PETA Encourages Obamas to Neuter Neutered Dog

PETA Encourages Obamas to Neuter Neutered Dog was originally published on The Sexist on Apr. 13, 2009, at 4:21 pm
 

PETA has written a letter to the Obamas asking them to neuter “Bo,” Malia and Sasha’s new designer Portuguese water dog. A White House rep responded immediately, informing PETA that Bo has already been neutered, of course, because Barack Obama does not need a famed animal cruelty organization to school him in the conventional wisdom of dog ownership.

It’s clear that now that there’s an animal at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., PETA will be able to target all its campaigns specifically at the President, using Bo as a scapedog for whatever issue it would like to further at the moment. Hey—at least it’s better than using hot chicks.

Expect a lot more press releases that tangentially refer to Bo before launching into a thinly veiled press release as to why the White House needs to employ vegan mouse traps, or whatever. In this edition, Bo helps us understand that purebred dogs are “disquieting,” that the overpopulation problem won’t benefit from monetary donations “unless you pour in as much as the Iraq war has cost us,” and animals are just like humans, “except that they are in a different type of body and have a somewhat different culture.”

The full PETA letter is after the jump.

President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Obama,

Now that you have brought a dog into your family, we urge you to take a most important action—have Bo sterilized. We are sending you a coupon good for one free sterilization at PETA’s SNIP clinic, which you are welcome to use or pass on to a member of your Cabinet or someone in a low-income neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

We love that the girls are going to grow up with a dog, as having a dog teaches people an extra dimension of love and allows youngsters to see into the lives and feelings of others who experience the same emotions as they do: joy, pain, confusion, loneliness, fear, and love of life. Loving and caring for a member of a different species also teaches compassion for those who are like us in so many ways, except that they are in a different type of body and have a somewhat different culture.

While it is disquieting that your decision to get a “purebred” dog from a breeder will inspire others to do the same and that the subtlety of acquiring a dog who had a home but originally came from a breeding kennel may be lost on most people, we are grateful that you plan to make a donation to the Washington Humane Society (WHS), where I used to be director of cruelty investigations; funds are always needed there. However, money alone, unless you pour in as much as the Iraq war has cost us, cannot “fix” the overpopulation problem. Please show that you understand this by making the first dog the last dog of his line and having Bo neutered. Sex in the White House has been the topic of past scandals, but with a simple “snip,” the first dog can set a new tone and a great example.

In the U.S. alone, up to 8 million animals are abandoned in animal shelters each year, and half of them must be put to death for lack of a good home. Simply put, every animal purchased from a breeder or pet store takes a home away from a needy, homeless animal. Because the spotlight is now on your new dog, people will imitate your actions and may seek out breeder without giving a thought to the tragic consequences of breeding or considering the time and money it takes to care for an animal properly.

We look forward to hearing that Bo will be getting neutered. This will set a fine example for the world to follow, and Bo will be the happier for it. Thank you for your consideration.

Very truly yours,

Ingrid E. Newkirk
President