Pets at Home, the largest companion animal retailer in the United Kingdom, will no longer sell kangaroo meat. While the retailer continues to offer products for companion animals made with questionable ingredients sourced from farmed animals, CEO Peter Pritchard confirmed that kangaroo meat would be banned from its stores after vegan organization Viva! informed him of the cruel practices involved in the unregulated kangaroo trade. The Australian wild animal is hunted at night with the use of searchlights that stun the animals before they are shot, often unsuccessfully, resulting in injuries that cause a slow death. Baby kangaroos are removed from their mothers’ pouches and clubbed to death as they are not valuable to the trade. “In acting swiftly and responsibly to withdraw sales, we are hopeful that [Pets at Home will] set a precedent for other companion animal supplies retailers,” Viva! Campaigns Manager Lex Rigby said. “In the meantime, we continue to support Australian wildlife groups to end this merciless and bloody trade.” Viva! has campaigned against kangaroo meat for two decades, and has successfully negotiated bans of the animal product at supermarkets Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Iceland, and Lidl.
