HSUS: Still Not a Real “Humane Society”

Our HumaneWatch.org project has been a shining beacon exposing the deceptive Humane Society of the United States and its misleading advertising, hidden agendas and embarrassing lack of support for local pet shelters. Today, we released a report that shows just how little support HSUS provides for America’s pet shelters.

We studied HSUS’s IRS Form 990 for 2010, and found that just two-fifths of one percent (0.42%) of HSUS’s $126 million budget was spent on grants to support pet sheltering. This “Humane Society” spent a whopping $47 million on fundraising—almost 90 times what it spent on these shelter grants. HSUS also stuffed $32 million away in hedge funds and put over $2.5 million in its executive pension plan.

What’s another HSUS priority? Supporting lobbyists. We found that HSUS spent 86 times more on its Ohio political front group attacking farming in 2009 than it did on Ohio pet shelters. In Missouri, HSUS spent 32 times more on its political front group in 2010 than it did on shelter-support in that state.

As we’re telling the media:

The Humane Society of the United States would like Americans to believe it provides significant monetary support to local hands-on shelters, but their financial records tell an inconvenient truth. As local shelters struggle to keep their doors open, HSUS is raising millions of dollars a month from unwitting donors to bankroll an animal rights agenda and fund a huge staff of lawyers and lobbyists, a bloated executive pension plan, and exorbitant fundraising expenses. Meanwhile, HSUS doesn't run a single shelter for the abandoned dogs and cats that are so plentiful in its ads.

That’s why the dog watchers still need a watchdog. Read the full press release here.