Video: See Emma Kenney’s ‘Shameless’ Rant Against Dog Breeders

Actor—and Her Adopted Mutt—Team Up With PETA to Tell Off Anyone Who Adds to the Homeless-Dog Crisis

For Immediate Release:
June 14, 2017

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

Thinking about buying a puppy? Well, Shameless star Emma Kenney wants you to think again. In a new video rant for PETA, the 17-year-old actor throws shade at anyone who buys a dog from a breeder or pet store instead of adopting a homeless animal from a shelter—with a little help from her own adopted mutt, Charlie.

“You say you want a puppy who’s a ‘purebred’?” Kenney asks. “Well, you know what’s pure? My hatred for puppy mills.”

She explains that about 6 million dogs and cats enter shelters every year—and half of them have to be euthanized because there simply aren’t enough good homes for them. Breeders and puppy mills contribute to the homeless-dog problem—and many “purebred” dogs are victims of inbreeding and/or face congenital breed-specific defects.

“You want one of those designer combo breeds,” Kenney says sarcastically. “You want a dog with the body of a poodle but the face of a shih tzu and the bark of a Lab. Well … [t]his isn’t Build-a-Bear. Go to a shelter. Meet some dogs. Play. Bond. Connect. Shelters have a ton of combo breeds. They’re called ‘mutts.’ They’re always ‘in fashion,’ they’ll always have your back, and they’ll always love you for the rest of their lives.”

Kenney joins a growing list of celebrities—including Krysten Ritter, Madelaine Petsch, Evanna Lynch, Nev Schulman, Noah Cyrus, and many others—who have teamed up with PETA (whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”) or its affiliates to promote kindness to animals.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.