There is little love lost between
dog rescuers and the commercial breeders they disparagingly call “
puppy mills.” So on Wednesday, when The Washington Post reported that
some rescue groups may actually be enabling the very puppy mill industry they so vocally eschew, the fur went flying.
The Post reported that some rescuers have been
buying dogs from commercial breeders at dog auctions. They do so in the name of “saving” an individual dog, but as a result of the increased demand they cause, the prices of dogs at auctions have been pushed up considerably. Puppy mills, in response, have ramped up production to meet the increased demand. Yes, you read that right: Puppy mills are producing more dogs because of
rescuers hoping to save dogs from being bred in puppy mills.
All told, the number of dogs sold at auction is just a drop in the homeless dog bucket. The Post found no more than 85 rescues who bought a dog at an auction; there are more than 10,000 rescue groups operating nationwide. But still, it was enough for teeth to be bared.
All dog auction operations should shut down completely, said John Goodwin, the senior director for the Humane Society of the United States’ Stop Puppy Mills campaign. Rescuers, he added, certainly don’t need to be there supporting them.
“We oppose buying dogs at auctions,” he said, “because it puts money into the pockets of irresponsible people who treat dogs like they are disposable.” He told HuffPost that he’d also like to see rescue groups stay focused on helping pets in local shelters find permanent homes and avoid euthanasia.
Also that it gets resolved quickly.
