[QuickSilver]

I didn't realize rescues purchsed dogs at auctions. I find this very confusing, though I understand the idea of purchasing dogs that will otherwise be destroyed. It really seems like dancing with the devil, so to speak. Buying ANY animal from a puppy mill puts money in the miller's pocket, and this is presumably going to be re-invested in the mill. This seems like the same logic of "saving" puppies in pet stores - yes, you save that one, but you help the cycle continue.

Even cornering the market and then pulling out seems to be an "ends justifying the means" strategy. By cornering the market, you push prices up, and cause more dogs to be bred. Then when the market collapses, at least some dogs will be destroyed. And I don't think this guarantees that bichons won't be bred anymore, does it? It just means that the millers will move to a more popular breed until bichons come back into style.

What am I missing here?

The puppy mill problem seems very solvable to me. We need a cultural shift that makes it unacceptable to buy a dog or cat from a pet store. Kaboom. This happened with "dolphin friendly" tuna fish. It can happen for puppy mills.