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Everything You Need to Know About Puppy Mills

Here’s why you should never buy a dog from a pet store.



You’ve probably heard of puppy mills, but maybe you’re not sure what they are. You might have even purchased a puppy from a pet store thinking they were from a reputable breeder, when in fact they came from a puppy mill. That’s because puppy mills promote themselves as regular breeders. The truth is that at puppy mills, dogs are kept in deplorable conditions and exploited in the interest of making as much money as possible with the least amount of care and effort.


The New York State Legislature recently passed a groundbreaking bill to end the Puppy Mill Pipeline into New York State.


Even if you have every intention of purchasing a dog who is not from a puppy mill, when you walk into a pet store, chances are that’s where the dogs came from. Puppies born in puppy mills are shipped to pet stores where unknowing customers pay high prices for the purebred dogs who are often very sick.


“We know that puppies from puppy mills are going to be sick because anything that goes into their care is going to cut into the profit margin for the breeder. So, those puppies don’t get any care,” explains DCSPCA Executive Director Lynne Meloccaro. “In addition, they’re often congenitally defective because they’re the result of continuous forced breeding among a small group of genetically similar dogs, often brothers and sisters, or mothers and sons.”


Despite growing public awareness about puppy mills, store owners will insist that the puppies have come from legitimate breeders. Their lies often convince shoppers to purchase dogs from them, which perpetuates what is known as the “Puppy Mill Pipeline.”


The New York State Legislature recently voted to put a stop to the sale of puppy mill dogs in our state by passing the Puppy Mill Pipeline Bill. The bill would end the sale of dogs, cats, and rabbits in pet stores throughout New York State. This revolutionary bill will help put puppy mills out of business and save pet owners the heartache of seeing their sick pets suffering. It now awaits Governor Hochul’s signature. Write to her and urge her to sign the bill before the year’s end!



“It is an inhumane industry that is based on cruelty, and it can only be stopped by eliminating the market for it,” says Lynne. “There are enough healthy dogs in shelters that are available to people who want to own a dog.”


If passed, New York will join five other states that prohibit the sale of puppies in pet stores.

But this doesn’t mean an end to pet stores. These businesses will still have the opportunity to adopt out rescued dogs and cats who desperately need homes.


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