The Case Against Puppy Mills

Puppy mills are breeding sites that purport to mass breed purebred puppies for  wholesale distribution to pet stores and direct to  consumers.   A number of problems await the unsuspecting new puppy owner who takes one these pups home.

Let’s take a look at a few :

The claim that these puppies are “purebred “ is suspicious at best in many cases.

The reason for this is that the term purebred only refers to paperwork documenting lineage of the puppy. Whether the information is accurate is questionable as no true oversight by any regulatory association exists.

As a result, puppies bred at a puppy mill may show characteristics that are not indicative of the represented breed at adulthood.  The chances that these dogs are not true purebred dogs has long been a suspicion of anti puppy mill activists.

Puppy Mill Abuse

There is a long and sad history of puppy and dog abuse at puppy mills throughout the United States. Some examples include inbreeding, malnourishment, lack of veterinary care, inadequate shelter, insufficient or dirty water to drink, lack of exercise for puppies and dogs kept in filthy pens and cages.  

A lack of socialization, and the wanton killing and disposal of dogs, known as brood bitches that are no longer capable of breeding and puppies that are “undesirable” or unwanted, adds to the depravity of puppy mills

Who Buys From Puppy Mills?

Not only are retail businesses customers for puppy mill operators but these disreputable peddlers offer puppies for sale  to puppy brokers, direct to the retail puppy customer via the World Wide Web, and through classified ads in print publications such as newspapers and magazines.

The Sad Consequences of Buying from a Puppy Mill

Puppy buyers who pay $1,000.00 dollars and up for a purebred puppy are typically unaware of the miserable conditions and abuse at puppy mills.  As a result, they are unaware of the inbreeding of dogs at puppy mills is, and its  corresponding relationship to the health problems in their new dog.

We have seen examples of health disorders in as little as a few days while some cases may not arise or be discovered or a year or more. By that time, the visit to the veterinarian becomes a shock to the system of the unsuspecting customer, who often feels duped.

In many sad cases these dogs are viewed as too much of a problem to keep and support through their health crisis. These unfortunate, unhealthy dogs , are often given up or delivered to a dog shelter where they are euthanized if a new home is not found in a short period d of time.

An added health concern for puppy buyers is that dogs that begin their life at puppy mills often have  their birth dates falsified so that unscrupulous dealers can sell them before they are reach the ripe old age of eight weeks old.

This unethical practice is reflected in latter day diseases and immunological disorders. These problems arise as the puppy had insufficient time to nurse from the mother.  While falsifying this paperwork is a violation of federal law, it is believed by puppy  mill activists that this practice is common. The evidence for the practice exists in the rather uniform birth dates that puppies born at puppy mills have listed on the paperwork.

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Is the Existence of Puppy Mills Widespread?

There are several thousand puppy mills that operate in the U.S The vast majority are in Pennsylvania and Missouri. We have observed a large influx of puppies from Kansas in the western United States.

While the Animal Welfare Act prohibits many puppy mill practices, there are less than one hundred inspectors nationally who monitor the operations of puppy mills for the USDA, the enforcement arm for the federal law.

State laws also prohibit abuse of dogs in puppy mills, but enforcement of these statutes is a very low or almost non existent priority. As a result, statutory enforcement and regulation of puppy mills by authorities is seldom enforced.

So What’s a Puppy Buyer To Do ?

In our view, the answer is clear. Put your checkbook back in your pocket and instead of being a puppy buyer, become a puppy adopter. Instead  of contributing to the abuse and killing of dogs, save a life. Instead of contributing to the explosion of  unwanted  dogs that are sitting on doggy death row in dog shelters, provide a loving home. There are wonderful, loving mutts, purebred, puppies, middle aged and senior dogs waiting to be adopted or rescued in your home town today .