WHERE DO PUPPIES COME FROM? WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO DO YOUR RESEARCH PRIOR TO PURCHASING OR ADOPTING A DOG?
Puppy Mill Dog Reese – photo courtesy of Gillian Woods
Of course I knew puppies came from mommy dogs. I was quite ignorant to breeders, breeding facilities, and the OVERWHELMING number of pets that were waiting in shelters and with rescue organizations, for loving, forever homes. I grew up on a farm. My first dog Punchie came to stay with us when my Godparents moved to Japan. Punchie, the dog and Tiger the cat were sisters and became part of our family – no questions asked. Other dogs that had been left behind by hunters found their way to our door and seemingly found their way back to their homes the next day while I was at school.
By the time I had convinced my husband that we should get a dog, I had done a fair bit of research and was confused by the different options for obtaining dogs; breeding facilities (several types), brokers, pet stores and shelters or rescue organizations.
A red flag for me, was the headline on a number of sites that read WE ARE NOT A PUPPY MILL!
Long story short, we found Henry and learned so much about Puppy Mills from the founder of the wonderful rescue organization from whom we adopted him. Thank you Kimberly of Kismutt Small Dog Rescue.
Henry was fairly young when we adopted him. Henry had been surrendered by the owner of the mill due to medical conditions. Sadly, another pup, suffering a similar condition was surrendered too late, and her eye had to be removed. Other than physical illness, Henry was a happy dog – unaffected mentally, by his time at the mill.
Fast forward a year.
We decided Henry needed a brother or sister. Although not a pro by any means, a year with Henry had taught me how to be a dog parent. We learned of Reese, another mill dog in need of a home. The rescue organization felt this little girl needed another ‘normal’ dog for reassurance and to teach her how to be a dog herself. It still brings tears to my eyes when I recall how much Reese needed Henry, and how her big, younger brother brought her out of her shell and did indeed teach her to enjoy life. I credit Henry with ninety percent of Reese’s rehabilitation.
To follow is Reese’s adoption profile, including a video of a terrified, former breeding, Puppy Mill dog. Also, an update from her foster parents (thank you Matt and Erin), and a few words from the founder of the rescue organization that ‘pulled’ my dog and saved her from a bullet.
Please visit us next week for part II – what the law says.
Petfinder Adoption Profile – Joyful Rescues
Breeze Kent (now Reese)
- Breed: Shih Tzu [Mix]
- Sex: Female
- Age: Young
- Size: Small
About Me
It was one of the worst mills; the dogs lived on wire bottomed cages, never touching their feet to a solid surface year after year. Breeze is just now experiencing fresh air, sunshine, and most importantly – grass. All the simple pleasures we take so for granted.
We have been taking it slow with the picking up and handling of her… she is pretty fast when she wants to get away from you.
She even came over to me at the end of the day yesterday when I put my hand out for her to sniff and she let me pick her up without running away..needless to say I was ver y happy about that!! We’ve been offering her treats whenever our crew gets theirs but has yet to take any from us.
She is extremely sensitive about us touching her front feet. Her whole body shakes pretty bad when both Matt and I touch her feet. We will continue to work on this as well.
This morning she was sitting in the kitchen with two of our dogs and I was petting her head before I left for work and she closed her eyes and laid down for a rest…it was nice to see that she was comfortable enough to do this. we are looking forward to the day when her little tail will wag and not be constantly between her legs. other than that she is just getting used to all the new sounds and smells and we even caught her staring at the TV when she was laying on the couch yesterday. We feel very lucky that we will hopefully be able to make a difference in her life!!! Matt and I will keep you posted on her progress but we wanted to let you know how the first few days have been.
Founder and Director of Joyful Rescues, Joye Turock has the following to say about Puppy Mills and Mill Dogs:
There are still humans that don’t know what a puppy mill is. They don’t know how it works, they don’t know how badly the dogs are mistreated and what happens to the dogs once they are no longer capable of producing inventory for pet store shelves.
We recently had someone adopt a puppy mill dog from us. The dog was maybe half as frightened as others we have rescued. Even though we took the time to prepare her and provide helpful advice for adjusting the dog, she returned him the next morning saying she had no idea how damaged he was, and that she was unprepared.
Humans can help by not buying from pet stores, no matter how vehemently store owner deny the fact, the dogs being sold as a product in pet shops are from Puppy Mills. No credible, caring, breeder places their dogs in pet stores.
There are many Puppy Mills that sell online – they show everything the consumer wants to believe is true.
Consumer. Isn’t that an awful word when you are talking about the purchase of a living being?
Behind closed barn doors, there is pain, suffering, death, and tragedy. Adult dogs are left behind, in the cages, their babies ripped away from them. The baby pups are barely old enough (by law) to be sold. Hence so many health conditions.
Humans that are outraged by this treatment of our domestic animals need to get involved by contacting their government representatives and work to help change the laws that currently protect the owners of such facilities. Right now, these operations (this treatment) is completely legal in the USA, shame on us!
Please visit us next week. We will review the KENNEL LICENCING BY-LAW provided by THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF GEORGINA.
Thank you Joye and the team at Joyful Rescues for all you do for the animals. Eternally grateful for Reese
http://joyfulrescues.com/index.html
http://www.kismutt.com/home.html
Post Photo of Reese courtesy of Gillian Woods
https://www.flickr.com/photos/gillyface/
I was invited to participate in a ‘Puppy Mill Blog Hop’ for Puppy Mill Action Week. I’m thrilled to be involved in this wonderful project. Thank you, Dolly theDoxie. Please visit the other blogs to learn more about this cause and how together we can make a difference.
www.Facebook.com/ThePuppyMillProject
www.YouTube.com/ThePuppyMillProject
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