Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation

To complete the research and initial implementation of Petwatch, the first science-based educational campaign and consumer’s guide that identifies “Best”, “Worst” and “Good Alternative” pets from among those that are legally imported in to the U.S. Switzer Fellows Dr. Kate Smith, Assistant Professor at Brown University and Senior Research Scientist at the Consortium for Conservation Medicine (through a Switzer Leadership Grant), and Dr. Myra Finklestein, Research Associate at UC Santa Cruz in Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology, will collaborate on the project.  The basic concept for Petwatch is similar to that of Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program that synthesizes scientific criteria to provide consumer advice for making more sustainable choices for seafood consumption. In Petwatch, the goal is to educate consumers and the pet retail trade on Best, Worst and Good Alternative Pets.  This project is a consumer, science and industry-driven strategy to reduce wildlife trade in animal species that have potentially harmful human and ecosystem effects. Petwatch will be the world’s first consumer information campaign founded on scientific evidence that promotes safe pet purchases for all major taxonomic groups.