Update:  I have learned the majority of these groups are scammers looking for "deposits", then block the person.   And, some groups are selling puppies.  

Our petition is asking Meta to create a badged program for reputable dog rescue organizations so that its users are not duped by scammers (or puppy sellers).  They should also shut down any group asking for money for a puppy.  (Paypal is promptly shutting off accounts that are reported.  Do better, Meta!) Also, if they could create educational banners educating people looking for a puppy to go to Petfinder.com.

=========

In 2010, I protested at a mall on Black Friday to encourage it to stop leasing to a puppy mill pet store.  It worked. The mall did not renew the lease.

Sadly, puppy mill and backyard breeders now sell puppies and kittens in Facebook Groups and title the groups as "Adoptions" and "Rehoming".  

Thankfully, animal selling is not allowed on Facebook Marketplace.  But, unfortunately, the Community Standard Policy is not clearly written, and is not enforced in any scalable way.  So unethical breeders and scammers have figured out workarounds with groups.

I worked at Facebook from 2012-2020.  I believe Mark Zuckerberg and the company to be ethical -- but mistakes are overlooked. Now is the time to make Mark and the policy & enforcement teams aware of what is happening on Facebook.

While at Facebook, I started The Bear Brothers page for my two rescue dogs, to practice with.  I still post on that page.  Recently, every time I post, I get bombarded by spammy breeder group comments.   It is time consuming for me to report, block and delete their comments.  It also brought my awareness to the thousands of "breeder" groups that exist on Facebook.

I am asking for your signature on this request to Meta, its policy team and Mark Zuckerberg to be more clear with its policy to not allow the sale of  animals -- and to ENFORCE a more CLEAR policy.   I ask for the same reason I picketed a mall on Black Friday -- appealing with a cute puppy is not how a responsible dog owner begins their journey.  Facebook is now the equivalent of a 2010 "mall" that sells "puppy mill dogs".   Advocacy is working. In 2011, 2.6 million cats and dogs were euthanized in the United States. Today it is about 920,000.  Meta is sadly contributing to the  dogs who are euthanized at shelters in the United States annually by not being more clear and enforcing its policies.

I am grateful that many rescue organizations are able to share adoptable pets on Facebook postings.  But, I now realize that Facebook is contributing to the over-population of animals at the shelters.

Meta, please consider being more clear and ENFORCE your animal-selling policy.  Do not allow groups or pages to promote the sale of puppies or kittens.  Meta needs to create a free badged program for reputable rescue organizations.   Rescue advocates reading this, please share this widely.

Here is the video of the mall protest I attended in 2010.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQxKqD-QX9M  Watch it -- and replace Mall with Meta!  Where is the love?