Reality of Pet Store Puppies and Puppy Mills

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  • WBLW

    Read this article today, it's a good one

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22670940/

    Check out this site, good site about pet store pups and puppy mills. The photos are eye opening

    http://www.petshoppuppies.org/index.htm

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  • Ninabeana26N

    Oh my gosh….those videos literally had me crying :( It is so sad to see those dogs in the puppy mills or being sold at auctions :( I cannot believe that as far as we have come in animal rights that this still goes on. I know I will NEVER buy from a petstore because these people deserve to be out of business...they also deserve to lose everything they have gained by treating animals like money-making machines. It makes me sick :(

    Nina & my baby boy Dallas

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  • BarklessdogB

    Pets are considered live stock, they are not people with rights, or else what would happen with our food industry, medical research animals?

    How much comfort & dignity is enough for a living animal is the question, from chicken to dogs?

    It all goes down the hole, think about that as you eat that big juicy burger.

    I'm not supporting it, that is the reality of it. How can we choose which living creatures get rights and others dont, because we eat them?

    What about the poor animals used for cosmetic reaserch?

    They have to be tested as human safe.

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  • lvossL

    It is true pets are currently considered livestock by the USDA and therefore fall under the same regulations as feedstock. That does not mean that USDA could not alter their guidelines to create a new classification for companion animals and new a set a standards for their care. It is also important to understand that they are only considered livestock by USDA for the purpose of regulating the commercial puppy breeding industry.

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  • nala121498N

    @lvoss:

    It is true pets are currently considered livestock by the USDA and therefore fall under the same regulations as feedstock. That does not mean that USDA could not alter their guidelines to create a new classification for companion animals and new a set a standards for their care. It is also important to understand that they are only considered livestock by USDA for the purpose of regulating the commercial puppy breeding industry.

    I agree. My sister agrees with this line of thinking as well, not because she is a dog breeder, but she is a horse breeder. She works with a local humane organization and it is so difficult to get neglected or abused animals removed from homes. I don't see why the USDA cannot alter the laws. I know it is complex issue…it is so sad to see these videos, etc. My heart breaks each time.

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  • BarklessdogB

    A local pet store near me that sold puppies is closing. We are so happy. They sold a lot of puppies.

    It's a legal issue when pets become family members- I know a lot of horse owners that certainly feel the same.

    It's sad fate for all the animals on the other side of the "pet" fence.

    It's easy to look the other way when we enjoy our meat & meat bye products (leather). I know I do. I just look the other way. It's easy to do when you don't have to do the actual killing. We used to be vegetarians, but after the kids , it just kind of slipped away, although my wife is, but still enjoys her leather goods.

    I saw a special on raising Kobe Beef (expensive beef). The Japanese feel that if the cow has a really good life it will have the best beef. They do everything to give the cattle a very comfortable "good" life. The cattle are delicately raised, free roam grazing, they get massages, baths, get special food and even a little wine and are played comforting music. When the cow must be killed there is a ceremony thanking the cow for its life, a prayer said and are killed quickly. A much more humane and understanding life.

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  • tanzaT

    And add on top of that all the states now pushing mandatory spay/neuter laws at 4 months and restrictions on "hobby breeders" which covers 99.9% of all responsible breeders to one litter from one bitch/dog and then have to be neutered along with a heffy yearly fee? Does this stop the puppy mills? No, in fact they are exempt from these requirements so will still be selling over the internet and shipping these pups in.. only to be dumped by the irresponsible people that buy them when they are too much to handle or they are caught and fined for having a unspayed/neutered pet. These people honestly believe that this will resolve the shelter problems. They tried in Califoria to use Santa Cruz mandatory spay/neuter law as an example, execpt their numbers for shelter dogs has gone up since the law passed while state wide it has gone down… And the biggest shelter problem is cats... along with that the feral cats....

    Pat Fragassi

    Tanza Basenjis

    www.tanzabasenjis.net

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  • lvossL

    Asking that USDA regulations for companion animals be different from feedstock is not asking that pets be considered family member in the eyes of the law. It is recognizing that any animal that is expected to socialize closely with humans needs to be raised in a different environment then an animal whose primary purpose is food.

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  • BarklessdogB

    The problem there is no right answer or line. I personally wanted Michael Vick to hang for what he did. You can't because animals are considered possessions, but do have some rights. Same with puppy mills, those people should go to prision for life.

    I have a hard time not wanting a better life for all animals, the ones that sleep with us and the ones we eat. I have trouble making that distinction, but agree any ground gained is good.

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  • Ninabeana26N

    Hm…does THIS look like a good breeder to you?!? THESE ARE NOT BASENJIS!!!

    http://www.pupcity.com/puppies-for-sale/view.asp?adid=22997

    I swear websites like this just increase the chances of puppy mills & BYBs.

    Nina & my baby boy Dallas

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  • lvossL

    @Ninabeana26:

    I swear websites like this just increase the chances of puppy mills & BYBs.

    That is so true. This is why it is so important that it is not only responsible breeders that have websites directing people on how to find a responsibly bred puppy but also that responsible owners have websites. Every person can help battle puppy mills by helping other people find a responsible breeder. The more websites are out there directing people to websites like

    http://www.basenji.org/learn
    http://kineticbasenjis.tripod.com/Information/Buying_a_Basenji.html
    http://basenji.org/?q=node/30
    http://www.basenjiclubofcanada.com/BCOC-BreedersDirectory.html

    Any links to the National Club's Breeder Directory and educational websites help to increase the chances that buyers will not go to a BYB or puppymill.

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    @dmcarty: OK this is where lots of people will get realy realy mad at me but I'm going to say it anyway. While I appreciate desire and any rescue or raid the puppy mill groups desire to save some animals in deplorable conditions - I keep coming back to the phrase, "unintended consequences". Because dogs were purchased at auction or out of a pet store or some place in deplorable conditions - you have increased the 'market' for that breed of dog. They (PM's) don't care about your kind heart, have little guilt about the conditions they were in - they know the dog was sold. Several years ago many in basenji rescue and BCOA were involved in a horrid situation in Kansas City. Placing a huge number of dogs - now many breeders have not bred in some time because there is no "market' for puppies from reputable breeders - some because they gave up homes that were on their lists to these rescues - some because they've taken in some of these dogs themselves and can't have any more dogs in their house. While it pains me to say this because I do have a heart - I think there is a point where because of our collective 'heart' we are making the problem worse. If there was not a 'market' for these animals - we would not have puppy mills. BTW - the only way you can even think about this is if you don't have your fur-baby on your lap. But do think about it a bit. I understand your stance on the puppy mill but these puppies were actually from the McMinn County Animal Shelter in Athens, TN. The deplorable conditions I described occurred at the shelter and while on transport with the shelter's volunteer to a rescue group. Even though this is a shelter run by a humane society the conditions there we overcrowded, dirty, and no better then a puppy mill. With that said, the volunteers who work there do the best they can with few resources and little or no knowledge about veterinary medicine. They do provide a service when in the month of June over 400 stray and surrendered pets were admitted to the shelter. If you've ever been to a country that lacks a system to deal with stray animals then the importance of such a system is apparent, regardless of the conditions found at the shelter. Who know's where the parents came from but in the south (as in much of the country) we have a large problem with the lack of spay and neutering. I actually paid $0 from the shelter to obtain the pups. Since they were headed for euthanasia the volunteers and animal control officer released them to me so I could provide them with medical care. More than likely these pups were from someones' dogs out in the country who weren't spayed or neutered and probably was allowed to run free. Who knows maybe the parents were from a backyard breeder or puppy mill but I would never advocate for people to pay a large sum of money for a purebred dog instead of a good ol mutt from the pound just because somewhere along the way a relative of that pound puppy might have been from someplace I don't support. Everybody has to make their own decision but I have trouble faulting the shelter and its volunteer workers when its the city, county, and federal government and its representatives who should do a better job providing the funding necessary to train competent workers and provide adequate housing conditions. In a rural county such as McMinn in Tennessee these resources are just not available.