- Justin Bieber responded to PETA calling him out for buying two exotic cats for $35,000 instead of adopting.
- “PETA go focus on real problems,” he wrote on his Instagram story, telling the organization to address poaching and animal brutality, and “go help with all the plastic in the ocean.”
- Bieber added: “Every pet we get must be a rescue? I believe in adopting rescues but also think there are preferences and that’s what breeders are for.”
- In a statement given to Insider, PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said, “Sorry, Justin, but you must think more deeply about this issue: When millions of animals are losing their lives every year because not enough people adopt – choosing instead to shop – the animal overpopulation crisis is a ‘real problem.'”
- The organization added: “You have the power to be a great role model on this issue – your behavior guides that of tons of your fans – so please put that to good use.”
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Justin Bieber responded PETA after the organization criticized him for spending $35,000 on two exotic cats, rather than adopting.
“PETA can suck it,” the 25-year-old singer captioned a screenshot of an article from People titled: “Justin Bieber Receives Backlash from PETA After Spending $35,000 on His New Part-Exotic Kittens.”
The two Savannah kittens are male and female siblings named Sushi and Tuna.
Bieber went on to slam the organization and said that he supports animal adoption, but also believes "there are preferences and that's what breeders are for."
"PETA go focus on real problems," he wrote in another post on his Instagram story. "Like poaching, and animal brutality."
"Ur tripping because I want a specific kind of cat? U weren't tripping when I got my dog Oscar and he wasn't a rescue," Bieber continued, referring to the pet that he and Hailey Bieber got in December 2018.
"Every pet we get must be a rescue? I believe in adopting rescues but also think there are preferences and that's what breeders are for," he added.
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Bieber went on to say, "PETA go help with all the plastic in the ocean. And leave my beautiful cats alone," tagging his cats' Instagram account, @kittysushiandtuna.
http://instagr.am/p/B3LYHTOHOIZ
In a statement shared with Insider, PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said, "Sorry, Justin, but you must think more deeply about this issue: When millions of animals are losing their lives every year because not enough people adopt - choosing instead to shop - the animal overpopulation crisis is a 'real problem.' That's what 'sucks.'"
"PETA urges you to spend just one hour in a municipal animal shelter with us - we think you'll understand how hard it is to look into the animals' eyes and know that because people pay breeders, many of them will pay with their lives," the statement continued. "You have the power to be a great role model on this issue - your behavior guides that of tons of your fans - so please put that to good use."
After Bieber recently got the cats, PETA said that he "could inspire his fans around the world to save a life by adopting a cat from a local animal shelter - rather than fueling the dangerous demand for hybrid cats, contributing to the animal overpopulation crisis, and proving that when it comes to helping animals, his stance so far is 'I don't care.'"
A representative Justin Bieber didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.