Puppy Mill Rescue

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Animal cruelty exists, but we all have strong feelings about cruelty towards companion animals, which are integral parts of their family. Even though we all want to protect animals, many people still unwittingly support puppy mills. Here is everything there is to know about puppy mills.

 

What is a Puppy Mill?

pupies in cages in a puppy millA puppy mill is a dog-breeding facility whose primary goal is to make money. In order to maximize profits, some of the breeders make dogs suffer in disgraceful conditions. The puppies which are bred at a puppy mill are either shipped to pet stores or sold directly through newspaper and online ads to the public. As soon as the puppies leave the mills, they are cleaned up and put for sales. The breeding dogs aren’t lucky as they are kept at the puppy mill to have litter after litter. So, they often live in small cages, lack clean water, regular veterinary care, and socialization.

According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), puppy mills have from 10 to 1,000 breeding dogs. Due to the inhumane conditions, puppy mill dogs often have health issues like epilepsy, kidney disease, heart disease, musculoskeletal disorders, endocrine disorders, deafness, blood disorders, eye problems, fleas, respiratory disorders, giardia, parvovirus, distemper, kennel cough, mange, parasites, chronic diarrhea and more.

You must be wondering how this is legal. Well, based on the federal Animal Welfare Act, keeping a dog in a cage only six inches longer than the dog in each direction, with a wire floor, stacked on top of another cage, for the dog’s entire life is completely legal. Even though some states have additional laws, it can be challenging to stop the puppy mill trade as it’s hard to define exactly what a puppy mill looks like.

 

Puppy Mill Action Week

chihuahua in a puppy millEvery year, Puppy Mill Action Week is observed the week before Mother’s Day. The week has carefully been chosen when to be celebrated as mother dogs are usually the most poorly treated ones in puppy mills. So, last year, the Puppy Mill Action Week took place from 6-12 May. The goal of Puppy Mill Action Week is to raise awareness and fight puppy mills which keep dogs in terrible conditions. Puppy mills force breeding dogs to breed until the mother dogs die and are discarded when they can no longer give birth. The unwanted puppies from puppy mills are killed, dumped, or given to shelters.

Hence, if you care about dogs and puppies, you should do your best to stop the brutal puppy mill industry. Make sure you share information with your friends and family because you’ll be surprised that there are people who don’t know about puppy mills.

 

What is Puppy Mill Rescue?

puppy mill rescuePuppy mills are large-scale dog breeding factories where dogs are kept in inhumane conditions. They get inadequate veterinary care, water, food, and socialization. Females are bred up until they can no longer reproduce. So, the puppies are usually taken from the mother when they are between 6 and 8 weeks of age. The puppy mill owners care only about the profit and not about the welfare of the dog.

Due to the inhumane living conditions, it’s quite common that these dogs experience many physical and psychological issues, such as visual and hearing impairments, heart and kidney disease, respiratory and intestinal disorders, and musculoskeletal problems. Moreover, as the puppies are removed from their mothers at a very young age, they are susceptible to developing behavior problems. These dogs can be difficult to housetrain, as well as, lead walking and playing with them. Some of the puppy mill rescue dogs will never overcome the effects of the puppy mill while others will recover almost completely.

Therefore, before adopting a puppy mill rescue, you should be aware that the recovery process can take months. Hence, it takes a lot of persistence, patience, love, and compassion to keep a puppy mill rescue dog. Nevertheless, it will be a very rewarding and enriching experience for the adopter.

Puppy mill rescues pledge to put an end to the cruelty of the commercial dog breeding industry through rescue and education. These rescues perform a life-saving work while enlightening the public about the truth of pet store puppies. They undertake a national approach to their efforts and they have rescued and placed a huge number of mill dogs. Hence, you can adopt a dog from puppy mill rescues and try to give all the love it lacked.

 

List of Puppy Mill Rescues in the USA

If you want to adopt a puppy from a puppy mill rescue in the USA, you can find the following rescues:

  •         The Humane Society of the United States
  •         National Mill Dog Rescue
  •         North Shore Animal League America
  •         Missouri Puppy Mill Rescue
  •         Lucky Star Cavalier Rescue
  •         Stop Puppy Mills
  •         Prisoners of Greed
  •         Ring Dog Rescue
  •         Guide Dogs for The Blind
  •         Save A Dog
  •         Companion Animal Protection Society
  •         American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
  •         Groovy Paws Rescue Inc.
  •         Dogs Deserve Better
  •         Animal Match Rescue Team
  •         Helping Animals
  •         R.A.I.N. Rescue (Rescuing Animals in Need)
  •         Help Angel Dogs
  •         Save A Pet Adoption Center
  •         Pet Smart Charities
  •         Underdog Rescue of Florida
  •         The Puppy Mill Project
  •         Animal Adoption and Rescue Foundation
  •         Maranatha Farm
  •         Rocket Dog Rescue

 

If you would like to see the benefits of rescuing a dog, check out “Pet rescue video” on our blog.

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