I am not going to say anything negative about the people that run all the puppy mills cages at the flea market, because most were really nice to us. But there are literally 100’s of “pure bred” puppies for sale by people that don’t seem so ‘qualified’ to breed them at our local flea market.
Most of the dogs we saw go for $250-$600.
I have a hard time thinking this is a right thing to do when there are so many unloved animals in shelters all over the U.S.
It kinda hurts my heart.
(this is only a portion of the cages everywhere. I felt like PETA taking pictures. HA!)
~Trisha
Don’t but from puppy mills…this is very heartbreaking!
i know, its sad.
Please please please adopt from shelters. There are so many wonderful, loving dogs there due to overbreeding and other reasons. Our dogs are both adopted and so sweet and wonderful. I really wish there would be more regulation about puppy mills and overbreeding.
we would def adopt from a shelter!
I watched an Oprah special on this a year or so back. I was appalled at the way that they treat puppies in the mills. Some of the mommies are so so sick because all they do is produce puppies and nurse. Other dogs can’t walk because they’ve never been out of those chicken cages.
I learned that if I’m ever going to get an animal to go to a shelter because most pet stores buy from mills.
Those are some adorable little faces in those cages though.
oh, that would be so sad. I dont think i could watch it.
This is so sad! I know i would never buy a pet from the puppy mill you never know what you are going to get. I feel so sorry for those animals. I did buy mine from a breeder when i got marley but she takes really good care of her animals I even had to sign a contract that if she ever thinks or hears that I mistreat marley she will take him back. We also use the same vet and she CHECKS and ask him all the time how marley is.
She has a strict policy and will not even think about selling to just anyone. I talked to her for like a hour Then she agreed to let me Come to her house and meet her and the pups. She made everyone interact with them to see what the dogs thought about us OMGGGG I was at the point like this women is CRAZY!! LOL So i guess they liked us and we passed the test LOL.. But now I do understand they are so many people who mistreat animals which is awful.
that does sound like she was doing a great job.
I’ve never seen such a HUGE amount of sad lonely puppies in one place before.
If no one bought puppies at flea markets, these puppy mills would no longer be profitable. That’s the only answer I can come up with, outside of legal issues.
the cages seem to double every time i go there
This makes me sick to my stomach.
My son bought my Pit Bull puppy from a woman that decided she did not want the puppy after all. I was her second home at 10 wks of age! She has severe allergies and costs us money constantly for treating her. We figure it is from her breeding. I love her to pieces and could never part with her, but she is high maintenance to keep healthy!
that is terrible. Poor puppy doggie.
I know how you feel! There were always tons of puppies for sale at the flea market in my home town. Most of the people looked ragged and scary looking. There’s no telling what kind of conditions they have those animals in which made me want to rescue each and every one of them but not at the highway robbery price of $500!
i wouldnt pay that kind of money for a pet, PERIOD.
OMG that is the saddest thing ever!
They all look so sad and uncomfortable in those teeny tiny little cages! This has to stop!
there were some big big dogs in tiny cages.
We have volunteered for a breed rescue for years (min pins) and I’m going to spare ya’ll the soap box. I will say that only true breeders care about the well being of their breed and these flea market people are not them. Same goes for the pet store dogs.. they are from puppy mills, as well. Go to the web site that Kim posted above.. it’ll rock you.
Hundreds of THOUSANDS of dogs are put to sleep in your local shelters every year because room is scarce and their time is up. If there is a breed you are interested in, find a rescue (or Petfinder.com is great) or find a REPUTABLE BREEDER.
I would’ve had a FIT if I was with you, Trish.
oops.. the web site that Kim posted BELOW..
Well, you KNOW how I feel about this. No one should ever ever ever get a dog from anywhere other than a shelter or rescue. If people continue to buy puppies like this, then “breeders” will continue to breed them. MILLIONS of shelter animals are euthanized every year. And, contrary to what some believe, most shelter animals are there NOT because they have “problems” but because of circumstances beyond their control – they got lost, owners moved, died, couldn’t afford them.
Sorry, I’ll shut up now. It hurts my heart too, Trisha.
Aggie, GOOD FOR YOU for telling that guy off. Every puppy he breeds is a life he could have saved.
I have never seen a flea market with THAT many dogs .. wowza!! I feel bad for them and agree there are so many animals out there you can adopt that need a home .. wow!
That just completely breaks my heart. We did purchase our pup from a breeder but it was actually someone that bred their pup as a life lesson for their daughter, teaching her about life, birth, etc. It was really an amazing family and thanks to them we have an amazing little pup.
I strongly suggest you check out the movie/documentary “Dealing Dogs” its horrific but something all people should be informed of. I’ve worked with raising awareness about the cruelty behind animals, not just puppy mills, but there is such another level to it. My dog was thrown away after being bred to many times in a kennel in some po dunk town in the West. Shes missing her ears, they were bitten off by another dog. I could go on about this for so long.. =(
my heart cannot take movies like that. i get physically ill.
Oh, don’t get me started on puppy mills! Those people disgust me! Did you know that in Pennsylvania it is perfectly legal for them to kill their dogs with a shotgun? One “owner” was going to be fined and shut down so he shot all the dogs before the ASPCA got there.
It’s sickening!
that is super tragic
So heartbreaking… especially when there are so many loving pets to be found in shelters/rescues…
all of our pets have been rescues
Puppy mills operators should be “allowed” to live like the animals they breed. They should be “allowed” to spend their entire life in a cage producing babies starting way before they are past being a baby.
When one of the guys I work with told me about a white German Sheperd that he had bought, I asked if it was for a pet. He said yes but he was going to breed her too. When I asked him why, he said because of the high price he could get for the puppies. I told him that he was no better than all of the puppy mill breeders. I told him that in my oppinion that unless he was going to try to better the breed, he had no business breeding dogs only for money. He got mad and walked away.
The entire practice of selling puppies this way should be outlawed. Puppy mills are TERRIBLE places – my golden retriever came from one and his medical bills have cost us over 10,000 in his 8 years.
Inbreeding.
Filthy conditions.
Living in cages all their lives – some do not know how to walk because of it (the breeding ones).
Very sad.
http://www.nopuppymills.com has a ton of great info and they helped us win a court case against the people we got our dog from.
wow, kim, that is crazy. have you blogged this before? Would love to read what happened.