Paris Hilton criticised by PETA for buying new Chihuahua puppy

PETA has said it will be putting up “head-turning” advertisements in Los Angeles in response to Paris Hilton buying a new Chihuahua puppy.

The animal rights organisation described the US socialite’s purchase as “problematic” and accused her of a “speciesist splurge” after she shared a video of her new dog on Instagram.

It urged her and members of the public to adopt their pets, rather than buy them from breeders.

Hilton announced on Thursday that she had welcomed a new puppy to her home, which had been related to one of her late pets – Harajuku.

“Absolutely in love with my new puppy! He is so adorable and sweet!” she wrote.

In an article posted online on Friday, PETA accused the star of “living under a rock” and asked her to keep her “retail therapy” to “baubles and bags”.

“Paris Hilton recently bought a Chihuahua puppy from a breeder before publicizing her problematic purchase on social media,” it said.

“The star has apparently been living under a rock if she thinks that buying animals is a compassionate thing to do.

“A visit to an animal shelter would have shown her just how many Chihuahuas need homes — and five minutes on Petfinder would turn up thousands more, including puppies.

“PETA knows that retail therapy is what Paris Hilton loves best, but we’re asking her to keep the shopping to baubles and bags.

“Next week, we’ll be running head-turning ads in Los Angeles, blasting Hilton’s speciesist splurge.”

PETA said buying animals from pet stores or breeders could result in the death of an animal in a shelter and urged people to “pledge not to buy animals”.

“Homelessness is not just a human problem. If you want to bring an animal into your life, always adopt from a shelter,” the organisation wrote.

According to PETA, there are an estimated 70 million homeless dogs and cats in the US, and that each year, only 10% of this population is ever admitted to a shelter.

It says on its website: "Of the millions of animals who enter shelters each year, about half must be euthanized for humane reasons or because no suitable homes exist for them."

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