51 Million Shoppers Say ‘Ugh!’ to UGG’s Cruelty to Sheep

As Shoe Retailer Faces Massive Sales and Stock Decline, peta2 Rallies Students to Speak Out on Social Media

For Immediate Release:
March 24, 2017

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382

Over the last week, peta2—PETA’s youth division—has made a huge splash with its social media campaign targeting UGG’s use of the skins of millions of slaughtered sheep every year. The photos and videos for the campaign—which juxtapose UGG boots with pools of blood, teach viewers how to autocorrect “UGGs” to “UGHS! UGLY ASS DEAD SHEEP BOOTS,” invite viewers to text “K” to peta2 to send a protest letter to UGG, and more—have received 51 million views on Facebook and Instagram.

The campaign comes just a month after UGG’s parent company, Deckers Brands, reported a nearly 10 percent sales decline in the U.S.—leading shares to crash by a staggering 23.8 percent.

“Every day, peta2 hears from young people who are horrified to learn that sheep are punched, kicked, mutilated, and killed just for a pair of boots,” says peta2 Senior Director of Youth Outreach and Campaigns Marta Holmberg. “As social media empowers students to spread the word about cruelty to animals, it’s no surprise that UGG’s sales are flagging.”

peta2—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear”—notes that six PETA exposés recorded at 39 facilities on three continents have revealed that sheep are mutilated, abused, and skinned alive in the international wool industry. Shearers are often paid by volume, not by the hour, which encourages fast, violent work that can lead to gaping wounds on sheep’s bodies. The wounds are then stitched closed—without giving the animals any painkillers.

For more information, please visit peta2.com.