Few people can resist looking in pet shop windows to see all the cute puppies inside. But a closer look into pet shops and how they operate reveals a system in which the high prices paid for the puppies pales in comparison to the cost paid by the animals themselves.
Pet Shops & Puppy Mills: The Cruelty Connection Pet shops and so called "kennel clubs" sell puppies obtained from brokers who buy from large mid-west breeding operations, often referred to as "puppy mills." These operations usually consist of small wood and wire mesh cages kept outdoors, where female dogs are bred continuously with no rest between heat cycles. The mothers and their litters often suffer from malnutrition, exposure, and lack of adequate veterinary care. Basic feeding practices are ignored at puppy mills, resulting in genetic defects that may not be apparent at the time of purchase and are difficult and expensive to treat. The puppies are taken from their mothers at four to wix weeks and are sold to brokers who pack them in crates for transport and resale to pet shops. Shipment from puppy mill to broker to pet shop can cover hundreds of miles by pickup truck, tractor trailer, or plane often without adequate food, shelter, water or ventilation. Such poor treatment results in illness or even death. By not spending money for proper food, housing or veterinary care, the breeders, brokers, and pet shops ensure maximum profits. Puppies in pet shops have spent all of their short lives in cages and lack the early socialization with people that is so necessary for the development of a good temperament. While most of these puppies are purebred and eligible for registration with the AKC (American Kennel Club), AKC papers do not ensure the quality of the puppies. In fact, AKC relies on the honesty of the breeders to provide truthful information in registering their litters. Reputable private breeders do not sell their puppies to pet shops or kennel clubs. You are almost guaranteed of getting a puppy milled puppy if you buy from a pet shop or kennel club. Inadequate Inspection While the USDA is responsible for licensing and inspecting commercial breeding kennels (puppy mills), this takes a low priority, thus kennels are not regularly inspected. Even when violations are found, kennel operators are rarely fined, let alone shut down. As many as 1,600 kennels operating without fefderal licenses are never inspected. USDA inspection does not prevent cruel and inhumane treatment. If you want a puppy:
Puppy mills will go out of business if you adopt a puppy or dog from any one of the following:
a purebred rescue club;
an animal shelter or humane society;
Call MJARA for a referral and more information at 908-446-6808
If you think that your local pet shop is the exception and not the rule, it would benefit you to be completely sure by doing the following:
call the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs at 201-504-6200, option #3, to inquire about complaints received about the pet shop, or kennel club,
call your local Better Business Bureau to receive a copy of their report on the pet shop,
insist on seeing the puppy's mother and litter mates to see if the puppy comes from a local breeder. If that is not possible, ask store personnel for the name and location of the puppy's breeder. They are required by law to divulge this information. Be suspicious of an out-of-state breeder, which usually indicates a puppy mill.
This information came from a brochure prepared by New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance in the hopes of preventing animal suffering and the emotional devastation that results when families purchase a sick puppy from a pet shop.
NJARA can be reached at P.O. Box 174, Englishtown, NJ 07726. Tel. (908-446-6808).
