People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals puts far more stock in actions than words these days, and after euthanizing 82 percent of animals at its Virginia shelter over the past year, people should begin to wonder if PETA’s ethical mission statement is fact or fiction.

PETA is often thought of as an organization dedicated to bettering the life of the common animal. The death toll for the animals they serve, however, is a reality that cannot be ignored.

According to Reuters, PETA euthanized 1,792 animals at a single shelter in 2013. The number pales in comparison to the 31,190 animals that have died at the hands of the organization since 1998. 

Claims that the animals put down were sick or unadoptable are nothing short of ridiculous. PETA workers in North Carolina were arrested in 2005 after killing adoptable cats and dogs and disposing of the bodies in a supermarket trash dumpster. The PETA employees were cleared of animal cruelty charges two years later, even though the animals they killed were healthy.  

Nathan J. Winograd, the director of No Kill Advocacy Center, claims that a veterinarian who examined the dead bodies of some of these euthanized animals said they were healthy and adoptable, according to The Huffington Post.

A veterinarian employed by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services supports this statement, according to the Reuters article.  A 2010 VDACS inspection determined that 84 percent of the animals PETA took in were killed within 24 hours of being admitted.

To ascertain survivability for a sick animal or determine whether an animal’s behavioral problems can be fixed takes longer than a day. These animals are not a victim of the lives they come from, but rather PETA’s harsh ideology that animals would be better off dead than interacting or living with humans.

When it comes down to it, the group is basically a less radical version of the Animal Liberation Front. Dogs and cats are becoming the causalities of PETA’s war, a skirmish that has nothing to do with animal rights or animal welfare. Instead, PETA is waging battle against domesticated animals and according to their logic, man’s best friend is better off dead than living a comfortable life with the right owner.

PETA has a $32 million budget, according to Reuters. Unfortunately for animals, PETA is a one-trick pony and prefers euthanasia to love and nourishment.

According to The New York Times, the shift to a majority of no-kill animal shelters has drastically reduced the number of animals put down, especially dogs. In Virginia, the number of dogs and cats euthanized dropped from 103,327 in 2004 to 61,591 in 2012.

Animal cruelty and neglect is an epidemic and as a result, there will always be animals that must be euthanized.

PETA could adopt out the animals it claims to work for. Instead, the group prefers to spend its time and money handing out pamphlets depicting graphic udder infections in dairy cows to elementary students, according to Capital Press.

If that option isn’t available, however, the group is content with writing a letter to a teenage victim of bear mauling. According to the Huffington Post, PETA suggested that the victim spend her recovery time reflecting on what she did wrong to provoke the bear into attacking her.

PETA’s actions are far from ethical. Regardless, they are always looking for donations and volunteers to support their cause. Those with a love for animals need not apply.

*Updated on Feb. 17, 2014. The statistic “According to Reuters, PETA euthanized 1,792 animals at a single shelter in 2013,” was changed from the year 2014 to 2013.

-Corrine Harris is a senior animal science major from Edmonds. She can be contacted at 335-2290 or by [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the staff of The Daily Evergreen or those of Student Publications.