Animaroo Responds to IFAW's Secret Data

IFAW refuses to release study data to Animaroo.com, who was named in the report.

(PRWEB) December 22, 2012

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) published a study on December 11, 2012 using advertisments from web sites Animaroo, DogsNow, NextDayPets, PuppyFind, PuppyTrader, TerrificPets, Craigslist, eBay Classifieds, and Oodle to address the concern of puppy mills advertising online. Animaroo.com desires to eliminate puppy mills from their website, and requested the data collected by IFAW. US Office Campaigns Officer Tracy Coppola replied:

“Thank you for contacting the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) regarding our recent investigation of animal welfare concerns related to the Internet.
The goal of IFAW's online investigation was to collect baseline data on the scope and scale of the U.S. Internet puppy trade and to provide the general public, including websites like Animaroo.com, with a set of criteria to use as an awareness tool toward combating a vastly unregulated Internet market. As laid out in the investigative report, IFAW did not investigate specific breeding operations and did not look beyond the surface of each ad.

'It is our understanding that Animaroo would like to see the ads IFAW pulled on July 18, 2012. However, as the ads pulled from the nine websites that day are consistent in quantity and content to the ads posted on any other given day, and as IFAW does not wish to target any particular breeder, we encourage your company to use the criteria developed for the investigation to address the issue of likely puppy mills using Animaroo to exploit animals.“

Animaroo states that, "since this study was supported solely on 'baseline data' that 'did not look beyond the surface of each ad' many breeders were misrepresented as 'likely' puppy mills. If the 'IFAW does not wish to target any particular breeder' why was this study published? Targeting these individuals is the only way to end puppy mills. In addition to collecting superficial data, there was no regulated Internet advertising authority to oversee the study investigation. Publishing a study advocating Animal Welfare based on superficial, non-quantitative data gives rise to the intentions fueling the investigation. Is the IFAW more interested in helping animals, or creating hype for a worthy cause? The IFAW 'encourages' internet facilities to use the criteria developed to expose puppy mills, but the criteria provided is inadequate for mere surface interpretation. Animaroo agrees that strict online advertising regulations in perusing the end of puppy mills are necessary to move forward. The main question is whether IFAW seeks action or attention. Only time will tell.”

http://www.animaroo.com

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2012/12/prweb10268289.htm