Quebec to Review Puppy Mill Laws

The fallout from the huge puppy mill seizure is fueling calls for a review of Quebec's animal rights laws, which are abysmal even for Canada. It's unbelievable that the maximum penalty would be $1,200 if convicted.

Exerpted from CTV News...

Animal welfare workers are calling for stricter laws on breeding facilities after more than 500 allegedly malnourished dogs were seized from a Quebec puppy farm last week.

The dogs were confiscated from Paws "R" Us Kennel in Clarendon Township, about 90 minutes northwest of Ottawa. The raid might represent the largest puppy seizure in Canada.

Under Quebec law, the kennel owners could face a maximum penalty of only $1,200 if convicted of animal cruelty — a penalty that some animal rights advocates say is too lenient.

"You need to reopen the law to change the fines," said a representative from an animal welfare group.

Huge Dog Seizure at Quebec Kennel

This is huge.

Excerpt from the Vancouver Sun....

One of the largest animal rescue operations in Canadian history just got a lot bigger: about 90 puppies have been born since hundreds of dogs were seized northwest of Ottawa.

"We have a lot of puppies here and a lot more puppies coming," said Rebecca Aldworth, the executive director of Humane Society International Canada.

More than 500 dogs were removed from the Paws 'R' Us kennel in Clarendon Township, Que., about 90 kilometres northwest of Ottawa, during the weekend seizure, which was carried out by Humane Society International Canada, Quebec's agriculture and fisheries ministry and area police. The dogs were taken to an emergency shelter in Lachute, about 115 kilometres east of Ottawa.

The dogs will remain there until a custody hearing determines whether they will be returned to the owner of the kennel or placed under the care of the province.

If custody goes to the province, Aldworth said, the humane society will put the dogs up for adoption, regardless of whether the owner is charged or not.

The owner of the kennel has maintained she was targeted by animal rights activists and that inspectors found only trivial violations.

Aldworth said about 100 dogs received critical veterinary care, but could not say how many were expected to survive or suffer long-term health problems. She said the humane society has already received calls from people wanting to adopt from all over Canada.

Missouri Lawmakers Repealing Puppy Mill Measure Approved by Voters

This is infuriating. Here's a link to the full story...

Months after Missouri voters approved a measure that cracks down on what animal advocates say are some of the nation’s most notorious puppy mills, lawmakers are poised to repeal much of the law, saying the rules are too costly and punish legitimate dog-breeders who generate an estimated $1 billion annually in the state.

Animal advocates complain that elected officials essentially have overruled the will of the people, and they are prepared to put the issue on the ballot again next year.

Irish Senator Complains of Animal Welfare "Cabal"

This complaint is the result of proposed legislation to ban puppy mills in Ireland. Legislators are being contacted by people around the world to support the legislation. They are blaming the dastardly Green Party whose leader proposed the legislation.

The dog breeding legislation, intended to outlaw “puppy-farming”, was prepared by Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment John Gormley. The draft Bill proposes a new regime of annual inspections and fees for dog breeders.

Fine Gael and rural Fianna Fáil backbenchers have called for greyhound breeders to be exempt because the industry is already regulated by existing legislation. They also want an exemption for hunt kennels which do not breed dogs for commercial purposes.

Another Pet Store Goes Out of Business

This time it's Scamps, who used puppy mills as suppliers and sold sick animals to the public.

Good riddance.

Dogs Seized at Kennewick Puppy Mill

Dogs were seized at a Kennewick puppy mill with the help of the HSUS. H/t to HelpAnimals on Twitter. From the HSUS press release:

KENNEWICK, Wash. - The Humane Society of the United States assisted the Benton County Sheriff's Office today with the seizure of hundreds of dogs from a puppy mill here.

Prosecutors are considering charges in connection with today's seizure against Ella Stewart, owner and operator of Sun Valley Kennel, who was recently charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty. The dogs--all miniature American eskimos--lived in deplorable conditions: Dogs were confined to shopping carts, while others spun circles in rusty pens caked with feces. The smell of hot urine eminated from the property lined with pens and more makeshift cages, created with plywood and rusty metal doors. Some of the dogs suffered from malnutrition, urine burns and overgrown nails.

Western WA Puppy Mills Had Troubled History, But Still Allowed to Operate

This is a good article about the puppy mills operated by a Western Washington woman and her parents. She kept being given "one more chance" with the end result of about 600 dogs finally being seized from the establishments.

This is definitely a situation that could have been stopped early on. How much suffering and death resulted from this family's practices?

The article is particularly thorough and damning.

Blog for Rescued Dogs in Western Washington

Remember how we posted about the raids on puppy mills in Mount Vernon and Gold Bar, Washington? Here's a blog for people who are trying to help them. About 600 dogs were seized from horrible puppy mill conditions. Our pet sitter alerted us to the site.

Puppy Mill Raids in Western Washington

What a mess. We live in Seattle, which is part of King County. Up north are Snohomish County and Skagit County where two puppy mill raids have led to the rescue of almost 600 pregnant dogs, about 80 percent of whom are pregnant. (We blogged about the Gold Bar, Snohomish County, raid last week). The woman who owns the Skagit County property is the mother of the one who owns the Snohomish property. Keeping abuse in the family! And, of course, they are all "designer dogs."

One of my coworkers is heavily involved in puppy mill issues. She says that northwest Washington is a refuge for puppy mills because regulation up there is particularly lax.

If the regulation in this area is worse than puppy mill regulation in general, it must be REALLY bad.

Puppy Mill Busted in Gold Bar, Washington

This story comes out of Gold Bar in Snohomish County, north of Seattle (where we latte-sucking liberals live.)

Officers rescued 155 dogs and several other animals found living under ghastly conditions in a puppy mill operation so horrific that it shocked even veteran animal control officials.

...After obtaining a search warrant, deputies and officers raided the property, where they found many of the dogs stuffed inside small crates and pens overflowing with urine and feces.

Several dead puppies also were found in a freezer, and two dead dogs were found elsewhere on the premises. Eighty-seven of the dogs were living in a converted attic.

Adult dogs and puppies were found living in crates and small pens filled with large accumulations of feces and heavily soiled shavings, said Vicki Lubrin of Snohomish County Animal Control Services.

Puppy Mills Still Flourish in Quebec

Here's a Montreal Gazette article on the vile proliferation of puppy mills in Quebec.

Pet Love Closes its Doors in Beverly Hills

This is awesome. (Pet Love is a business that sells animals from puppy mills.)

The Beverly Center, an upscale shopping mall in Beverly Hills, California, has announced it will terminate Pet Love’s lease sometime in the next few months. Best Friends made the announcement at a news conference Tuesday.

“Our work here in Los Angeles sends the strongest possible message everywhere that pet shops are supplied by puppy millers,” said Paul Berry, Best Friends chief executive officer. “If a pet store can be closed down in the iconic Beverly Center, it can happen anywhere in the country – New York, Chicago, Boston and other large metro areas.”

Pet Love isn’t just your average little neighborhood pet shop. It has been a fixture at the high-end, celebrity-filled mall for more than 15 years. Pet Love is to pet stores what FAO Schwarz is to toy stores, says Julie Castle, director of Best Friends’ Community Programs and Services.

Best Friends is an amazing organization. Please do support their work. Not only do they advocate, but they train advocates as well. And this Pet Love is only one of several stores that have closed as a result of Best Friends' Puppy-Store-Free L.A. campaign started last summer.

Humane Society Exposes Petland Practices

This news story slipped by in November. The Humane Society has another great investigation into the shady practices of a corporate giant.

This time it's Petland, who I'm glad to say has no stores in my area (that I know of.) It has about 140 stores nationwide that sell puppies that supposedly come from "good" breeders (are any breeders good? but that's another post.)

Not so, says the Humane Society. Among the investigation findings....

**Despite assurances by Petland staff and on their corporate website that the company knows its breeders and deals only with those who have "the highest standards of pet care," many Petland puppies come from massive commercial breeders in Missouri and other Midwestern states, where hundreds of breeding dogs are packed into cramped, barren cages—often for their entire lives, with no socialization, exercise, or human interaction.

**Many of Petland's puppies are not supplied directly by breeders but are purchased from a "middle man"—large-scale "pet distributors," otherwise known as brokers—showing that the company may not even know who the breeders are or what their standards of care may be like. The investigation revealed that some of Petland's brokers are also buying from puppy mills.

**Documented USDA violations at some of Petland's breeders and suppliers included dirty, unkempt enclosures; inadequate shelter from the cold; dogs kept in too small cages; and inadequate veterinary care. Some of the breeders were found with sick or dead dogs in their cages.

Dog Thefts a Concern in Quebec

Valuable dog breeds in Quebec are being stolen, possibly by unscrupulous dog breeders.

A police spokesman said there is no indication the dog thefts are occurring more frequently than usual, but Jennifer Montague, with the Western Quebec SPCA, disagrees.

"Dogs are stolen all the time. Unspayed females and unneutered males, they're a prime target if they're a purebred dog."

...The trend is largely fuelled by the unscrupulous segment of Quebec's dog breeding industry, which generates $600 million a year in the province, Ms. Montague said. "There's huge money, especially in the province of Quebec where we have absolutely no laws protecting (animals)."

..Dog breeders do not even need a licence to operate in Quebec, which has become a haven for so-called puppy mills, say critics of the province's lax animal welfare laws.

Photo by minna883.

New California Law Tougher on Pet Stores

Good for California (my home state!)

The state's pet store industry has come under attack by citizens and legislators, with California stepping up regulation and the Humane Society of the United States tracing problems to Midwest puppy mills.

In October, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 1347, the Pet Store Animal Care Act, which imposes stricter standards for the daily care of all animals sold in stores, not just cats and dogs.

The new law also gives enforcement officers the power to ticket store owners for violations. In addition, veterinary care is required for illness or injuries, and procedures for euthanasia are spelled out for the first time.

Photo by the wretched.

SPCA Action over South African Puppy Sale

The SPCA staff in South Africa is not kidding about illegal breeding and puppy sales. No incident is too small.

Three men have been released from police custody with a warning after selling puppies packed into a shoebox in Tokai. The incident comes after the SPCA called for harsh penalties to be imposed on people caught breeding dogs without a permit.

SPCA trainee inspector Moyo Mqabuko said he had been alerted on Sunday night by a member of the public and had responded immediately. He found the men trying to sell a litter of seven puppies in a shoebox, outside a restaurant.

Mqabuko said the puppies were shivering and had no water or food. He demanded that the men give up the puppies in accordance with the Animal Protection Act. "They refused, which is when I contacted the police," he said.

Photo by animalrescueblog.

Australian Puppy Mills Criticized

As long as there is demand for purebred puppies and the opportunity for profit, there will be puppy mills. As long as there are puppy mills, there will be a desperate need for clear regulations and strict enforcement.

The RSPCA investigated 21 separate breeders across Australia last financial year.

The animal protection society says that "cruel puppy farms" are using limited breeding pools to produce a generation of dogs beset with genetic health problems including blindness, arthritic joints and skin problems.

ACA Breeders Kennels in Sale, where the pictures were taken and an estimated 300 to 400 dogs are kept for reproduction purposes, have denied the exploitation.

The pictures were taken by Animal Liberation Victoria, which claimed it rescued some dogs needing treatment for eye infections.

"It's a factory, a production line with rows and rows of breeding mums," ALV spokeswoman Debra Rigaldi said. "Puppy farms are the ultimate betrayal of man's best friend."

And RSPCA President Dr Hugh Wirth said the dogs pictured probably experienced a life of "terror".

"They live a life of confinement and deprivation," he said. "It's very difficult to find them a home later because they aren't used to open spaces, they are just terrified."

Photo by clussman.

Puppy Mills Infesting Virginia

Here's a new Humane Society investigative report on the burgeoning number of puppy mills in the State of Virgina.

A five-month, undercover investigation by The HSUS revealed a substantial Virginia puppy mill industry that is largely unregulated and often in violation of state and federal laws.

Some key points...

*Commercial dog breeders in Virginia number nearly 1,000.

*Like many states, Virginia has no kennel inspection program to ensure that dog breeders meet basic standards of animal care.

*To sell puppies to pet stores, facilities with more than three breeding females are required to have a license from the United States Department of Agriculture...In Virginia, only a handful of dog breeders hold a USDA license; many of the unlicensed sell to pet stores, anyway.

*Virginia's puppy mills significantly contribute to the state's pet overpopulation crisis: last year, shelters in Virginia had to euthanize more than 42,000 dogs for lack of homes.

There's a video posted on the page too, if you want to watch.

Photo by jsdart.