PETA

PETA's celebrating a legal W that it hopes will be a big step in putting an end to using live animals in movies ... and it got some cash to boot.

The animal rights org will receive a "substantial payment" from Paws for Effect, the company that trained the puppy, Shelby, for her starring role in "A Dog's Way Home" ... which came out in January.

We broke the story ... Shelby's owners sued PETA for defamation in February, claiming the organization went on a smear campaign against Paws alleging it had racked up citations under the Animal Welfare Act.

Paws claimed PETA was wrong and was lying, but now the company's officially walked it back and has asked the court to dismiss the case.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Paws now says what PETA accused it of was "substantially true" and admits it has "on several occasions over a period of several years been cited by the United States Department of Agriculture for violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act."

Paws offered to pay for PETA's legal fees and then some, and PETA accepted. PETA says Paws has also pledged to not exhibit or broker wild animals as part of its business in the future.

PETA's Senior VP, Lisa Lange, adds that the org is "pleased to have one less player involved in such exploitation" and vows to "keep exposing exhibitors' behind-the-scenes conduct until Hollywood ends the use of live animals and embraces the many types of realistic and humane alternatives."

"Teen Mom 2" just suffered another casualty -- this time in the form of an advertiser -- Greenies pet treats has cut ties with the MTV show.

In a statement Friday, Greenies announced, "We have zero tolerance for animal cruelty and we can now confirm that as a result of this incident, our ads will no longer run during Teen Mom programming."

Greenies joins a mountain of companies who have pulled the plug on their relationship with "Teen Mom." Chipotle, Dove Chocolates, TWIX and Persil ProClean are among some of the brands who have also cut ties.

TMZ broke the story ... "Teen Mom 2" star Jenelle Evans' husband, David Eason, is under investigation for animal cruelty after he allegedly pummeled and then shot his family dog. Both the local Animal Control and Sheriff's Department is working on the investigation.

Dan Bilzerian is catching major heat for feeding a Kodiak bear at a house party ... and because PETA would never literally feed Dan to the wolves, they're going after him with a team of lawyers.

If you were too high on Saturday to notice all the videos coming out of Dan's 4/20 bash in Los Angeles, he posted clips of himself hand-feeding munchies to an enormous bear.

PETA is livid at Dan's stunt and now the organization is ratting him and Steve Martin's Working Wildlife -- which allegedly provided the bear -- out to California authorities. PETA fired off letters Wednesday to the CA Department of Fish and Wildlife and L.A. Department of Animal Services.

In the complaints, obtained by TMZ, PETA claims Dan and Martin did not have the required permit for this type of display, because city regulations expressly prohibit keeping bears in a place where they pose a risk to the public.

PETA also claims that because the bear was not contained in an escape-proof enclosure and because Martin did not maintain a safe distance between the bear and the party-goers, Martin should be stripped of his permits and fined.

Dan tells us PETA has him all wrong because he loves animals, and, while he appreciates people trying to stand up for animals, he says PETA just wants "to do the typical internet bandwagon on whatever is popular and come after me for feeding what seemed to be a very healthy happy bear, that was rescued at a young age."

Dan ended with a final thought for PETA, "They can suck my d**k.”

Von Miller will NOT be punished for illegally catching a hammerhead shark on a 2018 fishing expedition ... but not everyone involved got so lucky.

We broke the story ... the NFL star was investigated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission after Von posted footage showing off a 9-and-a-half foot shark he caught off the coast of Miami.

The incident was escalated when PETA -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- publicly vowed to hold Miller and his crew accountable for what they believed was an illegal catch and kill.

For Miller's part, he insisted the shark was thrown back into the water alive.

Now, we've learned the case was transferred from the FFWCC to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration -- a federal organization which reports to the Department of Commerce.

A rep for NOAA tells us the investigation is over and "Miller was not charged."

However, the owner and operator of the fishing vessel WERE charged for fishing for sharks without the proper permit AND failure to release a shark in the manner that will ensure maximum probability of survival.

NOAA issued a $2,000 fine as punishment.

Fishing ... it ain't a joke.

2/5 10:43 AM PT-- PETA held a protest outside CBS Tuesday morning in NYC, holding the network responsible for airing Big Boi's fur-lined Super Bowl performance.

Big Boi's Super Bowl halftime performance is drawing penalty flags -- not for the music (see Maroon 5) -- but for his fur coat, which PETA wants to take off his back and donate to the homeless.

We've learned PETA fired off a stern letter Monday to Big Boi, even addressing him by his real name -- Antwan -- like a disappointed parent. In the letter, the animal rights group tries to convince the Outkast rapper to retire all of his furs and switch to faux.

PETA says it knows exactly what to do with Big Boi's luxury fur -- which it believes to be fox -- offering to distribute it to homeless shelters in America or Syrian refugees.

Taking it a step further, PETA says it's sending him a "gorgeous" faux fur for him to flaunt.

PETA tells us a coat the size of Big Boi's costs an estimated 25 red foxes their lives, and points out the animals are electrocuted or have their necks broken ... purely for fashion.

We've reached out to Big to confirm his coat was genuine fur, but no word back. PETA says it hasn't gotten a response from him yet either.

2/5 -- A rep for PETA tells TMZ, "PETA has not, to date, received any communication from Paws for Effect and stands by its claim."

Shelby -- the adorable pooch starring in the movie, "A Dog's Way Home" -- is at the center of a defamation lawsuit against PETA, which flat-out lied about animal abuse ... according to Shelby's owners.

Paws for Effect is the company that adopted and trained Shelby for her starring role. She's reportedly a mixed-breed pup who was rescued from a shelter in Tennessee -- so, a true Hollywood rags to riches story. However, Paws for Effect says it was blindsided by what it calls PETA's smear campaign ahead of the movie's release.

In docs obtained by TMZ ... Paws says PETA first fired off an email to an exec at Sony Pictures, the distributor of 'Dog's Way Home' ... alleging Paws had racked up citations under the Animal Welfare Act. PETA allegedly repeated that claim to an "unknowable" number of film industry types.

Paws says PETA's email is a straight-up lie, and insists it's never received a single citation under the AWA. According to docs, PETA either knew its statement about Paws was false, or could easily have found out if it did the slightest bit of research.

In the suit, Paws says even now -- after PETA's been informed its statement is false -- it has yet to correct or retract it.

Shelby's owners say the potential fallout for them is no one in Hollywood will work with them in the future -- and, as a result, they want PETA to pay through the snout.

The guy who poured fake blood on Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame says he was working for PETA when he did the deed ... but now he's been canned.

We spoke to PETA's now-former senior campaign specialist, Matt Bruce, who was caught on camera earlier this week pouring red dyed corn syrup on the Trump star ... which had just been vandalized earlier that day by another guy who'd also been caught on tape.

It was a shocking image to say the least, especially since the previous vandalism from hours earlier featured swastikas.

Matt tells us here was there with PETA members protesting Forever 21 for their use of wool. Toward the end of the protest, Matt says he wanted to send a message by pouring some fake blood on the star ... an act he says PETA has done in other instances many times over.

According to him, pouring the blood here couldn't be more on brand ... and, ultimately, it was a harmless political statement. Well ... he says PETA didn't see it that way.

Shortly after, Matt tells us he got a call from a PETA HR rep and the VP, who told him it was his last day. He says he's mostly disappointed by the firing, but not shocked. Matt asserts that PETA doesn't want any heat from the Trump administration, and that's why they cut him loose.

This is disgusting, disturbing, heartless, shameful and shockingly cruel.

The seas of Denmark are blood red for a reason ... the red is the blood of 200 dolphins that were slaughtered by locals in the Faroe Islands.

It's part of an ancient Norse tradition ... plunging metal hooks into the blowholes of dolphins before severing their spines. In case you didn't know ... these are highly intelligent animals that express emotion and feel pain.

Animal Crackers are now FREE ... from their cages, that is.

It took 116 years, but the packaging of Barnum's Animals no longer depicts the exotic creatures in pens.

Nabisco's popular snack now features a zebra, an elephant, a lion, a giraffe and a gorilla roaming free among grass and trees.

Previously, packaging showed animals and their young locked up in cages.

The stark change has been driven by PETA. In April 2016, the animal rights organization gave notice to Nabisco's parent company, Mondelez International, saying circuses would shock, chain, beat and whip animals in order to intimidate them and force them into performing tricks.

PETA also brought to light dubious practices like circuses separating mothers from their babies and holding animals in chains and cages.

Circuses across the country have also been undergoing change. Ringling Bros. shut down in May 2017 after 146 years in operation, the result of mounting pressure from animal welfare groups, skyrocketing operation costs, legal battles and declining ticket sales.

A dog on a movie set was put in a cage, violently spun around and dropped into freezing cold waters ... and nothing about it was pretend.

Sources on the set of "Crazy Alien" tell us the scene, shot in China in November, featured a German Shepherd hoisted high above the ground in the cage. According to the script, the dog was captured by aliens.

You see in the clip -- provided by PETA -- the cage turns around with considerable ferocity before being hurled into a nearby river. We're told the scene was repeated multiple times until the director was satisfied.

Our sources onset say the dog was shaken up after the stunt, but did not appear to be injured.

Matthew Morrison, who starred in "Glee," is featured as the star ... we're told he was not onset when the scene was shot.

Logan Paul is teaching millions of his young followers to be cruel to animals with his dead rat taser video -- this according to PETA, which now wants the clip yanked.

Lisa Lange -- PETA's Senior Vice President -- tells TMZ that the video posted this week showing Logan repeatedly firing a taser at a dead rat is repulsive, adding that it's clear he hasn't learned his lesson from the suicide forest debacle.

Lange says PETA is also calling on YouTube to take Logan's clip down entirely, explaining ... "This sort of content has no place on YouTube or anywhere else, as it could desensitize young people to cruelty to animals." She adds ... "PETA is calling on the platform to remove it."

As you'll recall ... Logan's catching a new wave of backlash for his latest stunt. He tases the dead rat, lifts it from the string, and tases it again once it's in the trash. Safe to say, people are pissed.

Sarah Silverman rolled her eyes at PETA for pissing on the puppy gag at the Grammys.

We got the funny lady Tuesday at LAX and asked about PETA bitching that James Corden handed out pups as a consolation prize. PETA thinks it was wrong to put the dogs under bright lights and it sent a bad message that dogs are prizes rather than family members.

The drunk Philadelphia Eagles fan who allegedly attacked a police officer AND his horse should be BANNED from owning pets AND attending Eagles games ever again ... this according to a huge animal rights org.

Cops reported the fan, Taylor Hendricks, repeatedly attacked an officer and his horse as he was being escorted out of Saturday's game against the Falcons. Hendricks was arrested for aggravated assault, illegally taunting a police horse, simple assault and defiant trespass.

But Stephanie Bell, senior director for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, tells TMZ Sports Hendricks should get more than that.

"PETA is asking the prosecutor to charge the suspect with cruelty to animals, and if he's convicted, we hope sentencing will include a psychiatric evaluation and a ban on owning or harboring any animals, from horses to dogs and cats."

"Anyone who would violently attack an animal likely has rage issues and could be a danger to the community at large."

Robert Pattinson is a hero to 4-legged friends for refusing to masturbate a dog for a movie scene ... so says PETA.

The actor told Jimmy Kimmel Thursday night the director of his latest flick, "Good Time," wanted him to shoot a scene in which he pleasured a pooch, but Pattinson drew a line in the sand and refused.

PETA is now praising Pattinson, saying the scene is both a form of mistreatment and "like child molestation."

The animal rights org refers to a story TMZ broke, involving a distressed dog that appeared to have been forced to swim in raging waters in the movie "A Dog's Purpose," saying, "PETA depends on actors and crew members to come forward when they see mistreatment."

PETA says it's now on the case, trying to determine if any laws have been broken.

Kylie Jenner felt the heat from animal rights protesters, and got the hell out ... cutting short a photo op in Vegas amid chants that she has the blood of innocent animals on her hands.

Kylie was attending the grand opening of Sugar Factory Saturday night, where she paused for photos on the red carpet ... before being bum-rushed by the protesters.

Sounds like their specific beef is with Kylie wearing fur -- which she was not doing at the event, but has in the past. Protesters were loud, but never got physical with Kylie ... unlike those who nailed her sister, Kim, years ago.

Some of Kylie's furs have been advertised as fake in the past, but that clearly doesn't matter to the activists here. Faux or not ... they don't appreciate her flaunting fur.

"A Dog's Purpose" executive producer Gavin Polone makes no bones about it ... the video posted by TMZ showing a distressed German Shepherd shows mistakes were made on the set, but he insists the animals featured in the movie were well cared for and protected.

Polone strongly believes PETA is smearing the movie by trying to mislead the public into believing the dog and other animals were put in harm's way.

And Polone has harsh words for the American Humane Association, which he says should have stopped the action when the Shepherd made it clear he did not want in the water.