Even though the Missouri Proposition 8 looked like it would be shot down in the polls all night on November 2nd, by midnight the campaigners called a victory (at 51.6% "Yes") because all the rural districts which were more likely to vote "No" on the animal rights proposition. (The rural counties were more likely to vote "No" because of a supposed smear campaign claiming that this would lead to more stringent rules for dairy, beef and poultry farmers and higher prices for eggs.)
"'This is a watershed moment for the dogs in Missouri’s breeding facilities,” said Kathy Warnick, president of the Humane Society of Missouri." Read more from the Humane Society article here.
Prop 8 makes it illegal to house dogs in wire cages, will limit the number of breeding dogs to 50, will limit breeding two twice every 19 month per dog, and insures veterinary care and exercise for every dog. As of now, 30-40% of puppies in pet shops come from one state-Missouri, a number that is sure to drop as a result of this legislation.
Follow me and my two rescued Pitbulls, Bruno and Winnie on our adventure as I volunteer, learn more about Pit bulls, help to educate others about this amazing breed while following the practices of Animal Care and Control of NYC.
Showing posts with label proposition 8. Show all posts
Showing posts with label proposition 8. Show all posts
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
Missouri Puppy Mills Exposed
Since my post about Missouri puppy mills last week, the human society posted this article about the Prop 8 efforts going on in MO. The Protection of Dogs/YES! on prop 8 committee asked the state to investigate the illegal dumping of dead dogs by commercial breeders. The findings will help spur the public to focus on the issues before they vote.
The dogs that you see in the pet shop or the breeder website, may in fact come from one of these irresponsible puppy mills that is dumping their dead dogs. The graphic images that are part of the report show dogs' dead bodies on trash heaps and mass graves. One commercial breeder (Hunte- the largest puppy broker in the US) was found to be dumping 220 pounds of dead puppies a month! Hunte claims that every puppy in their care finds a home.
The Hunte Corp. website slogan is "where puppies come first!" Hunte claims that they adhere to the strictest puppy care standards, where each puppy gets pampered and is given constant attention by veterinarians and human socialization. They say that they transport the animals "in specially built vehicles, designed to support animal health an welfare." However, the basic windowless trucks that deliver the puppies have caught fire multiple times in the past- one time killing all 60 puppies inside of suffocation. For some reason Hunte focused on legitimizing its' business in its' statement rather than explaining its' truck safety record, saying "The puppies were all beautiful, healthy purebreds that were on their way to quality retailers in the northeast and eventually to loving New England families."
Sadly, even if we believe the lies on Hunte Corp's website, they make no promises about the dogs that are bred; promises are only made about the health and welfare of the product. At commercial breeders like Hunte, female dogs are bred constantly, and often killed off when their reproductive rate declines. No one who sees that cute puppy in the window thinks about her poor mother languishing her life away in a tiny dirty cage; forced to share the cage with a male whenever she is in heat. Not to mention that these "pure-bred dogs" like the ones coming from Hunte, have a 25% chance of having some genetic disorder such as blindness, his displaysa, or neurological problems. Since dogs in puppy mills get almost no veterinary care, they will often arrive to you with injuries, fleas, rotting teeth, mange, and often times kennel cough or parvo virus.
The little Wheaton terrier we bought from a pet store (click for the link-- please avoid stores like this) when I was 12 named Noah came to us with parvo virus and died at the animal hospital less than two days after we bought him; they felt bad and simply gave us another dog. (Max, a chocolate lab we later had to put to sleep because he was overly aggressive.) No doubt Noah's brothers and sisters would have been thrown into a dumpster if they had met the same fate.
About 1,000,000 (ONE MILLION) puppies are produced each year by U.S. puppy mills. Many of these are pit bulls, remember that 100,000 pits are put to sleep each year. Pits are adorable when they are little but their rambunctious nature and their breed perception make them difficult for some to keep. Many inner-city males find pit bulls to be "the only acceptable breed of dog to own." This all encourages a cycle of over-breeding and euthanasia, a cycle that brings the dogs into this world for our brief enjoyment and out of it time after time.
The dogs that you see in the pet shop or the breeder website, may in fact come from one of these irresponsible puppy mills that is dumping their dead dogs. The graphic images that are part of the report show dogs' dead bodies on trash heaps and mass graves. One commercial breeder (Hunte- the largest puppy broker in the US) was found to be dumping 220 pounds of dead puppies a month! Hunte claims that every puppy in their care finds a home.
The Hunte Corp. website slogan is "where puppies come first!" Hunte claims that they adhere to the strictest puppy care standards, where each puppy gets pampered and is given constant attention by veterinarians and human socialization. They say that they transport the animals "in specially built vehicles, designed to support animal health an welfare." However, the basic windowless trucks that deliver the puppies have caught fire multiple times in the past- one time killing all 60 puppies inside of suffocation. For some reason Hunte focused on legitimizing its' business in its' statement rather than explaining its' truck safety record, saying "The puppies were all beautiful, healthy purebreds that were on their way to quality retailers in the northeast and eventually to loving New England families."
Sadly, even if we believe the lies on Hunte Corp's website, they make no promises about the dogs that are bred; promises are only made about the health and welfare of the product. At commercial breeders like Hunte, female dogs are bred constantly, and often killed off when their reproductive rate declines. No one who sees that cute puppy in the window thinks about her poor mother languishing her life away in a tiny dirty cage; forced to share the cage with a male whenever she is in heat. Not to mention that these "pure-bred dogs" like the ones coming from Hunte, have a 25% chance of having some genetic disorder such as blindness, his displaysa, or neurological problems. Since dogs in puppy mills get almost no veterinary care, they will often arrive to you with injuries, fleas, rotting teeth, mange, and often times kennel cough or parvo virus.
The little Wheaton terrier we bought from a pet store (click for the link-- please avoid stores like this) when I was 12 named Noah came to us with parvo virus and died at the animal hospital less than two days after we bought him; they felt bad and simply gave us another dog. (Max, a chocolate lab we later had to put to sleep because he was overly aggressive.) No doubt Noah's brothers and sisters would have been thrown into a dumpster if they had met the same fate.
About 1,000,000 (ONE MILLION) puppies are produced each year by U.S. puppy mills. Many of these are pit bulls, remember that 100,000 pits are put to sleep each year. Pits are adorable when they are little but their rambunctious nature and their breed perception make them difficult for some to keep. Many inner-city males find pit bulls to be "the only acceptable breed of dog to own." This all encourages a cycle of over-breeding and euthanasia, a cycle that brings the dogs into this world for our brief enjoyment and out of it time after time.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Stop Puppy-Mills!
Tell them to stop breeding!
100,000 Pitbulls die in shelters every year, but puppymills in Missouri and elsewhere continue to breed these animals and sell them to pet stores for a profit. Puppy mill pups often are bred and grow up in cramped cages. Many develop neurological disorders or have genetic diseases or other problems.
Missouri is home to 23% of the Puppy mills in the U.S., many dogs from Missouri are shipped out via the internet to unknowing buyers in other states. Many shelters resue pups from Missouri and bring them to other states for veterinary care and better homes (which is our my own precious Winnie came to find me through Animal Haven in Soho, NYC). However, there is finally a proposed bill to stop the cruel practice in Missouri, called Proposition 8 (the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act) which sets restrictions on the size of these commerical breeding facilities and provides the animals with more basic care.
See the add for Prop 8 below:
Please see the ASPCA's list of ways to help stop the puppy mills:
ASPCA- 10 ways to help
100,000 Pitbulls die in shelters every year, but puppymills in Missouri and elsewhere continue to breed these animals and sell them to pet stores for a profit. Puppy mill pups often are bred and grow up in cramped cages. Many develop neurological disorders or have genetic diseases or other problems.
Missouri is home to 23% of the Puppy mills in the U.S., many dogs from Missouri are shipped out via the internet to unknowing buyers in other states. Many shelters resue pups from Missouri and bring them to other states for veterinary care and better homes (which is our my own precious Winnie came to find me through Animal Haven in Soho, NYC). However, there is finally a proposed bill to stop the cruel practice in Missouri, called Proposition 8 (the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act) which sets restrictions on the size of these commerical breeding facilities and provides the animals with more basic care.
See the add for Prop 8 below:
ASPCA- 10 ways to help
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