“Chuck” Star Yvonne Strahovski PETA Ad Campaign

Yvonne Strahovski, who stars on NBC’s spy hit Chuck, has teamed up with animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

The holiday season is here, and next to electronics and fugly ties for dad, our fine furry and feathered friends often find themselves atop a many of Gift Wish List.

This isn’t always a good thing, as PETA points out. Animal shelters see a spike in homeless animals every year after the holidays as families find themselves unable to care for the puppies and kittens they purchased as gifts. Let this be a lesson, ‘Crunchers: Pets — which can be a 20-year commitment mind you — should never be given as surprise gifts.

PETA hopes to convince animal lovers who insist on starting the new year as new pet owners to adopt the new addition to their family from a local animal shelter or rescue. Strahovksi poses with her rescued dogs, Chazzie and Wilbur, in PETA’s newest “Adopt, Don’t Buy” campaign to encourage people to always adopt and never buy animals.
In the ad, which was shot by top celebrity photographer Robert Sebree, Strahovski appears as Chazzie’s and Wilbur’s guardian angel below the words: “Be an Angel for Animals. Always Adopt. Never Buy.”

“There are just so many dogs that are just as gorgeous—whether they’re mixed or purebred or whatever—they’re all gorgeous, and they all have personalities, and they all need a home,” Strahovski says. “I come home from a hard day at work, and I see these two happy faces when I walk in the door, and it’s unconditional love. There’s something like … 7 to 8 million animals that are homeless, and half of those dogs get euthanized, and it’s really sad.”