Does the AKC make money from puppy mills?
Yes, lots. Puppy mills comprise 80% of the AKCs business. It registered 917,247 puppies in 2003 at the cost of approximately $25.00 per puppy. Doesnt the USDA protect these animals? Wholesale dog breeding and the shipment of live animals are regulated by the USDA under the 1970 Animal Welfare Act. The Act requires breeders to be licensed, inspected, and regulated to ensure the very minimum standards of housing, care, and medical treatment. The law, however is poorly enforced. The USDA has few agents to inspect approximately 5,000 puppy mills nationwide. When they discover infractions, the breeder routinely receives ‘a slap on the wrist. Nothing in the welfare legislation does anything to change peoples minds about the idea that puppies are disposable merchandise. Do state laws protect dogs and consumers? States generally have an anti-animal cruelty laws to supposedly protect animals from overt physical abuse and neglect. Since under the law animals are viewed as the property of the own
