Puppy Mill Essay

Currently, the estimated amount of puppies sold every year that begin their lives in a puppy mill is 2.11 million (Humane Society), and this number is still rising annually. A puppy mill is a shelter for dogs that breeds and sells many breeds of them. Female dogs can easily have over 50 puppies in their lifetime in a mill. In puppy mills, dogs can spend their entire lives in cramped cages with no interaction whatsoever. Puppy mill owners don’t usually care about the health and conditions of the puppies, and just their profit. Frequently, puppy mills don’t have any climate control, protection, or vet care. These dogs are then sold in some pet shops, on the internet, in ads, flea markets and more. Puppy mills should be banned because

they affect the way dogs are bred, as well as the health and emotions of dogs.
Most puppy mill owners don’t care about genetics or the effects of breeding dogs.

In puppy mills, female dogs are overbred and a lot of times inbreeding occurs just to get profit. This action causes many complications and is harmful to species. When, after a few years, they are physically depleted to the point that they no longer can reproduce, breeding females are often killed” (ASPCA). Female dogs are bred until their bodies can’t handle it anymore. This practice is harmful and should not be happening because it disturbs the species of the dogs. “The dogs were found to have significantly elevated levels of fears and phobias, compulsive and repetitive behaviors, and heightened sensitivity to being touched. Compared to "normal" pet dogs, the recovered puppy mill dogs had a six to eight times higher chance of scoring in the highest ranges for fear. "This study gives us strong evidence that the dogs kept in these large-scale breeding facilities don't just suffer while they're confined there, but carry the emotional scars out with them for years, even when they're placed in loving homes," Dr. McMillan told USA Today”. Many dogs from puppy mills experience harsh breeding, as all these owners want it profit. It’s harming thousands of dogs, and should be put to a

stop.
Dogs in puppy mills have to endure harsh living conditions which affects so many of their bodies in negative ways.

Because of these shelters, dogs are being killed because of illnesses from these situations every day. “Conditions common to puppy mills, such as the use of stacked, wire cages to house more animals than a given space should reasonably hold, as well as constant exposure to the feces and urine of other dogs, make it difficult for dogs to avoid exposure to common parasites and infectious diseases.” “Most often they are in small cages that may not allow them to turn around, or they are in a pen with many other dogs. They may not have had any socialization with humans other than quick handling or during transport to another area for breeding.” However, when you add in the stress associated with shipping a sick puppy large distances under less than ideal circumstances and less than ideal nutrition and veterinary care previous to the illness, even the diseases that are normally mild can become much more serious for these puppies. Health is a big concern for people who are against puppy mills. Dogs are killed because of illnesses every day in these mills. It’s really wrong because these animals should not be put through

this.
It’s been proven that dogs that come from puppy mills have more fears and trust issues than the average dog. Puppies that come from puppy mills experience scarring situations that affects their emotions for the rest of their lives. “With respect to behaviour, CBE dogs displayed significantly higher rates of fear (both social and nonsocial), house-soiling, and compulsive staring; and significantly lower rates of aggression (toward strangers and other dogs), trainability, chasing small animals, excitability and energy” This study was done on more than 1,100 dogs who were formerly from puppy mills and had been rescued and been living in a new home for more than 2 years. These dogs had many emotional issues because of the puppy mills they were living in before they got rescued. Normal dogs don’t have that much anxiety and trust issues, which really shows the effects of these mills. “The puppies are usually removed from their mothers and shipped to pet stores at around 7-8 weeks of age. To live in the puppy mill environment for only a few short weeks would at first glance appear to provide very little opportunity for psychological harm. Unfortunately, such is not the case.” “The Best Friends–UPenn study is the first to compare the psychological and behavioral characteristics of over 1,000 puppy mill dogs with pets acquired from other sources. The findings showed significantly elevated fear levels, compulsive behaviors, house soiling and a heightened sensitivity to being touched”. If puppy mills would be banned from existing, these dogs would not be experiencing the terrorful emotions and problems that many dogs experience every, single day. This needs to be put to a stop for these dogs.

The hundreds of thousands of dogs that are kept captive in puppy mills struggle with atrocious challenges having to do with breeding, physical health and their emotional health, every single day. These dogs barely have any food, water or playtime. They aren’t like normal dogs because they’re trapped in dark, worn down cages twenty-four seven, seven days a week. Getting rid of these puppy mills would really benefit these poor animals. If these mills didn’t exist, female dogs wouldn’t have their reproductive systems worn out, and they wouldn’t be having puppies every few months with no recovery time. The dogs who caught deadly diseases and sicknesses from the dreadful living conditions wouldn’t be suffering, and the dogs who finally get adopted into a home wouldn’t have emotional problems, like fear and trust issues. These puppy mills affect these dogs in so many negative ways. Even though these owners of these mills and people who agree with them want profit, and don’t want to lose their businesses, they’re harming the innocent lives of these dogs.