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Originally Posted by YorkyDiva  Doesn't a lot of YorkieTalk members protest against licensed breeders? And it seems that these YT members believe licensed breeders are puppymillers? And unlicensed breeders are seen as Back Yard or Back Room breeders? |
It's not so much that you should protest against licensed breeder, this is oversimplifying. A licensed breeder is simply someone who sells over a certain number of dogs per year and lives in a state that requires licensing for that number. It varies by state, but it's usually a fairly high amount like 10 litters or so. Licensed breeders are what are known as commercial breeders, and they are breeding as a business. I don't think they necessary are all "puppy mills", and it would be possible to have a large commercial kennel and treat the dogs humanly, however, this usually does not seem to be the case when breeders are profit motivated. Licensed breeder are inspected by the USDA, which is more of an advocate for the farmer than the puppy. The USDA tries to help the farmer make a profit, and has a forgiving eye of any regulations that aren't being met. So different states are trying to improve kennel conditions and passing their own laws. Many commercial breeders aren't licensed even though they sell large number of dogs, and have no inspections at all. So if a breeder has a license, it simply means that they are selling a large number of dogs each year. An unlicensed breeder could range from someone who runs a puppy mill and is breaking the law, by not having a license, to a small breeder who doesn't need a license, but treats dogs no better. An unlicensed breeder could also mean a backyard breeder who doesn't know anything about breeding, and just wants to make some spending money, but does treat the dogs well. An unlicensed breeder could also include someone who has studied breeding for years, and isn't breeding for the purpose of making money, but just loves the breed, and thinks that they have something they can do to make the breed better.
I'm glad Missouri is doing something about the problem, at least requiring a license will enable officials to do some sort of inspections. Again, this is one of the reasons you should not buy your dog from a pet store or over the web, you must check out the kennel yourself, to ensure the dogs are getting proper treatment. Forget about rescuing a puppy from the puppy mill, we need to rescue the adult breeding dogs who are being abused.