Ipfound out the place I'm getting puppy from is puppy mill. What to do.???!!
 

I am completely torn and heartbroken. I found out that the place where I recently put a deposit on a puppy and bought a puppy a few years ago is a puppy mill. I thought it was an ok place, but now thinking back and thinking about it I have no idea how I didn't see it.

So my dilemma is that I am completely in love with the puppy I am supposed to purchase from there(the one a have a deposit on) however, I have been reading online after I found it was a puppy mill and learned that many dogs there are sick and malnourished. I want to save my puppy from this, but I don't want to support them!!! It's just so hard for me to think of that poor little baby sitting there all alone, possibly sick. It makes me sick. I don't know what I should do! I love that little puppy already(even though I don't have her yet!). I literally started balling when I found out they were a puppy mill. I need some advice! Should I buy her, or just leave her there??? Please help!

Oh boy...what a horrible decision to have to make.

If you decide to get the puppy, remember that you could have tons of health problems and medical bills during the dogs life. It is likely that you would be better off losing your deposit...it will be cheaper in the long run I expect.

I can't make your decision for you. I can't even say that I know for sure what decision I would make although I have a pretty good idea.

Have you talked to the person you were buying him from? I doubt if it would do any good but it might make you feel better about whatever decision you make.

As the days turn into weeks, turn into months, turn into years, you will grow to love whatever puppy you get. And the pain of having a sick dog is horrible.

I will pray that you make the correct decision. Weigh the pro's and con's of each decision. You may be "saving" a puppy but you ARE also supporting the monster that bred him. Let us know what you decide and I for one, will support you which ever way you go.

Louise

Wow, what a terrible delemma! I would talk to the person you are buying him or her from. Can you have them give you a guarantee of some sort, in case your puppy is sick? Possibly have them pay any vet charges should you need that? I would rescue the little pup, but that's just me. Good luck in you decision!!!!

I am so sorry. This is awful. Only you can make that decision. Maybe there is something you can do that might help accomplish both...saving the puppy and shutting down the mill. All my best to you while you weigh the situation trying to make this incredible difficult decision.

I think you should look for a puppy from a reputable breeder. The money you loss in deposit inst anything like the vet bills from a unhealthy puppy and you wouldnt be supporting a mill

oh i wish there was a perfect solution but the truth is if you purchase the baby you are supporting them. my heart breaks for those babies. i hope you find the right decision for you. good luck.

The part that makes me so unsure is that the dog we bought from them a few years ago is perfectly healthy and she just turned 3 last month... Some people said there puppies came home sick but we didn't have that with her. I still just feel bad thinking of her all alone in that little cage when she could be here with me. I think I'm probably going to take her because i don't think I could live with myslef thinking about her.

If you go ahead and purchase this baby, not only are you supporting a mill, but in turn another baby will just take this one's place and it's an endless cycle. If they won't refund your deposit, I'd consider it a lesson learned. You DO NOT want the heartache of a possibly sick pup that could cost you thousands. I know you think you love this puppy already, but honestly, a lot of the time the pictures you're seeing of an adorable little pup isn't even THE pup you'd get. The mills are known for this, they show you pictures of a healthy-looking pretty little puppy and what arrives on the plane is a different dog.

Please consider checking out Yorkshire Terrier Club of America, they have a breeder contact page. You will have the best chances of finding a healthy, good quality pup from a breeder there. The breeders also stand by their pups in many ways that a miller won't.

Good luck!!!

Agree with LunasMomma completely.

You haven't mentioned whether the first puppy you purchased is healthy. What a terrible decision - you want to save this baby but it could cost you so much more in the long run. My heart goes out to you. Are you able to get your deposit back?

My first puppy is completely healthy. Nothing has been wrong with her but she's only 3, so I guess something could come along later down the road. And no we wouldn't be able to get back the deposit. We also went to the place and met and played with the puppy,so we know that we would get her.

Another thing is if we don't get her now, I won't be able to get a puppy at all. I'm only 14 so I'm go to school and I'm gone during the school months from 5:30-3:45. This year my mom is taking off of work because she's switching companies and since we are having family problems she just wants to take this time off. So I will be able to care for the puppy over the summer, then during the year my mom will take care of her. But my mom wants me to have at least two months to bond with the puppy before she starts watching her more. Anyway so if I don't get a puppy within the next three weeks I couldn't get one, and the breeders in my area dont have any puppies available. So it's now, or in like 10 yrs!! Ahhh! Hard decisions!

There are adorable little puppies that you can get from a respectable breeder. The hundreds of dollars you give to a puppy mill only goes to feed the greedy criminal element that run the place and does noting to help the poor dogs that are imprisoned there.

Well, if you're 14, then your mom should really be making this decision.

I was in a similar situation a couple of years ago. I, foolishly, decided to go ahead and get the puppy anyway and hoped that there would be nothing wrong with her. They wouldn't refund my deposit which was $500 and at the time that seemed like too much to lose. I wish I had known then what I know now to fully grasp the situation. Sad thing is I went through this company bc I was trying to avoid a puppy mill. They had celebrity testimonials on their website and even told me Presidents (yes, US Presidents, that should've been a red flag) got their dogs from them.

My puppy arrived sick and died 3 days after I got her. In those 3 days, I fell in love with her, watched her be in horrible pain, and then die. Of course, the vet bills were huge. But worst of all is the pain I felt, and still feel, from having to helplessly watch this tiny little puppy be sick and die. Not only was I heartbroken, but I subjected my family to the same pain as they also fell in love with her. Having to tell my 10 year old brother that the puppy he adored had died and watching him cry like a baby over it made me feel like a POS.

There's some comfort in knowing I did everything I could do for her and I'm glad that she got to know love and affection and didn't just die in a cage somewhere. But would I do it again? No. I loved her, and I still do, but you can't even imagine the pain and the guilt you will feel if the same thing happens to you. And that's that I was 22 when it happened and much more emotionally (and financially) equipped to deal with the situation than you will be. My advice is not to get this puppy. It's a hard decision, believe me - I know, but I can assure you it will be for the best. Even if the puppy is fine, you will be supporting puppy mills and the only way to shut them down is to stop keeping them in business.

I agree that the decision should be made by your parent(s). Sadly we can not always make a good choice based on our emotions. Logic sometimes is the best way to choose a puppy. Cute, needy, sweet, and so on really are secondary to health and good genes.

My mom knows nothing about dogs that's why she isn't deciding. She hardly knows the difference between breeds lol

I got my schnauzer at a mall . Never heard of a puppy mill before. She is the best dog we've ever had she mines very well has never been sick.She is 7yrs old.

What an impossible dilemna... you take the dog, and the puppy mill prospers and you suffer.... you don't take the dog, and it is sold to someone else, and the puppy mill prospers and you suffer. I even struggle with rescue... aren't we teaching owners that it's ok to surrender your dog because there are loving rescue homes who will care for them and find them good homes? So, what is different about promoting rescue and promoting puppy mills.? I struggle with allocating a million dollars to a humane society shelter, but not passing laws to mandate spay/neuter. In the BEST shelters, there's an 85% kill rate. That fact escapes us Yorkie owners because an adorable Yorkie is adopted immediately after the waiting period. That doesn't mean the baby gets a good home... just that he gets another chance to be recycled. There is no one who would advocate we not rescue Yorkies... but what if we didn't?... What if youtube showed euthanizing babies who pee on the carpet...? What if there was no one to take those puppy mill babies who manage to make it thru their first year, but have behavior and health problems that lead their owners to abandon them.

If I were younger, I would take up the cause. I get ill when people jump on breeders like rightous evangelists, and then beg for help for the pup when it hits the pound. It's the same baby... why is it so noble to get medical care and a good family for the dog AFTER it leaves it's puppy mill home and first family... but absolutely demonic to take a puppy immediately out of puppy mill hell?

Take the baby... you've already touched her... her life may be short and painful, but at least maybe she won't have to pass thru the pound before she dies.

I don't know what the answer is... but the question is much deeper than most are asking.

If I had become attached to the dog, I'd take it. I'd get a very good insurance plan immediately.

The fact is that by buying a puppy mill puppy you are enabling the people who run the place to continue to torture dogs and puppies. You are not rescuing a puppy from a puppy mill. You are simply continuing the cycle of suffering. Those dogs live in small dirty cages for the full length of their days. If the puppy mill goes out of business then at least caring people can go in and save the ones that can be saved.

You need to let your mom know the facts about this puppy. You could be putting her in a very difficult situation if the puppy is ill. Many puppy mill puppies do not live more than a few days after purchase while others have diseases that are very costly to treat. There are some that will survive with treatment but that is only a percentage. Most of those do not look much like the dog the buyer thought they were getting for their money.

I'm sure your mom works hard for her money and it sounds like you and she are going through some difficult times. I would hate to have you also face a sick puppy with large vet bills. You could be one of the few lucky ones that get a healthy puppy but the odds are against you. At least inform your mom about what you could be facing. Maybe she could help you find a better choice for your puppy. I'm sure she is a smart woman that can figure it out.

This is exactly how I feel 100 percent. How can we demonize one side and champion the other. I love dogs and want them all to be cared for no matter where they started. Some say don't support the mills but some of these mills have pups living in crap conditions, I don't feel comfortable watching a dog suffer but that's just me.

Unless we stop giving those puppy mills the money to continue to keep those dogs in such horrid conditions we are not solving anything. Yes, those dogs need help but to continue to support such a horrific business is to continue the suffering. It is the same as if you were to buy slaves to give them freedom. It only allows the slave trade to continue to prosper and get more slaves to sell. You have to put slave master out of business in order to stop the suffering!

What you say is true but you're not addressing the issue. The pup that you're getting at the rescue is probably the same pup from the mill. What is the difference between helping them now or after they've left their first family. By no means am I saying go to the puppy mill and get a dog but at the same time I'm not condemning anyone who does.

I got Giorgio from what I now know as a BYB. I have no regrets and his breeder is still selling dogs. That's her issue. I got my baby and he is a sweetheart. If her puppies were confiscated and sent to a rescue, this community would encourage people to rescue those dogs so that's where I get confused. I don't have the answer on how to stop the mills but I would think spay and neutering is a good place to start.

The difference between purchasing a puppy from a puppy mill and rescuing are day and night! It's all about EDUCATION! Once the puppy is purchased by someone that doesn't know better, that dog is already out of the mill's hands. By adopting a rescue, you are not putting any more money into the miller's hands. If we can reach folks BEFORE they purchase, and hopefully redirect them to a reputable breeder or even rescue, then that is one less puppy that the miller will sell. Yes, the puppies are in horrible conditions and yes they deserve to be loved and cared for just like every other dog. But if we could put a dent in the demand, the supply would slow down. Rescued dogs, even if they started out at a mill, are not the same as purchasing a dog from a KNOWN mill. These poor dogs in rescue often have medical and social issues that the purchaser finds that they can't handle, so they end up in shelters, where the rescues try their best to get them and rehab them for a new home.

I don't think that there is ANY comparison between KNOWINGLY purchasing a puppy mill dog and adopting a rescue. Logic.

I don't mean to be a downer on getting a new pup, but I do have some concerns for you and your mom.

Based on what you have said above, does your mom know the overall long term cost involved with any dog, but especially this breed? It can be quite expensive for just these little ones routine care and the cost is devastating when the real medical issues come up. I think it's only fair that the costs is explained to her and that she fully understands the responsibility she is taking on. As it will be ultimatelybe on her, due your age and lack of imcome....is she ok with that?

What about when you are in high school and your social life is booming, is there going to be time for a puppy? Does your mom have the time for a dog then, as it will be mostly hers...you will be way to busy.

Not trying to discourage, just adding some thoughts for you to consider on top of what all has let you know about taking on puppy mill pups. I'm sorry you have to face all this but you will be well informed to say the least. Please think.....think long and hard.

Thank you.

Perhaps saving the dogs that live in filth and suffering all the days of their lives would be a reason NOT to buy from a puppy mill. There are thousands of dogs being kept in filthy cages and forced to produce litter after litter of puppies in order to satisfy the desires of people who care nothing about the suffering that the adult dogs endure just so they can obtain that cute little puppy. When these dogs have served their purpose they suffer horrible deaths or are tied to a post at a local shelter. What about the dogs that are live in that puppy mill? Those are the ones we want to save! The poor mother dogs that never see light of day and are never let out of that tiny cage, and who are filthy from laying in uncleaned cages. That is where your cute little puppy comes from.
If you can close your eyes to that kind of suffering and say your not a puppy snob then you have missed the point of the whole issue. These animals are suffering horribly. That is the issue! Not who rescues the puppy that happened to make it out of a puppy mill alive! This is not about one dog being better than another because of where it came from. It is about stopping the suffering of those who LIVE and DIE in the puppy mill.

What is the name of the place? Im looking to get a new baby soon and we are in the same area.

PLEASE tell me that you want to know the name of this place so that you can avoid it!!!!

no question for me i would buy the puppy