Puppy mill busts - how many more dogs must suffer?

April 29, 7:31 AMAtlanta Dogs ExaminerSandy Weaver Carman

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In places like this, pet-store puppies begin their
lives.  Their parents only escape by dying or
being sold to another commercial breeder.

As summer nears, the stories are coming out - suspected puppy mills are raided, dogs in deplorable conditions are seized, and people are facing charges for animal abuse.

Why? Because an uneducated American populace continues to buy puppies at pet stores and on line, and many Americans get a new dog just in time for summer vacation so the kids can help take care of it.

Drive up I-85 in Gwinnett County and there's a billboard advertising any breed of puppy the buyer wants, available at the click of a mouse.

In shopping centers all around Atlanta, stores sell not just pet supplies, but the pets to go with them. They charge higher prices than reputable breeders do for puppies of arguably inferior quality with little or no guarantee. And yet, an uneducated public continues to go into pet stores, plunk down their credit cards and come out with an impulse purchase.

And every time a puppy is sold through a pet store or the internet equivalent, the buyer is supporting animal cruelty. The buyer is rewarding the people who keep dogs in deplorable conditions in order to make a living. And the buyer is condemning dogs in puppy mills to a horrible life, all because that buyer couldn't be bothered to do a little research before getting a puppy.

Yesterday in Missouri, nearly 70 dogs of various breeds, many pregnant, were taken from an unlicensed breeding facility. At the Humane Society of Missouri, they were checked over and found to have paw and leg problems from living on the wire cage floors of rabbit hutches. Their coats were matted with feces and soaked in urine. In Michigan, 70 Australian Shepherds were impounded, taken from a woman who apparently never cleaned the cages or runs they lived in. Animal control officers noted several inches of fecal material and urine-soaked wood chips in the pens and crates, which they suspect means she just added fresh chips instead of cleaning up after the dogs. Some of the kennels had several inches of standing water in them, with no way for the dogs to get out of the water. Many of the dogs have infected feet from the incredibly unsanitary and unhealthy conditions. And in Cherokee County last month, a puppy mill was raided, with nearly 140 dogs taken. The charges included unsafe enclosures, no shelter from the weather and unsanitary conditions.

And still, pet stores and internet pet marts sell puppies to an uneducated population. Hundreds of thousands of puppies are raised each year in commercial kennels. And as long as people keep buying puppies from pet stores, back-yard breeders and the internet, hundreds of thousands more will be produced annually going forward. It's the old "supply and demand" thing...if there's a demand, someone will find a way to supply it. And unfortunately, people who look for an easy way to make a lot of money selling puppies cut costs on the care, feeding and housing of the dogs who produce those puppies.

How to put an end to puppy mills? Education. If you hear someone say they're going to get a puppy, please give them the link to this story so they can do a little reading first. Insist they follow the links and read in-depth about the misery many dogs suffer by being unlucky enough to end up in a puppy mill. If they want a pure-bred, there are rescues for nearly every breed, right here in Georgia. If they insist on a pure-bred puppy, then the Atlanta area is a hot-bed of very good, very responsible breeders, and they can be found through the kennel club links on this page.

Here are some warning signs that help puppy buyers spot a puppy-mill puppy:

1. It's in a store. All puppies in stores come from irresponsible breeders, no matter what the store owner says.

2. It's advertised in the local paper. Responsible breeders don't need to advertise, as they often have a waiting list for puppies.

3. It's being sold at a flea market. All puppies being sold at flea markets come from irresponsible breeders, no matter what they tell you.

4. When you go to see the litter of puppies, you're not allowed to see where the adult dogs live. Responsible breeders are eager to show off the quality of their line, and want you to see the adults.

5. There are puppies available from the same person for multiple breeds. Responsible breeders usually have one, may have two, rarely three, breeds they specialize in, but not more than that.

6. If you ask to see genetic test results for things like hip dysplasia and eye problems and the seller doesn't know what you're talking about or claims that their dogs don't have genetic problems. Responsible breeders not only know the tests that should be done on their breed before the dogs are allowed to reproduce, they have done those tests and have the certification to prove it.

7. If the seller doesn't ask questions about how the puppy will live, doesn't require a contract and doesn't offer a guarantee of more than 72 hours. Reputable breeders will take back any dog they produce, for any reason, for the life of the dog, and that guarantee is part of the contract.

If you'd like to join the fight against puppy mills on a national scale, consider joining Prisoners of Greed's Coalition Against Misery. It's a non-profit corporation with this mission statement:

I support the mission of the Coalition Against Misery to stop the mass production of puppies. I am opposed to puppy mills. I am opposed to keeping dogs in cages for their entire lives and breeding them over and over again. I am opposed to the sale of puppies in pet stores. I will boycott all stores that sell puppies.

With enough education and enough support, perhaps puppy mills could be a thing of the past within the next decade. That would be the best gift we could give dogs.

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