# PetLand - - - Puppy Mills



## EJQ (May 13, 2003)

I just caught the last few minutes of the Animal Planet Show on puppy mills and PetLand’s on going policy to sell puppies bred in these mills. I’m puzzled! With all of the horrendous publicity on puppy mills and the pet stores that sell the puppies, what would motivate someone to support them by buying a puppy. I just don’t get it.:shrug:

Stop being so lazy, do your homework; seek out a reputable breeder!!


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## Relayer (Apr 29, 2010)

The general public is basically completely ignorant and certainly when it comes to dogs. They think buying a life that will be with them for 10-15 yrs. is just like going to the grocery store. Marketers like Petland know this and capitalize on it. They buy cheap dogs in bulk, display them like produce and sell them at high prices (for what you get). Uggggh


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

Through talking with people I've met at work and through various other hobbies I have, I've recently realize that the average person who wants a dog doesn't have any idea what a responsible breeder is or how to find them, and the concept of traveling to see puppies or purchase one is just beyond their understanding.

The average person decides they want a dog and realizes their options of finding a dog are limited to the local shelter, the local pet store, and the local classified ads. If the person wants a purebred dog, they tend to look at the pet store and in the classifieds first, because "it's a shelter dog and you never can tell if it's purebred of mixed" because "it doesn't come with papers proving that it's purebred". 

They don't realize that there is a difference between a purebred dog and a well-bred purebred dog. They don't realize that "designer breeds" are not breeds at all, but mixes. And they don't CARE, either.


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## Jessica H (Mar 14, 2009)

I do think there is anything as a "cheap" dog, maybe it was just phrased wrong.

I got into an arguement with the manager of one of these stores and he swore they were not from puppy mills but dog dealers (or something ridiculous). Same thing!!!!!! He said they get plenty of time out of the little aquariums, 1 hour each day to run around the store; SERIOUSLY!!!!!!!! They don't even get to go outside, it is horrible.
I ended up getting asked to leave because I was causig a scene. I went into the store to get food for my turtles, I didn't realize they had puppies. Needless to say I didn't buy the food.

I ran into someone that just got a GSD puppy, when I asked where she got her she said a pet store. I smiled and said that wasn't a good move, her repsonse was "she has papers". You can get papers for any purebred, that really isn't as big of a deal as people think.


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

I watched the beginning of the program, including the undercover bit where they posed as customers at PetLand. They are assured that the pups aren't from puppy mills, that each pup comes from a licensed and knowledgeable breeder and is guaranteed to be healthy. They are even given the name of the breeder, an actual person not a company name. I think that is enough to impress Joe Blow that the puppy comes from a good place. 

I agree that the average person doesn't understand what makes a breeder "responsible," that a GOOD breeder would never allow one of their beloved puppies to be sold through a middle man, going to the first person with $$. One of the women interviewed bought a pappilon (sp?) as a birthday gift for her 9yr old daughter. The puppy turned out to have pneumonia and other resp. problems and was hospitalized 2 days after purchase. She thought that she was insuring a healthy quality happy puppy because she paid over $1300 for it.


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## Relayer (Apr 29, 2010)

Jessica H said:


> I do think there is anything as a "cheap" dog, maybe it was just phrased wrong.


I agree with that!! I meant that they buy them cheaply and sell them expensive.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

Our local pet store has big pink signs on the glass in front of the puppy cages that say, "All our puppies come from USDA inspected kennels. We do not support puppy mills."

*roll eyes*


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## EchoGSD (Mar 12, 2010)

I have been in the dog world for over 30 years, training, showing/competing, teaching obedience & responsible dog ownership classes, etc. I have worked in the veterinary field for 20 of the last 30 years. Despite the availability of information, the ability to obtain responsible breeder referrals, and the horror stories I've told from the clinic, my sister in law bought a puppy mill puppy from a Petland store here in Michigan. She said she "felt sorry for it" in the glass case. So she paid nearly $2000 for Bichon Frise / Shetland Sheepdog mix. Then she felt so "guilty" for leaving that puppy's sibling behind that she went back a few days later and paid another bundle of money for that dog. So she paid that Petland over $3000 in less than one week for these two dogs; dogs that I am sure Petland probably paid less than $100 bucks total for in the first place. She then dealt with the worms, the fleas, the eye & skin infections, and the upper respiratory infections for the next 8 months. She still sees nothing wrong with that picture.....


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## EchoGSD (Mar 12, 2010)

Don't get me wrong about my SIL: she's an educated woman married to a educated man (both have Master's degrees in Education) and she has a heart the size of Texas. It's the big hearts in the world that get in the way of making educated, rational choices sometimes....her only thought was that she could help these 2 puppies (which she did: they are now happy, healthy, adorable, well behaved bundles of love being very well cared for); unfortunately the fact that these puppies were saved means that PetLand is able to repeat the sale process again and again and again. That's the frustrating part: by saving the pups through purchase, Pet Land is rewarded for their behavior and it just never ends.


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## showshepherds4me (Jun 2, 2010)

Echo
I can see how your good hearted SIL bought those dogs. She is probably a sweet person. A friend of mine who has been around my dogs and me, went to a puppy mill and bought a puppy that was a "designer" dog.She too felt sorry for it. These breeders of designer dogs are charging big bucks for MUTTS! So the puppy mills who advertise 40 different breeds of dogs. Then they start breeding different breeds together for designer dogs. One guy was breeding miniture St. Bernards. I applaud Petsmart. They do not sell dogs and only have cats from the shelter.


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## Jessiewessie99 (Mar 6, 2009)

Jessica H said:


> I do think there is anything as a "cheap" dog, maybe it was just phrased wrong.


My GSD was $25.00.lol. No such thing as cheap eh?lol


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## EJQ (May 13, 2003)

showshepherds4me said:


> Echo
> A friend of mine who has been around my dogs and me, went to a puppy mill and bought a puppy that was a "designer" dog.She too felt sorry for it. These breeders of designer dogs are charging big bucks for MUTTS!


Wow you are ever sooo correct!! Mixing breeds is not designing; it's producing MUTTS. People that buy them think I'm nuts when I say that. Just another scam initiated by the pet stores.

Oh brother pin a rose on me (as my mother used to say)!!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I missed the first ten minutes of it but watched the rest of it. 

I started watching it where the guy is not being allowed entrance to many breeder's facilities. From a breeding standpoint, I see why they would not. This guy shows up looking for a dog, and expects to see the kennels. I am sorry, but he visited four places that day. If he HAD been allowed entrance to all of them, he would have probably spread parvo, distemper, or any number of things between them. 

The next day he did get inside them, visiting many kennels on that same day. I did not see him hosing his shoes off with bleach water. 

Yes these were definitely puppy mills. How many times do people have to say that responsible breeders do not let strangers sell their puppies. No, not one responsible breeder leaves puppies in a store to be sold by an employee of the store. 

So while the puppy mills should be prosecuted for any violations of any laws, and Pet land should be required to stop saying that these puppies are coming from the best breeders, etc, etc, I think the people who PURCHASED their pooch from a pet store should suck it up and pay the vet bills for their dogs. 

I just cannot feel sorry for them -- the people. Showing the little kid, is designed to tug at our heart strings and enrage us further. 

The fact is that PEOPLE DO KNOW. They do know that these puppies are coming from commercial breeding facilities. On some level they know that these dogs were not raised by conscientious and reputable people, but rather people looking to pump out the most puppies, with the least expense. 

Because out of what they are paying, $750 -$900 I heard on the show, the store is getting a huge hunk of that. So, the breeders are getting only a portion of that, and in order to make a profit, they have to be making up for it by producing volumes and putting next to nothing into the dogs. 

And on some level, the people buying their dog from a store realize that their dogs are coming from puppy mills. Just like most of us know when we buy chicken or beef that the critters we will be eating probably had a crappy existance before being slaughtered for food. We know, but we really do not want to think about it. If we think about it, we may have to act on it. 

So they buy their dog, on impulse, from a pet store, disregarding the numerous warnings that are everywhere, disregarding the red flags that crop up at the store, and forage ahead. Their pup gets sick and then they are livid and want PetLand to pay for their dog's health care. 

The burned hand teaches best. They made their decision and need to live with it in my opinion. If they would have returned their sick dog to petland, they may have gotten the purchase price back, and petland could then determine whether it made sense for them to treat the puppy or euthanize the puppy. I do not think that pet land should shell out $3000 for care, if their decision would have been to euthanise for $35. 

If petland is requiring their breeders to be USDA certified, than maybe this lawsuit should include the individuals and organization that have certified these breeeders. 

USDA is not an ideal set of standards, rather a minimum standard for animal care, and if these animals are living in squalid conditions, then maybe someone should be holding accountable the USDA inspectors who are not doing their jobs. 

EVERYONE IS AT FAULT HERE:

1. The buyer is at fault for purchasing a pet from a commercial establishment -- shame on them.

2. The breeders are at fault for not providing decent care of these animals, and their breeding animals.

3. The USDA is at fault for issuing citations, but continuing to allow them to be certified.

4. The humane society is at fault for not pressing criminal charges on the breeders when they are violating laws such as cruelty and neglect of animals.

5. The pet store is at fault for selling puppies in the first place, and purchasing them from places and not following through to ensure that those places provided at least the minimum care standard.


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## arycrest (Feb 28, 2006)

Jessiewessie99 said:


> My GSD was $25.00.lol. No such thing as cheap eh?lol


No, there is no such thing as a cheap dog, even if he were free. I've always said that the least expensive thing about a dog is the initial purchase price regardless of what you pay (or don't pay). When you start adding up vet bills, food bills, training bills, costs to watch the dog when you go on vacation, etc etc etc it adds up fast!lol


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## Jessiewessie99 (Mar 6, 2009)

arycrest said:


> No, there is no such thing as a cheap dog, even if he were free. I've always said that the least expensive thing about a dog is the initial purchase price regardless of what you pay (or don't pay). When you start adding up vet bills, food bills, training bills, costs to watch the dog when you go on vacation, etc etc etc it adds up fast!lol



Oh yes definately! When Molly got Kennel Cough it was like $200!!


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## gagsd (Apr 24, 2003)

I did not watch the show, but I do remember a few years back someone on here found some nicely bred working lines puppies at the local pet store. The pedigree was posted here, breeder of the female contacted, etc.

I know of at least two people that breed European line dogs, have multiple females, and yet I never see ads anywhere for those puppies. It is hard to believe they all sell word-of-mouth. My guess is those two breeders sell to pet-stores. Someone may get a "well-bred" puppy, but you have to wonder if it will be "well-raised."


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