Buyer Beware When you Get a Puppy!
When you buy your puppy in a pet store, probably most of you don’t question where the cute little fluffball came from. You might assume that the pet store buys from breeders or maybe a local family had a surprise litter.
In a relatively small number of cases that might be true, but the fact remains that puppy mills supply huge numbers of puppies every year to pet stores, internet sales and even apparently reputable dog breeders’ sites. What is a puppy mill? you may ask. The answer may shock you.
Puppy mills are canine intensive breeding plants, where literally thousands of puppies are bred to supply the pet industry. It’s a sad life for a puppy mill puppy, from the very start.
Puppy mills pups tend to suffer from poor health, temperament issues and hereditary conditions. At the mill, they are taken away from their mother before the recommended weaning time of 10 weeks, therefore not receiving the right socialization and benefits of being fed by their mother.
Poor health is contributed to by a lack of decent food and water, terrible cramped living conditions and overcrowding; and there is little chance for them to experience positive human interaction before being transported to the pet store
Responsible breeders will be aware of any hereditary factors which affect a particular breed, and will screen and selectively breed their dogs, always putting the welfare of their animals, be that breeding stock or pups, first. They will ensure puppies receive the correct medical attention and shots before selling them to a properly screened home.
A good breeder will have spacious, clean and humane premises, and should voluntarily be able to show you the bloodline of your puppy. A breeder ALWAYS gives a guarantee (although details may differ), tips on care, and would never make you return the puppy if dissatisfied, as they would have properly interviewed the family.
The situation is very different at a puppy mill, where the main aim is profit rather than animal welfare. Their goal is to produce as many puppies as possible to turn over the greatest margin. This means often poor breeding, where animal unscreened for hereditary diseases are used, or possibly even interbreeding which can lead to no end of health and temperament issues.
The mothers may have the worst of it, as they must carry puppies every time they are on heat, and there is no escape from the poor nutrition, lack of medical care, housing or breeding cycles. When the females are no longer useful, death or abandonment generally awaits them.
Puppy mills are still in operation despite laws to control them. The way to combat these farms is to remove the demand for puppies by only purchasing your puppy from a good breeder, or adopting one from an animal rescue centre; don’t trust pet stores, which may be ignorant or misleading of the truth.
Although it is tempting to save a puppy by buying him, don’t. You will create a space for the next puppy from a mill. If you want to do something, contact the authorities or an animal shelter who will be able to do something constructive.
Puppy mills, tragic and inhumane as they are, are a problem caused by the consumer, so use your spending power wisely and put an end to these hellish establishments.
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