Should I give the Humane Society my money?
June 26, 2018 10:41 PM Subscribe
I'm interested in supporting animal welfare/rights charities. Is the HSUS a good or bad choice to give my money to? They seem to be legit, but I've heard that they aren't as good as they seem to be.
I'm interested in animal welfare organizations. PETA is a no-go for a slew of reasons, but I've seen the Humane Societyof the United States, which I considered joining, discussed in a negative light, too, often by the same people. This is interesting since, in my experience, the Humane Society has a better record than PETA and I was considering them as an alternative. However, they still seem to be ...controversial, though I don't have a good sense of why.
I guess I have a few questions.
1. What, if anything, is problematic about the Humane Society? Are theyand their leadership as extreme or counterproductive as PETA?
2. Should I or should I not donate to them? Will they use the money I donate to help animals?
3. What are some better alternative organizations I could support if they are problematic?
I'm interested in animal welfare organizations. PETA is a no-go for a slew of reasons, but I've seen the Humane Societyof the United States, which I considered joining, discussed in a negative light, too, often by the same people. This is interesting since, in my experience, the Humane Society has a better record than PETA and I was considering them as an alternative. However, they still seem to be ...controversial, though I don't have a good sense of why.
I guess I have a few questions.
1. What, if anything, is problematic about the Humane Society? Are theyand their leadership as extreme or counterproductive as PETA?
2. Should I or should I not donate to them? Will they use the money I donate to help animals?
3. What are some better alternative organizations I could support if they are problematic?
Best answer: HSUS is not the parent or umbrella organization for local humane societies or other shelters, and does not appreciably fund shelters.
They get a bad rap among some pet groups because until he resigned recently over sexual harassment allegations, their former head had said at various points a variety of things that made HSUS look PETA-ish, like his goal being to do away with pet ownership. They've also generally received bad ratings from charity-watchdog groups.
Will they use the money I donate to help animals?
If you mean directly help animals in need, no. That's not what they do and, at least if you push them, they will tell you that's not what they do --- their focus is on lobbying.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 4:27 AM on June 27, 2018 [4 favorites]
They get a bad rap among some pet groups because until he resigned recently over sexual harassment allegations, their former head had said at various points a variety of things that made HSUS look PETA-ish, like his goal being to do away with pet ownership. They've also generally received bad ratings from charity-watchdog groups.
Will they use the money I donate to help animals?
If you mean directly help animals in need, no. That's not what they do and, at least if you push them, they will tell you that's not what they do --- their focus is on lobbying.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 4:27 AM on June 27, 2018 [4 favorites]
They send me so much junk! How much money they spend on that could go to animals? We give to our local no-kill shelter, and to Alley Cat Allies. There are also fine local dog rescue societies everywhere, if you are more a dog person. Local is best.
posted by mermayd at 5:22 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by mermayd at 5:22 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
Give to your local no-kill shelter or TNR program.
posted by bile and syntax at 5:37 AM on June 27, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by bile and syntax at 5:37 AM on June 27, 2018 [5 favorites]
Giving to local shelters is awesome. But if you are looking to give to a national organization that is involved in matters of policy, don't be put off by negative things that you may remember hearing about HSUS or even PETA for that matter. As to HSUS in particular, there has been an ongoing campaign by evil astroturfer Rick Berman to CREATE the vague sense that HSUS is evil. Why? Because he is paid, by industries that are opposed to any animal-rights policies, to create that vague sense. His avowed goal is to attack the orgs that are perceived as "good" so that people go "well I don't know, maybe they aren't that good, how can I even know any more, I'll just do nothing." As he says, he is trying to create a tie game in perceptions of good/bad, because his job is to maintain the status quo.
posted by sheldman at 5:45 AM on June 27, 2018 [12 favorites]
posted by sheldman at 5:45 AM on June 27, 2018 [12 favorites]
N'thing, give money to local shelters and programs. They need it, and don't have nearly the fundraising muscle.
posted by jzb at 5:46 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by jzb at 5:46 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Farm Sanctuary Is awesome. They directly help individual animals and do advocacy work. I also give money to PCRM. They have sponsored numerous campaigns to help animals.
posted by FencingGal at 5:56 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by FencingGal at 5:56 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: What sort of animal welfare are you concerned about? Is it helping shelter animals in day-to-day terms or is it more stopping factory farming/etc.? Is it protecting habitats for wildlife? That may help you direct your search and your money a bit more.
I fee like HSUS is controversial for a lot of people because the name is misleading. They're more closely aligned ideologically with PETA than they are with your local no-kill shelter or rescue group. And yeah, they have some organizational issues and a lot of overhead. They definitely aren't an on-the-ground organization. I wouldn't give to them, even thought I agree with a lot of their mission, just because I feel like my money can be better used elsewhere.
I think Compassion Over Killing does some interesting work on the "no factory farming" and "go vegan" end of things, if that's what you're after. I also second Farm Sanctuary.
posted by darksong at 6:00 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
I fee like HSUS is controversial for a lot of people because the name is misleading. They're more closely aligned ideologically with PETA than they are with your local no-kill shelter or rescue group. And yeah, they have some organizational issues and a lot of overhead. They definitely aren't an on-the-ground organization. I wouldn't give to them, even thought I agree with a lot of their mission, just because I feel like my money can be better used elsewhere.
I think Compassion Over Killing does some interesting work on the "no factory farming" and "go vegan" end of things, if that's what you're after. I also second Farm Sanctuary.
posted by darksong at 6:00 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
Animal Charity Evaluators takes an 'effective altruism' approach to recommending which animal welfare/rights charities should be supported. On this basis, their most recent recommendations include:
Animal Equality
The Good Food Institute
The Humane League
They also describe many others as 'standout charities.'
In short, have a think about what you want your money to achieve and investigate which organization gives 'the most bang for the buck.'
posted by Halo in reverse at 5:51 PM on June 27, 2018
Animal Equality
The Good Food Institute
The Humane League
They also describe many others as 'standout charities.'
In short, have a think about what you want your money to achieve and investigate which organization gives 'the most bang for the buck.'
posted by Halo in reverse at 5:51 PM on June 27, 2018
Animal Charity Evaluators has also gotten a lot of criticism for their evaluation methodologies. I think that criticism is legitimate enough that I no longer consider ACE's recommendations valid. Personally, I donate to the Humane Society.
posted by phoenixy at 6:59 PM on June 27, 2018
posted by phoenixy at 6:59 PM on June 27, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Freedomboy at 11:11 PM on June 26, 2018 [10 favorites]