Inside the Puppy Mills

I think we should attack the issue from the consumer side. Make it legal to market dogs only one on one and not in pet stores. This would greatly reduce impulse buys. I realize there are puppy mills that advertise online, but it should be required that there be a posting on the advertising site that the prospective buyer needs to visit the breeder first. We could try to pass laws, and there are already laws in place, but these people just go underground, like the dog fighting operations.
Also, what percentage of dogs in shelters are from puppy mills. If they are mostly abandoned or surrendered pets, perhaps there should be stricter guidelines when buying a dog in the first place.

I have two miniature schnauzers. We despise puppy mills but my oldest was from a pet store because she was much older than the other dogs and we were afraid she would not be adopted and would end up killed. My other little guy is from a hobby breeder. Not all breeders are bad. Sometimes you just love a breed so much that you cannot find it at a shelter. We went to the shelter and wanted to adopt every dog we saw. I think the government and local agencies need to crack down on these breeders that operate Puppy Mills and put them out of business. If they can get Vick on animal abuse charges, closing down these puppy mills should be EASY!

Until we pass laws regulating breeding and mandating spays and neuters on non-breeding animals, we will continue to have puppy mills and people who abuse animals for profit. We need a nation wide licensing program for breeders and dog owners. I know this seems like a long shot and sure there are other things that need our attention, but if we don't speak up for those who have no voice, no one will. And if you are offended by the printing of this article or by the suggestion that breeders should be regulated, then maybe you are exactly what we need to protect these animals from. I agree that some breeders are reputable, but some are not and with out regulation, there is no guarantee. We have to write our congressmen!

So sorry to disappoint you, but I am not in the dog-breeding business. I have extensive knowledge of farming and knowledge of wild animals as well.
Please know that I abhor puppy mills, I just don't think we should paint all breeders with the same brush, regardless of numbers.
Please help me understand (I do not have knowledge here) why a huge operation could not be run by a staff and all the animals cared for properly, just like a commercial hog operation (I have knowledge here) of say 1,000 hogs that produce several times a year.
I am not speaking of artificially induced heats. I am not sure how that is done in dogs, since it takes a minimun of 5 months for the endomtrium to rebuild itself. I have knowledge of only naturally occurring heats.
Please read my comment again pretjene, I said "3 - 4 heats every TWO YEARS", not back to back.

I have a sister-in-law who is a pet rescue in Michigan, I have seen first hand how these dogs are treated and abused. It is a shame that the general public has to fight so hard to save animals and it is so easy for many to get away with the abuse and breeding issue.

The amish need to be looked at much closer when it comes to puppy mills, they breed constanly and then sell the puppies at auctions. They abuse there animals so badly. I sold an Amish man one of my Lab puppies, he wanted it for hunting he told me, but in the process he kept asking me questions to make sure she was not related to one of his males in anyway, after a month and a half I recieved a phone call from him and I ended up buying this puppy back due to an injury that accured while in his care. I loved this dog to begin with and when he called about the problem I just wanted her out of there. She has gone through many vet visits and x-rays for an injurty to her back leg, she has scars on her belly, was full of worms and fleas so bad that they infected her skin, she had pebbles in her belly also. She is know almost 9 months old and has come a long way but is very timid to certain noises. He and so many in the area have many dogs and breed everytime the females come into heat, the general public have no clue and the vets in our area have no use for them and have had alot of bad dog cases being bought from these puppy mills come into there office. The AKC was notified with the breeders name, copy of vet bills and pictures of the abuse done and all I recieved back from them was a letter stating there was nothing they can due about these kind of cases. This kind of problem really needs to be addressed better, the puppy mills like to call there cross bred dogs "Designer Dogs". These places are in your area and are kept so quiet.

While puppies mills are cruel and should be outlawed, those puppies need good homes too. I do not approve of buying from these horrible places, but I believe the dogs shouldn't be punished either. My dogs came from pet stores and I wouldn't trade them for anything.

I can't even read this article in it's entirety. As an owner of 6 shih-tzu's I find it absolutley horrifying that anyone could treat animals in such a way. I understand that it is a business, however, they are also living beings and feel as well. I think that we should have more stringent laws and codes for breeders to upheld to.

Also, is it always the case that people with a huge number of dog are automatically puppy mills, meaning that the owners neglected and abused them? I think I read a comment about a guy who sold 300 Shepherds per year to police. They must have been reasonably healthy. I have seen and heard of operations with only several breeders and they were horrific.

Obviously Genesis is a PUPPY MILL person, I can't believe that you could justify one thing that was printed in the story. YOU can never care for that many dogs, even with State of the Art Million Dollar Facilities. DOGS do NOT breed each heat cycle in the wild, shows your lack of education, also dogs in the wild are not subjected to back to back breeding and breeding that is hormonally induced. CATTLE and DOGS are not the same thing again, your lack of education is apparent, CATTLE breeding is also very difficult and expensive. WILD DOGS and DOMESTICATED dogs are not the same, nor will they ever be. THIS needs to be stopped and I am going to get a petition circulating to make these type of operations ILLEGAL period, everyone suffers, the animals, the breeds in conformation, and the people who buy these sad animals...

Obviously Genesis is a PUPPY MILL person, I can't believe that you could justify one thing that was printed in the story. YOU can never care for that many dogs, even with State of the Art Million Dollar Facilities. DOGS do NOT breed each heat cycle in the wild, shows your lack of education, also dogs in the wild are not subjected to back to back breeding and breeding that is hormonally induced. CATTLE and DOGS are not the same thing again, your lack of education is apparent, CATTLE breeding is also very difficult and expensive. WILD DOGS and DOMESTICATED dogs are not the same, nor will they ever be. THIS needs to be stopped and I am going to get a petition circulating to make these type of operations ILLEGAL period, everyone suffers, the animals, the breeds in conformation, and the people who buy these sad animals...

Not all purebred dogs come from puppy mills. I myself breed and raise Pomeranians in my home. I own both of the parents and it breaks my heart each time I sell a puppy. This article depicts all midwestern breeders as heartless puppy mill owners. I am a midewest breeder, I bought my dogs from midwest breeders. None of us are puppy mills!!! I agree that there are many dogs in shelters who need and certainly deserve loving homes. There is also something to be said for buying your dog from a reputable breeder.

If people stopped buying from pet stores, the puppy mills would be forced to sell directly to customers, wouldn't they? And the buyers who really wanted a dog would start searching ads, and would have to work a little harder to get their dog.

Obviously Genesis is a PUPPY MILL person, I can't believe that you could justify one thing that was printed in the story. YOU can never care for that many dogs, even with State of the Art Million Dollar Facilities. DOGS do NOT breed each heat cycle in the wild, shows your lack of education, also dogs in the wild are not subjected to back to back breeding and breeding that is hormonally induced. CATTLE and DOGS are not the same thing again, your lack of education is apparent, CATTLE breeding is also very difficult and expensive. WILD DOGS and DOMESTICATED dogs are not the same, nor will they ever be. THIS needs to be stopped and I am going to get a petition circulating to make these type of operations ILLEGAL period, everyone suffers, the animals, the breeds in conformation, and the people who buy these sad animals...

Obviously Genesis is a PUPPY MILL person, I can't believe that you could justify one thing that was printed in the story. YOU can never care for that many dogs, even with State of the Art Million Dollar Facilities. DOGS do NOT breed each heat cycle in the wild, shows your lack of education, also dogs in the wild are not subjected to back to back breeding and breeding that is hormonally induced. CATTLE and DOGS are not the same thing again, your lack of education is apparent, CATTLE breeding is also very difficult and expensive. WILD DOGS and DOMESTICATED dogs are not the same, nor will they ever be. THIS needs to be stopped and I am going to get a petition circulating to make these type of operations ILLEGAL period, everyone suffers, the animals, the breeds in conformation, and the people who buy these sad animals...

While I agree that not purchasing puppies from pet stores is best, at some point, as the majority discontinue buying pet store pups, I would think that the result, for many months at least, would be a glut of unwanted dogs that would eventually be returned to the puppy mill owners or euthanized. To avoid such a miserable, horrific result, we would likely need a law preventing pet stores from selling puppies, period. However, I don't think this would have any effect on preventing the sale of what appeared to me to be puppy mill dogs on specific websites. I live in an area where summer temperatures exceed 110 most days, and yet when I spoke to a man regarding a puppy featured on one of these sites, he was ready, as long as I paid, to put the puppy of my choice on a plane and have it sent to me where I am sure it would have perished from the heat. I told him I would never buy a dog through his website and that he was cruel to even consider sending a puppy on a plane anywhere in the U.S. during the summer. Those of us who love animals must be creative to remove every conceivable tool for selling puppy mill dogs.

Anyone particpating in what even has the hint of "Puppy Mill" should not only be terribly ashamed of themselves, but I believe should be proceuted to the fullest allowable extent of the law.
IT IS HORRIBLE!

I forgot to add that you should VISIT THE BREEDER. YOu will probably pay less than at a pet store. Get a written health guarantee, subject to a vet inspection BY YOU. This guarantee should state that the puppy must be healthy and in good genetic condition or the sale is off. If they won't let you to their place, DON'T BUY. Takes a little more work, but worth it.

O and another thing I have a shelter dog and hes great!!!!Hes pitt-bull and american bull dog.Ur thinking OMG a pitt-bull nope my cat does more harm to him then he does to the cat LOL very tru!!!!