PETA Urges European Parliament To Follow Switzerland’S Lead: Require Animal Adopters To First Pass Test

For Immediate Release:
10 June 2008

Contact:
Sam Glover 020 7357 9229, ext 229; [email protected]

This morning, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Europe (PETA) Managing Director Ingrid E Newkirk sent a letter to all members of the European Parliament asking them to introduce a law that would require prospective adopters of cats, dogs, birds and other companion animals to demonstrate their ability to properly care for the animals by first taking a course and passing an exam. In the letter, Newkirk stresses the importance of including in the law species-specific requirements regarding physical and psychological stimulation, which can differ greatly from one species to another.

Newkirk points to the rising animal-abandonment rate in Europe and lays the blame squarely at the feet of people who obtained animals without knowing how to care for them. Two famous examples of unqualified animal guardians are Americans Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, who keep buying new dogs from breeders as though the animals were fashion accessories, while the old ones seem to disappear.

“Anyone who has ever worked or volunteered at an animal shelter knows that many people casually acquire animals and then discard them like rubbish”, writes Newkirk, who has sent similar letters to the British and Scottish parliaments. “People are growing up not knowing how to care for animals, and they don’t think about the commitment that such a responsibility entails.”

For more information about PETA’s campaigns to help companion animals, please visit PETA.org.uk.