In the midst of a nationwide heat wave, with excessive-heat warnings and advisories in place for more than 20 states, it’s natural for those of us who care about animals to worry about their welfare and the risk of their being locked in cars. In just the last few weeks, several reports of pet...

So much of our work to give imperiled animals the protections they deserve is a long game, and we’ve been going to the proverbial bat to preserve the hippopotamus for years. Just recently, we, along with one of our allies, sent notice of our intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for missing its deadline to decide whether the common hippopotamus should be protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. USA Today covered this key turn in our work to give hippos greater protections, and we’re grateful that the issue is gaining and sustaining attention.

Update: The Humane Society of the United States is coordinating an evacuation of approximately 80 animals out of three Florida shelters. A rescue flight funded by the HSUS has departed from Jacksonville this morning with cats and mostly large-breed dogs who were up for adoption at Nassau Humane...

As severe weather events have become more frequent and more destructive in recent years, our Animal Rescue Teams at the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International have not merely expanded but also learned to pivot swiftly to respond to crisis situations. This includes...

For the past several months, a deadly heat wave has been sweeping Northern India, affecting hundreds of millions of people and sending temperatures soaring to record heights. In some areas, the heat has gotten as severe as 49.2 C / 120.5 F. And because the heat wave started scorching the region in...

An undercover investigation from the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International has ​ unearthed a thriving market for elephant ivory products in Massachusetts, as lawmakers there consider a bill that would ban the ivory trade within the state. Our investigators visited the...

Tens of millions of unemployed Americans are now struggling with the possibility of losing their homes because they cannot pay rent. The situation is even more heart-wrenching for those who have companion animals at home and are faced with the impossible choice of keeping their best friends or...

As Hurricane Michael barrels into Florida, having turned overnight into a category 4 storm, our Animal Rescue Team has been reaching out to shelter partners and allies, as well as emergency management officials, to encourage them to move unowned shelter animals out of harm’s way and secure pet...

Update (1/25/2021): A Senate version of the Preventing Future Pandemics Act was introduced today by Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Cory Booker, D-N.J. The House version, introduced earlier this month, now has 50 cosponsors. With the coronavirus pandemic still raging, the urgency around preventing...

During his years in the Senate, now-President Joe Biden supported dozens of animal welfare measures, including legislation to require dolphin-safe labeling on tuna, stop canned hunts, annually prohibit the use of taxpayer dollars to fund federal inspection and approval of meat at horse...

Horses dying at the racetracks with alarming frequency is a sadly familiar scenario of late, but even by that measure the body count over the past week is nothing short of astonishing. Since Friday alone, three horses have been euthanized at Santa Anita Park in California. First, it was a four-year...

The recent indictment of more than two dozen people, including racehorse trainers and veterinarians, in a widespread doping scandal has turned a red-hot spotlight on the horseracing industry. And in a welcome development, some long-overdue scrutiny is coming from stakeholders within the industry...

This week, the Washington Post and New York Times reported rampant coronavirus spread at meatpacking plants, and efforts by large meat producers to obscure the transmission rates. “As dozens of plants that closed because of outbreaks begin reopening, meat companies’ reluctance to disclose detailed...

On the House floor Monday night, the House of Representatives voted 304 to 111 to pass the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act into law. With just a few weeks remaining in the 117 th Congress, getting a vote in the Senate will take some effort. But with this resounding vote in the House, we’ve...

Maryland recently became the second state to enact legislation that prohibits the declawing of cats. The first to do so was New York, in 2019, and a handful of municipalities have done the same over the last several years. That declawing (the amputation of the last bone of each toe) is cruel...

For Alex and Loki, our two resident tigers at our Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch in Murchison, Texas, spring brings lots of new opportunities for fun and play. Loki, especially, loves hunkering down in the tall grass in his enclosure at the sanctuary, says Noelle Almrud, the director of Black...

What kind of world would this be if there were no regulation of the international trade in wildlife and wildlife parts? In a world in which commercial interests alone determined the fate of tigers, elephants and hundreds of other species threatened by trade, would these species really stand a chance...

The annual Dallas Safari Club convention is a sickening display of the havoc American trophy hunters wreak year after year on the world’s wildlife, with their penchant for killing endangered and at-risk animals. The pandemic has forced the 2021 convention to move online this year, but that doesn’t...

The Humane Society of the United States' Faith Outreach program partners with people of faith to fight animal cruelty and highlight the long and rich tradition of compassion for animals within the world’s major religions. This week, as part of this important program, we welcomed 100 faith leaders...

It was an incredibly moving sight: My Humane Society International colleagues and their local partners marked the end of the dog and cat meat trades at Indonesia’s most infamous market, Tomohon Extreme Market, by rescuing those who would have been the final victims of this reprehensible commerce...