Puppy Farms: the horror behind the shop!

Narrated from: General Info

Puppies are one of the sweetest things in the world. I will NOT believe you if you tell me that you can walk by a pet store and not be moved by the sight of a puppy playing or watching you with big, soulful eyes.

But what we see as a living creature, as a little darling that needs love and care – others treat as a product.

Many of the puppies advertised over the internet or in newspapers have actually been born in a puppy farm. A puppy farm sounds like something wonderful, doesn’t it? One would imagine a farmyard with puppies scampering around and barking joyously.

Alas, this is a child’s silly notion.

Puppy farms are also known as puppy factories – these are facilities focused on breeding dogs like cattle. Dogs taken by puppy farms become slaves of the so-called “commercial breeding”.

Treating dogs as animals

Our modern society has largely come to understand how dogs should be treated – in many countries canines have become a part of the family! However, in puppy farms all the old laws are still in place.

Dogs are viewed as soulless objects. Female dogs are treated as breeding stock; they are kept separately and impregnated each time they are in heat. They receive only the bare minimum of care needed to keep them alive – and only until they are worn out, of course.

Then they are killed.

Puppies are viewed as merchandise. They are usually separated from their mothers well before the end of the recommended 8-10 week period. Those puppies deemed not good enough for the market are killed without mercy, while others might be kept for breeding purposes.

I believe there is no need to explain what happens to puppies that “do not sell”.

The life of a farm dog

In puppy farms, dogs live under appalling conditions. They are usually kept in cages with bare concrete floors, and with no toys around. A healthy diet is out of the question of course – we are looking for a profit here. Breeding dogs often suffer from health problems such as dislocated kneecaps, worms, etc. – but that is not viewed as a problem as long as it doesn’t hamper the breeding process.

Their puppies are often shipped over large distances in inhumane conditions, resulting in the death of many of them.

Puppies born in a puppy farm are often scarred for life – not on the outside of course; puppy manufacturers wouldn’t want to damage the stock. However, stress and lack of socialization make for a scared, incommunicative puppy. Love and care might soften the puppy – but many puppies will fail to make a connection with their new owners, and get treated as problematic dogs.

When did it start?

Horrific commercial breeding started soon after the end of World War II. Farmers in the USA recognized the growing demand for puppies, as people had come to realize just how much joy a dog can bring to one’s life.

As a result, economy dictated that simple humanity must make way for profit, and the first puppy farms appeared around the country. This business soon spread over many other countries. It wasn’t until 1966, when the inhumanity of puppy farms was exposed, that people began to take action.

Puppy farms today

In modern times, there are many organizations dedicated to protecting the welfare of dogs and battling facilities such as puppy farms. A strong public reaction has ensured that legislative measures have been taken as well.

However, there remain many illegal facilities and others bypassing the law. Puppies are still bred inhumanely in farms scattered across the USA, UK, Australia and so on. It has been estimated that over a quarter of the pet stores in the USA purchase puppies from puppy farms.

The irony

The irony is that people’s love for dogs is the one thing that allows hellish institutions like puppy farms to exist. Commercial breeding is the response to people’s willingness to take in a dog.

If you truly love dogs, you need to consider how dogs are treated. Public awareness is the only way to stop illegal puppy breeding and to force all puppy breeding institutions to follow the law – and the principles of a little thing we like to call humanity!

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