to start your own veganic garden or learn about sustainable plant-based farming, sign up for the Veganic Summit today at https://veganicsummit.com/

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

This week, Mariann finds herself in a suspiciously good mood despite a roster of horrors: ag-friendly lawmakers are departing Washington, Western states are busy “euthanizing” wolves in the most creative misuse of that word yet, and 2,400 pigs died in a barn fire that somehow produced “no injuries.” On the bright side, Gen Z is apparently ghosting pork, the hog market is in freefall, and a new report confirms what everyone already suspected—Big Beef knew about its climate impact back in the ’90s and chose deception. Also: cancer-causing fire retardant in your fish meal, supermarkets begging governments to stop yanking every last mackerel out of the sea, and your tax dollars hard at work building a dairy industry in a country full of lactose-intolerant people. Plus, a shout-out to Cat Phipps, the grassroots activist proving one person can actually ruin a multi-country live animal export operation.

• Farm lobby loses its Congressional cheerleaders: Dozens of lawmakers with big ag ties are leaving Washington, and the industry is very sad about it, which is a promising sign for anyone who isn’t a factory farm
• Shooting wolves is not euthanasia: Colorado and other Western states are reintroducing wolves and then killing them the moment they do what wolves do; calling it euthanasia doesn’t make it euthanasia
• Gen Z is not buying pork: Hog market hits “historic lows” as younger consumers cut their per-capita pig consumption, and industry veterans find this “puzzling”
• Big Beef’s ’90s climate disinformation campaign exposed: Newly surfaced documents show the National Cattlemen’s Association knew about livestock’s methane problem decades ago and opted to lie about 
• Cancer-causing fire retardant in fish meal + US dairy expansion in lactose-intolerant Indonesia: Because nothing says “agricultural innovation” like poisoning farmed fish and exporting lactose to a country that can’t digest it

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. 

Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of Our Hen House, Mariann Sullivan speaks with Cat Phipps of Southampton Animal Action about their remarkable grassroots campaign that convinced Brittany Ferries to end live animal exports between Ireland and France. Cat breaks down the history of live export protests in the UK, how a small local group used consistent, legal, and disruptive tactics over more than a year to force a major ferry company to stop transporting animals on 18-plus-hour journeys, and what this victory means for the broader animal rights movement. They also discuss the resurgence of grassroots campaigning, bridging the gap between welfarist and abolitionist approaches, and what’s next — including a new push against Irish Ferries and ongoing campaigns targeting MBR Acres, Barclays, and pet retailers.

• The Brittany Ferries campaign: How Southampton Animal Action organized weekly protests at Portsmouth Port, used banner drops and megaphones inside the port, and maintained legal but disruptive pressure to persuade CEO Christophe Mathieu to end the company’s live animal export operations.
• Live exports explained: The grim reality of live animal transport in Europe, including unweaned calves and sheep shipped for 18+ hours without food or water, and how the UK’s 2024 ban on live exports post-Brexit left EU routes as the remaining battleground.
• Abolitionist messaging within a welfarist coalition: How a vegan-led grassroots group partnered with Compassion in World Farming while refusing to compromise their demand for a complete end to live exports, proving that welfare-to-abolitionist coalitions can work.
• The ripple effects: How Brittany Ferries’ decision sent the Irish animal agriculture industry into crisis, triggered political panic among Irish MEPs, and left Irish Ferries as the sole remaining live export operator on the route.
• Grassroots strategy and what’s next: The role of in-person community building, why small protests can be powerfully effective, how single-species campaigns like MBR Acres can serve as gateways to broader animal rights awareness, and Southampton Animal Action’s upcoming campaigns targeting Barclays, Pets at Home, and more.

Cat Phipps is an animal rights activist with Southampton Animal Action (SAA), a grassroots group campaigning for animal freedom across Hampshire, UK. She led SAA’s campaign against Brittany Ferries, who restarted live animal exports in 2025. The campaign included regular protests outside Brittany Ferries in Portsmouth, UK, and culminated in a direct meeting with Brittany Ferries’ CEO, Christophe Matthieu, in July 2026. The following week, Brittany Ferries announced its decision to stop transporting animals. The win demonstrated the impact that persistent grassroots campaigning can have on corporate decisions and animal protection.

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Contributions of any amount are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of The Hen Report, Jasmin and Mariann discuss groundbreaking news: New York City’s horse-drawn carriage industry may finally be coming to an end under Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration. They trace the decades-long grassroots fight to ban carriage horses in NYC—from protest carols at Columbus Circle to the strategic political organizing that made this moment possible—while highlighting the activists and organizations, including Voters for Animal Rights and the work of Allie Feldman Taylor, who helped build the political power behind the bill. The conversation also explores the vital role of grassroots activism in the broader animal rights movement, the upcoming City Council vote on October 22nd, and what this iconic victory could mean for animals far beyond New York City.

• NYC Horse-Drawn Carriage Ban: Mayor Mamdani announced the industry is coming to an end, with the City Council vote expected on October 22nd and a potential phase-out date of June 1, 2028. The bill includes humane disposition requirements for the horses.
• Decades of Grassroots Organizing: The hosts reflect on their personal history with this campaign, including Christmas carols rewritten as protest songs, and explain why this long-fought battle is a testament to the power of persistent grassroots activism.
• Key Organizations and Activists: A spotlight on the groups that made this possible—including Voters for Animal Rights, NYCLASS, Equine Advocates, and the ASPCA—with special recognition for Allie Feldman Taylor, who now heads the NYC Mayor’s Office of Animal Welfare.
• The Catalyst and the Context: The tragic death of a young man from India after a carriage accident helped trigger this moment, but it was the years of organizing beforehand that made the movement ready to act when tragedy struck—drawing international press coverage from the UK, Australia, and India.
• The Broader Grassroots Movement: The discussion expands to celebrate grassroots activism across the animal rights movement, including the upcoming interview with Cat Phipps about live export protests in the UK, the March to End Animal Testing, and a reminder that local, in-person advocacy remains essential to creating lasting change for animals.

• • • • • Animal Law and Policy Institute at Vermont Law & Graduate School
        • The Effects Of Digital Advocacy: What A Single Exposure To Digital Animal Advocacy Can (And Can’t) Do
        • New York City’s iconic horse-drawn carriages expected to take their last trot
        • Horse-drawn carriages in New York City expected to be outlawed

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of Our Hen House, Mariann and Jasmin sit down with Alex Bury, Vice President of Development at Vegan Outreach, and Stacy Shepanek, Director of Communications at Vegan Outreach and co-lead of Knox Vegan, to talk about grassroots vegan activism that works. They dig into Vegan Outreach’s massive leafleting legacy (22 million booklets and counting), their 10 Weeks to Vegan online program with 1.8 million signups across 18 countries, and the star of the show — the Vegan Chef Challenge, a month-long campaign that gets local restaurants to create brand-new vegan menu items in cities where plant-based options are scarce. Along the way, they discuss why grassroots outreach remains essential in a movement that has shifted toward corporate advocacy, how the Chef Challenge transforms dining scenes in places like Anchorage and Knoxville, the one-day MacDown mac and cheese competitions, and how volunteers can bring the Vegan Chef Challenge to their own communities.

• How the Vegan Chef Challenge works: 10–30 local restaurants create new vegan specials — typically an appetizer, entrée, and dessert — for a month, with customers voting for their favorites. The majority of participating restaurants had zero vegan options before, and many keep vegan dishes on the menu year-round.
• Grassroots vegan activism still matters: Alex and Stacy make the case that while corporate advocacy and legislative work have their place, person-to-person outreach — from college leafleting to restaurant challenges — is an irreplaceable way to create lasting change for animals.
• Global reach with local flavor: Vegan Outreach’s 10 Weeks to Vegan program operates in 18 countries with culturally adapted recipes and resources, and their India team has helped replace over a million pounds of meat with plant-based options through the Green Tuesday initiative.
• Getting involved: Volunteers can bring a Vegan Chef Challenge or MacDown to their own city. Visit veganchefchallenge.org to fill out an interest form, or email [email protected] to explore volunteer opportunities ranging from leafleting to organizing a full month-long restaurant challenge.
• Community building beyond the food: The Vegan Chef Challenge doesn’t just create vegan options — it creates community. From Anchorage’s growing network of vegan women to Knoxville’s meetup culture, the challenge has become a catalyst for lasting local connections that help new vegans stay vegan.

Alex Bury (she/her) has been a professional fundraiser for animal rights and animal welfare nonprofits for over 20 years. Before that, she was a CIA-trained professional chef who ran a vegan restaurant in Northern California. She shifted her career to more direct ways of supporting the movement against animal suffering, raising the funds activists need to do their work, and has worked for PETA, the PETA Foundation, HSUS (now A Humane World), and her current organization, Vegan Outreach. She’s a member of Women Funders in Animal Rights and Indivisible, and a proud board member for People & Pets Project, Open Sanctuary Project, and Beyond Population. Alex lives and works remotely in Anchorage, Alaska. She and her dog Goldie love to hike, cross-country ski, and stay up too late reading science fiction.

Stacy Shepanek is Director of Communications at Vegan Outreach. She went vegan in 2012 and became a community organizer in Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina. She joined Vegan Outreach in 2017, leafleting college campuses and doing graphic design, and she’s since organized three vegan Mac Downs. She’s been on the Knoxville Vegan Chef Challenge organizing team since its first year and co-runs Knox Vegan, sharing local vegan food finds and organizing community events. Stacy believes in supporting local restaurants with strong vegan options, because the vegan in the group is often the one choosing where everyone eats, and one thoughtful menu item can bring a whole table of new diners through the door. She lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, with her partner and their rescue dog, Cookie, and loves hiking, cycling, climbing, and just about anything that gets her outside. She has worn many hats over the years before working for Vegan Outreach. She spent 10 years in Civil Engineering and 8 years as a professional potter before coming to Vegan Outreach.

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Contributions of any amount are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

In this episode of The Hen Report from Our Hen House, Jasmin and Mariann dig into the tension within the animal protection movement over anti-factory farming messaging that stops short of asking people to eat fewer animals. Inspired by Mariann’s Substack piece Expanding the Tent and Jasmin’s experience at an op-ed writing workshop, the two trace this strategic issue through historical parallels — from abolition and women’s suffrage to civil rights, gay rights, and prison reform. Mariann outlines four distinct factions operating within the farmed animal movement today and makes the case that, with so little progress achieved so far, activists should be pushing every approach forward rather than tearing each other down.

• Anti-factory farming vs. diet change: Mariann argues that ending factory farming inevitably means animal products become expensive and scarce, so the movement can’t skip the hardest conversation.
• Lessons from social justice history: Jasmin draws parallels to abolition, women’s suffrage, civil rights, gay rights, environmentalism, and prison reform, noting that internal divisions between radicals and moderates often helped movements succeed when both camps pushed simultaneously.
• Four factions in the farmed animal movement: Mariann identifies anti-factory farming reformers, animal modification advocates (like Aidan Kankyoku’s headless chicken proposal), diet change organizations (Good Food Institute, Vegan Outreach, Greener by Default), and the focus on the animals — each with overlapping but distinct goals.
• A call for unity over infighting: With insufficient progress after decades of advocacy, activists should need to advance every promising approach at once.

• • • • • Expanding the Tent

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Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Bluesky.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.