January 30, 2024

The companies that seem unwilling to do better for animals

Kitty Block

A puppy standing in a wire cage at a pet store

Petland is the only national pet store chain in the U.S. to still sell puppies and kittens, most of whom are sourced from puppy and kitten mills.

The HSUS

We’re devoted to ending the worst forms of systemic animal suffering by working with corporations—and while we’ve had some immense wins, some companies refuse to listen to calls for change.

A fascinating discussion on our corporate policy work took place on our Humane Voices podcast, which came out at the end of 2023. Through an inside look at our fights for puppy mill puppies, farm animals and animals suffering in the fur trade, the conversation showcases the breadth of our work for animals and features interviews with the leaders of these campaigns.

John Goodwin, senior director of our Stop Puppy Mills campaign, discussed Petland, the only national pet store chain in the U.S. that still sells dogs Almost all these animals come from mills. Our investigations have shown that Petland stores have sold sick puppy mill puppies to unsuspecting customers for thousands of dollars, sometimes even using financing plans with sky-high interest rates that customers don’t understand. Goodwin discusses our history of urging the company transition to a different, more humane business model, one that can partner with local shelters and rescues to help them adopt out homeless animals.

Karla Dumas, our vice president of Farm Animal Protection, discussed the suffering that egg-laying hens endure in battery cages and pregnant pigs endure in gestation crates, calling out companies such as Walmart and Kroger for not following through on promises to end their use of these cages. We’re continuing to offer to work with these companies to help end cruelty in their supply chains.

PJ Smith, our director of fashion policy, talked about the sea change in the fashion industry as so many brands and retailers have turned away from selling fur, including Gucci, Burberry, Prada, Nordstrom and others. But LVMH, the company that includes Louis Vuitton, is a big holdout. Smith discusses how, considering the waves of positive public opinion that come whenever a brand makes an announcement about going fur-free, every company associating itself with the fur trade is facing a serious choice.

We hope that these companies take up the offers of animal advocates to change their business models to do right by animals, and we’ll keep up the pressure for them to move into a more humane future.

Just as we work in multifaceted ways to eradicate the causes of animal cruelty, we work to change hearts and minds through myriad types of communication. Humane Voices is a wonderful way to learn about the complex issues facing animals and the latest news about the movement to protect them. Other recent Humane Voices podcast episodes include a discussion of the crisis facing animal shelters; an interview with MUTTS comic creator Patrick McDonnell on the comic’s themes of animal protection; and an interview with Jon Lovvorn, our chief counsel of animal protection law, on how animal issues are often at the intersection of social movements for change.

I hope you’ll subscribe to Humane Voices and share these discussions about the latest issues facing animals with your friends and family.

Follow Kitty Block @HSUSKittyBlock.

Stopping Puppy Mills , Improving the Lives of Farm Animals , Going Fur-Free

About the author

Kitty Block is President and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States and CEO of Humane Society International, the international affiliate of the HSUS

The companies that seem unwilling to do better for animals

About the author

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