Nightclub Operator Receives PETA Award for Banning Exotic-Animal Displays

After Tiger Exhibit Prompts Complaints, Owners of Les Deux Make It Clear That They 'Will Not Tolerate Any Cruelty to Any Species'

For Immediate Release:
May 13, 2010

Contact:
Lisa Wathne  757-622-7382

Hollywood, Calif. -- For adopting a zero-tolerance policy for cruelty to animals by implementing a ban on all exotic-animal exhibits at any of its locations nationwide, restaurant and nightclub operator Dolce Group--which is owned by Lonnie Moore, Mike Malin, and Sylvain Bitton--will receive PETA's Compassionate Business Award. Dolce Group made the decision after PETA, having received complaints about a caged-tiger exhibit at the Les Deux nightclub on April 28, wrote to the company explaining the cruelty of exotic-animal displays. Dolce Group will receive a framed certificate and a letter of appreciation from PETA.

"I agree 100% ... it will not happen again," responded Moore in an e-mail that was sent on the same day that he received PETA's letter. "If we had known about this prior to the event we never would have let this happen. I am a big supporter of PETA and will not tolerate any cruelty to any species!"

"We commend Dolce Group for setting a wonderful example for other businesses," says PETA Director Debbie Leahy. "Tigers may be rulers of their natural domains, but when they're forced to live in cages in strange and sometimes frightening surroundings, they suffer just as much as any other animal does."

Although nightclubs are fun spots for people, they're no place for an animal whose natural home is a forest or jungle. In the wild, tigers quietly roam many miles of territory, hunt, raise their young, and avoid all contact with humans. Animals hauled around for public display are forced to endure constant confinement as well as overwhelming noise, crowds, and confusion. They are denied everything that is natural and important to them and suffer from loneliness, frustration, and deprivation. Many businesses have banned the exhibition of exotic animals because of the dangers and liability issues it poses.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.