About PETA > Hot Topics > The 'Bonsai Kitten' Web Site
Hot Topics: The ‘Bonsai Kitten’ Web Site
We share your disgust with this offensive site, which makes light of animal abuse, and we fear the actual abuse that it might inspire. We have received word that the FBI, acting on the many calls and e-mails that it has received from outraged citizens, decided to investigate BonsaiKitten.com. Please add your voice to the protest by filing a complaint using this Web-based reporting center developed by the FBI to combat Internet fraud and other forms of Internet crime.
Although BonsaiKitten.com is apparently intended to be a "joke," we feel very strongly that it is neither appropriate nor funny. The Humane Society of the United States has investigated the site's origin and discovered that the name and address under which it is registered (Dr. Michael Wong of New York) are false. The site was reportedly created by an M.I.T. student as a joke among friends. When it initially appeared, a local humane organization investigated but found no evidence of actual animal abuse. It seems that the Web site's creator was simply trying to draw attention with offensive content.
So far, actions against this and similar Web sites have been an uphill battle because the one law that even approaches the issue of offensive Web-based content is a law against sending obscene material via e-mail. Unfortunately, unless the site violates its host's user agreement, it is not illegal. As you may know, this site has been shut down several times but continues to reappear with different Web addresses. However, we are hopeful that if the FBI continues to receive complaints about the site and, specifically, its potential for encouraging actual acts of cruelty to animals, BonsaiKitten.com will be shut down permanently. Learn more about actions you can take in response to Web sites that depict cruelty to animals.
While the cruelty depicted on this Web site may be nothing more than a sick joke, the reality is that billions of animals suffer in horribly cramped conditions in factory farms. Chickens, calves, and pigs are crammed into cages so small that they can't even turn or stretch. Veal calves, who are considered "byproducts" of the milk industry, are chained in small crates for the duration of their short lives; chickens are squeezed into extremely crowded cages where they can barely move; and pregnant and nursing pigs are similarly confined. For more information about how animals suffer in factory farms, please visit MeetYourMeat.com. To learn more about helping cats and other animal companions, please visit HelpingAnimals.com.
Thank you for your concern for animals' safety. We appreciate all that you do to help animals.
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