For Immediate Release:
April 12, 2023
Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382
Athens, Ga. – Below, please find a statement from PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman in response to reports that the University of Georgia (UGA) will replace Uga X, who reportedly has hip dysplasia as well as breathing impairment, with yet another bulldog—a breathing-impaired breed (BIB):
Shame on UGA for sentencing yet another purposely deformed dog to pant in the Southern heat, endure stressful travel and rowdy crowds, and likely suffer from a lifetime of debilitating health issues. UGA could have stuck up for bulldogs at last, but instead it chose to continue exploiting them, and PETA is naming the school the “losingest” in the country for prioritizing its cruel and out-of-touch tradition at the expense of an animal who can barely breathe and can’t even breed naturally.
A recent PETA investigation caught a worker at a pet store that sells English bulldogs explaining that there’s no lifetime warranty on BIBs because of the serious health issues that they inevitably suffer from. Uga VI died of congestive heart failure, Uga VII died of a heart attack, and Uga VIII died of lymphoma when he was less than a year and a half old.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org, listen to The PETA Podcast, or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
