People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is offering to send a human being to take the place of Pennsylvania’s famous Punxsutawney Phil ahead of Groundhog Day.
“I would gladly take Phil’s place if it will spare him a tedious life punctuated only by the confusion and terror of being dangled in front of a noisy crowd every year,” said 36-year-old Amber Canavan from Portland, Oregon, who is volunteering to live in Phil’s enclosure and predict the weather.
“Punxsutawney Phil did not consent to living in a box in a library, where he’s denied the opportunity to hibernate, dig, burrow, explore, or do anything else that matters to a groundhog,” she added.
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In a press release, PETA told Punxsutawney Groundhog Club President Tom Dunkel that Canavan would forecast “with at least as much accuracy” as Phil. Further, she will even don a groundhog costume if the club prefers.
She “will gladly travel to Pennsylvania to take Phil’s place, live as he does now in the town library, livestream her monotonous life all year long, and give an equally unscientific weather forecast on February 2,” according to the release.
The organization is asking that Phil, and his companion, Phyllis, be sent to a reputable sanctuary in exchange.
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“PETA also offered, alternatively, to send a telescope and moon chart as another, perhaps more accurate, way to predict the weather and notes that its previous offers to send a persimmon tree, whose seeds are believed by some farmers to indicate the weather ahead, or a talking, animatronic groundhog still stand,” the release adds.
With Groundhog Day coming up on Thursday, Punxsutawney Phil will either predict an early spring or six more weeks of winter — unless Dunkel takes PETA up on its offer.
