A serial purveyor of misinformation is recycling a claim that there are people who think slaughtering pets is a good way to reduce carbon emissions.
“WEF (World Economic Forum) Wants To Slaughter Millions of Pet Cats and Dogs To Fight Climate Change,” reads the headline on a Dec. 9 article on News Punch. The article was shared more than 2,000 times on Facebook in 12 days, according to social media analytics tool CrowdTangle.
The article echoes a similar piece News Punch published on Nov. 26 saying unnamed “climate activists” recommended the same actions. USA TODAY debunked the earlier claim, and the new version is false as well.
There is no evidence the World Economic Forum recommends killing pets to reduce carbon emissions. USA TODAY could find no examples of the organization advocating for this policy. In fact, it has published pieces on how pets contribute to good mental health and has suggestions on how to reduce “carbon pawprints” on its website that do not include killing cats and dogs.
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The World Economic Forum has addressed the carbon “pawprint” of cats and dogs in news releases and articles, but USA TODAY found no statements suggesting that euthanizing them was the best way to do so.
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