When our first Airedale passed away, we had leftover dog food that we wanted to find a good home for. We visited the Humane Society of Chittenden County and they were grateful to have a big bag of food to feed their hungry residents. I am sure that this shelter would also welcome monetary donations as well as food. Since then I have seen ads on television from organizations like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and wondered if they would be good groups to donate to.

I have no desire to donate to what I think is an animal welfare group, only to find that in reality it is an oddball animal rights organization with bizarre views about pet ownership. Since you are a wise and thoughtful Best In Show champion, please tell me where responsible pet owners can donate their hard earned dollars to make a real difference for abused, neglected and abandoned animals. (11.8.09, Essex Junction, VT)

Giving is certainly a wonderful thing to do, especially this time of year and you’re heart is certainly in the right place. Thank you for that. Unfortunatly, as you point out very often caring pet owners are being misled by donating to organizations thinking that their money will go directly to helping animals in need while in fact it doesn’t come anywhere close to that. To be fair, any large organization has overhead, even a non-profit, and some money is always going to administrative costs. However, in the case of h$U$ and PeTA the optimistic public is being duped. We’ve talked quite a bit about PeTA, so let’s take a look at h$U$.

So where does the money you donate to h$U$ go? You mention the exorbitant executive salaries at HSUS, but the lobbying that h$U$ does “on behalf of animals” costs money. How much does it cost to push animal legislation through the system? A lot.

More on the fundraising and lobbying efforts of h$U$.

What about the ad campaigns about fighting the cruelty of dog fighting rings, busting them and saving the animals? h$U$ recommended that the Vick dogs be euthanized (and has continued to issue this recommendation on subsequent fighting ring raids including the euthanasia of puppies still nursing because they were all beyond rehabilitation). Another rescue group came in, took the Vick dogs, rehabilitated them, and paid for the entire thing. Where did all the money raised by h$U$ for the care of the Vick dogs go?

h$U$ has a habit of piggybacking on heart wrenching stories purely to raise money for other endeavors and not the animals they are using in their campaigns, take for instance the latest fund raising pitch by the h$U$ to care for dog fighting victims like Fay (actually the h$U$ couldn’t even get the poor dog’s name right calling her Faye), even though her care was being provided by another much smaller organization with nothing having been received from h$U$. More here: Betrayal & Deceit at the Humane Society of the United States, and HSUS fund-raising pitch raises hackles

These are only a very few instances of the unethical tactics involved in the fund raising by these groups.

The fact is that h$U$ and PeTA are Animal Rights groups that have little to nothing to do with your local shelter that is actually taking in, caring, and paying for the expenses of actual animals in need. The end goal of these organizations is to eliminate pet ownership altogether and turn us all into Vegans.

If you want to help out animals in need you need to THINK LOCAL. Go to your local shelter or rescue and speak to the people there to find out what they need. Sometimes they need supplies, sometimes they need volunteers, and they could probably always use monetary donations. Find out what they are doing and where the money will be going, it is the only way to ensure that your donation is being used the way you want it to be. Sometimes Veterinarians have their own funds that they keep for animals in need of Vet care, ask them about making a donation.

*Send your question to Ask Striker! by emailing askstriker@doggeddogdom.com. Striker will answer all questions that are sent to him, from the serious to the silly, with his own brand of stud dog wit and whimsy. Please note that views and opinions expressed by Striker are not necessarily those of Woodcrest Kennel LLC, Woodcrest Airedales, or Dogged Dogdom and he might use the word Bitch occasionally, but only in context when referring to a female dog. He’s a player folks and don’t forget it, so have a sense of humor why don’t you.

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