The 50% Pledge: We’re Still Willing to Close Shop

HOW LONG HAVE WE WAITED?

This weekend marks the second anniversary of our HumaneWatch 50% Pledge. A few months after our launch, we promised to shut down this website for good if the Humane Society of the United States made one simple promise: to give 50 percent of its budget to pet shelters. Currently, HSUS gives only 1 percent of its budget to hands-on pet shelters.

So far, we haven’t heard a peep from HSUS about this. And judging from the fact that HSUS’s most recent tax return (2010) once again shows that 1 percent of the money it raised went to pet shelters, it doesn’t seem willing to change.

The one thing that has changed is HSUS’s PR spin. For instance, HSUS now claims that it has given $43 million in grants to other organizations since 2005. That’s pretty good—until you consider that a sizeable chunk of this appears to be other HSUS groups. HSUS gave $4 million in grants to its ballot initiative front group in California to raise farmers’ and consumers’ costs—to say nothing of the millions it spent on grants to similar groups in Missouri, Arizona, Ohio, and Colorado. HSUS has also given millions in “grants” to its affiliate Humane Society International.

An HSUS claim is (once again) exposed as having little substance. The information is all out there, for those who want to do the digging. HSUS doesn’t want you to. That’s why it’s so important that you help spread the word. Email your friends. “Share” us with your Facebook contacts. Ask your local vet or pet shelter if you can put a flyer up. Tweet about it.

HSUS’s dithering and self-promotion may seem trivial. But consider the millions of cats and dogs that will be put down this year. That should be as good a motivation as any to make sure that the millions that HSUS takes in go directly to groups that actually run pet shelters. If our recent startling poll of HSUS donors is any indication, many of them are willing to reconsider their gifts if they only know the truth.

SHOCK POLL: 90 Percent of HSUS Donors Are in the Dark

We’ve already established through public polling that the vast majority of Americans—you know, the regular folks who are the targets of HSUS’s disclaimer-less, deceptive TV ads—mistakenly believe that HSUS is a pet shelter umbrella group.

HSUS has replied by trying to draw a distinction between its members and the average American. Wayne Pacelle recently told the Associated Press that “HSUS donors understand its role" (reporter's paraphrase).

It turns out Pacelle could hardly be more wrong.

We conducted an online survey of HSUS supporters and received some shocking results. Here’s the bottom line, from a survey of 1,010 self-identified HSUS donors, who answered "yes" to the question "Have you ever donated to the Humane Society of the United States?":

• Just 1 percent of HSUS's donors list "farm animal protection" as their primary reason for supporting the group.
• Seventy-four percent of donors give to HSUS to either help pet shelters or reduce the number of animals euthanized each year.
• Ninety—yes, 90—percent of HSUS's donors were unaware that it gives just 1 percent of its budget to local pet shelters.
• Knowing HSUS's non-support of shelters, 80 percent of HSUS's own donors think the group “misleads people into thinking that it supports local humane societies and pet shelters.”
• Nearly 50 percent of HSUS's donors say they are less likely to support the group now that they know HSUS gives so little to local pet shelters.

This evidence should leave no doubt that HSUS relies on misconception—the notion that it’s a real “humane society.” Most Americans—and we can now say most HSUS donors—believe that HSUS is mostly about supporting pet shelters.

HSUS needs this false perception to raise the hundreds of millions it collects. The poll clearly shows that half of donors would be less likely to give now that they know how little of their donations goes to local pet shelters. HSUS must hope they stay in the dark.

Wayne Pacelle can no longer claim that HSUS donors “understand” what HSUS is up to. And all the rhetoric about how HSUS is clear about what it does not only seems like a cop-out, but it comes across as blaming the victim. After all, more than 85 percent of the animals in HSUS’s manipulative ads are cats and dogs.

There are a few reform options. HSUS could prominently put a large-print disclaimer on all of its ads that it is independent of local humane societies. (Right now, less than 1 percent of HSUS’s TV ads have a disclaimer—and it’s in small font.) HSUS could stop manipulating viewers with a disproportionate amount of pets. And HSUS could simply change its name, replacing “Humane Society” with something more appropriate. (The “Vegan Lawyers and Lobbyists Society”?)

HSUS won’t, of course. As regular readers already know well, HSUS wants to get rid most human uses of animals—most notably in agriculture. That’s not the goal of a cat-and-dog group—that’s the goal of a PETA-type group. It’s no surprise then that HSUS leaders cut their teeth in radical animal rights/liberation groups.

And that’s certainly not the goal of HSUS’s supporters. Which is why we’re going to make sure they find out the truth.

Full results (PDF):

1. What is the primary reason you support the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)?

• 40%     To help HSUS care for homeless dogs and cats in animal shelters and humane socities.
• 3%       To help HSUS's animal rescue team.
• 15%     To raise awareness about animal cruelty.
• 34%     To reduce the number of animals put down in shelters each year.
• 1%       To support HSUS's farm animal protection programs.
• 6%       To support HSUS's political lobbying for anti-animal cruelty legislation.

2. Were you aware that HSUS gives just 1 percent of its budget to local pet shelters?

• 90%    No
• 10%    Yes

3. Now that you know that HSUS gives just one percent of its budget to local pet shelters, do you think the HSUS misleads people into thinking that it supports local humane societies and pet shelters?

• 6%     Not at all
• 13%   Not really
• 28%   Somewhat
• 52%   Very Much

4. Now that you know that HSUS gives just one percent of its budget to local pet shelters, are you more or less likely to support HSUS?

• 21%    Much Less Likely
• 26%    Less Likely
• 8%      More Likely
• 6%      Much More Likely
• 38%    Neither

Survey Methodology

HumaneWatch conducted a nationally representative online survey of 1,010 Humane Society of the United States donors from April 21 - 25, 2012. The survey's margin of error is ±3.1%.

Penguin Replies to HSUS Concerns

Well, that didn’t take long. Yesterday we reported that book publisher Penguin Group USA is giving $25,000 to HSUS. We asked you to contact Penguin and register your discontent with its funding of a radical, PETA-like animal rights group.

It appears many people took action—and thanks to all who did. Unfortunately, here’s the response a reader received from Penguin USA’s publicity manager:

After much consideration, Penguin USA chose The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) as the charity partner for Read Humane. 

Please know, the funds donated as part of Read Humane are restricted to the Animal Rescue Team.  Funding from Read Humane cannot be used for lobbying purposes or any purpose other than the Animal Rescue Team. The Animal Rescue Team works directly with pets in need in several ways.

The HSUS's Animal Rescue Team works with law enforcement to investigate illegal animal cruelty, targeting the worst cases of animal abuse nationwide. Every year the Team rescues thousands of animals from puppy mills, animal fighting operations, hoarders, and other situations where animals suffer from life-threatening cruelty. They also provide expert animal rescue response at natural disasters.

We recognize there are many worthy organizations dedicated to animal welfare.  At Penguin, we love our pets and by partnering with the Animal Rescue Team, we wanted to make a small contribution to creating a world free of animal cruelty. 

This is woefully inadequate. While Penguin’s heart is in the right place in earmarking the money for the animal rescue team, that still frees up $25,000 for HSUS to use in attacking farmers. Money is fungible; HSUS can just take out $25,000 it had already allocated to the team’s budget.

Yellow Tail wines, which also had earmarked money for HSUS’s animal rescue team, had the courage to issue a mea culpa and pledge not to give to HSUS in the future. Even if Penguin is mum on its future plans, hopefully it learned enough so that it won’t make the same mistake twice.

Cast Penguin Books into the Sea

Bad news: The publishing company Penguin Group USA has announced that it is giving $25,000 to HSUS. It’s unfortunate that Penguin didn’t do its research and discover that HSUS is just PETA with a suit and deodorant, or that HSUS gives little support to local humane societies, or that HSUS wants to put farmers across the country out of business.

There’s an easy way to send a message: It’s time to boycott Penguin.

We’re not calling for a massive bonfire, but please write Penguin and let them know that you don’t appreciate their support for a deceptive animal rights group—a phony, wolf-in-sheep’s-clothing “humane society” that sucks up dollars out of local communities and hoards them in hedge funds ($32 million in 2010) and pension plans.

Please email Penguin Books and (politely) let them know what you think. If you need some background on HSUS and its national deception to pass along, follow the links. (Interesting side note: Penguin is an Australian company. Maybe they should call up Yellow Tail and ask what happened when the wine company pledged $100,000 to HSUS.)

May is National Pet Month. And the best way to help pets is by supporting local shelters—not a national group that does too little for dogs and cats.

First Time at HumaneWatch?

If so: Welcome! Whether you’re here because you saw our Times Square billboards, word of mouth, Google, or another reason, there’s a lot of information about the Humane Society of the United States that people don’t know. It can be overwhelming, especially as we blog on a regular basis to add to the knowledge pool. To get up to speed about America’s most deceptive animal rights group, we recommend you check out the following:

• Read about how HSUS gives only 1 percent of its budget to pet shelters—the real humane societies.
• See how HSUS deceives the public in its advertising.
• Read about how HSUS earns a “D” grade from the American Institute of Philanthropy.
• Watch our 30-second “consumer alert” ad.
• See how HSUS’s CEO thinks Michael Vick “would do a good job as a pet owner.”
• Learn about how HSUS’s agenda is similar to PETA’s.

“We Are Nebraska Farmers and Ranchers”

HSUS has launched a new assault on Nebraska farmers and ranchers. This week, HSUS attacked the Governor after he stood up for animal agriculture and against HSUS—which has said it wants to “get rid of the entire industry.” HSUS is taking offense to some tough rhetoric the Governor used.

It’s a politically opportunistic move, and now HSUS has launched a “We Are Nebraska” campaign, asking its supporters to submit photos of themselves and their animals (so far, it's almost all pets). It’s yet another bait-and-switch campaign: The real issue is HSUS’s anti-agriculture agenda, and it's using photos of dogs and cats to distract. But that’s nothing new for HSUS—its deceptive ads have a similarly manipulative formula.

We’re calling on Nebraska farmers and ranchers: Submit a photo of yourself, your animals/pets, or (better yet) you with your animals/pets to our Facebook wall and show your support for agriculture. Here’s how:

Click on the “photo” tab near the top of the page.

Then click “Upload a Photo” and find it on your computer’s hard drive. (If you can’t get it to work, email us at info@HumaneWatch.org and we’ll post it for you.)

Be sure to include a description of your farm and your background when you post the photo! If you want to email us a testimonial or your thoughts on HSUS, we’d be happy to publish some.

HSUS absurdly claims it has 51,000 members in Nebraska. That’s its self-claimed “constituency,” which we’ve shown overstates HSUS actual membership by a factor of potentially 10 or 20. So, really, there are likely only a few thousand actual HSUS members in the state.

There are far more people involved in producing food for Nebraska and the rest of America. If you’re one of them, we hope you’ll take part in our campaign and stand against a group that wants to destroy your livelihood!

Debate 101, HSUS Style

Taking on the goliath that is HSUS is no easy task, as many readers know. HSUS has illegitimately claimed the moral high ground, has a huge marketing budget to spread misinformation far and wide to deceive Americans, and can skillfully beat the you’re-with-us-or-with-animal-cruelty drum to stifle dissenting voices.

It’s no surprise to read that HSUS doesn’t always tell the whole story, whether on farm issues or other matters. And they’ve been able to get away with it for years , so why change? The latest example of HSUS rhetorical trickery comes in its response to our announcement that  well over 100 complaints have recently been filed against HSUS with the Federal Trade Commission. Many are in regard to deceptive advertising--including many from people who have given money to HSUS.   

CEO Wayne Pacelle told this to Farm & Dairy last week:

There is nothing to be said for [HumaneWatch]’s false claims concerning The HSUS’s advertising, save for that the organization recently earned a four star rating (the highest rating) from Charity Navigator, the most prominent of charity watchdogs, on the basis of our performance with respect to transparency and governance, financial information and results reporting.

There’s one little flaw to his argument: Charity Navigator doesn’t evaluate advertising content. It basically takes a group’s tax returns at face value to perform cursory analysis—and as we’ve explained, that’s silly because accountants can classify as “program  costs” things that really are fundraising costs. That’s why the not-so-flattering evaluations from the American Institute of Philanthropy and Animal People News are much more credible. (HSUS doesn’t fare well. And read our full reply here.)

We print Pacelle’s reply because it’s his typical M.O.—writing non sequitur and flim-flam rebuttals in the newspaper or bashing us in the controlled environment of his blog or personal podcast. (One of Wayne’s latest 13-minute podcasts is devoted to berating us alongside his endeared “host.”)

Here’s our open challenge to Wayne Pacelle: If he wants to have a focused debate on the merits of the FTC complaints—or HSUS’s ads, or the American Institute of Philanthropy ratings—we’re game. Pacelle regularly claims we’re making “false” statements, so it should be a cakewalk for him to zero in on our statements—not to mention Pacelle has a Yale degree and is a silver-tongued slickster. Surely he can hold his own. Just name the date and time, Wayne. As a little incentive, we’ll even address his complaints about this nonprofit’s management expenses.

We doubt he’ll step up, though. We would hand Wayne Pacelle his derrière in a debate, and he knows it (even if he stacked the deck with Jane Velez-Mitchell). So he can keep whining on his podcast while ever more people are catching on to HSUS’s game. He’ll have to face the music sooner or later.

In the meantime, maybe he can freshen up on his logic skills at Humane Society University. Isn’t there a class for that?