The British pet massacre was an event in 1939 in the United Kingdom where over 750,000

pet A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive appearances, intelligence, ...

s were killed in preparation for food shortages during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

."What happened to Britain's pets during the second World War"
''Express'', Clare Campbell, Oct 31, 2013

Background

In 1939, the British government formed the National Air Raid Precautions Animals Committee (NARPAC) to decide what to do with pets before the war broke out. The committee was worried that when the government would need to ration food, owners would decide to split their rations with their pets or leave the animals to starve. In response to that fear, NARPAC published a pamphlet titled "Advice to Animal Owners." The pamphlet suggested moving pets from the big cities and into the countryside. It concluded with the statement that "If you cannot place them in the care of neighbours, it really is kindest to have them destroyed." The pamphlet also contained an advertisement for a

captive bolt pistol A captive bolt (also variously known as a cattle gun, stunbolt gun, bolt gun, or stunner) is a device used for stunning animals prior to slaughter. The goal of captive bolt stunning is to inflict a forceful strike on the forehead with the bo ...

that could be used to humanely kill the animals.

Incident

When war was declared in 1939, many pet owners flocked to pet surgery clinics and animal homes to kill their pets. Many veterinarian groups such as the PDSA and the

RSPCA The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest an ...

were against these drastic measures, but their hospitals were still flooded with pet owners in the first few days. PDSA founder

Maria Dickin Maria Elisabeth Dickin CBE (nickname, Mia; 22 September 1870 – 1 March 1951) was a social reformer and an animal welfare pioneer who founded the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 1917. The Dickin Medal is named for her. Early ...

reported: "Our technical officers called upon to perform this unhappy duty will never forget the tragedy of those days." When London was bombed in September 1940, even more pet owners rushed to kill their pets. "People were worried about the threat of bombing and food shortages and felt it inappropriate to have the 'luxury' of a pet during wartime".

Opposition

Battersea Dogs & Cats Home Battersea Dogs & Cats Home (now known as Battersea) is an animal rescue centre for dogs and cats. Battersea rescues dogs and cats until an owner or a new one can be found. It is one of the UK's oldest and best known animal rescue centres. It w ...

, against the trend, managed to feed and care for 145,000 dogs during the course of the war and provided a field in Ilford as a pet cemetery, "where about 500,000 animals were buried, many from the first week of the war". A famous opponent of pet culling was

Nina Douglas-Hamilton, Duchess of Hamilton Nina Mary Benita Douglas-Hamilton, Duchess of Hamilton (née Nina Mary Benita Poore; 13 May 1878 – 12 January 1951) was an English peeress and animal rights activist. Early life Douglas-Hamilton was born on 13 May 1878 in Nether Wallop, Hamps ...

, a cat lover, who campaigned against the killing and created her own sanctuary in a heated hangar at Ferne.Campbell (2013) Chapter 6

Aftermath

Estimates say that over 750,000 pets were killed over the course of the event. Many pet owners, after getting over the fear of bombings and lack of food, regretted killing their pets and blamed the government for starting the hysteria. In 2017, author

Hilda Kean Hilda Kean (born August 1949) is a British historian who specialises in public and cultural history, and in particular the cultural history of animals. She is former Dean and Director of Public History at Ruskin College, Oxford, and an Honorar ...

published a book, ''

The Great Cat and Dog Massacre ''The Great Cat and Dog Massacre'' is a non-fiction book written by Hilda Kean. It tells the story of the British pet massacre, the September 1939 time period at the start of World War II, when hundreds of thousands of British family pets were p ...

'', telling the story from a historical perspective.

References

Sources

* * {{World War II 1939 in the United Kingdom Animal cruelty incidents Animal deaths by euthanasia Pet massacre

Massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

United Kingdom home front during World War II