While looking through my local newspaper (The Biloxi Sun-Herald) Saturday, I came across an ad for someone selling Shorkie pups at 5 weeks old
. I have seen ads before with 6 and 7 week old pups and it always upset me, but this one was just beyond the pale. So i decided to try and do something.
I got to checking around and there are about 18 states that have a minimum legal age for selling pups and that is 8 weeks in every state listed. Here's a link to the list...
Age to Sell Puppy Table
My state, Mississippi, is not one of those listed so it's not illegal to post these very young pups for sale. My local paper, however, is owned by the McClatchy Corp., which operates out of California. So, I called McClatchy up to ask them to review their policy company-wide. The person I spoke with is contacting the local publisher and said I should be getting a call about this. I said that's great, but my goal is to have you change McClatchy's policy, not just the Sun-Herald's. I explained that since they operate in states with a minimum age law and obviously comply, why not just make it a company-wide policy with all their newspapers. So now I'm waiting for a call back from both McClatchy and my local paper.
My point of all this is that there are many here who live in states with no minimum age law regarding puppies. You can check your local paper and see just how young puppies are being put up for sale. If there are very young pups listed, please make a call to your local paper regarding this. If your paper is owned by a larger corporation, then contacting them would be great, as they may be persuaded to make a change in policy throughout their chain, regardless of state law.
I think it's obvious that selling puppies too young is not only unethical but dangerous to the puppy (especially toy breeds). I'm certain that puppies die every day due to this practice...one that could easily be stopped by just a little co-operation from your local paper. Making a little (respectful) noise about this is something we can all do that will help end this type of abuse by unethical breeders. It may well just save some puppy's life and avoid a heartache for the new owner.
I'll post an update once I hear back from the papers. Please, won't you all consider getting involved with this in your area? I believe this is something that's very doable that will have a positive impact.
Thanks for reading.....Jim