It's happened again. And just a little more than a few weeks before Christmas. A new non-profit organization called the Humane Society for Shelter Pets (HSSP) was formed by the Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF).
The latter is run by Rick Berman, who has battled such "tyrannical" organizations as Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and who seems to have a personal vendetta against the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). He is using HSSP to create a veritable public coliseum over his claim that HSUS does not support shelters or shelter animals.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
No legitimate movement can afford to discourage "discourse." That's how causes thrive, educate and grow. For the past few years, though, the animal welfare profession has suffered from some of the most hostile attacks I've ever seen. All in the name of saving animals -- something we all want to do. So whether it's from the "no kill movement," or puppy mill business interests, or egg manufactures, we've been hurt badly by the "dis-cohesiveness" of our support base. What CCF and the new Humane Society for Shelter Pets are doing now is just the latest toxic attack in this game of thrones.
They claim that HSUS is misleading the public about where their funds go. Nonsense. Anyone at any time can pull up the HSUS's IRS Form 990 and see that millions of dollars go to helping local shelters each year. And millions more go to the fantastic education programs such as the National Animal Care Expo that we all benefit from.
Many more millions go to shutting down puppy mills, saving animals from hoarders, and rescuing wildlife. The simple truth is that HSUS supports shelters and companion animals. Period. They are not -- and they never say they are -- the single umbrella entity under which we all work. What they are is the largest and most effective voice for animals and against suffering in a world with far too much of it.
Thanks to HSUS, there is cohesion in our struggle to protect animals and move the nation forward on humane issues: shutting down puppy mills, promoting spay/neuter, encouraging shelter pet adoption, and other issues that are crucial to our joint success. And they are always ready to mobilize their rescue teams to work with local shelters responding to natural disasters, hoarding cases, dog fighting rings, puppy mill raids, and other large-scale, often overwhelming, problems.
There is just too much work to do; we can't be successful if we're divided. Let's drop the factional language that separates us. We need to increase cohesion between animal groups who share the honor and the grave responsibility to care for the most helpless among us. Using strategies to harm good organizations like HSUS hurts the cause for all involved. My shelter, the Washington Animal Rescue League, is proud to partner with HSUS. For all they do for animals and all they contribute to shelters across the country, they deserve the undivided support of everyone in the animal welfare field and, indeed, the public as a whole.
Fact is, we're all trying to take care of animals, and we need to do this job together. Creating organizations such as this new shelter pets group that use hate and vitriol to manipulate the public harms the backbone of our movement and, worse yet, pits all of us against each other. We could move closer to our common goal of helping more animals by working together, collaborating to conquer the immense problem of animal homelessness. Groups such as the CCF and the HSSP, hurt not only us, but the animals we are all trying to help.
I'm all for accountability. But let's not make up facts to serve our own self-aggrandizing goals. We should all be doing everything we can to ensure that homeless animals get into the homes they need and deserve. But we will be much more effective in pursuit of that goal if we work together and stop creating divisions.
We can help animals, and each other, best by working together. Not by being divided and conquering each other to further self-interested agendas. In this season of peace and joy, let's not hurt animals more by dividing those dedicated to saving them. CCF and its new group HSSP, may, in fact, have done the best thing in the world for animals by shedding light on the animosity that got animals into their homeless predicament in the first place: self-interest, dishonesty, and ignorance.
So let's drop the factional language which separates us. Let's celebrate collaboration -- not combat -- in this season of giving and work together to save those who need us the most. I, for one, am thankful to have the support of the Humane Society of the United States whenever we need it. And I personally know a few thousand animals who are home for the holidays today precisely because of that support.
Humane Society of the United States: Funding sources, staff profiles ...
THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT HSUS
Humane Society (The Humane Society of the United States) on ...
The HSUS gives the impression that they're giving a lot of great resources to Animal Shelters but you really have to look for a while to realize that means a subscription magazine they can pay for, some online information available, and if they need more help than you can give through an e-mail message or small parcel post they can pay for your shelter consulting services.
I bet three quarters of HSUS donors had no idea of any of this, and I really think you're taking money from the poorly funded shelters and rescues they thought they were helping. I've been a vegetarian for over 25 years so I appreciate some of your other work. But most of that money is from cat lovers and dog lovers who haven't got a clue about any of this, and I think for those who get what's really going on, it tarnishes the reputation of the HSUS (and the ASPCA- though they at least do run a shelter). It's unfortunate.
I don't think the HSUS is a bad organization, but I do think they're extremely misleading on the shelter issue. I couldn't get your 990 link to work, but I've checked out past 990 forms on GuideStar and you're right, you do give about a million dollars or so a year to spay neuter programs at local shelters. I didn't figure out what the exact number was, but there seemed to be close to a thousand donations of $800-$1500 each. That add up to a lot of money, but they averaged about a thou for each shelter, and I'm trying to figure out what that will cover for a low cost s/n program advertising? fundraising? Somehow I'm visualizing posters and donation solicitations about the great low cost s/n program courtesy of Poor Town Humane Society and the HSUS.
You do great work (just like the ASPCA) you come in and rescue animals from natural disasters and hoarders showing up in your big Rescue Vehicle with your logo emblazoned on the side, filming the glorious event to help with your fund raising efforts later. But you never mention the shelters or rescue groups that you drop them off with after the cameras are off. Did you notice on your "About Us" page, next to the link for "Our Sanctuaries &Care Centers" is a picture of a grey kitty cat? That kind of makes it look like at least one must be for domestic cats.
It's another phony front group attacking animal welfare while pretending to be a legitimate charity. Look into Rick Berman's background, and you'll get a good taste of what his stance on animal welfare is. Look into the funding for his organizations, and you'll understand how deceptive he is. Look into his history, and you'll understand how slimy his tactics are.
Now he's providing "pro bono services" for a "shelter organization" which just happens to trumpet the same anti-animal message as his front group HumaneWatch -- funded by puppy mills, seal clubbers, factory farmers, and other animal abusers.
HSSP's figureheads are new to this game, so they've been a little more transparent about their motives. Didi Culp is a disgruntled former employee of the HSUS with an axe to grind. Jeff Douglas accidentally let slip that HSSP is funded by "supporters of the pet breeding industry".
They have a multi-million dollar budget for full page newspaper ads attacking national animal welfare groups, but haven't given one penny to any shelter -- nor do they intend to.
Does that still sound like a shelter organization to you?
If HSSP was a legitimate organization that strove to encourage donations to shelters, I'd be behind them 100%. But they're not. They're a smear campaign hiding behind a phony veneer of concern for shelters.
Disgruntled".. how about enlightened?? why would she have an "axe to grind'? ask yourself that....and why would HSUS even care if they are so "upfront" about where the money goes..?
By the way CCF NEVER said it gives one dime to animal shelters .. unlike the HSUS that says they give millions
HSSP tells people to donate to local animal shelters if that's where they want their donations to actually go, and encourages animal shelters to sign up on its' website.
HSSP does not collect funds from the public.
HSUS' tax returns show consistently that between 1/2 to 1% of its' income - at most - goes to help shelter animals, while 85% of its' advertisements indicate that shelter animals are the primary beneficiaries of monies sent to the corporation.
HSUS' founding documents as a 501(c)(3) require that it NOT substantially lobby for or against animal laws, yet most of its' spending has for years now been done to push anti-animal ownership and breeding legislation.
Those are facts. Kudos to HSSP for what we've seen of it to date. Isn't the HSUS response to this new group .. fascinating?
HSUS ads feature animals they've rescued in disasters, etc. and don't indicate that "shelter" animals are the primary beneficiaries of donations - this is information that is also easily verifiable on their website.
So far, we've seen HSSP's Facebook page administered by Berman and Company. We've seen Culp and Douglas both admit that Berman and Company are running their campaign. We've seen Berman reluctantly -- and defensively -- admit that he's providing "management services".
Berman is running this show, and Culp, Douglas, and Price are figureheads there to give this smear campaign the illusion of authenticity.
As to the author's claims, perhaps he needs to stick with the practice of veterinary medicine because large social issues aren't his forte.
Rick Berman, CCF, HSSP, HumaneWatch, etc. couldn't care one iota about local shelters or the animals that wind up there. Their pathetic efforts are only aimed at getting people to stop donating to HSUS and are a miserable failure as the latter's donor base & donations continue to grow. They also try to cram the stupid notion down the public's throat that hands-on care is the only possible way to benefit animals when in fact it's only one way of many. HSUS has been around since the early 1950s using the SAME NAME and has never claimed to be an umbrella group for all shelters. Nor has it ever claimed to only work on helping dogs and cats. There are other animals in the world, "ej", a fact that has obviously escaped you.
Granted, the HSUS doesn't claim to be about local shelters and only dogs and cats. The've just led 70% of the American public to believe this is the case.
The criticism levied at HSUS is that HSUS says much about "helping animals", but when the rubber hits the road HSUS will spend about as much money on flesh-and-blood animals as Scrooge McDuck would.
Either HSUS does what it claims to or it will be criticised [and that's exactly what's happening here: being criticised]. Whining and strawmen will not make Pacelle look any better than he does now.