Pet Stores Are Puppy Mills: Undercover Investigation Report

 

December 6, 2009

By Meghan Chavalier

"A puppy mill, sometimes known as a puppy farm, is a commercial dog breeding facility that is operated with an emphasis upon profits above animal welfare and is often in substandard conditions regarding the well-being of dogs in their care. Similar types of operations exist for other animals commonly kept as pets or used as feed for other animals."

You're in the mall and you see the pet store. Most people's first reaction is to go in and look at all the cute little animals they keep in the cages. But, I ask you to stop for a moment and think about those cute little animals they have in these cages, who've never seen the outside of a cage, and are not treated as well as you think they are.

I decided to go undercover and actually capture video of these animals in pet stores, to show you how these animals are actually treated. With hidden camera we went to a pet store in Bloomington, Indiana which is in the mall. We didn't have to worry about anyone questioning what we were doing because the employees were too busy talking on the phone to even pay attention to their customers, or their pets they "keep in stock."

WATCH THE VIDEO

Some of you may be saying, well, that doesn't look too bad. If you are saying that, you are absolutely wrong. The animals we saw were cramped up in cages, there was feces and urine all over the cage as well as underneath the "grids" which the dogs sleep on. Another thing about these grids, is that the the holes in them are so large the animals feet could easily be trapped within them. But, of course, the friendly staff of this pet store, would never have any idea because they weren't paying attention.

More than 75% of the dogs were without food. If you watch the video you will actually see that three of the dogs in one cage were sleeping in their food dish.

I am so disgusted by pet stores. I think they are nothing more than puppy mills glorified. You should not buy animals from a pet store, you should get them at your local animal shelter where you will pay much less for an animal that could be killed at any moment and feel much better about what you've done by saving an animals life.

I'm not sure what regulations are placed on pet stores in the United States but there needs to be stiffer laws and stiffer penalties for all of them. These animals are not treated well. In fact, I've known quite a few people who have paid thousands of dollars for animals, to have them die within the first week of buying them from a pet store.

The next time you are in a mall, please walk past the pet store. Don't go in to look at the animals. Pet stores are puppy mills and when you buy an animal from a pet store you are doing nothing more than contributing to an already out of control puppy mill industry that is happening in the United States of America.