Facts about Puppy Mills and Commercial Dog Kennels

Puppy mills house dogs in overcrowded and often unsanitary conditions, without adequate health care, food, water or human interaction. Dogs are not “live stock” animals like cows, pigs and goats.

All Dogs NEED human attention and affection.. basically to stay sane. Dogs have been bred to be human companion animals. They simply don’t do well kept in cages.

The breeding parents in these Commercial Kennels are bred as often as possible to increase profits and most will never see any kind of life outside of their kennel and once they stop producing puppies they will be put down. Sadly, it would take a lot of work to adopt a Kennel dog and change them into a family dog at this point and the kennel owners know this.

Even when puppy mill parent dogs are rescued.. the end of their story is rarely a happy one.

They can be extremly fearful and even aggressive due to their lack of socialization and from living their entire life in a cage or kennel.

If a rescued dog can not pass the nessesary socialization tests required for adoption then they will be humanely euthanized by the authorities. So sad.

Puppy Mill puppies can suffer from painful and expensive genetic diseases that don’t show up for months or even years after you’ve taken them home. This is thanks to poor breeding practices. For example breeding a 90 lb Bernese to a 12 lb Poodle. This can produce horrible hip and joint issues and just a bad body structure like big heads, long bodies and short legs. This things can also be caused by genetic diseases.

 But very few do genetic testing on their parent dogs prior to breeding them therefore they unknowingly match up two dogs who may carry the same gene for a specific genetic diseases and those Puppies will suffer.

Not all dogs are breeding quality dogs.

State laws actually allow “Commercial Dog Kennels” to legally keep dozens of dogs in cages for their entire life just as long as they have provided them with adequate food, water, and shelter and even when they don’t some of these commercial USDA registered kennels are given chance after chance to make these nessesary changes. Dogs are rarely removed.

Dont believe me? Learn more about who these puppy mills or “USDA Commercial Kennels” really are and how many chances they’re given! Check out The Horrible 100 Puppy Mills for 2021!

Download the PDF

Thousands of puppy mills aren’t regulated or inspected by the USDA, since many of them sell directly to the public. Every state has different laws when it comes to dog breeding and Commercial kennels.

The average “Commercial Dog Kennel” or Puppy Mill has between 65 and 100 Dogs housed in cages or kennels with either wire or cement floors. 

Puppy mills often sell puppies at six weeks of age even though federal laws prohibit selling puppies under eight weeks of age.

Most Commercial Puppy Mills or Kennels sell their puppies to pet stores or online.

Bad Breeders also have adorable puppy pictures and fancy websites so don’t be fooled! 

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How to Stop Puppy Mills!

Puppy mills or large commercial breeding facilities are places that treat their animals poorly. Think of it like a factory for animals: dogs are a product made for profit. They are kept in small cages or kennels for their entire lives. They live in unsanitary conditions without attention or love, and they will be used for breeding as often as possible until they become to old or too unhealthy to reproduce and then they’ll be discarded. 

What can you do to avoid supporting the evil side of the dog breeding industry?

Don’t buy from a pet store! Most pet stores get their puppies from USDA licensed commercial dog kennels or unlicensed puppy mills, not local home breeders. If you’re unsure, ask the shop owners and find out their source.

They’ll most likely tell you “they come from a local Home Breeder”.

Ask for proof.

They’ll rarely tell you who the Breeder is and almost never show you any kind of proof or paperwork so don’t be surprised but definitely walk out the door.

1. Make adoption your first option. Check your local shelters for a potential pets. There are many dogs waiting in shelters for good homes – and 25% of them are purebred! Or, look for a dog with a breed rescue group. Scan the internet for breed-specific rescue organizations.
2. Know how to recognize a responsible breeder. If you are choosing to buy from a home breeder, make sure you are buying from one who cares about his or her dogs, has reviews online, allows you to come pickup at their home and or will show you videos inside their home with the puppy and puppies parents. It’s pretty easy to spot the difference between someone being secretive and shaddy and a breeder proud of their dogs and puppies. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist just some basic common sense.
3. See where your puppy was bred and born. Ask the breeder to look at the home where the puppy was born and ask to meet the parents (or at least the mother). Also, ask for an adoption contract that explains the breeder’s responsibilities, health guarantees, and return policy.
4. Internet buyers beware! If you buy a puppy based on a picture and a phone call, you have no way to see the puppy’s home or meet her parents. Even though I do sell my puppies on the internet 85% of my families come to my home to pick up their puppy.
5. Share your puppy mill story with the us! If you have – or think you have – purchased a puppy-mill puppy, share your story. Every bit of evidence can help to get laws passed banning puppy mills.
6. Speak out. Write to your local and state legislators. Encourage him or her to support laws that protect animals.
7. Tell your friends. If your friend is planning to buy a puppy mill puppy, spread the word and inform them of the cruelty of these facilities. Tell them about the wonderful dogs in animal shelters.
8. Think globally. Use the internet (Facebook, Twitter, a blog, etc.) to speak out about puppy mills!
9. Act locally. When people are looking to buy or adopt a pet, they will often ask the advice of their veterinarian, groomer or pet supply store. Ask the owners if you can leave flyers with them.

Here is a sample of a dog in a puppy mill. This dog was saved from a mill and how she looked when they saved her in the first picture and how she looks today.

Read: Born in a Puppy Mill

Puppy Mill Videos

Viewer Discretion Advised.

This is more common then you even want to believe but believe me it is true.

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