In an AP article from 2008, Wisconsin was called a "magnet for large-scale puppy mills". The state's governor, Jim Doyle, had just signed a new "puppy mill bill" into law.
The animal shelters must be overflowing, you'd think. There must be stray dogs left and right.
Uh....No.
The Ozaukee Humane Society in Saukville, Wisconsin (a division of the Wisconsin Humane Society) is cutting the ribbon tomorrow morning in an opening day ceremony for a lavish new animal shelter. This shelter cost $6 million, and encompasses 22,000 square feet. It incudes such amenities as solar hot water panels, classrooms, an adoption center, and a veterinary clinic.
The older shelter nearby is being closed, it's paltry 40 animals transferred to the new "Taj Mahal" shelter. But, it seems the demand for dogs in Wisconsin outstrips the supply. 49 dogs have already been imported from a shelter in Kentucky. The imported dogs included Australian shepherds, Labrador mixes, rat terriers, blue heeler mixes, Chihuahua mixes and beagle mixes.
"I'm sure they'll all be adopted this weekend" said Angela Speed, director of community relations and development for the Wisconsin and Ozaukee Humane Societies She admits that the typical length of stay in the shelter is just two to three days.
"I'm sure they'll all be adopted this weekend" said Angela Speed, director of community relations and development for the Wisconsin and Ozaukee Humane Societies She admits that the typical length of stay in the shelter is just two to three days.
Well, they must be killing dogs due to Pet Overpopulation, right? Even if it is just a few, no one should breed or buy, while shelter dogs die! Right?
"We never euthanize for space or time" Speed admits.
Amazing! All those "large-scale puppy mills" in Wisconsin, yet there aren't enough dogs to go around; they are importing dogs...all of which sell like hot cakes! And they have to travel across several state lines just to find them!
And how simple! No breeders to complain about, no requirements for genetic testing, none of those strict standards for health and welfare to worry about when these dogs come in! Not a care at all! None of the regulations that they are so proud to have enacted to clamp down on "puppy mills" in Wisconsin. And it seems, anyone in Wisconsin who sells 25 dogs in a year is considered a puppy mill. What about an entity that sells, oh, say a thousand or so dogs in a year? Perhaps a mill of sorts?
But hey, no sweat, just product that flies off the shelf. Good deal!
Wisconsin's fantabulous $6 million pet store!
Puppy mills don't sell locally. They ship puppies to the big cities like New York.
ReplyDeleteso its ok to sell dogs out of this ritzy hotel of sorts for dogs who is not regulated or inspected,dogs can be any kind of mutt they can imagine, but not ok to sell out of a legitimate kennel who is licensed and inspected.hummm makes one wonder what is going on.
ReplyDeleteLiz wrote: "Puppy mills don't sell locally. They ship puppies to the big cities like New York."
ReplyDeleteThe state of Wisconsin has declared that anyone who sells 25 dogs per year is a so-called "puppy mill". So all those hobby kennels who have just a handful of dogs and might happen to sell 25 puppies in one year, ship those puppies to the big cities? Where is the proof of that sweeping generalization?
I see Wacko Wayne has nazified Wisconsin.
ReplyDeleteWisconsin dog breeders are not shipping puppies
ReplyDeleteto New York pet stores. If the demand for puppies is so high in Wisconsin that shelters have to import dogs, then local dog breeders
have a built-in market no further than their
own counties. Why would anyone go to the expense
and bother of shipping puppies halfway across
the country to sell at wholesale prices when they could be sold locally at retail prices with little or no shipping costs. Besides all that,
per capita, there are very few pet stores selling
dogs or cats in New York City. Most pets in New
York City (estimated 4 million cats and dogs)
come from shelters in the city or the Greater
New York metropolitan area or private breeders,
mostly out of town or even out of state.
Puppy Mills are animal cruelty at its best. It is the worst animalcruety there is. They should all be shut down. My dog was from a mill, she died at 7. The mill owner turned her mother, father, their puppy and the moms litter mate into a rescue. The puppiwes weren't selling, the breed was out of style. They estimated her mom had over 180 puppies. The litter mate was completely psycholically damaged, beyond rehabilitation. I cried when I saw my dogs family. Anyone who supports puppy mills hates animals and are not a christian. I noticed the big auctioneer claims to be a Christian. Many of the mill sights say god bless you. God would never agree with this cruelty. If you defend these mills you have to be a evil person.
ReplyDeleteBy the way puppy mills shipto NY. All you have to do is read the USDA reports on their site. I live in NY I know the deal. It is awful.
Roberta,
ReplyDeleteI will give you an analogy.
Would you like to have babies for life in a 50 foot square room. If this is the way I need to explain this situation I will.
Your baby seller would make you have a baby with a man every 9 months. You would get no breathing space or time to recover between pregnacies. Your babies will be sold all over the country. The adopters would never meet you. Your babies will be sold online. The seller will have a website with lies about the conditions you are living in. They will overnight your babies via airplane at 16 weeks old. They go alone on the plane to anyone who will pay for them. Your pregnancies are just a cash machine. You are seen as nothing but a woman that gets pregnant and earns money for your seller. When your babies no longer sell, you will be auctioned off to another seller. You would go back in the 50 foot room and get pregnant again. If you need a c-section the seller might give it to you himself. He might not ever call a doctor. He will probably put 3 other woman in the room and you will all have babies every nine months in tight, dirty quarters. You will probably get poor food and your babies might have a very week immune system. They will be open to many illnesses. They will still be sold even if they are ill. The adopters are not told the baby is sick. You might never get your hair brushed and not haver a bathroom or toilet paper. You and the other three woman will sit in your feaces.
NY is not mostly a mixed breed City. That is not true. I work with dogs and I live in NYC. NYC has at least 75% puppy mills dogs. We have pet store dogs and now they are being bought on line. T dogs are from Kansas, MO, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Oklahoma, etc. I can walk in a dog run at any time and at least 10 out of 15 dogs are mill dogs. NYC, Ct, and NJ are full of puppy mill dogs. Many people who work with dogs are quitting due to the puppy mill problem. It is to sad to deal with year after year. Dog workers are charging more to walk and board mill dogs. Pet stores are being protested. I don't know where you are getting your informatiion from but it is false. If you cannot understand my analogy then you don't understand compassion. If you are Christian, you need to know that Christians follow gods word. He would not approve of puppy mills. If he walked into one he might turn the earth to dust. It infuriates me that all these Christians are mill breeders. This is all wrong.
Best,
Kristi
Kristi (aka Anonymous), I'm not even going to comment on your ridiculous fantasy of women in general or me in particular being used as baby
ReplyDeletemills or at least your idea of a baby mill. I'm
not Christian. Is that what Christians do?
I'm sorry about your dog who died at seven years
old, but of what? Did his death have anything at
all to do with his genetics? The fact is that
lots of dogs die at seven or even younger, even
dogs bred by the best and most careful breeders.
If you had the dog since he was a puppy, then
whatever he died of had to be something in
YOUR environment, not something he brought home
from his breeder, however bad that breeder,
seven years earlier.
Otherwise...I live in New York City, right in the
middle of Manhattan. I see every single day at
least 200 to 300 dogs...in the parks, in the dog
runs, even in a very popular dog day care center.
As well, I get around and sometimes visit dog
runs and parks in other neighborhoods. I've even
been known to cross a river or two and stick my
heathen face into one or another of the outer
boroughs.
I did not say that NYC was mostly a mixed-breed
city. I did write that most dogs and cats in NYC
come from shelters in and near the city and private breeders mostly outside of the city. Relatively few dogs and even fewer cats come from
pet shops, because per capita, there are few pet
shops in NYC that sell dogs or cats.
But godknowswhat you are calling a puppy mill. I
think you must see alleged puppy mill dogs or
breeders under every bed. You sound like those
people who think anyone who breeds so much as one
litter is a puppy mill. Or maybe you think dog owners who keep their dogs intact, because it's healthier for the dog are puppy mills, even if their dogs are never bred.
Meantime, to the extent that pet care fees, such as pet boarding or dog walking, have risen, it's
because the price of everything in NYC has risen.
Food costs have risen 30 percent, yes, THIRTY
percent, in the past year or two. Of course,
the dog walkers or boarding/day care places are
going to raise their fees.
However, if you feel it is un-Christian to breed
dogs at all, which is really what you seem to
be getting at, then go to your Christian churches
and tell those good Christian congregations of
your puppy mill epiphanies.
The rest of us in New York City, where nearly the entire population is either not Christian
at all or NOT your version of Christian, will continue to enjoy the dogs and cats we acquire
from private breeders, from shelters, even from
the street, and once in a while from a nice pet
shop.
Tschin, tschin.
I think it's great that they can rescue from other areas to rehome animals that would die otherwise.
ReplyDeleteKristi: There is no LEGAL definition of a so-called "Puppy Mill"; therefore, it is a term that is meaningless. Along with all your other stated facts and figures about New York's dog population, which are nothing more than your unsupported personal opinion.
ReplyDeleteAmber, there is no reason for any shelter dogs to be killed, except for reasons of health or temperament. There are millions more homes opening up every year than there are dogs killed. Do the math.
It is great that more dogs are able to be rehomed, but honestly, legislation that oppresses breeders is not justified when this level of humane relocation is becoming the norm.
Roberta, Starbreeze,
ReplyDeletePuppy mills are real, legal and there are thousands of them. A good breeder breeds to better the breed not to support herself. They usually breed a female twice at the most with a two year interval. I have lived in NYC for 26 years. I have worked in the dog business for 10. One of my best clients female water dog has been in Westminster. She bred her once and kept one puppy. Believe me none of those puppies were sold on line or in a pet store.
A good breeder does not ship an 8 week old puppy 3000 miles away to anyone!!!! They meet the people and they decide whether or not they want to sell them a puppy. You do not just go on line and view a website and get a dog flown in, lol.
These are puppies they arent products. You have no idea who bred the dog or what conditions it is living in.
Puppy mills best seller right now are the designer dogs. This is 30% of their profit. NYC is full of designer dogs(mutts).
NY is loaded with Labs, Goldens, beagles, puggles, cocker spaniels, pommies, boxers, shitzus, cocker poos, cavipoo, poodles, chihuahuas, golden doodles, labradoodles,, shitzapoos, yorkie poos, bull dogs, FRENCH BULLDOGS, Where do you think these dogs are coming from? Good breeders cannot breed all these dogs. There are only a couple of handfuls of good breeders for each breed.
Welcome to the world of dogs. Commercial breeders, AKA, puppy mills and backyard breeders are breeding these females to death in cages. They earn there living by selling dogs to pet shops and now sadly the internet. The internet is referred to as emills. I cannot give you any more information. If you don't believe it then I lost you, but I might reach another. Here is a dog auction website. Check it out. Its right on line.
http://www.swkennelauction.com/index.htm
Remember a French Bulldog needs a c-section every time she delivers her pups. They are very hot and selling like mad. She will probably breed in a cage for life every six months. That is alot of c-sections. Check out NYs new mill site I came across. It is awesome but very disturbing.
www.nycpuppymillsawareness.com
We all love the breeds, but behind most of them is treacherous cruelty industry and awareness is crucial. No one wants to purchase a puppy knowing their mother is in a cage everyday for life. Or that their puppy was born in a filthy cage in a cold barn. This is disturbing stuff and NYers are willing to learn.
If you were a real dog lover you never would have attacked me about my dog. I have never heard anyone say that when I told my story. It was sad and real. It was a learning experience for me and many other NYer's in the dog world. She was loved and a rare breed. Not AKC not in dog shows just a red 35 pound, field dog. They run the midwestern prairies, adjacent to 100's of mills. That red dog could out run every dog in NYC put together and then 100 times more. She lit up CP and numerous dog runs. Watching her run was majic, It was sad to see such a passionate, exciting, gorgeous 35 pound mahogany dog die so young. She had many fans watch her run for hours in CP. 7 is not an average age for a dog to die. I have not seen a dog die at that age ever. Not one dog in about 6 parks that I frequent has died under nine, and that is also young. I dont know where you got this information.
The red dog stopped by NY for a reason. I like to think it was to bring awareness to the mill and backyard breeding industry. She brought a ton of awareness to this city and I will continue to spread the word. Good luck in your life. Peace.
To the last "anonymous" poster: What the hell are you talking about? Your ramblings in several posts have NOTHING to do with the points in this article. Your dog who died young(of what we still don't know), has absolutely NO RELEVENCE to the issue of dogs being transported across state lines as fodder for shelters who are nothing more than glorified pet stores. Neither do your ramblings about the dogs in New York.
ReplyDeleteYou are nuts if you think a dog can have puppies every six months and never leave a cage. It is rare to find a bitch that comes into season every six months; a more likely scenario is every 8-9 months. And if a bitch is in poor health, she cannot sustain her whelps. You've gotta quite reading those idiotic "puppy mill" websites. They are put together by PETArds who have the agenda of separating us from our dogs.
Get your own blog. You're done here.