48 replies to this topic

[Columbia MO]

Originally posted by SHANDALEI:
My dogs and puppies were kept in a turkey barn, filled with filth, fed and watered out of buckets. Their pens were graveled, no dog houses. Also, some of the dogs didn't even have food of water.

Shandalei,

The conditions you describe don't sound nearly as bad as the conditions you yourself kept these dogs and puppies in! (Complete with at least one dead dog on the premises). At least they had food and water, whereas I'm pretty sure they didn't even have this when they lived with you.

As I mentioned in another thread, the puppies/dogs that you bred and owned for 14+ weeks, and that Southwest had for about 6 days were diagnosed as having: coccidia, whipworms, hookworms, roundworms, pressure sores, foot scars (often caused by standing on wire cage floors), umbilical hernias, ringworm fungal infections, anemia, malnutrition, ticks, and massive flea infestations.

When they first arrived, some of the puppies could only pee/poop while lying down--they weren't able to balance while standing up. These were not tiny puppies, but were already four months old!

Several different vets guessed the age of the puppies at 9 weeks old, when they were actually 15-18 weeks old--that's how malnourished and small they were.

Many of the puppies/dogs are very outgoing and confident, but others have a high degree of genetic shyness and will require massive amounts of socialization to accept strangers.

I guarantee none of this "bad stuff" was caused by the 6 days they spent at Southwest.

While at Southwest, the dogs/puppies were in a converted turkey barn in chain-link runs, each with its own Dogloo and a deep gravel floor. The runs all looked like they were cleaned daily and the place was 20 degrees cooler than the outside temps. There was clean water and food available in the runs. I don't want to excuse Southwest for their horrible "profession" (which I think should be illegal), but I have to admit that their boarding arrangements were certainly adequate.

So if you're concerned about the conditions of these dogs, Shere, you only have yourself to blame for overbreeding and for not giving the dogs any medical care or socialization. I know your behavior may seem normal down there in Southwest Missouri, but in the rest of the world, breeding a litter of puppies each week and selling them over the Internet equals "puppy mill."

Columbia, MO

[Sue R]

What is "Southwest"? Is it a puppy/dog wholesaler or something similar?

[Columbia MO]

Hi Sue,

Southwest Auctions is a notorious puppy mill auction place in SW Missouri, right on the border of OK/MO/AR for easy access to all the rural puppy mills. They specialize in selling "used up" breeding dogs from one puppy mill to another. They may also wholesale to the pet store trade, but I don't know this for sure. Their website is: http://www.onlinepetauction.com.

You can read a good article about rescuers going to Southwest to buy Whippets here: http://www.anniesang...nd-account.html Note that the facility where they were keeping the BCs was much nicer than the one described in the article. It was a converted turkey barn down the road from Southwest's main facility. I was prepared for a "house of horrors," but in fact the dogs were in clean, gravel-floored runs that looked like a normal boarding kennel.

By the way, for several miles leading up to Southwest, many of the "farm" properties appear to be puppy mills, though of course you can't see any dogs from the road. But they're the stereotyped weed-strewn properties containing multiple run-down trailers, weed-overgrown cages, or tumble-down barns that are often used to house "breeding dogs." This seems consistent with the animosity of the locals that is mentioned in the Whippet article.

Columbia, MO

[Sue R]

Thank you for the info, Columbia MO. I just don't understand how people can make a living off the misery of living beings, animal or human. Thank you for all that you do as a rescuer, and as someone who is educating the rest of us.

[Sue R]

I checked out the Southwest site and also the two auctions listed. I noted that the breeds for sale at the auctions tended towards smaller, popular house dogs ("lap dogs") and some larger breeds that I believe are popular but uncommonly available (like Italian Greyhound and Bernese Mtn. Dog).

Seems the "production" animals in these cases are aimed at the pet market and "popular dog you've seen on TV or in a magazine ad and I have the first/only one on the block" market.

How can people live with themselves and sleep at night when they are profitting off the misery of these animals? We raise beef cattle and treat our animals much better than puppy-mill dogs are treated.

[juliepoudrier]

Ah, Sue, but you are a small farmer and an exception. Many of the big factory farms are as disgusting as your average puppy mill. Humans have amazing abilities to dissociate themselves from the suffering of other living creatures. And taking care of them in a humane manner cuts into profits....

J.

[Sue R]

Julie - In my time on the farm, we have had dairy goats (and their many kids that we home butchered - my kids grew up on goat milk and goat meat), a few bottle lambs raised for meat, chickens for eggs, and our beef cattle. We've always tried to keep our animals reasonably and handle them humanely. I guess I just don't understand those who don't do so.

I used to raise veal calves on my excess goat milk. I always prided myself on my veal calves - they always brought top dollar at auction. I raised them in bedded pens (old standing horse stalls that we put gates on) and they were big pets.

Initially, I used sawdust bedding to avoid having them eat the bedding and make the meat less "desirable". After having a problem with a sawdust-borne bacteria, I switched to hay bedding. Of course, they would nibble a bit of bedding which was not what veal "perfectionists" would prefer but the ability of the calves to move around and romp in their stalls, sleep comfy, etc., was important to me.

And the horses - well, let's just say they won't have to worry about ever going to auction. Like my old dairy goats, they are here until they pass on. We don't make any money farming but we sleep well at night.

[SHANDALEI]

I want to thank all of you for your input. For many reasons I certainly do appreciate it.
Shere Thomas

[krista]

I had no iadea Mo. was so known for puppy mills. I lived in Il but close to St. louis and still frequent there. We went on vacation by immenence Mo. Saw a lot of billboards about puppy mills and said it must be a serious problem there just had no idea how bad it was.
Whil we where canoeing we saw quit a few bc on the river with owners. I told hubby that they seemed to have the right idea about them though. The owners said they definantly need a job to do and to keep them working.