HSUS - ABC News Atlanta Expose on Where the Money Goes

[Silvercrown90]

I thought you would be interested in a recent ABC News Atlanta video about the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and where the money goes...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta8GdABQPHA

I was a heavy donater about 3 or 4 years ago before I learned where the money goes. Here is more proof.

Sharon
www.coolfitwear.com (http://www.coolfitwear.com)
Technologically Advanced Athletic Wear

[Guilherme]

HSUS is PETA in a suit and tie.

G.

[citydog]

Thanks for posting that.

My vet went down to volunteer after Katrina and said H$U$ was following the news crews around and slapping HSUS stickers on crates belonging to other groups that were going to be in camera-shot, then leaving with the news crews.

Ugh.

[Bluey]

I am glad someone that is seen as believable is showing the emperor has no clothes.

I know someone that worked for one of those animal rights organizations some 30+ years ago and had to quit, because of the kinds of things that went on.
At that time, they were not the powerful, rich groups that they have become, but I was warned so long ago to watch them, because they would become such and guess what, they have.:eek:

There is much in our contry that would not run well without non-profits, but that non-profit status has been abused by way too many to become ultra rich and that is sad, because that was not the intent of that giant tax loophole.:no:

[bludejavu]

As recently as four years ago, I was an HSUS supporter like the OP. But I really started reading the propaganda they sent me and it dawned on me that this was not an organization I wanted to continue to support. A part of that awakening stemmed from some literature that I received from PETA and I honestly couldn't see the difference between what I received from PETA and what came from HSUS. I hold PETA in extremely low esteem and HSUS isn't much higher than that although I haven't seen HSUS resort to the destructiveness that PETA fanatics seemed to resort to.

[Bluey]

For those that don't realize who the HSUS is today, here is some information about them:

http://www.activistcash.com/organization_overview.cfm/oid/136

And the financial page::eek:

http://www.activistcash.com/organization_financials.cfm/oid/136

Yep, that is MILLIONS and they use some 4% of the money they get to help those poor animals their propaganda is so fond of saying they want you to donate to help.

By any standard, to use only some 4% of the money you aquire thru donations, as a non-profit, for the stated purpose, ought to raise very big red flags in anyone.:confused:

[Alagirl]

For those that don't realize who the HSUS is today, here is some information about them:

http://www.activistcash.com/organization_overview.cfm/oid/136

And the financial page::eek:

http://www.activistcash.com/organization_financials.cfm/oid/136

Yep, that is MILLIONS and they use some 4% of the money they get to help those poor animals their propaganda is so fond of saying they want you to donate to help.

By any standard, to use only some 4% of the money you aquire thru donations, as a non-profit, for the stated purpose, ought to raise very big red flags in anyone.:confused:


4%, that much! (heavy sarcasm)

No, actually I scratched 'The United Way' off my list of possible recipients because less than 80% trickles down to the cause(s) so 4% should warrant a visit from the IRS and Attorney General!

[Bluey]

4%, that much! (heavy sarcasm)

No, actually I scratched 'The United Way' off my list of possible recipients because less than 80% trickles down to the cause(s) so 4% should warrant a visit from the IRS and Attorney General!

I think they declare that so much of the money go for lobbying and other than what goes directly to the animals, somewhere stated in the small print of the mailings they send and that is how they get around that, but this is a guess.

They definitely were the ones, by their own admission, that closed the horse slaughter plants.
Many here will support them just because of that, forgetting that they will eventually lose the right to have horses or any other animals, the stronger those associations get.
Be careful who you support and learn more about them before falling behind bandwagons of dubious merit, is all I say.

[Larksmom]

I hope our wonderful new President who seems determined to tax the pennies in our eyes will take a hard look at all the non profits and look at United way as well as HSUS. Not likely but i guess I can dream can't I? I quit donating to UW a long time ago for just that reason. I donate mostly locally because I can see where it goes. In fact, the main recipients of my pittance, do not take money from them because of the hoops to jump thru.

[RainyDayRide]

I don't know all the ins & outs of the HSUS... I do know that staff from there did the bulk of the work on the ground in the recent seizure of 200+ equines from 3-Strikes Ranch in Nebraska (see the thread on that Horses up for adoption ... (http://chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=198341) ), picked up most of the vet/supplies/fairgrounds expenses, and took 80+ geldings and stallions back to their Black Beauty Ranch Sanctuary in Texas as operations wound down in Nebraska.

Their monetary and skills contributions made possible what seemed at the outset to be an impossible dream - salvaging the lives of 200 starved mustangs. Sounds like animal welfare to me.

[citydog]

I'm *hoping* that the growing knowledge of how they've been doing business is starting to force some change in the organization, but until they're more consistent with it, I'll chalk the 3-Strikes rescue up as a carefully orchestrated PR stunt. ("*See*? We *do* get our hands dirty once in a while. Now give us more money.")

[JSwan]

I\
Their monetary and skills contributions made possible what seemed at the outset to be an impossible dream - salvaging the lives of 200 starved mustangs. Sounds like animal welfare to me.

No - that was a way to get press - it was a showcase. With the money they bring in they could feed and care for every unwanted animal in the entire country. They do nothing but swoop in, pose for the cameras, and leave.

They issued a press release that was an outright lie about an incident that occurred at the inauguration - which is SOP for that group.

Don't get me started on Katrina. I remember seeing photos of unused crates and perfectly good dog food thrown in dumpsters, while HSUS ran around with their black T shirts posing for the cameras. Meanwhile - the pleas from rescuers - to give up some crates so they could save dogs - were ignored.

They do little to nothing - but bring in millions upon millions of dollars, even in this economy.

Since Wayne Pacelle took over - it is no longer the HSUS that we remember from decades ago. It's strictly an animal rights organization - and an extremely aggressive one - but better dressed than PETA.

If you want to help an animal in need.... donate to or volunteer with a shelter or rescue. You're wasting your money if you give to HSUS.

It's sad - it used to be a good organization.

[BLBGP]

What bothers me about HSUS (and the ASPCA) is their deviousness in advertising. They make themselves appear like they are parent orgs for your local shelters, but they are not. That darn ASPCA Sarah McLaughlin commercial never once mentions "new york".

As far as HSUS and rescues go, they are very good at handing out t-shirts and interviewing on camera. They don't shelter, so their expertise is not in actually handling animals. They screwed up a lot in New Orleans. Once the rescue is over and the cameras leave, they leave too, and the local shelters and left holding the bill and caring for the animals (which is fine, except everyone is donating to HSUS, thinking they are helping).

[chai]

Thank you for posting this. It is an outrage that they are exploiting the suffering of animals to line their pockets with money that never makes it to the ones in need.

I get their envelopes in the mail all the time, and I will no longer support them. It's more important to support local shelters and rescue organizations.

[Mara]

Local no-kill shelters and rescues are the best use of animal-directed donations.
PETA has turned into a ridiculous (but unfortunately powerful) self-parody, and HSUS ought to be there in a few years.

[Bluey]

Local no-kill shelters and rescues are the best use of animal-directed donations.
PETA has turned into a ridiculous (but unfortunately powerful) self-parody, and HSUS ought to be there in a few years.

Why not?
Many such organizations have found their reason to exist and thrive by letting people feel good donating to whatever cause of the moment is in the news.
The fight for the general public's donations is very competitive and those organizations spend much money to get to be one of the best at getting money donated to them.
Some do more, some less of their stated goals with the donated money, but in essence, anyone donating to anything is doing just that, giving money away.
The last report I read, don't know if it was true or not, they were quoting some IRS figures, the president of the HSUS salary, no perks included, was a cool $204,000.- a year.
The HSUS had, by their own words "some of the best in the business", when the TX slaughter plants were closed, ten lawyers in their employ, which I am sure are not cheap.
It must be fun to have so much money at your disposal, to do as you wish with, like furthering the animal rights agenda.:eek:
That is fine, as long as it is a regular business, not a non-profit, using MY taxes to kill our rights to own and use our domestic animals.:no:

[BLBGP]

Local no-kill shelters and rescues are the best use of animal-directed donations.
PETA has turned into a ridiculous (but unfortunately powerful) self-parody, and HSUS ought to be there in a few years.

Please learn what "no kill" really means. It's not that they have found some magic way to not euthanize animals, and shelters that do euthanize are still somehow in the dark ages. "No kill" is a misleading term. Shelters that call themselves “no kill” limit the quantity of animals entering their doors. Some close their doors to admissions when their kennels are full, others charge high surrender fees to keep those who can’t afford the cost from surrendering their animals, and some only accept certain pets, leaving the most difficult to adopt animals behind. This method simply pushes the difficult to adopt or unadoptable animals to other area shelters, who then get the stigma of being called "kill" shelters when they are keeping their doors open to the animals that need them.

The only thing that truly works is shelters that work together within their community to reduce euthanasia rates to a point where only animals with untreatable aggression or health issues are euthanized. Working alone and calling themselves "no kill" almost always makes the overall community's euthanasia rates go up.

[bambam]

Love the GA HSUS rep who says she "always" tells people to donate to their local shelters first :lol::lol::lol::lol: yeah, right- if the cameras on an expose piece are rolling, otherwise . . . .

[Bluey]

Love the GA HSUS rep who says she "always" tells people to donate to their local shelters first :lol::lol::lol::lol: yeah, right- if the cameras on an expose piece are rolling, otherwise . . . .

Maybe now they are saying that, but for many years, when we went around to businesses, asking for donations for our shelter, we kept hearing "we just donated to you thru the mail".:rolleyes:

We had to explain that the HSUS was NOT local and didn't support shelters, they were a big non-profit and used their money in misterious ways to us, as we never heard or saw anyone getting a penny for any shelter from them.
Now, that was years ago, maybe today they have seen the writing on the wall of accountability and decided to change their tune and support at least some of those that are REALLY doing the in the trenches animal WELFARE work.:yes:

[bambam]

why would they change? they would get less money that way
That is actually my major beef with HSUS- the number of people who donate to them thinking they are an umbrella organization for the local shelters which takes money that would otherwise go to local shelters. If HSUS were only collecting from people who knew that the majority of their funds were spent on lobbying and litigation and the people donating supported those activities, I would not dislike the organization so much. As much as I vehemently disagree with the goals and philosophy of PETA, I don't dislike them the way I do HSUS because at least they are openly who they are (doesn't mean I don't think much of what PETA does is absolutely ridiculous)
If that news report is correct that the Lousiana AG stopped investigating HSUS Katrina conduct when HSUS agreed to build a Louisiana shelter, that is just reprehensible

[Guilherme]

The government has a "no kill" policy for surplus BLM horses. This has lead to 30,000++ horses in government corrals at cost in excess of $20 Million/annum. The governement can do this because it has the power to print money. Local humane societies don't have the power.

Life in cage may not be best option that can be offered a surplus animal.

G.

[Bluey]

why would they change? they would get less money that way
That is actually my major beef with HSUS- the number of people who donate to them thinking they are an umbrella organization for the local shelters which takes money that would otherwise go to local shelters. If HSUS were only collecting from people who knew that the majority of their funds were spent on lobbying and litigation and the people donating supported those activities, I would not dislike the organization so much. As much as I vehemently disagree with the goals and philosophy of PETA, I don't dislike them the way I do HSUS because at least they are openly who they are (doesn't mean I don't think much of what PETA does is absolutely ridiculous)
If that news report is correct that the Lousiana AG stopped investigating HSUS Katrina conduct when HSUS agreed to build a Louisiana shelter, that is just reprehensible

The HSUS sometimes, when they get involved in a case, that has to be one the media is reporting intensively, so as to be free publicity they can use in their propaganda for more donations, they will make requests of the local groups that are in charge of handling and caring for the animals in question.
If those groups don't go along and let the HSUS have their way, HSUS won't help them.

Every time I see one of those groups share the limelight with the HSUS, I wonder how much they agreed to further the HSUS agenda.;)

I wonder where those all out defenders of the HSUS are, that generally jump in here with their cries that the HSUS is such a neat organization?:confused:

Not that all the HSUS does is bad, of course, but we need to be aware that their ultimate goal is to make it illegal for humans to use any animals.
We really don't want to help them in any way to become any more powerful, if we want to keep the right to own and use our horses.