Beauty Without Cruelty protest
Supporting pet shops is like supporting animal abuse, says BWC's Smaragda Louw.
A Beauty Without Cruelty (BWC) protest took place at the Nicoleway shopping centre on 27 October.
This was its eighth “Adopt Don’t Shop” protest against pet shops selling live animals, and this protest targeted the centre’s pet shop, Mr. Pet.
BWC representative Smaragda Louw said the protest was to inform people of the corruption involved at pet shops such as Mr. Pet and the cruel breeding fields involved in the animal trade. She stated that supporting pet shops condones animal abuse and corruption, and advised people to adopt an animal from a shelter instead.
“The protest against Mr. Pet in Bryanston follows the many complaints received from the public to Beauty Without Cruelty about the condition of the animals in the shop, as well as complaints from customers who had purchased pets,” Louw explained. “Protesters were speaking up for the voiceless and defending animal rights. The cruel trade in animals for profit has to be stopped. The protests create awareness and educate the public as to why they should not be buying animals from pet shops. The campaign had an estimated 144 protesters attending and 1209 likes on Facebook.”
“The breeding facilities for the pet shops is often not decent. Pet shops do not take full care of their animals. I support the protests because I too want to raise the veil of ignorance on animal cruelty,” said BWC volunteer Ricardo Jorge, who headed the protest.
Louw hopes that the protests will convince government to ban the law on selling animals. “I am pleased with the number of people from different animal safety organisations and animal lovers who came to support us. I am looking forward to having more people involved in the next protests.”
Details: Smaragda Louw 083-458-8447.
