My Answer To PETA’s Hatred Towards Dog Breeding

PETA supporters have shown their hatred of dog breeders, dog shows, and dog breeding generally. It happened on Tuesday outside New York City’s Madison Square Garden, where the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is taking place.

This is a quick post I wrote, I just wanted to get what I had on my mind and heart out there. I may edit later.

PETA Just Does Not Get It

On their blog, PETA gave poor explanations as to why dog breeding is horrendous. Nothing really new, it’s not the first time they try themselves at it and we know the music.

However, I still read it all, due diligence work… It was not easy, quite boring frankly. Very well written, but again, the criticism goes in every direction possible. There is no real substance, just the usual spiel of don’t buy, adopt, and attacks directed at breeders taking part in dog shows, as conformation shows are apparently leading to extremely flat-faced pugs and lethally diseased Cavalier King Charles dogs, amongst other things.

Let’s Boycott Breeders!

Although PETA clearly states that animals (so dogs, too) are not ours to use for entertainment, they still recommend adopting them. I guess only the dogs purchased from breeders are not for our entertainment; it seems like those adopted will do well as entertaining creatures.

The very interesting and intriguing point that PETA makes when blaming breeders who don’t kill their dogs but encouraging shelters that do kill them.

Regardless, PETA is now officially calling for a boycott of dog breeders as their new campaign shows.

Although adopting a sheltered dog is amazing and should be encouraged, I find wanting to extinct breeders and responsible dog breeding repulsive.

How does buying one dog kill another? It’s simple: Buying a dog takes a home away from a dog whose life depends on being adopted from a shelter.

Lindsay Pollard-Post

If I want to buy a dog, unlike PETA, I want to know everything about this dog: his temperament and what to expect, his pedigree, his ancestors, his siblings. I want to see in what environment it has been raised, and so on. Not everybody has such exigences and shelters are great for these people but for those people who have such demands, finding a good dog breeder is crucial and required.

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You can’t put the blame on new owners because of irresponsible past owners. Yes, rescued dogs are in horrible situations for most of them and they all deserve to find a home, but it is not the new owner’s burden to carry.

PETA is taking the problem by the wrong end: blame, sanction, and punish the previous owners who abandon these poor dogs, not the breeders and future owners.

Let’s Protect Shelters

Recommending shelters for adoption, again and again, is not a good idea. Do you even know how many families are unfit for a rescued dog?

People listen to animal rights activists and bring a rescued dog home, not knowing what to expect. Most have zero skills about how to deal with this dog and that poor rehomed dog ends up in a shelter for the second time in its life. Unless you want that poor dog in a shelter to get rehomed to then get re-sheltered, you can’t recommend every random person who wants a dog to go and get one from a shelter.

Most of the time, when you go to a shelter, you see cute doggy faces but you have no idea what happened in the past. You don’t know what the dog has been through within the shelter and at his or her previous home. You are in for a gamble, and this can’t be taken by the average joe.

Please go visit your local shelter and even the cutest dog goes through the toughest treatments. Many would argue that shelters are simply money-making businesses disguised into non-profits: the quality of life for dogs is often very poor, yet the price asked to take one home is extremely high. Why, where is the money going?

It is not the responsibility of dog breeders to stop breeding because of shelters kill dogs when they don’t get rehomed soon enough. PETA, blame the shelters and owners who quit, not the breeders.

Dog Breeding Is Sick

Breeding dogs to conform to “breed standards” also causes many purebred dogs to suffer from painful and sometimes deadly health problems and deformities.

This is nothing new and we’ve addressed this issue last year with our post comparing Mixed-breed vs Purebred dogs. It is the official Kennel Clubs in each country who design these dog breed standards and forever homes tend to require dogs to be registered with these organizations so breeders must comply or their dogs will definitely end up in shelters.

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A lot of dog breeders, and the American Kennel Club itself, are improving these guidelines and standards asking for more health screenings and DNA tests to breed hereditary conditions out of the breed.

The health of all dogs and dog breeds is a high priority of the American Kennel Club. In 1995, it created The AKC Canine Health Foundation and has funded over $24 million in research to improve the quality of breeding and the betterment of dogs. The AKC also joined the International Partnership For Dogs, a worldwide collaboration of breeders, judges, veterinarians, researchers, and other professionals working to enhance the well-being of dogs.

Efforts are made and like everything that is linked and dependant on genetics, it takes several years and generations to see positive results. We’ll get there.

Generalization Shows Extremism

Condemning an entire group of passionate breeders because a small percentage within them is breeding purely for profit, with no love for the dogs they put to life, is sad and irresponsible.

Breeding dogs is healthy in most cases, buying a dog from a breeder is still the absolute best option when one wants to know everything about the future puppy, and yes, dog breeders are not inherently great human beings. The pieces of filth you find in any field or profession in life, are also to be found in dog breeders.

PETA Should Stick To Marketing & Money-Making Campaigns

I believe it is vital to have organizations like PETA to open people’s eyes to many animal rights issues but extremism made you lose this battle a very long time ago. PETA should go back to work on their next million-dollar marketing campaign to generate donations so they can continue their business as usual.

Obviously, I will change my mind the day they decide to fight shelters so:

• they have forbidden treat dogs and other pets so badly
• they are forbidden to kill rescued dogs if they remain without a new owner, be it for 3 weeks or 3 years

Opening a shelter to kill dogs is like opening a hospital to kill humans. Our states and governments have to deal with this issue either by having a license to own dogs or by providing more funds to shelters.

Now PETA, tell me… should we stop humans from procreating because there are plenty of orphans all over the World seeking a family and dying in poor conditions?

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