DEAR EDITOR:
I have followed with interest the recent letters and front-page
article concerning pet stores selling puppies. As the owner of two
rescue dogs, I find the practice abhorrent and shameful. I would
like to make a point which has yet to be addressed in either the
letters or The Dispatch article.
DEAR EDITOR:
I have followed with interest the recent letters and front-page article concerning pet stores selling puppies. As the owner of two rescue dogs, I find the practice abhorrent and shameful. I would like to make a point which has yet to be addressed in either the letters or The Dispatch article.
Pet store puppies generally come from “puppy mills” which are in business to breed large volumes of pups for distribution to these outlets. While the pups may exhibit bad breed standard or be sickly, the focus solely on the cute puppies distracts from the real horror of puppy mills (and this distraction is often intentional as a deflection).
Puppy mills are not nice places with lots of happy pregnant dogs running around breeding as the spirit moves them. Many people are not aware of the inhumane treatment of the “mother” dogs and “studs” at puppy mills. It is not uncommon to over-breed the females by producing too many litters per year which can cause serious health problems for these dogs.
Worse still, many puppy mills keep the mothers and studs in raised cages (actually rabbit hutches are used) with chicken wire for a flooring. These dogs are never allowed out to exercise or interact with other dogs except for conception. Elimination is done in the hutch with the waste passing through the chicken wire for easy cleanup without the hassle of actually letting the dog out.
Many dogs suffer running sores, blisters and ailments of the feet and skin as a result of being forced to walk and lay on the wire 24/7. Also crusted, oozing eyes, raging ear infections, mange that turns skin into a mass of red scabs, and abscessed feet from the unforgiving wire floors are common conditions. These dogs are seldom provided with bedding or cover in these hutches.
Some life, huh? Every time a pet store owner purchases a puppy from a broker, it further encourages these monsters to mistreat dogs for their own profit. Both the Humane Society and PETA web sites document the terrible conditions of these “facilities.”
I think it would be great if our local pet stores would stop selling puppies and instead sponsor regular dog adoption fairs for the San Martin shelter (FOSMAS), Humane Society or ASPCA. There are many wonderful pets available through rescues such as these, and both purebred and mixed-breed dogs are available through shelters and rescues.
Dave Fluker, Gilroy
Submitted Tuesday, April 20 to ed****@****ic.com
