Last week, in Chesterfield County, Virginia, local authorities arrived at a residence to serve a search and seizure warrant. Our Animal Rescue Team was on the scene to help the Virginia Attorney General’s Office and Chesterfield County Animal Services rescue cats and kittens from a large-scale...

It’s a long way from dog meat farmer Il-Hwan Kim’s operation in South Korea to Washington, DC. Yet that’s the amazing journey being taken by 170 dogs rescued by Humane Society International’s Animal Rescue Team. Together with more than two dozen other dogs from previous HSI rescue operations who had...

If you’ve been following our advocacy for dogs and cats in puppy and kitten mills, you already know that these mega-breeding facilities treat dog and cat mothers and fathers like moneymaking machines with little to no regard for their health or well-being. Thankfully, each year, more and more people...

May 11, 2023, stands out as historic for animal protection: On that day, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision upholding California’s Proposition 12, the nation’s strongest farm animal protection law, a move that rejected the pork industry’s challenge to the law. We led the campaign for the...

Many people experience their first connections with animals through relationships with dogs, cats or horses. Just as these bonds are powerful and pervasive, so must our advocacy be since companion animals face myriad injustices and difficulties in the U.S. and around the world. We’ve already detailed the incredible progress made against the dog and cat meat trades in 2023, but there is much more to say on other fronts. Here are just some of the ways we created a more humane world for companion animals in the past year.

November 17, 2023, was a truly historic day in the fight to end the dog meat industry. In South Korea, where up to one million dogs are farmed and killed for human consumption each year, the government officially presented a roadmap to end the dog meat industry within a three-year period. We’ve been...

Artificial intelligence, organ-on-chip technology and 3D bioprinting: These advancements promise to dramatically reshape our world, and they’ll play a part in making animal experiments obsolete. Sophisticated testing and research methods that use human cells or human biology-based technology will one day completely replace experiments on animals—a game-changer not just for animals, but for human health. The only question is how quickly it will happen.

Thirty-seven chimpanzees languishing at a New Mexico primate laboratory are still waiting for the National Institutes of Health to fulfil a promise it made in 2015---to retire them to sanctuary after a lifetime spent in research. Today, we’re giving these animals a helping hand by suing the federal...

Some fights to protect animals turn out to be uphill battles that last for years, requiring a steadfast determination, resilience and consistency in advocacy, argumentation and campaigning. This has proven to be the case with banning wildlife killing contests in some parts of the country. Thankfully, our teams have shown they’ve got the strength to sustain the fight to end these spectacles as part of creating a safer and more compassionate world.

These are exciting times for the animal protection movement, and especially for those of us who work at the Humane Society of the United States and its affiliates, including Humane Society International and the Humane Society Legislative Fund. The year 2019 has come in with a roar. Already, we’ve...

I first read the book, Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry when I was in 3rd grade. I tried for weeks to get the book from our school library, but it was always on loan. My mother finally bought it for me because I couldn’t wait any longer to read it. I loved reading about Phantom and her foal...

Tomorrow, March 11, 2023, marks the 10-year anniversary of a historic paradigm shift away from cosmetics animal testing. When the European Union and Israel became the world’s first markets to ban animal tests for cosmetics such as makeup, shampoo and cologne, the change jump-started our global...

This year's Taking Action for Animals conference takes place over one jam-packed weekend from July 19 to 22 just steps away from the nation’s capital, during which participants have the opportunity to learn about some of the most significant animal welfare issues of our time, connect with other advocates and participate in Humane Lobby Day on Capitol Hill.

This year has seen incredible wins for animals despite a steady onslaught of Congressional threats and agency rollbacks. On the one hand, there have been attempts to roll back protections for wild animals, like native carnivores in Alaska, and attacks on the Endangered Species Act. The U.S...

In a major win in the fight against cruel puppy mills, Illinois’ Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed the Humane Pet Store Bill (HB 1711) into law. The state’s 21 puppy-selling pet stores have 180 days from August 27, the date the bill was signed, to stop selling commercially raised puppies and kittens...

When our responders rescue dogs from Korea’s dog meat farms, they invariably find the animals living in terrible conditions, in barren outdoor cages with no protection from the heat or the intense winters. Food is inadequate and the animals never feel the grass under their feet or a kind human touch...

It is a moving photograph, and one that shows just how strong an animal can be in the midst of immense suffering. A dog, missing most of her hair coat, stares into the camera with one blue eye and one brown. She is curious but not moving, her eyes hopeful as she looks at her rescuers. Earlier this...

As Joe Biden and Kamala Harris head to the White House, they bring with them a proven track record of protecting animals. In past years, we have worked with both the president- and vice-president-elect to strengthen laws on wildlife, marine mammals, farm animals, and so much more, and we look...

Since 2017, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan has introduced a bill that would undermine America’s war on ivory trafficking by hindering the ability of states to create laws fighting this illegal trade. The full Senate did not consider the bill the last time, and more Americans than ever before now...

By Kitty Block and Sara Amundson A number of important bills are now making their way through Congress, and this week has been a particularly successful one for wildlife and especially for elephants, rhinos, wolves, wild horses, burros and right whales. Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee...