In the late 1950s, one man went on a public crusade against animal nudity. His name was Clifford Prout, Jr., and using his wealthy father’s inheritance he founded SINA — the Society for Indecency to Naked Animals. Prout insisted that dogs, horses, and other creatures were no less deserving of modesty than humans. Bermuda shorts and burlap sacks would be more appropriate than letting them roam around naked and free. Animal nudity, according to Prout, contributed to moral decay. The general public took this quite seriously, and Prout even received a $40,000 donation to further his cause. However, he finally confessed in 1964 that he was actually Alan Abel, a notorious hoaxer who later impersonated reclusive millionaire aviator Howard Hughes and offered up “euthanasia cruses” for the tired-of-living.
