PETA's goal is 鈥渢otal animal liberation.鈥?This means no meat, no milk, no zoos, no circuses, no wool, no leather, no hunting, no fishing, and no pets (not even seeing-eye dogs).
PETA has killed over 10,000 dogs and cats at its Norfolk, Virginia headquarters. During 2003, PETA put to death over 85 percent of the animals it collected from members of the public.
PETA has given tens of thousands of dollars to convicted arsonists and other violent criminals.
PETA president Ingrid Newkirk has said that 鈥渆ven if animal research resulted in a cure for AIDS, we would be against it.鈥?br>
You can find out more here: http://petakillsanimals.com/
Do you think PETA's actions and beliefs are right? Why or why not? PETA members are just as bad as religious zealots. Yes I did know this. But thanks for the info. I dont like PETA they suck! PETA is a bunch of hypocrites. Well I don't personally think they are. But if they actually succeed in keeping humans from interacting with animals at all, then would have their hands full when they try to tell other predators that it's wrong for them to kill other animals. I don't think Lions, and Tigers, and Bears will listen, Oh My! thats terrible! :'( they are wackos, dont freaking equate wild animals with livestock. we have livestock so we can eat. if u like animals so much go play with a lion on the plains of africa I think that PETA may have started out with a good agenda, but have gone off the deep end. I don't know about the dogs and cats killed, but would like to know more. I didn't know they were quite this extremist. Interesting information, indeed.
A note on the first paragraph about total animal liberation; don't cows need to be milked? Don't sheep need to be sheared? And these specific actions are not painful to the animal, if done properly. I guess I just don't get it. *shrug* You can't always dive head first with blinders on about these types of articles. Below is the response from PETA after questioning them about the website listed in the question. I don't support all of their attitudes, but they deserve to be given the benefit of the doubt since there are so many incompassionate animal people in the world, and with people continuing to breed unwanted animals, not spaying and neutering their animals, sometimes there is no option for these poor little critters. Maybe if more people would act as fosters or go out and adopt these animals instead of always looking for the pure-breeds, so many would not have to be euthanized. And, of course, just like the people including celebrities who support PETA, you are always going to find those that don't.
Thank you for contacting PETA about the 鈥淧ETA Kills Animals鈥?campaign.
We believe a lot of good will come from this shabby attempt to undermine PETA鈥檚 efforts to help animals. This campaign is the work of the deceitfully-named Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF), a front group for Philip Morris, Outback Steakhouse, KFC, cattle ranchers, and other animal exploiters who kill millions of animals every year, not out of compassion, but out of greed. These companies are worried about the strides that PETA is making that are changing their industries and compelling them to take animal welfare concerns seriously, so they hope to scare people away from caring about animals by spending millions on ads, mailings and Web sites like this. To learn more about CCF鈥攚hich USA Today recently opined should rename its Web site "FatforProfit.com"鈥攑lease see the following Web sites:
路 http://www.ConsumerDeception.com
路 http://www.CitizensForEthics.org/activit...
路 http://www.Prospect.org/web/page.ww?sect...
Despite its deceptive intent, we鈥檙e grateful for the opportunity that this provides to discuss the animal overpopulation crisis. We are on the front lines of the battle to turn back the tide of unwanted dogs and cats, and we need your help. Our caseworkers tirelessly rescue homeless animals from environmental dangers, as well as cruelty and neglect (http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/f-143anima... They crawl through sewers, poke through junkyards, climb trees, and dodge traffic in order to reach animals in danger. During floods and storms, they are out saving lives at all hours.
Some of the animals we take in are lost companions with loving families who miss them; we are always happy to return such animals to their homes. We have also managed to catch and return some highly elusive animals other agencies had given up on. PETA does not operate a shelter, but鈥攅ven though we foster many healthy homeless animals that we have rescued in homes (often our own) or take them to shelters to await adoption鈥攖he reality is that thousands of adoptable animals are euthanized every day in shelters across America due to the lack of good homes. To learn more, visit http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/i-nobirth-...
Because most area residents take healthy, adoptable animals directly to local shelters, the majority of the animals we receive are extremely sick or injured beings for whom euthanasia is, without a doubt, the most humane option; to learn more, please see our factsheet at http://www.PETA.org/mc/factsheet_display... To learn about one local instance, please see http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/f-asiassto... On another occasion, when a power-line transformer explosion burned a flock of starlings, PETA was the only agency to come to the birds鈥?aid; if our trained technicians had not been ready to end these starlings鈥?misery, the injured birds would have suffered in agony for days before finally succumbing to a painful death.
In addition, PETA provides free euthanasia services for local residents who have very sick, critically injured, or geriatric companions but can鈥檛 afford to take them to a veterinarian. One family, lacking money for vet care and transportation, turned to us for help for their cat, who had barely crawled back home after being mauled by a pack of dogs. We were able to help by giving the cat a peaceful end to her intense pain.
We also began offering our services to shelters in North Carolina in 2000, after PETA was contacted by a police officer who was distressed by conditions in a county pound. North Carolina has the second-highest kill rate per capita in the country鈥?5 animals killed annually for every 1,000 residents鈥攁nd most do not die a humane death. When we step in to properly euthanize animals (at no cost to the participating shelters) as we do in this instance, our involvement prevents animals from being shot to death with a .22 caliber firearm, gassed to death in an rusty metal box, or injected with a paralytic that causes slow suffocation without loss of consciousness. It prevents their suffering for weeks on end from disease and illness, or worse. We know from bitter experience that for homeless animals鈥攅ven those in some shelters鈥攖here is such a thing as a fate worse than death. To learn more about the conditions that led to our involvement in North Carolina and about some of the many improvements we鈥檝e been able to make, please visit http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/f-nc.asp.
We wish that there were other acceptable options available. We cannot bring the majority of these animals back to Virginia for placement鈥攖he same issues regarding adoptability of injured, sick, or old animals exist everywhere, and 鈥渙pen-admission鈥?shelters, which never turn their backs on any animal (unlike so-called 鈥渘o-kill鈥?shelters, which turn many animals away) are already unable to cope with the overpopulation of animals. There simply are not enough homes for them. Using Virginia shelters also means that there would be fewer homes for animals already in Virginia adoption facilities.
Some might argue that the solution to this crisis of overpopulation of so many unwanted animals is to open sanctuaries. But the sad reality is that the math doesn鈥檛 add up. There is not enough money available to us or anyone to build enough sanctuaries or organize enough animal-adoption programs to keep up with the number of unwanted animals, particularly those animals deemed 鈥渦ndesirable鈥?because of their infirmities, age, or behavior. Abandoning domesticated animals to fend for themselves would be irresponsible, of course, but to keep them in cages or pens for a lifetime is no more humane for homeless dogs and cats than it is for animals in laboratories or circuses. To learn more about "no-kill" sanctuaries, see http://www.PETA.org/Living/AT-Fall2005/n... and http://www.PETA.org/feat/acgas/index1.as...
Putting all our resources into kenneling unwanted animals would also do nothing to stop the flow of more and more unwanteds. The source of the problem鈥攖rying to prevent the births of unwanted animals鈥攊s where money and efforts need to go. PETA runs a mobile spay/neuter clinic (http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/about_snip... seven days a week, focusing much of our work in disadvantaged neighborhoods, where we offer free and low-cost surgeries and other services such as flea/tick treatments and worming. In the last year, we have sterilized thousands of dogs and cats鈥攎any free of charge and all others at well below our own costs. Support for this program is much needed, as you can imagine.
We hope you understand that it is heart-wrenching for those of us at PETA and at shelters across the country who care deeply for animals to have to hold animals in our arms and take their lives because there is nowhere decent for them to go. Those who truly seek to make a difference for animals understand that it is necessary to do the right thing鈥攅ven when it's unpleasant鈥攔ather than supporting false "solutions" simply because they make us feel less uncomfortable. PETA has always spoken openly about euthanasia on our Web site and in our publications, and鈥攁lthough we understand that it is upsetting to think about鈥攅uthanasia will continue to be necessary in this imperfect world until people prevent dogs and cats from bringing new litters into the world and as long as people hide their heads in the sand and leave the dirty work to others.
Regarding pit bulls, PETA does not believe that every pit bull should be euthanized, but we do advocate a ban on the breeding of pit bulls. Indeed, we should ban all breeding of dogs because of the tragic overpopulation crisis that causes millions of unwanted animals to be killed every year in this country. We hope that our support of such laws will stop people from bringing more pits鈥攖he most abused of dog breeds鈥攊nto the world to be hurt and exploited.
We have come to this conclusion because of the work that we do鈥攁nd will continue to do鈥攖o protect, defend, and improve the lives of pit bulls who are still being victimized. Over and over again, we rescue pit bulls from people who beat and starve them, chain them to metal drums as 鈥済uard鈥?dogs, or train them to attack people and fight other animals. We remove them from abusive homes and contact prosecutors in cruelty cases in their behalf (please visit http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/f-asiassto... and http://www.PETA.org/about/victoryItem.as... for a few examples of the many cases that we have taken on).
We also speak out against pit bull fighting and encourage our members and supporters to do so as well (please visit http://www.PETA.org/alert/automation/Ale... and http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/i-fighting... for information about some of the cases involving pit bull fighting), as well as subsidizing spay and neuter surgeries for pit bulls (http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/i-nobirth-... and providing free dog houses for dogs who languish outside without any protection from the elements.
We hope this has shed some light on our policies, and our work. To learn more about what PETA is doing for companion animals and how you can help, please see the following Web sites:
路 Save homeless animals: http://www.HelpingAnimals.com/ga_spay.as...
路 More ways to help dogs and cats: http://www.HelpingAnimals.com
路 Become an advocate for animals: http://www.PETA.org/actioncenter
Thanks again for writing and for your compassion for animals.
Sincerely, The PETA Staff http://www.PETA.org |
