Why we need to license breeders
It has been one week since a huge puppy mill operation was raided in West Virginia and over 1,000 animals were removed from the premises.
In a country where it is estimated we euthanize between 5 and 8 million animals a year, it is shameful to me these places are allowed to exist at all. Many are in states which have little or no licensing requirements and humans can allow animals to simply multiply over and over again.
Even on a local level, we receive many animals who were bought from a "breeder" who have no idea what grass is or what it feels like to walk on a solid surface. Many have been separated from their mothers and siblings and do not receive the proper socialization they need as puppies. They are then held in cages where they receive minimal to no human contact until they are shipped to a new home.
The only way to stop killing 5 to 8 million animals a year in this country is to begin a process which includes licenses to breed animals and mandatory spay/neuter for those not in a breeding capacity.
We hear about the puppy mills. This is big news when hundreds of animals are removed. What remains hidden are the backyard breeders who do this on a small scale to avoid being noticed. It is an cheap and easy way to make money. The love of money is at the root of it, not a love of the breed.
In a country where it is estimated we euthanize between 5 and 8 million animals a year, it is shameful to me these places are allowed to exist at all. Many are in states which have little or no licensing requirements and humans can allow animals to simply multiply over and over again.
Even on a local level, we receive many animals who were bought from a "breeder" who have no idea what grass is or what it feels like to walk on a solid surface. Many have been separated from their mothers and siblings and do not receive the proper socialization they need as puppies. They are then held in cages where they receive minimal to no human contact until they are shipped to a new home.
The only way to stop killing 5 to 8 million animals a year in this country is to begin a process which includes licenses to breed animals and mandatory spay/neuter for those not in a breeding capacity.
We hear about the puppy mills. This is big news when hundreds of animals are removed. What remains hidden are the backyard breeders who do this on a small scale to avoid being noticed. It is an cheap and easy way to make money. The love of money is at the root of it, not a love of the breed.
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