The Humane Society of the United States has just released a new Humane Index of U.S. Cities. The site includes rankings for the top 25 most populous cities in the country, broken down by categories like number of retail shops that sell fur, or ratio of wildlife watchers to hunters, all presented in a pretty nifty interactive format that allows you to sort by category and compare one city to another.

So how does D.C. stack up against other cities when it comes to being humane to animals? Pretty well, it turns out. Overall, the Washington, D.C. metro area ranks 4th in the U.S., behind only Granola-belt cities San Francisco, Seattle and Portland. Is it possible the District, long known for its reputation for being full of stuffed shirts, is brimming with secret hippies? We certainly run into our fair share of vegetarians in this city — but usually they’re just complaining about a lack of vegetarian-friendly restaurants — not overpowering us with patchouli or dragging us into stores filled with fake Hindu-themed artwork. This is Washington, after all. Our vegetarians wear suits.

OK, so probably you don’t have to be a hippie to be a friend to the animals. For example, I prefer not kicking puppy dogs while at the same time professing a love for bacon. Mmm. But what exactly is it that puts D.C. near the top of the Humane Society’s index? About what you might imagine: We’re a town full of activists and journalists. D.C. gets good grades for things like having the most news stories highlighting animal rights issues, being home to a huge number of animal rights advocates, and having a larger than normal number of “wildlife whisperers” (really?). Where we can still show improvement, according the Humane Society, is by reducing the number of local stores that peddle fur, and just saying no to the Ringling Bros. Circus when it’s in town, which it seems is no friend to the animal rights movement. Also, clowns are scary.

Take a look at the Index for yourself and let us know what you think.