(MintPress) – Known for its strong commitment to protecting all species of animals, the animal rights charity, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), came under fire earlier this year when it was revealed in a report by the Virginia Department for Agriculture and Consumer Services that PETA euthanized 90 percent of all dogs and cats in its Virginia shelter headquarters in 2012.
PETA reported that in 2012 the group euthanized 1,675 “elderly, injured, ill and homeless domestic animals turned away by other shelters and/or surrendered by citizens who had nowhere else to turn.”
The animal-rights charity provided the numbers in the report earlier this year, and as Jane Dollinger, a media liaison for PETA explained to Mint Press News, the statistics have been misconstrued and inaccurately promoted by a restaurant advocacy coalition called Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF).
Dollinger argued that “CCF is a front group for Philip Morris, Outback Steakhouse, KFC, cattle ranchers and other animal exploiters who kill millions of animals every year — and do so not out of compassion, but out of greed.”
“CCF puts out this release every year when we submit our numbers to the state. We have a small division that does hands-on work with animals, and most of the animals we take in are society’s rejects; aggressive, on death’s door or somehow unadoptable. We have posted many blogs about this over the years.” Dollinger continues to say, “CCF’s goal is to damage PETA by misrepresenting the situation and the number of unwanted and suffering animals PETA euthanizes because of injury, illness, age, aggression and other problems, because their guardians requested it, or because no good homes exist for them.”
When talking to the British news organization the Daily Mail, Justin Wilson, a senior research analyst for CCF said, “[PETA] is talking out of both sides of its mouth — on one side preaching its animal liberation agenda, while on the other signing the death warrant of over 89 percent of pets in its care. It’s beyond hypocritical.”
Referring to the racy ads PETA uses to get the publics attention such as the “I’d rather go naked than wear fur” campaign featuring celebrities sans clothing, Wilson added that “it seems PETA is more dedicated to publicity stunts than to keeping the animals in its own care alive. It’s the height of hypocrisy for PETA to demonstrate for the ‘rights’ of rats and pigs, while killing tens of thousands of pets. It’s time that the Commonwealth of Virginia finally reclassifies PETA’s pet shelter for what it is — a slaughterhouse.”
CCF versus PETA
In a battle between the two organizations that has gone on for years, a consumer deception website has profiled the head of CCF, lobbyist Richard Berman, whose for-profit public relations company was reportedly possible thanks to a generous $600,000 gift from the tobacco giant, Philip Morris.
On its website, Consumer Deception writes about why Berman is likely targeting PETA:
“Berman has now taken on PETA and a number of other groups and organizations whose points of view could have an impact on the profits of his clients by waking consumers up. Berman’s Guest Choice Network has an ‘advisory panel’ whose members in 1998 included officials representing companies ranging from Cargill Processed Meat Products and Outback Steakhouse to Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association and Sutter Home Winery.
“Berman’s clients are companies with vested interests in low employee wages; cheap, unhealthy restaurant-chain food, particularly meat; and tobacco, soft drink and alcohol consumption — companies like Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, Armour Swift and Philip Morris, whose product line includes Kraft Foods and everything from Marlboro cigarettes to Oscar Meyer wieners and which is a major shareholder in its former subsidiary Miller Brewing, now known as SABMiller.
“PETA’s recent successes in gaining fast-food industry concessions for more humane conditions for farm animals have sent ripples of fear through the food and beverage service industry. About the same time that McDonald’s buckled to PETA’s demands, Richard Berman, changed his front group’s name and stepped up his attacks.
“The key to Berman’s aggressive strategy is, in his own words, ‘to shoot the messenger … we’ve got to attack their credibility as spokespersons,’ — an interesting remark from someone whose background and funding so severely challenge his own credibility.”
In response to the attacks from Berman’s CCF group, PETA created a group called PETA Saves, where the group explains why they perform the “heartbreaking task of euthanizing animals for one reason or another.”
Dollinger referred Mint Press to blog posts previously posted by PETA, which all drive home the message that “the CCF tries to make it seem like solving the animal homelessness crisis is as simple as setting up huge kennels in which to keep all the sick, dying and unwanted animals. Even if money could buy good homes and even if PETA could build cages sky-high, warehousing animals does nothing to stop the root of the problem — uncontrolled breeding.
“As long as animals are still purposely bred and people aren’t spaying and neutering their companions, open-admission animal shelters and organizations like PETA must do society’s dirty work. Euthanasia is not a solution to overpopulation but rather a tragic necessity given the present crisis.”
PETA supporters on the group’s use of euthanization
One anonymous PETA supporter told the Daily Mail that “in my book, the only time it’s acceptable to kill animals is the same as the only time it’s acceptable to kill people: when their illness is painful and terminal.”
Another supporter shared that they did not believe euthanizing animals should be an option for PETA. “As soon as I hear of a campaign to kill homeless people because it’s ‘more humane’ then I might consider it an acceptable option for homeless animals too.”
Based on a February 2013 press release from PETA, it’s apparent that the group would love nothing more than to end its euthanization practice. The animal-rights charity has continued to urge the National Governors Association to promote mandatory spay-and-neuter legislation across the United States in order to reduce intake and euthanasia rates at animal shelters.
The group estimates that between 6 to 8 million animals are admitted to shelters in the U.S. each year, and about half of the animals are euthanized, often because there are not enough suitable homes.
“Even though PETA’s own fleet of mobile spay-and-neuter clinics has ‘fixed’ nearly 88,000 cats and dogs in the past 10 years, it’s impossible to keep up with the runaway birthrate of unwanted kittens and puppies,” said PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. “With one stroke of a pen, countless animals who are paying for this crisis with their lives could be saved.”