Judge: Pet Store Animals MUST Be From A Shelter Or Rescue Pets

If you go into a pet store and see a pen full of delightful little puppies, chances are, they’ve come from a puppy mill. But what is a puppy mill?

A puppy mill is defined as a commercial breeding facility that focuses on creating profit and pushing overhead costs as low as possible. As with many businesses, the #1 priority is making money. Often times, the health and welfare of the animals is of no concern.

Female dogs are bred as quickly as possible, often with no break between litters. After a few years, they are no longer able to reproduce and are often put to sleep.

About 2.11 million puppies sold in pet stores originate in puppy mills. About 3 million puppies that are born at puppy mills will inevitably be put to sleep, as their families no longer want them, they end up at animal shelters, no one adopts them, and they end up dead. Pretty short and depressing life, isn’t it?

To counteract the squalid conditions in puppy mills, a city judge out of Phoenix, Arizona has ruled that all pet stores in his jurisdiction must take in animals from local shelters, due to the overwhelming number of pets being dumped at local shelters.

The new law states “pet stores may only sell animals obtained from animal shelters or rescue organizations,” according to court case documents.

Small-scale breeders are still allowed to sell to purchasers, but the ordinance prohibits carnivals and amusement parks from awarding animals as prizes.

What do you think? Should pet stores be free to sell puppy mill puppies or should they be required to help adopt out shelter and rescue animals? Discuss in the comments below.

If you go into a pet store and see a pen full of delightful little puppies, chances are, they’ve come from a puppy mill. But what is a puppy mill?

A puppy mill is defined as a commercial breeding facility that focuses on creating profit and pushing overhead costs as low as possible. As with many businesses, the #1 priority is making money. Often times, the health and welfare of the animals is of no concern.