There's been a chicken around campus this week, and he doesn't want to become a nugget.

The poultry impersonator has been passing out booklets containing facts about how animals are treated as well as recipes for vegan meals as part of the UW's Campus Animal Rights Educators (CARE) effort to encourage a cruelty-free lifestyle, said CARE member Alisse Cassell.

"We want people to realize that the average vegan can save 100 animals a year," said Pulin Modi, an animal rights activist and the man behind the chicken suit.

Modi works for Peta2.com, an international group that promotes and encourages freedom from animal cruelty.

"We want people to be able to see what's behind the advertising," Modi said. "Just compare the treatment of pigs and cows to your pet dogs and cats. They're all animals."

Peta2.com is working with CARE to help bring awareness to the issue at hand.

"I think factory farming needs to be exposed and not many people realize where their food comes from," Cassell said. "I think this is a creative way to get people's attention."

CARE works with different organizations, such as Peta2.com, to gain resources that help promote a cruelty-free lifestyle.

"We hope that people will be inspired by this information," Modi said.

Reach reporter Victoria Lee at news@thedaily.washington.edu.