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After the devastating loss of his family's two-year-old dog Henry, Pete Davidson went to Citipups pet store in Manhattan and purchased a two-and-a-half-month old Cavapoo puppy for his mother and sister—who shared Henry with the SNL alum.
A Cavapoo is a cross between a Poodle and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
In a May Instagram post about his family's loss, Davidson wrote:
"Henry was only 2 years old but unfortunately got very sick very fast. My mom, sister and I got Henry at the beginning of the pandemic and he saved our lives."
"Not sure I’d even be around without him. He was the happiest and sweetest dog ever."
After getting the Cavapoo which was reportedly at Citipups from a vetted breeder, Davidson was criticized by PETA for purchasing the puppy from a pet store.
In a statement to TMZ, PETA's Senior VP of Cruelty Investigations Daphna Nachminovitch said:
“It’s tragic that Pete didn’t seek out a borough-born mutt from a city animal shelter, because a scrappy New Yorker with charm, personality, and unconventional handsomeness could have been his perfect match."
"Since shelters in New York and across the country are overflowing with homeless animals, PETA urges Pete to show some big heart energy by adopting, not shopping, in the future.”
In response, Davidson left Nachminovitch an angry voicemail—which was promptly sent to TMZ by PETA.
Davidson said:
"Thank you so much for making comments publicly that I didn't adopt a dog."
"I had to get a specific dog. So why don’t you do your research before you f*cking create news stories for people because you’re boring…”
He added why he was getting a dog—for his mother and sister because of Henry's death—then ended the call with a few choice words for the controversial animal rights organization.
You can hear the voicemail here:
WARNING: NSFW language
\u201cPete Davidson leaves PETA an explicit voicemail after they blasted him for buying a dog from a pet store instead of adopting:\n\n\u201cF\u2013k you and suck my d\u2013k.\u201d\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
Davidson later explained his anger to TMZ.
“I haven’t seen my mom and sister cry like that in over 20 years. I was trying to cheer up my family."
"I was already upset that the store [Citipups] had filmed me without my permission or acknowledgement."
"Then [PETA] made a public example of us, making our grieving situation worse. I am upset."
The Staten Island born actor and comedian added:
"It was a poor choice of words. I shouldn’t have said what I said, but I am not sorry for standing up for myself and my family.”
The comments on social media were largely Team Pete, not PETA.
\u201c@PopBase Exactly! Same here. I\u2019m allergic to cats, so when I got my kitty I needed to get a specific breed as well\u2026.no need to shame people for buying.\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase like the dog is still taken care of in a home whats the big issue? someone educated me QUICK.\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase Actually, does someone even take PETA serious these days anymore?\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase Are we sure it wasn\u2019t his voicemail to Kanye\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase Are we supposed to be offended by what he said, because we\u2019re not\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase well like\u2026 what are we supposed to do with pets in pet stores? send them to animal shelters? will that make it okay?\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase the \u201cend of message\u201d immediately after him cussing them out was so funny \ud83d\udc80\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase This is so embarrassing for them. I wouldn\u2019t have posted the voicemail\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
\u201c@PopBase He bought it at Citi Pups (who are linked to reputable breeders) I know this because I follow their cat manager, Jeremy\u201d— Pop Base (@Pop Base) 1686059725
PETA has been embroiled in controversy for years over the kill rates in their own shelters which are routinely twice or more than other shelters.
The organization has also been cited for abducting pets from people's yards then euthanizing them before families can reclaim their pet.
PETA has repeatedly drawn criticism for stating pets are equivalent to human slavery.