But yet, I can't help but feel a bit sorry for the poor cat or dog in the pet store who is needing a good home, no matter how they got there. Poor things.
Where do the other puppies and kittens come from? Can you say all pet stores buy from mills? I worked for a pet store that got it's puppies and kittens from local breeders who brought them in at 8 weeks and they were held in the back for two weeks to be sure they were socialized, and for kittens, box trained. They were given shots and wormed and spoiled like crazy. Perhaps it would be better if you published the names of the pet shops who do use mills, and not "black list" every pet store. Research the shops before buying! I agree that puppy and kitten mills are a horrific way of life for the cats and dogs that are inslaved there. Like child abuse, much can be done if neighbors would report suspected abuse of animals! I wish you luck in closing down these mills and giving their prisoners the homes and lives they deserve.
I don't know about the stores around the country but the local one here is awful.
Every puppy(and I am by no means exaggerating) we see that comes from this store has something wrong with it. Upper respiratory infections, pneumonia, hip and knee problems and temperment problems all seem to plague these dogs.....
I don't know where they get these dogs from but I'm sure it's not a responsible breeder.
I had walked by there a few months back(It's in the mall) and they had these 2 Bengal kittens in the window case that looked terrible. You could see their ribs and their eyes and noses had thick discharge comming out of them. I can't see how they would try and sell those 2 kittens in the condition they were in. It's making me angry just thinking about it.
And then as I was looking at the kittens, a bloodhound puppy in the next cage over took a poo and the worker just threw some wood chips over it and walked over to help a customer. **shakes her head**
As a courtesy to Anne please do not start naming store names in this post. Instead, I would suggest you call your local humane shelter and ask them how you go about reporting the horrible offences you see happening in pet stores in your area. Naming Pet Stores by name in this thread, opens Anne up for possible libel suits.
I feel fortunate in my area as the pet stores take in kittens that have been rescued- not ones that come from mass producing kitten mills. They adopt at low cost and the price includes a spay and neuter certificate. With the tone of society changing and more people aware of the bad stuff that goes on- it is unfair to just say in general that all pet stores buy from mills. Some do, but more and more do not.
Thankfully we don't have petstores that sell cats/dogs anymore, it's illegal here, but we do have pet stores that sell hamsters, guinea pigs, rats, mice, gerbils, rabbits and some that sell exotic pets (like Bearded Dragons, Iguanas, geckos, corn snakes). Generally, they seem to be in good health and kept in good conditions, however, its not unusual to see too many rabbits/guinea pigs crammed into one cage with not enough room to run, they just waddle around bumping into each other
.. Thankfully though, they are usually bought pretty quick so don't tend to stay in those conditions for long, but its still a sad sight to see.
There's a large pet-store chain in the UK that had claims of abuse leveled at them. Allegdly in one case they couldn't sell some hamsters, so they stuffed them into a bag and smacked the poor little things against a brick wall. I'm really not a people person and this just strengthens my disgust at the human race.
This company has changed its name due to these allegations, but continues to trade. I have never been in since and never intend too. Thankfully they don't sell puppies or kittens, but they do sell rabbits, chipmunks etc.
I have to agree with Debby. But is there not some government agency that you can report this to? Or an animal protection service? I know that in Australia they are policed and act very quickly on any reports or complaints.
Diann in Australia