Back when Mötley Crüe came to town, it wasn’t unusual to hear about their wild antics. But today, the band – whose original members are all in their early to mid-60s – are more likely to take their dogs on tour than throw TVs out the window.
The proof of this is the campaign of the newest member and guitarist John 5 to promote pet adoption in collaboration with PETA, which the non-profit organization with Billboard First.
In a video featuring John’s adorable adopted hairless Chinese Crested mix, Churro, who was rescued from the shelter, the rocker poses in a row with the dog who is so ugly he’s so cute. His spiky mohawk looks like the affectations of a rock star, but it’s actually completely natural. “It just sticks out so much,” John says in the 90-second clip, in which he tells the story of how Churro was found nearly dead in a crate in the San Bernardino Desert.
“If he had been there a few more hours, he wouldn’t have made it,” John continues. “It’s heartbreaking to even think about it. We had Getting Churro – there were no ifs, ands or buts. We were lucky enough to adopt him and he is just the best… We literally can’t go anywhere without him – he is always with us. He is just part of the family.”
These days John Billboardit’s Churro who shakes things up when the band goes on tour. “When we’re on tour, it’s really a lot of fun. (Singer) Vince (Neil) has dogs, (drummer) Tommy (Lee) and (wife) Brittany (Furlan) have dogs, and now we bring Churro,” he says. “It’s like a nonstop party after the show. Speaking of trashing hotel rooms, these (dogs) are the ones who do it.”
The campaign video is part of a campaign urging animal lovers to adopt dogs and cats from shelters and never buy animals from pet stores or breeders “who release litter after litter of puppies and kittens into a world already bursting at the seams with homeless people,” according to PETA. The organization also points out that there are approximately 70 million homeless dogs and cats in the United States at any given time.
PETA said in a press release that Churro’s story underscores the fact that “virtually any breed of dog can be found at a shelter or through a breed-specific rescue group,” and warned that some shelters have policies to warehouse dogs for months or years while turning some animals away, leaving the most vulnerable with nowhere to go. “That’s why PETA is urging shelters to take in all animals in need, advising owners to have their animal companions spayed or neutered, and asking everyone to adopt animals instead of buying them from breeders or pet stores.”
“It’s so important to adopt an animal because you see these helpless animals in there and they just want to be loved,” John 5 says in the video. “You can see it in their face. When you adopt an animal, it will enrich your life so much.”
The guitarist joins other celebrities who have teamed up with PETA in the past to promote pet adoption, including John Stamos, Kathy Griffin, Ron Perlman, Tom Hardy and Cristin Milloti, among others.
John 5 kicks off his 2024 Strung Out solo tour on Sunday (September 1) at City Winery in Boston and will perform at the upcoming Cancelled EP (out Oct. 4), which includes the band’s jazzed-up cover of the Beastie Boys’ “Fight for Your Right.”
Watch John 5’s “Adopt! Never Buy” video below.
