Almost Heaven Kennel in Allentown, PA has been shut down

June 24, 8:27 AMWilmington Pet Training ExaminerCasey Troyer

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Almost Heaven Kennel could have more aptly been called Living Hell Kennels.  Though their website tries to show happy puppies in beautiful settings, this puppy mill was raided yesterday by officials from the PA Department of Agriculture and the Humane Society of the United States.  Only 25 dogs were left on site, the maximum allowed without a kennel license in PA.  Of the more than 200 dogs rescued, several were afflicted with respiratory infections, skin conditions, and one dog was even suffering with an untreated severed limb.  These rescued animals have been taken to an emergency shelter in Harrisburg, and hopefully most of them will be cleaned up, vetted, and ready to be adopted in the near future.

Puppy mills are a huge issue in America.  These dogs are not socialized properly, nor are they bred for good health, temperament, comformation, or anything else besides MONEY.  The parents live life in a chicken coop essentially, and a parent who doesn't know how to live can't teach her litters.  These dogs mass produced in puppy mills also end up in shelters.  If we could get on top of the puppy mill problem, far fewer dogs would be destroyed every year just because they didn't have a home.  According to the HSUS 3-4 million cats and dogs, about half of those that enter shelters this year, will die there because there just aren't enough homes to go around.

Though this huge operation has been shut down, PA is a haven for puppy mills.  Lancaster is another popular area for puppy mills.   The demand for these purebred and “designer” dogs is so high in America that these factory farms just keep cranking out litter after litter in the pursuit of the almighty dollar.  Puppy mill puppies are sold online, through pet stores, and in classified ads commonly, but there are other ways one could come into contact with a puppy mill dog.  Check out this article from the HSUS on how to get a puppy from a real breeder or rescue and avoid the many woes of a puppy mill dog while not giving money to puppy millers.  Cesar Millan, TV’s Dog Whisperer did a show at a puppy mill this season, and also offers suggestions for how to avoid purchasing from one.

For more truths about puppy mills, please check out the following articles also from the HSUS:

Inside A Puppy Mill

Puppy Mill Truths

Stop Puppy Mills: The Truth About Commercial Dog Breeding