A claim that climate activists have vowed to slaughter millions of dogs in an attempt to combat climate change is spreading online.
Numerous posts (see here, here and here) link to a story from misinformation website NewsPunch.
The NewsPunch story features the headline “Climate Activists Vow To Slaughter Millions of Dogs to ‘Reduce Carbon Pawprint’.”
The content of the story does little to back up the headline’s claim, but cites a CNN report as detailing the “immediate action” needed.
But the claim is false. The CNN report makes no mention of any slaughter. It instead offers tips on how to help minimise your pet’s “carbon pawprints”.
The story was published by US-based News Punch on November 26, 2022 and features a misleading “fact checked’ tag above the byline.
Various posts sharing the story on social media (including here, here, here, here and here) have whipped animal lovers into a frenzy.
“Share to stop this disgraceful evil plan,” one user commented below a post.
“Someone touches my dogs I will send them to hell and it will be on the long road. People in this world have gone f***in nuts,” another said.
The CNN article in question was published on September 27. In it, the author says our pets play a significant role in the climate crisis.
It links to a 2017 study which states in the US alone, dogs and cats create around 64 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.
However, contrary to the NewsPunch headline, the article states: “Don’t panic. Bidding farewell to your best friends is not the answer.”
The article suggests owners can help reduce the environmental impact of their pets by assessing their food and even flushing their faeces down the toilet, rather than using disposable bags.
It also suggests owners consider adopting smaller breeds.
“The general rule is that larger pets will have a larger climate impact than smaller ones, primarily because they need more food. So you might consider smaller breeds or species if you’re aiming to minimize your impact on the planet. A Chihuahua’s carbon pawprint will be much smaller than a Saint Bernard, for example,” the article says.
NewsPunch has been a frequent spreader of misinformation over several years has been checked numerous times by fact-checkers (here, here, here, here and here).
The Verdict
The claim that climate activists have vowed to slaughter millions of dogs in a bid to tackle climate change is false.
The headline is courtesy of misinformation website NewsPunch. The article links to a CNN story. However, there is no mention of vows to slaughter dogs. Instead, the article offers tips to help reduce your pet’s carbon footprint while making clear that getting rid of your four-legged friend is not the answer.
False – The claim is inaccurate.
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