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livingdustmops · 01-22-2008, 07:09 PM

http://dns.disk-one.se/cc/cc.php?q=a...AwNTU4Lw%3D%3D

Damaged dogs plucked from the assembly line
Inhumane ‘puppy mills’ come under increasing state, local enforcement
By Alex Johnson
Reporter
MSNBC
updated 8:39 a.m. MT, Wed., Dec. 5, 2007
One day early last month, Gary Larrowe, the county administrator of Carroll County, Va., declared the small town of Hillsville a disaster area.
There were just too many puppies to deal with.
“We counted 1,080 dogs on November the 2nd,” Larrowe said, making it necessary to call in state emergency officials and the Red Cross to help.
Carroll County found itself with 1,080 dogs — topping 1,100 after a few new births over the following days — after county animal control officers, acting on information compiled during a five-month undercover investigation by the Humane Society of the United States, raided Horton’s Pups, a mass breeding farm in Hillsville, near Roanoke.
More than a dozen animal rescue agencies, some from as far away as Florida, agreed to care for and distribute the dogs for adoption. Their task is difficult. Most were already near capacity, and space is at a premium because, with winter approaching, animals can’t always be housed outdoors.
The breeding farm, which was raided Nov. 1, is “the biggest operation of its kind to our knowledge ever,” said John Snyder of the Humane Society. It is one part of a nationwide network of thousands of puppy mills that sell purebred dogs to pet stores, animal brokers and Web-based pet businesses.
Puppy mills are generally legal. Large commercial operations where puppies are bred for profit are regulated by the U.S. Agriculture Department, but many do not register with the department, and enforcement of humane regulations is a low priority, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or ASPCA.
This year, however, state and local agencies have sharply stepped up their own raids on puppy mills, said Stephanie Shain, outreach director for the Humane Society.

Go to the website to read the 3 page report

01-22-2008, 07:09 PM	#1
livingdustmops Princess Poop A Lot Donating Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Colorado Posts: 6,728	Inhumane ‘puppy mills’ come under increasing state, local enforcement http://dns.disk-one.se/cc/cc.php?q=a...AwNTU4Lw%3D%3D Damaged dogs plucked from the assembly line Inhumane ‘puppy mills’ come under increasing state, local enforcement By Alex Johnson Reporter MSNBC updated 8:39 a.m. MT, Wed., Dec. 5, 2007 One day early last month, Gary Larrowe, the county administrator of Carroll County, Va., declared the small town of Hillsville a disaster area. There were just too many puppies to deal with. “We counted 1,080 dogs on November the 2nd,” Larrowe said, making it necessary to call in state emergency officials and the Red Cross to help. Carroll County found itself with 1,080 dogs — topping 1,100 after a few new births over the following days — after county animal control officers, acting on information compiled during a five-month undercover investigation by the Humane Society of the United States, raided Horton’s Pups, a mass breeding farm in Hillsville, near Roanoke. More than a dozen animal rescue agencies, some from as far away as Florida, agreed to care for and distribute the dogs for adoption. Their task is difficult. Most were already near capacity, and space is at a premium because, with winter approaching, animals can’t always be housed outdoors. The breeding farm, which was raided Nov. 1, is “the biggest operation of its kind to our knowledge ever,” said John Snyder of the Humane Society. It is one part of a nationwide network of thousands of puppy mills that sell purebred dogs to pet stores, animal brokers and Web-based pet businesses. Puppy mills are generally legal. Large commercial operations where puppies are bred for profit are regulated by the U.S. Agriculture Department, but many do not register with the department, and enforcement of humane regulations is a low priority, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or ASPCA. This year, however, state and local agencies have sharply stepped up their own raids on puppy mills, said Stephanie Shain, outreach director for the Humane Society. Go to the website to read the 3 page report __________________ Cindy & The Rescued Gang Puppies Are Not Products!