HSUS Supports Cockfighters?

We couldn't make this up if we tried. Our minds are nowhere near this twisted.

A reader tipped us off that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is currently advertising on gamerooster.com, which is a website that seeks to unite "gamefowl breeders for the love of the sport and the breed." The "sport" they are referring to is the detestable practice of cockfighting.

Wayne Pacelle, HSUS's CEO, regularly lies that HumaneWatch is funded by and supports cockfighters. That's a lie, and Pacelle was put on legal notice of it in 2010. 

You know what isn't a lie? HSUS is supporting cockfighters by advertising on their websites. (Click the image enlarge.)

By the way, you might be wondering what HSUS’s banner ad links to. We clicked on it, and it goes to an HSUS donation page.

In other words, HSUS is apparently all too happy to take money from cockfighting supporters. So, Wayne Pacelle, how much money has HSUS made from this ad?

Okay, okay—this is mostly tongue-in-cheek and probably an unintentional oversight that HSUS’s online advertising team is quickly correcting (as soon as they read this post!). We have no idea what HSUS is targeting with its ads, but we were able to independently verify the ads. If you can't see the ads, it could be because they aren't targeting your demographic or geographic location (or a variety of other ways Google allows advertisers target their ads).

Here are a few more examples from "gamefowl" or "cocker" websites around the web:

The Visual HSUS, Part 7

Today we’re releasing the seventh entry in our “Visual HSUS” series. (Hopefully, we’ll have as many entries as HSUS CEO Wayne Pacelle has book-tour stops.) Follow the links to view past entries: [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6]

The latest visual is a timeline of HSUS’s controversial relationship with convicted dogfighting kingpin Michael Vick. Many animal lovers felt betrayed when HSUS agreed to work with Vick following his release from prison. But the partnership between Pacelle and Vick bloomed to the point where Pacelle said last winter he thinks Vick “would do a good job as a pet owner.” Many folks were outraged, and with good reason.

But the disturbing “bond” between the duo is Act Two of a sordid play. When Vick was first indicted, HSUS raised money on the promise to “care for” the animals seized. But just two weeks later, Pacelle told a newspaper that HSUS didn’t know where the animals were, and that HSUS was in fact recommending the animals be killed. (Many of the dogs have since been rehabilitated.)

What’s next for this dynamic duo? We weep for the future.

No Vick-tory for Animals

Last week, Humane Society of the United States CEO Wayne Pacelle made yet another public appearance with convicted dogfighting kingpin Michael Vick. This time, the duo appeared on Capitol Hill to promote federal legislation. (HSUS does a lot of lobbying, if you didn’t know.)

While HSUS teams up with Vick to promote a national bill, could a national spike in dogfighting be around the corner?