‘No One Belongs in a Cage’ PETA Billboard Headed to Laramie
Good Guardians Don’t Lock Up Children or Dogs; Group’s Appeal Offers Tips for Perceived ‘Problem Dogs’ Who Get Crated
For Immediate Release:
August 7, 2014
Contact:
Alexis Sadoti 202-483-7382
On the heels of the arrest of a Laramie couple charged with locking a 7-year-old child in a cage on and off for three weeks, PETA plans to erect a billboard that shows a caged dog and reads, “No One Belongs in a Cage. Never Crate Your Dog.” PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—hopes to remind dog guardians that keeping any living being in what is basically a see-through box, deprived of freedom of movement and expression, can cause distress and long-lasting psychological harm. Keeping dogs crated during the day while their guardian is at work—simply out of convenience—and then often again all night deprives dogs of the opportunity to satisfy minimal needs such as stretching, moving and walking about, urinating, and exploring.
“PETA’s point is that just as you should never stick your child in a cage or crate as punishment or for convenience, your dog shouldn’t suffer that way, either,” says PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. “Dogs, like children, are sensitive individuals who need affection, attention, exercise, and social interaction in order to mature normally—something they don’t get from long hours spent confined to a crate.”
The book Dogs Hate Crates: How Abusive Crate Training Hurts Dogs, Families & Society explains how long-term confinement is detrimental to an animal’s physical and psychological well-being. Animals caged for extended periods can develop muscle atrophy, eating disorders, and anti-social—even aggressive—behavior.
PETA supports humane, interactive dog training that teaches guardians positive ways to communicate with their animal companions and vice versa. And for absences longer than a few hours, people who love their dogs can hire a dog walker, leave the dog with someone who is at home, use doggie day care, or install a “doggie door.”
For more information, please visit PETA.org or click here.
