PETA Calls for Groundhog Day Switcheroo--to an Animatronic 'Punxsutawney Phil'

Group Wants Event Modernized and Asks That Celebrated Groundhog Be Retired to a Sanctuary

For Immediate Release:
January 26, 2010

Contact:
Desiree Acholla 757-622-7382

Punxsutawney, PA -- This morning, PETA sent a letter to Bill Deeley, president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club's Inner Circle, urging him to replace Phil--and other animals used in local Groundhog Day activities--with an animatronic model and allow the real groundhogs to live out the rest of their days in peace at a sanctuary.

Groundhogs are typically shy animals and are likely to feel fear and stress when they are out of their burrows. Each year on February 2, Punxsutawney Phil is trotted out to face human handling and hundreds of noisy people, flashing lights, and cameras. The animals used for Groundhog Day events are deprived of their natural hibernation periods.

PETA believes that if it's good enough for Hollywood, it's good enough for Punxsutawney. "Switching to a robotic animal for Groundhog Day celebrations would be a win-win situation for the town," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "An animatronic groundhog would attract new and curious tourists, and the real groundhogs would finally get a good winter's sleep."

For more information about PETA's work to protect animals, please visit PETA's blog.

PETA's letter to Bill Deeley, president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club's Inner Circle, follows.

January 26, 2010

Bill Deeley
President
The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club

Dear Mr. Deeley,

I am writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 2 million members and supporters worldwide. We would like to present you with an exciting, innovative proposal--one that would benefit both Punxsutawney and Punxsutawney Phil. Please review the following information and then make the compassionate decision to use an animatronic Phil and retire the live groundhogs who are used for Groundhog Day activities to a sanctuary.

To most people, Groundhog Day--celebrated annually on February 2--is a welcome midwinter diversion, but Punxsutawney Phil is forced to be on display year round at the local library and is denied the ability to prepare for and enter yearly hibernation. These normally shy animals--who are constantly on alert when they are out of their burrows--become stressed when they are exposed to large, screaming crowds; flashing lights from perhaps hundreds of cameras; and human handling.

The popularity of using technologically advanced electromechanical devices such as animatronic animals instead of live animals is rising. Performances such as "Walking With Dinosaurs, the Live Experience"--a theatrical show in which animatronic dinosaurs roar, stomp, and chase each other around an arena--have been taking audiences by storm. Other popular exhibitions have featured robotic penguins and dolphins who swim and communicate just like real animals do, and we think that an animatronic groundhog would similarly mesmerize a crowd full of curious spectators in Punxsutawney.

Tradition is no excuse for cruelty, and this opportunity would allow Punxsutawney to engage in a futuristic, interactive, versatile, and humane annual event. We would be happy to make recommendations for both a sanctuary that would welcome Punxsutawney Phil and the other Punxsutawney groundhogs and a company that could make an animatronic Phil. May we please hear that non-animal alternatives will be used for Groundhog Day celebrations in Punxsutawney next year?  Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Gemma Vaughan, MSW
Animals in Entertainment Specialist