AR-News: FW: Washington Times LTE

[Kathy Bauch]

This was sent to the Washington Times following a quote attributed to
Nick Braden that was inaccurate and taken out of context.


To the editor:

Washington Times readers may have been left with the mistaken impression
that The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) takes an equivocal
stance on animal testing by pet food companies ("Fest celebrates
human-dog bond," March 15). As I explained to your reporter, we share
the concerns expressed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
about animal testing conducted by a lab previously under contract with
Iams, which is a sponsor of the Superdogs event that The HSUS helped
organize recently at the MCI Center. We also question any need for
classical laboratory animal tests for the purposes of improving the
palatability of pet food.

The HSUS is attempting to work with Iams to bring about an end to all
laboratory-based animal tests authorized by the company. Though The HSUS
has been to this point pleased to work with Iams to bring educational
events such as Pet Fest America to Washington, in no way should our
participation in these events amount to an endorsement of laboratory
based animal tests by the company.  We have shared this opinion with
Iams and we will continue to make our views known in very clear terms.

Nick Braden
Director of Public Relations
The Humane Society of the United States
Phone: 301/258-3072
nbraden at hsus.org