Inside the Puppy Mills

You are so right that not all breeders online or otherwise are bad. Some (as you seem to be) genuinely love their animals and do take care to make sure the breed is well respected in the breeding process and also that they are all socialized - puppies and parents. Keep up the good work because if there are going to continue to be purebred dogs out there, we need responsible breeders who genuinely Care.

How do you not understand that your rationale makes no sense? You buy from a pet store, the pet store buys more dogs from a puppy mill. A 4th grader could explain this to you. Stop buying from a pet store.

You're very stupid. Shelters (I'm not talking about breed-specific rescues) charge minimal fees. If you can't spend $200 to adopt a dog, you should not have one. A pet shop puppy will cost you a lot more money in medical bills and even more in heartache. Some rescues do require a yard for some types of dogs because they are so large. I don't agree with this most of the time because people will just dump their dog in the yard when what the dog really needs is to walk. I adopted from a wonderful rescue group in Las Vegas (Heaven Can Wait Sanctuary) which actually sends the dogs to the women's prison to be socialized and trained by the inmates. I got so lucky to have a wonderful little dog with virtually no behavior problems for the incredibly low price of $200. He does chase cats. So be it.

Some people should not have pets. They are not accessories.

This just isn't true! The prices charged at animal shelters are minimal and almost always cover veterinary work that's already been done - at prices far below what you can expect to pay at your vet clinic. Around here you can save hundreds of dollars by getting a dog at a shelter and paying up front for altering and vaccinations. As far as dogs with issues - that's not true either. Our shelters are full of wonderful, healthy, and extremely adoptable dogs. If you don't want to get a dog from a shelter, get one from a rescue group. And most reputable rescue groups are happy to let you get the dog checked out by your vet before committing or offer a money back trial period.

Sounds to me like the problem is with the shelter you were dealing with. No dog should be adopted out to a family before they have had a chance to spend some time with it. And no responsible shelter would knowing adopt out an animal with a bad or dangerous temperment. The only time that should be done would be to a trainer or rescue group that is interested in rehabilitating the dog and addressing it's temperment issues. At a well run shelter, medical issues should be addressed and treated before the animal is put up for adoption, unless of course, the animal has a condtion, like diabeties, that requires daily medication. In those cases they should be adopted out to home that are aware that this is a special needs pet. Every single dog put up for adoption at my local shelter has Successfully undergone basic training, and for the life time of the dog you can bring it back any time for more work with the shelter's trainer. My local shelter charges 45.00 to adopt a cat and 65.00 to adopt a dog. This includes an id microchip, spay or neuter, flea and mite prevention treatment, and that annual vaccines for that year. If you adopt a kitten or a puppy, you simply bring them back in when they are old enough for the appropriate surgery or vaccine. To have all that stuff done to a new puppy at one of our local vets costs around 250.00 and about 175.00 for a kitten. In the long run you save money. Their adoption process and screening is thorough enough to find safe loving homes for animals but is not what I would call a hassle. Best of all, if an animal does not work out for your family, the shelter will take it back and refund your adoption fee, for up to 6 months after adoption. Normally that is plenty of time. It is very unfortunate for the animals in their care that your shelter appears to have such unreasonable and unfair practices. It is a diservice to both the animals and potential pet owners

Pure bred dogs are most often purchased by people who have educated themselves on what breed of dog will fit in their lifestyle. I find more fault with the people who go to these shelters, fall in love with a cute pupply/dog and take them home only to find that the puppy/dog is too active, or prefers to be an "in" dog when they wanted an "out" dog, etc. This is so sad for the dog and the family when their act of kindness goes bad. Over 10 years, with 2 Moms and 2 Dads, I bred 3 litters of Golden Retrievers..33 puppies in all. These pups were supplemental fed, lived in my house and they were each lovingly handled and played with. My children were involved with them, were careful not to scare the pups in any way, and they helped me make sure that not one pupply was underfed, nervouse, anxious or head shy. These pups went to great homes where they all lived out their lives happily with the same family. I made sure that each family was aware of the "TRAITS" of this breed and they knew what to basically expect of their puppy. This cannot be done with mixed breeds most of the time. I became a victim of the "adoption center system" when I did bring home a mixed breed puppy, Benji type. Oh yeah, he was so adorable and the center told me that he was loving and sweet. They didn't know too much about him because he was a stray but he showed no signs of aggression. They said that he acted appropriately when around children that had visited him. Too bad they didn't know how he would be around small children out side of the center. What I got for my good deed of adopting him was a mark against me for future adoptions when I was had to return him. I feel like I did an act of kindness by placing my puppies with people who really wanted a Golden Retriever and who knew that they were habitual escape artists who sometimes don't listen and they need an incredible amount of freedom to run. Not one of my puppies came back to me, even though they could have been returned at any time. Leave good breeders alone. They are helping to lessen the load on the adoption centers by placing dogs in "suitable" homes by breed.

You are being so unfair with your accusations. There are people who buy and/or breed "pure breeds" for very good reasons. Most people choose to purchase a "pure breed puppy" because they are looking for a particular type of dog whose disposition and actions will fit into their lifestyle. This forethought always helps to keep the population in the shelters down. There are breeds of dogs who do not work well in working families, just as there are breeds who need alot of space...not necessarily due to size! That adorable puppy that you fall in love with at the shelter and want to "save" could turn out to be your worse nightmare if the pups heritage is not what works well with your family. Puppy then has to go thru being taken back and placed again. So sad for puppy/dog and for the family. I bred three litters of pure bred Golden Retrievers (2 Moms, 2 Dads) over 10 years. These puppies stayed in my house. They were supplemental fed with mixtures that included strained baby beef and baby vitamins. My children were careful not to "scare" the puppies with any loud noises and each puppy, (13 in one litter), was lovingly handled and played with individually. These puppies were playful and healthy, no head shy, no nervous anxious puppies. They were vet checked by my own vet and sold to very good homes where each puppy lived out their life happily. We had a total of 33 puppies over the years in these 3 litters. Maybe you can say that there were 33 puppies in the adoption shelters that I caused not to get a home, but I look at it like there were 33 families looking for a dog and I supplied them with a the type of dog that they wanted and that would not be casted off as being "unsuitable". I did own a mixed breed that I got from a shelter, Benji type. Too bad that the shelter didn't know that the dog should not have been housed with small children. He had been a stray brought in, they really thought that he was sweet and lovable. I could not keep this dog and in having to take him back it caused me to have a strike against me at the adoption center making it difficult for me to adopt another dog. I much prefer seeing a particular breed of dog placed with a particular type of family.

Actually, good breeders DON'T cause overpopulation - and beating up on them just helps the mills. If you want to reduce unwanted dogs, prevent unplanned and unwanted litters, and go after abusive commercial facilities. Don't demonize the good breeders who are responsible for what they breed.

This trend to attack good breeders helps the mills.

Again, most mill dogs are not AKC any more. You may think their inspections are a joke, but the result was that the mills started their own registries. Most don't use AKC.

Actually, most puppy mill puppies are NOT AKC. They are registered with other regiestriies since AKC started cracking down on mills. Take a look - there are a whole slew of "paper only" registries that puppy mills use. They are getting along just fine without AKC.

Cattle are generally kept in better conditions than puppy mill dogs. They are allowed to engage in normal social behavior much of the time and are allowed much more space. Feedlots aren't pleasant places, but most only spend a short while "finishing" there. Now veal, on the other hand . . . My point is that they don't really compare, and that really has nothing to do with the topic at hand.

I tried to post my comments but they did not go through. Noone should attack you as you probably breed your dog once a year, keep your puppies in your bedroom, cook for them and spend time with them. Big kennel should be attacked because they keep their puppies in a barn and feed them cheap dog food. But big keenels do not want to sheer market with small breeders. It is all about money for them. I wonder why kennel clubs and media do not see that. Big kennels supposedly save the breed and small breeders are puppy mill! In reality you probably pay stud fees and big breeders breed father to daughter and create crippled animals. You are doing something really wonderful! Big kennels and American Kennel Club ruined many breeds by their selective breeding.