Posted on 10/17/2010 10:24:58 AM PDT by Kensy1
There are so many stories about puppy mills, and the puppies in them, but not about the dogs who aren't rescued or sold. The breeder dogs, those left behind. This is one dog's story.
On June 6, 2008 my husband and I adopted a Bernese Mountain dog from a rescue. Sadly. we only had him a mere 14 months. It is exactly one year ago today that he passed.
I want to share his story so people will know about the horrendous conditions these dogs are in. They are the forgotten ones. Although this is Logan's tale, it is the story of all those left behind.
(Excerpt) Read more at bignews.biz ...
We lost our beautiful dog in January. She was not a puppy mill dog, but a shelter dog. She was a mutt, and that made her all the more beautiful. She was a terrior mix and looked like an all white Benji. I have never seen more beautiful eyes, nor have I ever known a sweeter dog. We didn’t know her past, but we do know that she was found wandering the streets and a couple found her and brought her to a no-kill shelter. Thank God for them, for their act of kindness gave this sweet animal a full and happy life she may not have had otherwise. She was about a year old when we adopted her.
I often think that she probably somehow got loose from her owner’s yard or house, and that family grieved over her loss. She was so sweet that she would have been loved by anyone. I wish they could know that she was given a good life with lots of love, a big and safe yard to run in, lots of happy walks, healthy food, and lots of dog biscuits.
My heart grieves for all of the abused animals that have not had this good fortune. How can humans be this cruel?
So sorry about the loss of your beautiful girl. When one loses a beloved pet it is so hard, you’re losing a member of the family. I truly believe rescues make the best pets, I think they know you saved them.
Don’t think that that bill is all good. The bill is overkill and will intrude on even the individuals that raise and train for such things as dogs for the blind, dogs for the police, dogs for helping the disabled, dogs raised for hunting, and dogs raised by other loving owners who show and promote the breeds. All of these dogs are raised in homes that treat them as their own children. They get regular vet checkup, are fed only the very best food, and have better lives then many people. They will all be outlawed if this bill passes.
Once again we are being duped into
We should just ban all dogs least someone be called a “puppy mill” simply because they raise puppies. /sarcasm
I understand there are inhumane puppy mills but this sort of emotional issue has gone past reasonable and has tried to ban all breeders.
As part of working with a rescue group, I found one of those places. I was responding to an ad on Craigslist offering up a free dog. She was several months old and the guy getting rid of her couldn’t make any money off of her, and didnt want to keep her for breeding stock. When I got to the place to come pick her up, it was absolutely disgusting. The dog runs had a 4” thick solid layer of feces as a floor.
The dog was in pitiful shape, filthy, skinny, untrained, unsocialized and generally neglected.I had a heck of a time even getting her to my vehicle, and getting her into a well-padded crate was difficult, though she eventually settled down and slept fitfully. It took months before she would do much besides cower away from people.
There were 2 new litters of her breed “on the ground”, plus 6 breeder females, and the stud dog. There were also 20 more each of 2 other (small breed) dogs in stacked small cages. The whole place was a mess. A couple people from the rescue ended up buying the puppies and the breeder females, luckily at a large discount from the usual 400 dollars a pup that they were getting. ALL of the dogs had tremendous parasite issues. They were all sick. The breeder females were too far gone to save, as they had been bred every cycle for a couple years, but fed only what scraps the owner could get for free from local markets and such, mostly old bread.
Once we got the dogs of our rescue’s target breed out of that pit, we called in the local and state authorities on the owner. Mostly we wanted the pups not to be tied up for months to years as evidence. They came in and shut the place and the owner down, as he was obviously not keeping up sanitation, nor was he licensed as a business nor paying taxes, etc.
The 7month old went to a foster, then a permanent home and is doing OK, though she has sequelae of malnutrition, and will for the rest of her life. Her behavioral problems that have lessened over time as she has learned to trust people.
The puppies have all been placed in new homes and are doing well, though some of the ones that were from the older litter all turned out a little smaller than normal for the breed. I know of the location of three of them that live on a place with other dogs, acreage, horses, etc. They turned out to be really nice, but VERY “needy” dogs.
With all that, I’m not for “puppy mill” regulations. What needs to happen is the proper enforcement of laws already on the books. With the budget problems of local governments, it’s not going to be a priority. The people running the enforcement need to be more “creative” in the use of already available statutes to close the bad ones down. In the above case, calling the tax people helped, as the guy was making a large amount of off-the-books income from the breeding operation, as well as another “underground” businesses. They were selling scores of dogs per year at hundreds of dollars each, unreported income.
“I love a dog. He does nothing for political reasons.” Will Rogers
Woof
The Amish community here in Ohio runs puppy mills, we’ve seen them. For a group of folks that everyone assumes to be so good, simple and earthy, they treat their animals like crap. I’m not saying all, but I’ve seen plenty of animals and livestock not properly cared for. I was raised on a farm and do have some clue about the care and treatment of animals, including those used for breeding.
I think the best pet is the one you have. The golden laying at my feet right now is the daughter of my first champion. She is my shadow and loves me every bit as much as my first golden, a rescue. I am a big supporter of rescue, but the reason we love dogs is because they tend to love us, not for what we have done for them, but because they are dogs and it’s just what they do.
We are losing the war with the animal rights crazies because the public is easily duped. I have not whelped a litter here in Palm Beach County since our breeder law went into effect (I have a friend in TX who actually whelps our litters). I am not a commercial operation, I am a hobby breeder who breeds the occasional show litter, and I don’t think it’s Palm Beach County FL’s business. My puppies do not end up in shelters, and I don’t want some Animal Rights wacko in my house deciding if I meet their idea of a proper home.
One day, dog lovers will wake up and realize they cannot find well bred puppies from good breeders (puppy mills will still be out there because they are already regulated by the USDA and do not come under the mandate of these stupid mandatory spay/neuter regs). And it will be too late. They will have been duped by groups like HSUS (YES THIS IS NOT A SHELTER ORG IT IS A RADICAL ANIMAL RIGHTS ORG) and PETA.
But, I”m getting old and tired. I’m starting to think people are simply too stupid to educate.
You hit the nail on the head. Laws that are not being enforced are the problem, not a lack of enough laws. Rescue groups do an amazing job, btw. I strongly support our local group. And, it’s one of the best places people can put their money if they really want to help dogs in need.
>>But, I”m getting old and tired. I’m starting to think people are simply too stupid to educate.<<
I feel the same way you do. We show Black and Yellow Labs. HSUS doesn’t save animals. They are a sham that takes money a does lobby work for PETA. Most of the animals they get are put down.
Yes, and still people think they run the local shelters. And think that all dogs should be spayed and neutered.
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