Puppy Mills

By: Meghan Bisesi

http://www.humanesociety.org/news/multimedia/

WHAT IS A PUPPY MILL?

A breeding facility that produces purebred puppies in large numbers

Been around for decades

Dogs live in poor conditions

Never let out of cages

About 2-6 dogs per cage

Supply puppies to pet stores

Normally not licensed

BREEDING STOCK Start breeding during

first heat cycle Bred every heat cycle

until they become infertile

Litter size decreases Killed or Abandoned

when infertile

MAIN PROBLEMS OF PUPPY MILLS

Inbreeding Overbreeding Health Issues Behavioral Issues Overcrowded cages Minimal veterinary

care

PROBLEMS CONT.

Dogs get debarked Poor nutrition Inadequate Shelter Killing of Unwanted

Animals Main Cause of the

Overpopulation Problem

PUPPY MILL STATES

Pennsylvania

Missouri Nebraska Kansas Iowa Arkansas Oklahoma

Lancaster County makes $4 million a year because

of the Puppy Industry

Missouri makes $40 million

FROM AN INTERVIEW WITH A PUPPY MILL OWNER, GERALD SCHULZ,

IN 1999

“When you've got more in a pen like I do and they're mixed up once in a while, they're more submissive, easier to train.“

“they don’t need exercise - This way they don't know no better. They're happy where they are.“

“they don’t need to be indoors during the winter - There's no need for it. They were outside for a million years. It's only the last 200 that people have been putting 'em in the house."

LAWS

Virginia and Louisiana passed a law in 2008 limiting the total number of animals a commercial breeder can possess at any time

California working on passing a similar law

17 states have “Lemon Laws”

In 2008 – PA passed a law banning wire floor cages, increasing minimal cage size, requires veterinary care, and requires exercise periods

Each year, 4 million dogs are bred in puppy

mills

There are 3,500 pet stores selling puppies

Each year, 500,000 puppies are sold from these

pet stores

Each year, 6-8 million dogs and cats enter a

shelter

Each year, 3-4 million of these shelter animals

are euthanized (11,000 a day)

25-30% of shelter animals are purebred

SOME STATISTICS

WHAT CAN I DO?

Steer clear of Pet Shops

Go to a responsible breeder

Don’t buy a puppy from an ad or website

Don’t “rescue” a puppy from a puppy mill

Adopt a dog from a shelter

Isabella’s Vet Bills

• Surgery - $5000

•X-rays - $150 per xray

•Arthritis Pills - $75 a month