Lancaster County's 'Dirty Little Secret'
What are Puppy Mills?
Puppy mills are breeding facilities that produce puppies in large numbers. Documented problems of puppy mills include: unsanitary facilities, foverbreeding, inbreeding, disease, minimal veterinary care, poor quality of food and shelter, lack of human socialization, overcrowded cages and the killing of unwanted animals.
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.
Click here to read about recent puppy mill busts.
Puppy Mill Facts
- Puppy mills contribute to millions of unwanted dogs who are euthanized each year in the United States.
- Mill puppies are more likely to have severe health problems, genetic defects and behavioral issues.
- Documented puppy mill conditions include over-breeding, inbreeding, minimal veterinary care, poor food and shelter, crowded cages and lack of socialization.
- Dogs kept for breeding in puppy mills suffer for years and are bred as often as possible before they are killed, sold through auction like used cars or abandoned.
Meet Shrimp... and No, he's not a Chinese Crested.
It's deplorable and inexcuseable. Shrimp, shown above in improved health, is barely recognizable in the pictures taken immediately following his rescue. Unsanitary conditions and inhumane treatment is "business as usual" at puppymills across the country.
Cruel Confinement
On April 2008, 69 dogs, mostly shih tzus, were seized from a West Texas puppy mill. Conditions includes hernias, a ruptured eye, ear infections, and open sores.
Several dogs were pregnant and one older male was so severely matted, that his back legs were matted together, making walking almost impossible. Confined spaces made movement difficult and the dogs had been sleeping in their own urine and feces.
These dogs were the lucky ones. All were rescued and given proper medical attention. All have been rehomed in either permanent or approved foster homes. Click here to read the complete story.
Undercover in Virginia
Excerpt from a Humane Society undercover investigation of Virginia's Puppy Mill Industry... Read full story here.
"A five-month, undercover investigation by The HSUS revealed a substantial Virginia puppy mill industry that is largely unregulated and often in violation of state and federal laws...
Commercial dog breeders in Virginia number nearly 1,000. And many of these operations churn out puppies in the most deplorable conditions imaginable...
Investigators found breeding dogs and puppies living in cramped, filthy cages, in urine-soaked trailers and in ramshackle kennels without basic sanitation, clean water, veterinary care or even the most primitive protection from the elements...
And Virginia's puppy mills significantly contribute to the state's pet overpopulation crisis: last year, shelters in Virginia had to euthanize more than 42,000 dogs for lack of homes."
They Will Never Know Love...
Puppy mill dogs will never know any of the wonderful things that other dogs enjoy in their lives. Lets never forgot these dogs who are locked away in little cages and will never KNOW LOVE. View the video here.
Please read some recent articles about puppy mills:
- Raid uncovers 28 ailing, waste-covered puppies
- Doggie Danger: Oprah Exposes Puppy Mills
- Pet stores unlikely to admit their puppies come from mills
- Dogs Removed from Suspected Puppy Mill
- Judge Reserves on Cruelty Charges in Dog Seizure
- David Goldstein Exposes Puppy Mills
- Puppy Heartbreak -- Part III - Local News Story - WTVJ | Miami