OH MY ~ my aunt gave to the hsus

Thanksgiving is a time for family to come together and eat, drink and be merry! Our Thanksgiving this year was no different.  We ate yummy food, drank some really good wine and had wonderful conversations on all sorts of topics. One topic much to my surprise that came up at the Thanksgiving table – The Humane Society of the United States.  How you might ask did this come up? My aunt donates to them religiously each month – because you know they are helping with the placement and care of all those little dogs and cats.  (Oh no!!)

Let me give you a brief family history~ my aunt is a lovely lady. She grew up on the family farm where I reside. She was active in the day to day activities, showed steers, her infamous Angus calf, “Tar Baby” was a county fair champion, she loved farm life. Upon graduation from Notre Dame College she married the love of her life and moved to the Bay area. She lived her life now in the City and to this day still is a “city girl.”  My aunt is now 80 years old – she has been away from the farm for 60 some years.

As we visited at Thanksgiving my mom started bragging about me – she is good for that- saying that I have been going around speaking to different groups about getting the conversation going in agriculture.  My auntie was quite proud when she told me she donates money each month to the HSUS to help with the puppies and kittens. I about choked on my bite of turkey!  What? Was my initial reaction.  You do what?  I instantly felt my tummy feeling jumbled and anxious.  She explained to me that she got something in the mail and that she really felt it would not be much of a sacrifice to donate monthly. I proceeded to tell her about the HSUS and why it was better for her to funnel her monthly funds to our local pet shelter. I also told her that the goal of the HSUS was to end animal agriculture and farms such as ours.  She was horrified, she had no idea.  I felt good that I educated my auntie on the tactics of HSUS.  We talked about it at some length. She now feels good that she will be sending her money to the local shelter and that this money will be put to good use.

The moral of the story is that even though you grow up on a farm doesn’t mean you are immune to the message of the HSUS.  Big cities and older folks seem to be a good place for HSUS to market their agenda.  My aunt is a prime example of a smart woman who was duped by the story that they told.  My aunt supports farms and ranches but she truly thought she was doing a good thing by also supporting the HSUS.

It is not only a good idea to share your story it is a good idea to engage in conversations, listen, share and educate when needed.  You never know who you will need to chat with!  It might be your dear aunt across the Thanksgiving table J

Are you interested in finding out more about getting the correct information out about the HSUS - check out http://www.humanewatch.org/ - a great place that uncovers mistruths and promotes good dialogue.