One thing PETA hasn’t recently said much\u00a0about (if anything) is the rate at which it euthanizes (i.e<\/em>., kills) animals in the\u00a0“animal shelter” that it operates in Norfolk, Virginia.\u00a0\u00a0 Because that\u00a0facility is regulated by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS), PETA must report annually to VDACS\u00a0the numbers of animals that were taken in and what became of them.\u00a0 The\u00a0publicly available report<\/a> maintained by VDACS on PETA for 2018 is\u00a0revealing.\u00a0 Of the 2,512 animals that were in PETA’s custody in 2018, PETA euthanized 1,798 of them.\u00a0 This\u00a0is a euthanization rate of 72%<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0 These numbers are quite different than the experience among other facilities in the Commonwealth of Virginia.\u00a0\u00a0The VDACS report\u00a0<\/a>for 2018\u00a0on all agencies combined indicates that \u00a0235,705 animals were taken in statewide but only 27,528 were euthanized — rate of 12%<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n The VDACS numbers on dogs and cats specifically are just as disturbing.\u00a0 PETA took in 2,425 dogs and cats in 2018 and put 1,771 of them down, for a euthanization rate of 73%<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0 However, statewide,\u00a0facilities euthanized 26,907 of the 225,879 dogs and cats that were in their custody, for a rate of 12%<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n In the eight-year period\u00a0from 2011 through 2018, PETA’s euthanizations have\u00a0paralleled the numbers\u00a0for 2018:<\/p>\n Source:\u00a0 VDACS.\u00a0 During this period, the statewide volume of euthanizations has been significantly lower:<\/p>\n Source:\u00a0 VDACS.<\/p>\n For the entire period (2011-2018),\u00a0 VDACS records show that PETA took custody of 17,448 dogs and cats and put 14,151 of them down — an 81%<\/span><\/strong> death rate.\u00a0 In contrast,\u00a0during this same period, of the 1,879,847 total dogs and cats in facilities statewide,\u00a023%<\/span><\/strong> of them were euthanized (424,712).<\/p>\n PETA has been criticized in the past for the frequency with which it dispatches animals, including the infamous case of Maya<\/a>.\u00a0 Maya was a pet Chihuahua\u00a0who was taken from\u00a0her home by two individuals associated with PETA\u00a0and poisoned before the 5-day holding period required by state law had expired.\u00a0 The owners of the dog sued,\u00a0and, while PETA denied the allegations, it reportedly, among other things,\u00a0paid $49,000 to settle the case.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.duanemorris.com\/animallawdevelopments\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/38\/2019\/02\/Graph-3.jpg\")
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