Pet Store Supports Puppy Mills

[dsaundry]

I am at work..One of the perks when you rin your own business..
I hope you understand I am not trying to support any large company like "petland" or a variety of other ones that are out there. But you have to admit its been a fun thread..great reactions,,wish people would get this riled up over other things sometimes. I am not trying to act "stupid" or "dumb" I am well aware where these animals come from for the most part. Proving it can be very difficult sometimes. Just so you know there are breeders that will sell to some pet stores..reputable?? Maybe not, sometimes it is just a case of Mr Smiths Cocker Spaniel jumping a fence and having his way with Mrs Jones Poodle. What do they do with the puppies? Lets not forget the old farm solution sometimes, put them in a sack and throw them in a river. Most people sell them privately or will take them to a pet store. I know it isn't right but what is the solution for these animals? I have seen quite a few mixed breeds for sale in some pet stores,{not the big ones} they are not in cages or walking on wire mesh floors.They are in proper stalls which are clean and well cared for, so what do you do there? In most cases a mixed breed dog is a hardier animal than a purebred. I have had several dogs, purebreds and mixed. Loved them all. I have never had the misfortune of having a dog with genetic issues or serious health issues. Maybe I have been lucky or as I like to believe careful about where and what I buy. I knew Quebec had a reputation but not as a "Mill" capital. I always thought the biggest fault with Quebec was their football and hockey team.. By the way the dog I had with 3 legs {lost his leg in a car accident}lived until he was 12 and was a fantastic dog.

[Delphinus]

Bark bark bark bark! Woof woof. Snuffle? Bark bark bark bark bark bark bark!

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by Delphinus

Bark bark bark bark! Woof woof. Snuffle? Bark bark bark bark bark bark bark!

Tony, I just can't agree with that statement...

[dsaundry]

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Originally Posted by reef_raf

Tony, I just can't agree with that statement...

Agreed. Totally uncalled for. Mods these days.

[Zoaelite]

Originally Posted by reef_raf

Tony, I just can't agree with that statement...

LOL, Tony you add way to much humor to my day. Everyone else is writing a whole essay and throwing so much emotion into there posts and you respond in Dog/Cat Speak. Got to comment also dsaundry I have yet to come across someone with such an amazing talent for supporting there view points.

Now as far as the topic goes I worked at the Pet store in question for a total of a year and a half and in my personal view they absolutely DO NOT purchase from Puppy mills, breeders have to apply to sell there dogs and this store actually sends a trained person out to assess and qualify the operation. If the test fails the breeder is black listed and none of the stores can bring in dogs from that person. Now as one of these "highly unpaid and untrained" staff members It was my job to complete a check list from start to finish (Believe me when I say allot of people lost there job for not adhering to this) and guarantee that the animal is being sent to a proper home.

Now as far as purchasing from a Breeder compared to a store goes I'm going to argue the store is a better solution. When you purchase from a breeder you get the dog(Its basic needs are met how?). When you purchase from a Pet store such as the one in question you get the dog and the supplies (Plus the TRAINED KNOWLEDGE BEHIND IT). Also I don't think that allot of people actually know this but the store in question (I have seen this done many a time) can actually refuse sale if the animal is not being sent home to the proper house or with the proper equipment. Everyone's sitting here arguing about the fact that these animals are being treated horribly in the Pet store but no one is considering that the dog will be in the Pet store for 1-2 weeks but at your house for the rest of there life time. That's why the store in question has the logo "Pets for Life" and there motto is to match the right person with the right animal and meet the needs of both.

Levi Morgan

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Oh snap! That's pretty interesting, Levi.

[dsaundry]

Love debating sometimes. It exercises the mind and creates good conversation most of the time..

[Der_Iron_Chef]

I disagree. Debating is the product of a lazy mind and only results in bad conversation.

[fishoholic]

*Sigh* I'm finally home and have the time to respond properly. I volunteer for an animal rescue society called "Second chance animal rescue society" and I would say that a least 5 dogs a year that come though SCARS have to have a leg amputated do to injuries. All of the scars dogs are in foster homes (so no worries they do not have to hop around on a wire bottom) and the three legged dogs are completely normal and can do everything their four legged friends do and they do get adopted out just as much as any other dog.

The puppy mill situations are awful and I'd like to think that most people would not purposely adopt from one. Having dogs stacked in cages never let out except to breed (yes people these dogs live in their pee and poop and usually there is 4-5 cages stacked on top of eachother and guess where their fecees travels, not a pretty sight!) this is not my idea of a well bread animal. I know this because we've rescued animals from places such as this.

We also deal with reserve animals and animals from the pound that are found in very poor conditions. We once had a lady call scars to tell us that there was this awful smell coming out from under her trailer. When Sylvia showed up she crawled under the trailer and found a small hole that 6 puppies fell into. Four were dead (hence the smell) and two were still alive. They died because the hole was just big enough that they couldn't climb out and they ended up starving to death. What's worse is that the owner (of the trailer) didn't care enough to pull them out and try to save them, they only wanted the smell to be gone! This is just a small taste of what scars goes through.

I got my dog Gulliver from scars. He came to scars because EHS was going to put him down (before ever going up for adoption) because he growled at the animal control officer, heaven forbid the slight possibility of him biting anyone and they be held liable. Gulliver does growl and bark at people coming into our house but he has never attacked anyone and he clams down quickly. Lucky for me one of the people working at the EHS called scars and said they thought he was a nice dog and didn't deserve to die. So one of the girls picked him up and a few days latter I met him and fell in love and adopted him.

I think if your not sure or don't really care about what breed you want then you should adopt from a no kill animal rescue society. If you want a specific breed then take a hard look at the breeder and ask around about them.

For anyone who wants to read about scars or wants links to animal rescue places visit the scars website at www.scarscare.org I will warn people now that the rescue stories are really hard to read (you will need kleenex) and there are pictures. On the "available for adoption page" I believe right now there is one really sad story and picture, so don't say I didn't warn you. There are also "Look at me now" stories about dogs who have been adopted and are doing great.

I'm done now, thanks for reading