Eden Tinkelman

For the Love of Paws

“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself” -Josh Billings.

Dogs, a common household pet domesticated over decades to aid humans, whether it be

as a companion, status symbol, working dog, protector, or show dog. Although these animals

have many purposes in human lives, many end up in shelters, abandoned on the streets, or being

abused in puppy mills. A puppy mill is a mass breeding facility that produces broods--a litter of

pups--for sale, which are typically disheveled, overcrowded, and unhealthy (mentally,

emotionally, physically) for dogs. There are a multitude of studies showing how puppy mills

allow for the spread of disease, the reduction of growth and development, temperament

alteration, the proliferation of psychological effects, and early death. A plethora of these aspects

of the dogs’ life are accredited to not being adopted quickly enough or being in poor health

(Puppy Mills). Puppy mills are one of the root causes of many abandoned and feeble dogs in the

U.S.

Female dogs--bitches—become sexually mature—come into heat (to become sexually

receptive in female mammals; also known as estrus)--between five to twelve months of age

depending on the size and breed (smaller breeds typically come into estrus earlier). Once bred,

the bitch will carry her brood anywhere between fifty-eight to sixty-eight days and then whelp

(to give birth to pups), on average, about four to eight pups. The whelps would then stay with the

bitch for about two and a half months (eight to twelve weeks)—when the pups would be weaned

off of the bitch’s milk. That would be the typical scenario a professional breeder would follow,

but that is not always the case.

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Those people who own puppy mill operations, do not follow said procedure. The puppy

mill owners will feed or inject steroids or hormones into their bitches, which cause them to come

into heat earlier—whether it be the dog’s first time or not--than they should and produce larger

litters. This method is the most profitable because more whelps from one “brood bitch” means

more money and, to the broker, the industry is all about profit. Once the female is bred (typically

inbred—breeding from closely related individuals), she will be put into a breeding box. Here she

is confined in a small windowless box—often so small that she may step on her pups--where she

will give birth and “wean” her pups (Puppy Mills-Animal Rescue Corps). The bitch will not get

the proper nutrition to carry out a healthy pregnancy, which can lead to abnormalities (along with

the inbreeding) in her brood and ill health on her end. When she gives birth, she will not lactate

enough for all of her whelps due to improper nutrition, health, and the litter size (typically larger

due to the steroids/hormones). Even though she will not have enough milk for her pups, her pups

will be weaned early at four two six weeks instead of the recommended eight to twelve weeks.

Once her brood is taken from her, she will go through this same cycle until she has been

overbred and can no longer reproduce due to the stress on her system and lack of proper

nutrition. This cycle not only leads to a loss of reproduction but also mammary tumors on her

nipples and malnutrition. In poor condition and without a purpose, the owner will dispose of the

brood bitch in several ways including “starving, drowning, shooting, beating, or burying her

alive” (Puppy Mills-Animal Rescue Corps). If she is not killed, she may be sent to a laboratory

and used for testing products or research (Last Chance for Animals-Puppy Mill Facts). As for her

whelps, they will suffer in many ways.

The second the pups are removed from their mother, they are at a higher risk of having

negative behavioral, social, physical, and psychological effects. When a whelp is weaned early, it

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is missing out on important social learning (proper behavioral interactions such as barks,

nipping, playing, and fighting) and essential nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fats, minerals,

vitamins, and water) that the milk provides for proper growth. The first few hours are most

important as that is when the bond is formed (due to licking) and the colostrum (milk with a

higher count of antibodies and nutrients) is produced. When born, some of these pups already

have physical abnormalities, such as missing or shortened ribs and undescended testicles, thus

making them even more prone to other diseases and premature death. In the puppy mills, there is

little to no sanitation, veterinary care, and improper nutrition. “In 2005, the Animal Protection

Institute conducted an investigation of California pet shops and found that 44% of the locations

had sick and neglected animals, 32% of the animals were confined in unhealthy, cramped, or

crowded conditions, and 25% of the animals didn’t even have adequate food or water” (Humane

Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) Veterinary Report on Puppy Mills).

These canines are put into small wood or wire—typically wire—cages or crates where

they may be left outside exposed to harsh conditions, such as rain, snow, extreme heat, and

extreme cold, or left inside where there is no temperature control. Here, in these cages, the pups

and other dogs will suffer living in these cages, rarely if ever being let out to exercise and play.

These cages are typically stacked on top of one another and may only be six inches longer than

the dog on all sides, causing overcrowding in one cage. The wire cages allow excretion to fall

through the holes and land within other cages, on top of other dogs. The feces then build up

within the fur, pads, and nails sticking to the cages.

The feces attract mosquitoes, flies, rodents and a plethora of parasites, which can breed

and rapidly spread diseases. Diseases caused by fleas and ticks include tapeworms (caused by

ingesting fleas carrying Dipylidium caninum), haemobartonellosis (caused by the bite of a flea or

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tick that is infected with the parasite M. haemocanis, which infects the red blood cells), Lyme

disease (caused by the bite of a hard-shelled deer tick infected with the bacteria Borrelia

burgdorferi) , ehrlichiosis (caused by the bite of a brown dog tick infected with Ehrichiosis

canis), anaplasmosis (caused by the bite of a deer tick infected with Anaplasma

phagocytophilum that infects white blood cells). Several diseases caused by rodents are plague

(transmitted through the bite of an infected rodent or flea), leptospirosis (caused by ingestion,

licking, or sniffing of infected rodent urine with Leptospira bacteria), toxoplasmosis (caused by

the ingestion of rats infected with Toxoplasma gondii), rat bite fever (caused by the bite or

scratch of a rat infected with Streptobacillus monilifomis or Spirillum minus), roundworm

(caused by the ingestion of rats with live roundworm larvae). Other diseases due to such vectors

include heartworms (caused by mosquitoes with Dirofilaria immitis, which is then transmitted

through the blood) and mange (caused by the burrowing of Sarcoptes scabiei mites in the skin).

The feces of animals can cause many diseases whether it be by licking, ingesting,

sniffing, or exposure. Ingestion of animal feces can cause giardiasis (caused by ingesting the

infectious offspring, or cysts, that are shed in another animal’s feces), salmonellosis (caused by

the ingestion of water, food, or feces infected with Salmonella bacteria), and cryptosporidiosis

(caused by the ingestion of water, food, or feces contaminated with the Cryptosporidium

parasite). Direct (licking, ingesting) or indirect (exposing, sniffing) contact with feces can cause

coronavirus (caused by exposure to feces of infected dogs), campylobacteriosis (caused by the

direct contact with water, food, or feces that is contains the Campylobacter bacteria), and

parvovirus (caused by the direct or indirect contact with dog feces) (Dog Poop Facts; Popkin,

Matt; Parker, Lee; Pet Health & Nutrition Information & Questions | Vet Approved Diagnosis

And Treatment | PetMD).

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Not only are feces unsanitary, and disease-infested, but also can cause intact fur to

become stuck to the feces-encrusted cages and entangled within the fur causing mats—densely

tangled clumps of fur. The entangled fur can cause skin irritation, pain and a loss of blood supply

(especially if the puppy is wearing a tight collar) (Puppy Mills-Animal Rescue Corps; Matting:

The Truth & Consequences).

These cages or crates can also cause injuries to the animals within them. Since wire cages

are open, the dog’s legs can fall through the holes causing paws and legs to be accidently cut off,

scraped, or broken. The pup can struggle for several days in attempt to remove its leg from the

hole it is trapped in. Since the cages are unsanitary, any cuts produced may end up infected and

untreated. Another issue with the cages is that in warm temperatures, the metal of a cage will

become scolding hot, causing paw pads to burn; in wooden cages the whelps suffer from heat

stroke as the air within the closed off cage overheats. In the winter, there is no temperature

control and many dogs freeze, to death possibly, without bedding or climate control to keep them

warm. Although the cages are overcrowded, huddling together for warmth is not enough to save

the dogs from hypothermia. More often than not, the overcrowding leads to fights. The fighting

between the dogs can lead to loss of limbs or function as well as bite marks, which untreated,

lead to nasty scars or infection in such an unhealthy environment. Sometimes the dogs may fight

to the death or the infections from fighting can ultimately lead to death due to the lack of

veterinary care as to save money (Puppy Mills-Animal Rescue Corps).

Without veterinary care and proper sanitation—sometimes pressure washers are used for

cleaning, which can lead to loss of eyes—many other issues can arise. Normal grooming

procedures that owners or veterinarians would provide are nail and fur trimming, bathing, ear

and eye cleaning, dental cleaning, and wellness inspections. At the puppy mill, dogs are not

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properly taken care of and can be found with overgrown or ingrown nails (due to lack of

trimming and exercise on solid ground), conjunctivitis (reddened and cloudy eyes caused by

canine distemper virus, allergies, eyelid tumors, poor genetics, and trauma to the eyes), and

missing or decaying teeth (due to lack of proper dental hygiene and chewing on the unsanitary

crates).

Aside from improper veterinary care and treatment, there are nutritional needs that are

not met as well. Dogs, due to their nutritional needs and gastrointestinal tract, are omnivores

meaning that they can eat and digest food of plant and animal origin; solely relying on just one or

the other will not satisfy the nutritional needs of the dog. There are six macronutrients that are

crucial to all dogs: water, protein, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and nutrients. Water, essential to

all living organisms, accounts for sixty to seventy percent of an adult dog’s body weight; a ten

percent loss of water within the body can result in serious illness while a fifteen percent loss can

result in death. This is one of the common killers for the death of dogs in puppy mills, especially

in the sweltering summer heat.

Proteins, which should make up twenty to thirty percent of a dog’s diet, depending on its

stage in life, are the building blocks of the organism as they make up DNA (deoxyribonucleic

acid—the genetic material), RNA (ribonucleic acid—a nucleic acid that is the messenger and

translator for protein synthesis), enzymes (a protein that acts as a catalyst to speed up chemical

reactions), antibodies (a protein that is produced by the immune system in response to foreign

bodies within the organism), and hormones (a regulatory substances produced by the endocrine

system to stimulate specific responses). Carbohydrates, whether simple or complex, are

important for making ATP, the body’s main energy source, and makes up thirty to sixty percent

of most dog foods. Healthy fats (those that are unsaturated) do not only provide twice as much

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energy as carbohydrates but also aid in lubricating and cushioning joints as well as keeping the

skin protected from damage; fats should be ten to fifteen percent of a dog’s diet. Vitamins and

minerals, although only needed in small amounts, cannot all be synthesized and therefore must

be in the food for proper functioning (Your Dog’s Necessary Nutrients-Petfinder; Pet Health &

Nutrition Information & Questions | Vet Approved Diagnosis And Treatment | PetMD).

Without all these nutrients, dehydration (lack of water), iron anemia (lack of iron in red

blood cells), atrophy (muscle degeneration), skin irritation (due to lack of fats), fatigue (due to

lack of energy), malnutrition (due to poor diet or lack of food), and/or starvation can occur.

Being on an improper or insufficient diet for prolonged periods of time can lead to decreased

immune system function, stunted growth, and eventually death. Proper nutrition and an adequate

amount of feed is overlooked at puppy mills as to save money, which is really what the business

is all about.

The businesses also overlook proper vaccinations and checkups. This allows for diseases

and disorders to become more common in the broods produced. At first the pups may seem

healthy but later on, it is noticeable that they are anything but healthy. Most canines, when

brought into the veterinary clinic, are given a series of core (essential) shots: canine distemper,

parvovirus, hepatitis, and rabies along with option of noncore (non-essential) shots: measles,

CAV-2 (canine adenovirus type 2), bordetella (prevents kennel cough), leptospiriosis,

coronavirus, and Lyme. Without the core shots, dogs are at higher risk for kennel cough (caused

by the Bordetella bronchiseptica bacteria), and canine distemper (a viral disease caused by the

Morbillivirus class of viruses and typically attacks the nervous system).

Due to the inbreeding and lack of careful treatment, many disorders can proliferate such

as epilepsy (convulsions due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain), kidney and heart

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disease, hip dysplasia (when the hip joint becomes dislocated), luxating patella (dislocation of

the kneecap), diabetes (an endocrine disease that doesn’t allow the body to produce enough

insulin causing elevated levels of blood glucose), hypothyroidism (abnormally low activity of the

thyroid gland), hyperthyroidism (abnormally high activity of the thyroid gland), deafness,

blindness, cataracts (when the lens of the eye becomes opaque, eventually leading to blindness),

glaucoma (prolonged increase of eye pressure causing a loss of vision), retinal atrophy

(degeneration of the retina, which causes blindness), respiratory disorders, periodontal and gum

disease (inflammation of the structures that support the gums, resulting in swollen and red

gums), pneumonia (bacterial or viral infection that causes lungs to become inflamed and filled

with fluid), chronic diarrhea, canine adenovirus, ear infection, arthritis (painful stiffening of the

joints), and diseases listed before. “When over one hundred dogs were rescued from a puppy mill

in Stuarts Draft, VA, a veterinary report of eighty dogs showed that more than sixty percent of

them suffered from a disorder serious enough to require emergency veterinary care, more than

eighty percent suffered from parasites, almost forty percent were underweight, more than thirty-

five percent were suffering from dehydration, and more than forty percent were suffering from

eye disorders” (Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) Veterinary Report

on Puppy Mills).

Some physical abnormalities may be purposely caused, such as partial removal of the

vocal chords (known as “de-barking”), dew claw removal, and ear and tail docking. Many of

these procedures are done by an unlicensed veterinarian that the mill has hired. These

“veterinarians” are used for “performing surgical procedures, giving prophylactic antibiotics

(antibiotics that are given for prevention of infection), attempting to diagnose and treat diseases

with prescription medications, and administering antitussives (used to mask sounds/signs of

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illness)” (Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) Veterinary Report on

Puppy Mills).

Health and physical impairment are not the only aspects of the dog that are affected but

so are the behavior and temperament of the dog. Due to being ripped away from their mother at

an early age, whelps often have social and behavioral issues with people and other animals. The

mother, littermates, and humans play an important part in proper socialization and enrichment.

Without proper socialization, pups can become fearful, shy, stressed, and anxious, which can

result in trembling, boredom, and/or aggression. “Over the course of two years, research on over

1,100 dogs was done and it was confirmed that most dogs scored a range of fear six to eight

times higher than that of a ‘normal’ dog” (Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association

(HSVMA) Veterinary Report on Puppy Mills). Aggression can also be due to the fight for food

and territory since dogs are kept in such small, overcrowded cages with little food and water. If

dogs are ever taken out of these mills, many of the dogs show abnormal behaviors such as

stereotyped behaviors (repetitive non-functional patterns such as spinning in tight circles and

pacing), hoarding of food or toys (due to having to always fight for such objects), erratic sleep

patterns, phobias (such as fear of loud noises), sensitivity to being touched or picked up, house

soiling (due to being “desensitized” to being where the dog’s excrement was) and leash pulling

(due to always being confined) (Worden).

Although these qualities make the dogs sound impossible to have, no dog acts the same

due to how long it was in the puppy mill, how poorly it was treated, and how well it is treated

when rescued. Some dogs come out and act is if barely anything had happened to them while

others have a slew of issues. Due to potential health and behavioral issues, as well as human

ignorance, dogs may not be adopted. For these dogs that are not adopted, they are euthanized. It

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is estimated that about one million puppy mill dogs in shelters are euthanized or killed annually

(Learn The Truth).

Any canine that is not euthanized is sent to a pet store. With about 800,000 adult breeding

dogs in “stock,” these puppy mills can produce millions of broods, which can be sent and sold to

buyers through the internet, classified ads (newspapers, dog magazines, web site ads), flea

markets, roadside stands, breeders directories, and pet stores. About ninety-nine percent of the

dogs in pet stores come from puppy mills leading to an annual selling of 2.4 million puppy mill

dogs and pups (Learn The Truth). Many people, when buying from these pet stores do not know

that they are buying from a puppy mill since many of these pet stores will show customers fake

papers about the dog they plan to buy. Due to this, many buyers will later have to pay for high

veterinary bills to bring their new dog back to health or euthanize the dog due to the

overwhelming pain the dog is in. “From 2007 to 2011, a summary of complaints from 2,479

puppy buyers was recorded stating that 40% of dogs were seriously ill, 34% of dogs had

congenital defects, 15% of dogs died, 3% of dogs had temperament issues, 2% of dogs returned

to the vet due to illness, and 6% of dogs had other issues” (Humane Society Veterinary Medical

Association (HSVMA) Veterinary Report on Puppy Mills). Many people may not know why the

dog is having such issues since it had “papers” from a “breeder” but that is how the puppy mills

make their activity work (Arthur, Nan).

Most of the activity of the puppy mills goes unregulated and unnoticed. In 1966, the

Animal Welfare Act (AWA) was passed by Congress. “It is regulated by the U.S. Department of

Agriculture and establishes the minimum standards that must be met for the care of animals bred

for commercial sale” (Last Chance for Animals-Puppy Mill Facts). Many of the puppy mills are

under the radar so to say but for those that are found have certain requirements. Breeders who

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hold more than three brood bitches and sell puppy brokers or pet stores are required to be

licensed and inspected by the United Stated Department of Agriculture (USDA). The required

standards that breeders must meet by law are quite minimal and contain many loopholes and

inefficiencies. Many large-scale commercial facilities that sell whelps sight-unseen (over the

Internet) or broker or breed animals for resale (pet stores) are considered “wholesale” operations

and thus must be licensed and regulated by the USDA. For those operations that have been

inspected, it is shown by the Humane Society of the United States(HSUS) that many USDA-

licensed breeders get away with many violations of the AWA, repeatedly. The puppy mills rarely

have their licenses suspended or fined. Even with those operations that have a history of repeated

violations can renew their licenses (Puppy Mills: Frequently Asked Questions). It is estimated

that there are 10,000 puppy mills active today in the U.S. and fewer than 3,000 of them are

regulated by the USDA.

Even with all the puppy mills within the U.S. there are a multitude of organizations that

protest against them. The ASPCA—the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to

Animals—is one of the largest humane societies in the world today. They alone have saved over

14,300 animals and have had 3,800 animals adopted. Other organizations such as PETA—People

for the Ethical Treatment of Animals—help to promote awareness about such issues and save

animals when possible. Then there are just simple, everyday people who adopt these dogs and

protest such puppy mills. The National Mill Dog Rescue has saved over 10,000 dogs alone and

counting (National Mill Dog Rescue).

Not all people are horrible but not all are Saints. There are those that harm and there are

those who rescue. Yet overall, more harm has been to dogs, especially those in the puppy mills.

The dogs in the puppy mills, if left there will live a horrid and inhumane life until they are killed

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and for those that are saved, they may not quite ever be “normal.”

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Works Cited

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"Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) Veterinary Report on

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<http://animalrescuecorps.org/learn/puppy-mills/>.

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States, 16 Jan. 2015. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.

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Arthur, Nan. "Living with Puppy Mill Puppies and Dogs." Examiner.com. AXS Network,

4 Nov. 2012. Web. 21 Dec. 2015. <http://www.examiner.com/article/living-with-

puppy-mill-puppies-and-dogs>.

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long-term-scars-on-dogs.html>.

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