What Are Puppy Mills?
While many people may be familiar with the term “puppy mill,” the industry and government regulators dismiss the horrors associated with them. Puppy mills are facilities which are licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture that mass-produce puppies for pet stores throughout the country and to emerging foreign markets. At present a USDA license is required for anyone with four or more “intact bitches” although federal officials are considering raising the number of animals held to as many as 60 without a USDA license. Puppies are subjected to horrific conditions from birth and during transport from breeder, to broker, to pet stores hundreds of miles from where their life began. The breeding “stock” suffers a constant misery living in small cramped cages often soiled with their own excrement. A few Midwestern states are home to the largest concentration of puppy mills in the country, and Missouri is by far the worst offender. Many of the operators of these puppy mills hold o
A puppy mill is a breeding facility that mass-produces purebred puppies. They are typically sold at seven to eight weeks of age to brokers and retail operations across the U.S. The dams are over bred, inbred, receive minimal veterinary care, poor quality food and shelter, lack necessary socialization with humans, and live in tight, overcrowded cages. To the unsuspecting consumer, this situation frequently means buying a puppy facing an assortment of veterinary medical problems or harboring genetically borne diseases that do not appear until years later. On an even sadder note, these breeding dogs are forced to live in puppy mills for their whole lives so that they can continue to produce more puppies. Repeatedly bred, most of these “brood bitches” are killed once their ability to reproduce declines.
Selling puppies is a multi-million dollar industry. It’s not illegal to sell puppies and make a profit doing so. Businesses need to make a profit to stay in business so why the big deal about puppy mills? The reason puppy mills are such a target is that puppy mill dogs are kept in horrendous conditions. Often these dogs are left to sleep inside chicken wire cages stacked 4 to 6 cages high. The cages are often left unprotected from the extreme heat or cold. Dogs easily die of exposure. The cages are crowded and the stress of their living situation causes the dogs to exhibit stress behaviors such as bullying, fighting, hiding, and pacing starting from a very young age. The dogs are never let out of the cages and are not trained in any way. Keep in mind, when you factor in good nutrition, vet care, genetic tests, and a dog show schedule the cost of breeding goes up and profit goes down. This is why good breeders rarely make much profit. Healthy breeders make enough money to supplement the
Puppy mills are breeding facilities that produce purebred puppies in large numbers. Often the puppies are sold directly to the public via the Internet, newspaper ads, or at the mill itself. In other cases they are sold to brokers and pet shops across the country. For the unwitting consumer, this situation frequently means buying a puppy facing an array of immediate veterinary problems or harboring genetic diseases that surface years later. The puppies don’t have any papers. It’s probably the worst place in the world for animals.
A puppy mill is a factory, used for the mass production of puppies simply for the sake of profit. Puppy mills are horrible businesses who care nothing about the dogs, they are simply in it for the money. Puppy mills ship dogs (usually unhealthy) around the country to pet stores where they are sold. The “breeders” often have 20+ dogs and keep them in horrible conditions. ANY DOG FROM A PET STORE COMES FROM A PUPPYMILL Personally, I consider a commercial breeder a puppy mill as well. They have more than two breeds and also breed for profit. The only difference may be that a commercial breeder may have cleaner kennels. The dogs in puppymills are crammed in cages and forced to breed until they can no more, then they are disposded of, dumped, or sold to research labs. The people that breed these dogs usually know nothing about the breeds themselves and don’t care. They breed unhealthy and unfit dogs in small cages and barely give them the bare necessities Roscoe the Racehound™ answered on M
