The majority of people believe that puppy mills are illegal, but this is not true. There are many reasons why they still exist in today’s society, and it doesn’t have anything to do with the law.
Puppy mills are a type of breeding facility that produces dogs for money. Because there is so much demand, puppy mills can sell pups at higher costs than they’re worth.
Puppies from these mills are frequently purchased by individuals unaware of the risks involved until it is too late. These animals live terrible lives where they are kept in cages all day without proper food or care while being treated like products on an assembly line. The only way to end this cruelty is by making sure everyone knows about puppy mills and backyard breeders.
What it’s like in a puppy mill
- They are kept in overcrowded cages with little protection from extreme weather and have no option but to sit and sleep in their filth.
- Puppies that are unhealthy or dying go without medical treatment.
- Dogs can become malnourished or starve as a result of insufficient or unclean food and water.
- Puppies are separated from their mothers at such a young age that many develop significant behavioral issues.
- Adult dogs are bred continuously until they reach a point that they can no longer reproduce. They are either euthanized or killed mercilessly.
What backyard breeders do
Profit is also a motivator for backyard breeders. These breeders use paid advertisements in the classifieds to promote the mill puppies. Backyard breeders may appear to be the ideal neighbor next door and even seemingly well-intentioned breeders as they treat their dogs as family pets. However, breeding animals for years to get puppies for a profit endangers their well-being.
Some backyard breeders only reproduce their family dog on rare occasions, yet they may not know how to breed responsibly, such as looking for genetic abnormalities. Puppy mills and backyard breeders, on the other hand, prioritize profit over animal welfare. Their pets are therefore rarely given routine veterinary care.
Dogs are frequently deceived since they may appear healthy at first but later develop congenital eye and body malformations, parasites, or even the deadly Parvovirus.
Even though puppy mills are illegal, they still exist. The reasons for this are loopholes in the law and ignorance on the part of consumers. We will explore 6 reasons why puppy mills are still around by looking at each loophole and its consequences.
1. Not all States find puppy mills illegal
Because the majority of animal defense rules in the United States are implemented at the state level rather than by federal legislation. As a result, each state is free to establish its standards for animal care, and all fifty states can agree no one modulates.
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2. Puppy mills get to operate in a low profile
There’s also that puppy mills are low-margin, small businesses that do not engage with large corporations. The profit is insufficient, and the variety of puppy mill operators is too wide to suggest that it would be a suitable target for more monitoring or controls.
3. Human rights > Animal rights
Animals are given less attention than they need because numerous companies exploit human needs and weaknesses, primarily unchecked or inadequately controlled. When it’s easy to ignore human rights, what more for animals?
4. Limited legislation towards puppy mills
The worst practices of puppy mills are already illegal in several locations throughout the United States, although not everywhere. Given the limited resources available, enforcement is a big issue in those locations.
5. Pet stores won’t disclose their sources
There are an estimated 10,000 puppy mills in the United States. These mills produce over 2 million puppies per year. 1.2 million dogs are put to death in shelters every year, according to the American Humane Association (AHA). That’s just one of the many secrets a pet store won’t disclose to you.
6. Not included in PACT Act
The Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture (PACT) Act strengthens a previous law passed in 2010. On a national level, the PACT Act makes animal cruelty and abuse unlawful, allowing for federal prosecution of activities like as crushing, burning, drowning, suffocating, impaling
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Communities that have banned puppy mills
While the federal government has yet to address puppy factories, several states and municipalities have already done so. In the United States, 26 cities and states have enacted laws to regulate and terminate puppy mills. These regulations cut off the link between puppy mills and pet shops they supply to, thus shutting down puppy mills.
Not all puppy mills are illegal because there is no federal legislation regulating them. They continue to operate illegally due to the lack of enforcement by the USDA and state governments and their ability to avoid detection through misrepresentation on websites or in advertisements.
This situation has resulted in puppies being overbred until they can’t reproduce anymore, with inadequate care for both mother dogs and pups during pregnancy and after birth.
As a result, many suffer from congenital disabilities that make it difficult to live everyday lives outside of puppy mill conditions.
Adopting a dog from your local rescue shelter may be an alternative option if you want one less likely to come out of this type of breeding facility. If you’re looking for more information, read our post about puppy mills statistics.
