“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” – Gandhi 

I recently signed a petition that opened my eyes to how insensitive the human race can actually be towards animals. Everyday I come across a lot of messed up news, headlines and articles that sadly I’m not surprised by because I know how remorseless and barbaric the human race can be when it comes to animals. These headlines paint the picture of struggles animal advocates face everyday in welfare and rescue.  For every one advocate out there, there will be thousands of other people who will breed animals for the sole purpose of making a dollar and nothing else. The selling of a infant “pet” to them is a paycheck or a way to pay the bills. They sell off animals they breed, by the dozens, to complete strangers with no consideration or compassion for the animals quality of life and the home its going to. Where do you ask inhumane transactions like this are being processed? Look no further than Craiglist.

For many years now, Craigslist.com has been subsidizing the inhumane treatment of animals buy the selling of “pets” on its website.  Our friends at ForceChange.org have put together a comprehensive petition set out against Craigslist with a plea they take the selling of animals of the popular services site. Please, please, PLEASE support ForceChange.org’s efforts in bringing this petition to life and shutting down a outlet which helps thousands everyday support the inhumane treatment animals. Sign this petition:  Shut Down the Adoption of Sales on Pets on Craiglist. 

Target: Jim Buckmaster, CEO, Craigslist

Goal: End the unregulated sale and adoption of pets on Craigslist by removing the “pets” section.

Story posted by Charlene Wu on ForceChange.Org

Craigslist, the popular classified advertisement website, allows people to sell furniture, cars, apartments, and other personal items through online interactions. For animal welfare reasons, Craigslist does not allow the sale of any pets or animals, but the adoption of pets, with a small re-homing fee, is allowed. Although this clause is found on the website’s Terms of Use page, many Craigslist users ignore it and sell litters of puppies and kittens anyway. This causes many problems, as these pets are oftentimes coming out of illegal puppy mills and kitten mills. Unknowingly, those who end up buying these animals from Craigslist are contributing to the inhumane puppy and kitten mill industry.

Another major problem with selling and adopting pets on Craigslist is that the transactions are unregulated. Not only are people unaware of where the animals are coming from, but they are also unaware of where their animals are going. There have been many cases of people adopting free pets for cruel practices. In recent news, a man was found guilty of torturing and killing over twenty-five cats that he “adopted” from Craigslist. It has also been reported that many pets that are adopted from Craigslist are used as bait in dog fighting rings, or sold to research labs for scientific testing. In addition, some people are adopting the puppies, kittens, and small mammals on Craigslist as food for their large snakes and lizards. These buyers may pose as nice pet owners, but it is difficult to verify their authenticity without the background checks, home visits, and pre-screening tests that many animal shelters and rescues enforce.

In many cases, the people selling these animals do not have the pets’ best interests at heart and are only concerned with making a profit. Recently, one poster tried to sell three-day old puppies for $100 each. After further investigation, it was discovered that the mother of the puppies was actually a stolen dog. Without knowing for sure where the animals are coming from or where the animals are going, people posting or adopting pets on Craigslist are taking a huge risk. They may be unknowingly contributing to the cruel puppy mill industry, or accidentally selling their best friend to a life of misery and pain.

For these reasons, the “pets” section on Craigslist should be eliminated entirely. Sign the petition below to urge Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster to take a stand against animal cruelty today.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Mr. Buckmaster,

I would like to encourage you to remove the “pets” section from Craigslist in efforts to end the sale and adoption of animals online. Although animals are prohibited from being sold on Craigslist as listed in the website’s Terms of Use, there is no regulation on this matter and litters of pets are being sold at prices ranging from $100 to $1500 in the “pets” section and “for sale” section. The problem with this is that many of these animals are coming from illegal puppy and kitten mills. Craigslist should not contribute to the exploitation of animals for the benefit of puppy mills and kitten mills. People who end up buying these pets off of Craigslist are also contributing to the inhumane commercialized breeding industry. Although the sale of animals is not allowed on Craigslist, it is still happening and people are getting away with it.

Another problem with selling and adopting pets on Craigslist is that adopters and adoptees do not know where their pets are coming from or where their pets are going. There have been many reported instances of people adopting free pets for cruel practices. Some animals are used as live bait for dog fighting rings, and some are sold to research facilities for scientific testing. In addition, some people are adopting kittens, puppies, and small mammals as food for their larger snakes and lizards.

Without strict regulation, those who are posting or adopting pets on Craigslist are taking a huge risk. These people may be unknowingly contributing to the puppy mill industry, or accidentally selling their pets to a life of misery and torture. In efforts to prevent animal cruelty and needless torture, please remove the ‘pets’ section on Craigslist immediately.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Please sign the ForceChange.org petition to Shut Down the Adoption of Sales of Pets on Craiglist.