This is the time of year where kids pester their parents with the standard question: “Mom? Dad? Can we get a puppy for Christmas?” Every year, thousands of well-meaning parents buy their child a puppy for Christmas and unknowingly support puppy mills. Since the Internet is so widely used today for anything from buying socks to buying exotic pets, many people use the World Wide Web to find the perfect puppy, without knowing where that puppy is coming from and without taking the time to visit the breeder.
Here’s a case in point: A woman named Karen Leland and 10 others recently filed a lawsuit against Purebred Breeders, the parent company of PuppiesDirect.com. Their claim is that the company’s puppies don’t come from quality, responsible breeders as they advertise. After spending $1,500, Leland’s puppy died within a week. A spokesperson for Purebred Breeders said the lawsuit has no merit and that the breeder has thousands of satisfied customers. However, Humane Society officials said they have undercover video of some of the company’s suppliers, which they claim are large-scale, unsanitary, and inhumane breeding facilities known as puppy mills.
Puppy Mills 101