It’s quaintly predictable that the rent-a-quotes at PETA should try to make a story out of an artistic display where a naked woman cuddles a pig!

Yes it is true, remember it is the silly season and PETA combines a lack of a sense of humour and perspective with the arrogance of assumed expertise in mental health:

This seems to be a desperate cry for help that merits visits from mental health counsellors, not voyeurs

The funny part is the field day for headline writers: Sun (Pig sick over dead porker), Mirror (ART..OR PIG SICK). The Mail predictably focused on how it was funded by taxpayers, and the US Media swallowed the PETA line.

However dig deeper, and it is apparent that this story is an own goal for PETA. It is actually a story about replacement alternatives to animals - I kid you not!

The artists funding for this project came from the Wellcome Trust SciArt initiative. working on tissue culture of human cells. You can see more details, and an even a video here.

But we always knew publicity was PETA’s objective, not real progress in animal welfare.