I finally met a puppy mill dog, a six year old female who had been kept in a cage and bred over and over again, no exercise, not properly fed - her ears and tail had lost their hair. Her teats were very enlarged.
The puppy mill was in a pet store. You may have heard that in some parts of the United States there is a great effort to end puppy mills, to even prevent pet stores from selling dogs.
I have mixed feelings about preventing pet stores from selling dogs and cats. I think there is a proper role for dog breeders, and that it is wrong to tell a store which is otherwise following our laws that they cannot sell any animals. It is the conditions the animals are living in that is the real question. Most of the time people go to pet stores to buy a puppy that is a pure breed.
Shelters and Rescue Groups have some pure breeds but also a lot of mutts. I think there is a role for the breeder and a good reason to get a pure breed dog, though mine is not. Though every dog is different, knowing the breed means knowing more about the breeds health issues, temperament, and the size the animal will be as an adult; you don't want to have to give up a dog that has outgrown its welcome in your apartment after puppyhood. You want to know how long the animal is likely to live. Though life is often what happens while you're busy making plans, you need to ask yourself before you take on a pet how many years you think you will have her. If you're a senior, you may not want a pet who will likely outlive you. I believe the dog I adopted was taken by a relative who had no time for her after a senior died or went to a nursing home or assisted living.
This poor puppy mill dog had a life of imprisonment, a life that was that of a slave. An employee of the store found a home for her because the owners had asked her to take it to the animal services to be put to death cheaply. The employee asked a woman who had two other small dogs and lived in a house with a yard and her three daughters if she would take her.
This is what the woman who adopted her told me. "She was afraid to put her feet on cement or even the grass. All she knew as normal was the feel of metal cage beneath her feet."
That's when I understood what PUPPY MILL means.
This dog's health has been somewhat renewed. After six months or so of good food her hair on her ears and tail grew back. She stays close to the woman who adopted her and who is kind to her, and luckily has joined a household full of loving women and doggie companions. She also gets to go to the dog park. This dog's breed has a life expectancy of about 12 years - maybe 15. I couldn't help but shed a tear looking at her, both from sadness knowing what she had lived and happiness that she will have some life that is worth living.
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