Great news! This week members of Congress reintroduced legislation to establish greater federal oversight of puppy mills and online dog sales.
The Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety (PUPS) Act would require commercial breeders who sell their puppies directly to the public, sight unseen, including via the web, to be licensed and inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Currently, only breeders who sell dogs to pet stores or to puppy brokers are subject to federal oversight.
Many puppies sold online come from puppy mills and are commonly bred in unsanitary, overcrowded and often cruel conditions without sufficient veterinary care, food, water or socialization. While facilities that breed puppies for commercial resale through pet stores are required to be licensed and inspected, breeders who sell directly to consumers, via the Internet, newspaper classifieds or other outlets, are exempt from any federal oversight.
“As the ASPCA has seen firsthand, the photos of happy, healthy puppies posted on a breeder’s website often grossly misrepresent what conditions are really like for these puppies and their parents,” says Nancy Perry, Senior Vice President of ASPCA Government Relations. “Puppy mills are able to completely evade federal oversight by taking advantage of a pre-Internet loophole in current law, but the PUPS Act would change that.”
As mentioned in USA Today, the PUPS Act will require that any breeder who sells more than 50 dogs each year to pet stores or online must meet federal standards.
Loophole lets accused puppy mill operator sell dogs online A controversial commercial dog breeder who has been repeatedly fined, had her license suspended, and served jail time near Seattle for animal-related violations continues to sell dogs over the Internet because of a loophole in federal regulations.
Protesters want to educate public about puppy mills Leading a peaceful demonstration against a lack of laws prohibiting puppy mills in North Carolina… Up to 15 people at a time walked the sidewalk outside [Hanes Mall’s] grounds, carrying signs and attempting to hand out literature to motorists as they left the mall.
55 dogs seized from suspected 'puppy mill' Orangeburg County officials seized 55 dogs and two donkeys from a suspected “puppy mill” last Friday, County Administrator Harold Young confirmed Tuesday night. Two of the dogs later died.
We told you last week about our plans to have a booth at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show this year, so we wanted to make sure to let you know how it went. Our booth – which we used to raise awareness about our campaign to fight puppy mills – was a bit of an outlier at the event, as you might expect. But, with just a few exceptions, our booth was generally well received.
So you might have heard that the 137th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is happening next week – on February 11 and 12. This year, like last, the ASPCA will have a booth at the event. This time, the ASPCA will be featuring our campaign to fight puppy mills, still a huge problem across the country. We’ll have lots of information about the sad realities of the puppy mill industry, and an opportunity for you to test your knowledge about this troubling issue. Did you know that most pet store puppies come from puppy mills? Or that many dogs sold online are also from puppy mills?
Come visit our booth and you’ll have the chance to sign our No Pet Store Puppies Pledge to not buy anything in pet stores or on websites that sell puppies—no pet food, kitty litter or even toys . If you aren’t able to visit our booth next week, take the pledge and join the fight against puppy mills at nopetstorepuppies.com.
Are you thinking about adding a dog to your family?
Make adoption your first option! You can find your very own “best in show” among the ASPCA’s adoptable animals at the ASPCA Adoption Center or a local shelter in your area. Remember, mixed breed and older dogs make just as great companions as purebred puppies, and you get to save a life to boot!
You can find our booth at Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show from 8am to 6pm at The Piers (Pier 94) located at 711 12th Avenue, NYC 10019.
Dozens of Dogs Found in Suspected Puppy Mill 64 Pomeranian dogs were taken from the home… Those Pomeranians range from two weeks to nine years old. None of them have been spayed or neutered. They all need to be vaccinated.
Why wasn't puppy mill found sooner? Neighbors say they complained for years about barking and a strong odor at a home where 64 Pomeranians were living under one roof before authorities finally stepped in.
'Most popular' dogs also popular in puppy mills Unfortunately, there’s a dark parallel between man’s very best friends and their prevalence in commercial breeding facilities, or “puppy mills.” It is in these facilities that a potential companion is seen as a commodity, and a long, dark history of animal welfare abuse emerges.
Burbank this week joined the growing list of cities that have banned the retail sale of pets, but built in a six-month grace period for existing pet stores.
