Inside a Dog Auction

[livingdustmops]

WHAS11.com | Louisville News, Breaking News | WHAS11.com | News for Louisville, Kentucky

-Team-Investigation-Inside-the-multi-million-dollar-business-of-dog-auctions-94864294.html

I-Team Investigation: Inside the multi-million dollar business of dog auctions
Posted on May 25, 2010 at 6:53 PM

Related:
• The undercover world of puppy auctions
• I-Team Investigation: Inside the multi-million dollar business of dog auctions - Part 2

Warning, this video could be disturbing.

(WHAS11) - It's a multi-million dollar national business; the sale of dogs at auction. Many of the dogs end up in pet stores and some in puppy mills.
WHAS11's Melanie Kahn went undercover to get a story many breeders and pet store owners don't want you to see.
It is legal in many states, including Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. But animal rights activists are working to outlaw the auctions.
WHAS11 went inside one of the biggest auctions in the Midwest last weekend in Ohio, for you to see what goes on.
It's a world few could ever imagine... And a world even fewer have ever seen.

With hidden cameras, WHAS11 takes you inside a world where thousands of dogs a year are sold. It happens at the Buckeye Dog Auction House, a dilapidated barn that sits off State Road 557 in Farmerstown, Ohio.
For most of the year this place is vacant but on auction days it's packed, full of people, of all ages eager to buy and sell dogs.
Upstairs are hundreds of dogs and puppies, stacked up in wire cages, waiting to be put on the auction block. Some look excited, some confused and many seem scared. They don't have names, only numbers, their order on the auction block.
Owners put the dogs into crate and an hour before the auction begins, buyers are invited into the cramped rooms to inspect the dogs before they are put up for sale.
The auctioneers take their posts and the auction begins.
Each dog is brought into the room in numerical order and brought to a veterinarian table, where the dog is given, at most, a 20 second exam.
After that, it's off to the auction block where the bidding begins.
The price of the dog depends on the breed, age, gender and the most important quality for commercial breeders: the past breeding history of the dog.
Those commercial breeders, known as puppy mill operators, may be hoping to expand their stock and their fortune.
Selling puppies is one of the largest industries in the united states, grossing hundreds of millions a dollars a year, perpetuated primarily by consumers who purchase dogs from the thousands of pet stores across the country, that buy their dogs from auctions like these.The Buckeye Dog Auction is one of the largest auctions in the Midwest, regularly serving breeders and pet stores from states east of the Mississippi River.

At this auction, breeders have brought dogs to sell from Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina, West Virginia and Georgia.
This auction house is owned by Harold Neuhart, who also breeds puppies for profit.
USDA inspection reports show that he had been cited multiple times by inspectors for poor building maintenance, dirty food and water bowls and for assaulting a USDA inspector.

For years he has ignored a barrage of phone calls from members of the media.

But when WHAS11 showed up with our cameras he did not avoid us, but Neuhart was not happy to see WHAS11. He did not want to talk to us with the camera and grabbed it at one point.
For several minutes, WHAS11 Photographer Steven Richard tried to convince Neuhart to let go of the camera while a Holmes County Sheriff's Deputy stood by. She only intervened when specifically asked.
When asked by the officer, Neuhart let go and Melanie gave Neuhart one more chance to talk to WHAS11. He refused.
With that, WHAS11’s visit to the Buckeye Dog Auction House was over, without knowing the fate of the hundreds of dogs we left behind.
WHAS11 brought home 9 dogs, as many as we could fit in the car.
The Humane Society reports many of the dogs that don’t sell are killed.
While there, WHAS11 saw no evidence of this and we want to stress again this is a legal practice, supplying many pet stores.
Coming up Wednesday at 6 p.m., WHAS11 will bring you the story of what happens next for the 9 dogs we brought back from the auction.
Here is part 2
I-Team Investigation: Inside the multi-million dollar business of dog auctions - Part 2 | WHAS11 Louisville, Kentucky and Indiana News | Top Stories

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by livingdustmops

They don't have names, only numbers, their order on the auction block.

Dog auctions just break my heart. Animals are not numbers, they are our fellow beings.

[miabellaamoure]

I have a problem with the news station that even purchased dogs from this auction...their purchases in and of themselves actually lent a profit to this business.

[peachbongi]

Do the people at the auction look like Quakers to anyone else? I was just wondering if this was something common Quakers do to help support their families? Interesting.

[miabellaamoure]

Originally Posted by peachbongi

Do the people at the auction look like Quakers to anyone else? I was just wondering if this was something common Quakers do to help support their families? Interesting.

I thought they looked like the Amish...but, what do I know

In a documentary...I believe I heard they are known for running mills and sell & purchase animals from auctions like this.

Unfortunately, people who are in this kind of industry consider these animals as "livestock" & a means to make a dollar...period.

[peachbongi]

Originally Posted by miabellaamoure

I thought they looked like the Amish...but, what do I know

In a documentary...I believe I heard they are known for running mills and sell & purchase animals from auctions like this.

Unfortunately, people who are in this kind of industry consider these animals as "livestock" & a means to make a dollar...period.

You know I think you're right Amish. Amish/Quaker I don't know the difference. I would love to see that documentary. It's so sad to consider dogs as livestock.

[miabellaamoure]

Originally Posted by peachbongi

You know I think you're right Amish. Amish/Quaker I don't know the difference. I would love to see that documentary. It's so sad to consider dogs as livestock.

I have neighbors who's dogs are left outside 24/7 in all kinds of weather and that's exactly how they regard their "pets"...sad!

[jencar98]

Originally Posted by miabellaamoure

I thought they looked like the Amish...but, what do I know

In a documentary...I believe I heard they are known for running mills and sell & purchase animals from auctions like this.

Unfortunately, people who are in this kind of industry consider these animals as "livestock" & a means to make a dollar...period.

I'm sure they are Amish or Mennonite and you're right they are known for operating puppymills...also right about their attitudes being that dogs are like livestock.

I agree with your above post about it being wrong that the television station purchased these dogs - they could have done their report and NOT bought dogs. But, I also know how it is almost impossible to go to one of these auctions and NOT buy dogs - you feel so sad for them all and just want to save them. Sadly though, to buy enables this horrible cycle to continue!

The dog auctions that used to be held here in my town have closed since a year ago in December....one of the happiest days of my life! This place was the most vile disgusting place, you would not have believed some of the things I witnessed there.....I still have nightmares.

[livingdustmops]

Just to clarify...and it is stated in the 2nd part...the Newspaper did not purchase the dogs...the rescue organization they went in with did it and then one of the photographers adopted one of the dogs.

While I understand rescues feelings about purchasing these dogs (I used to say this also) I am changing my mind about this issue. These dogs will just be sold to puppymill situations and more dogs produced. Trust me the mills will find a way to get more and while we have all said rescue's should not be buying these dogs as they will just continue to breed more puppies I think they will anyways and maybe a few dogs can be saved from the hell they could be going to. The only way any of this will change is if we change the laws.

Please download the USDA report I posted (it is 64 pages) on another thread. In it the USDA is saying they can't do anything and the hell will just continue for these animals.

[YorkieMother]

They would be Amish and Mennonite for sure. Not quakers.
They see them as nothing but product and put their by god to use at will and think us strange for living with them in our houses.

As to going to auctions to buy them; rather them have a chance to live then get shot in the back forty as they can not make product any more. They have already been replaced by their off spring so they save money by selling them rather then shooting them. Is there thought.

Whether it is right or wrong to buy them free is hard to say as I said either they get shoot or the go to auction and possibly get a chance to have a rescue buy them free. Or they get shot and then no profit is made at all and the drop the level of production and more get shot. Still to many do not know about where dogs in pet stores come from and we need to hit on that lots and lots and lots more and put the transporters of the dogs out of business as they are shipped worse then chickens that do not live in our homes. Sleep with our kids.

Nothing will change as long as they are seen as product like a head of lettuce.

JL

[wallypoopiepie]

Originally Posted by peachbongi

Do the people at the auction look like Quakers to anyone else? I was just wondering if this was something common Quakers do to help support their families? Interesting.

they were amish and Mennonites, mostly amish. i have heard of a lot of people like that buying dogs from the auctions and while it does save them, it contributes to the whole buying and selling..supporting mills, etc.. don't you think?

[red98vett]

There is no end to the sick way people profit from dogs - I just don't see it ending because of the laws - even if the laws change - they'd just find a way around them because those kind of people SUCK - don't care if it's amish or whoever - they just suck because auctions go on all over the country

[eddiesmom14]

This makes me so mad and so sad but what can we do when much of this country doesn't care whether their human neighbors suffer and die. Look at Arizona. How are we going to make them love and respect animals when they don't love people... or themselves if you want the truth.