[pico's parent]

Nichole,

Thanks to your post I went to the USDA site and found it very interesting. www.aphis.usda.gov/ac/awlicreg.html

In a nutshell, they monitor and enforce the Animal Rights Act. Licensing runs $30-$750, depending upon the volume of the operation. Breeders who sell directly to the public are exempt but I couldn't determine in my brief overview if that was exempt from registration or exempt from licensing. The USDA makes periodic unannounced visits to inspect that all regulations regarding care and feeding and housing are met.

I would bet that operations like Hollybelle wouldn't even make it to the radar screen if they were licensed and/or registered with USDA. Like many government departments they probably just don't have enough inspectors to make the rounds of the Hollybelles. There certainly seems to be holes in the process large enough for the puppymills to walk through upright!

ANOTHER OPINION ONLY: We cannot expect and depend upon Government to do everything for us! We must do what we believe is right and we must be effective in what we do. Regulation only goes so far as evidenced by the Hollybelle fiasco. (I shouldn't say that because she only got 6 dogs classified as her pets returned to her. The others are not being returned to her, only designated as her property to sell) So it is not a fiasco YET. But is just shows how far regulations can go and we must work from the consumer/business side to shut these puppymills down and the least of us can do the most by not purchasing from pet stores who purchase from puppymills. I used Maltese as an example in my earlier post because our forum is fairly breed specific and we are out in public with our furbabies which makes us pretty noticable and we attract attention. This gives us an automatic public forum to educate, illuminate and further protect these animals. The word Maltese can be exchanged for Beagle, Yorkie, etc.

My point is that, imagine this, EVERYONE on this forum pledges not to purchase from pet stores or puppymills and to make a brief statement to the public at every reasonable opportunity about the pet store/puppymill connection. Then, other breed specific forums learn about and also take the pledge. If you break the pledge you are forbidden from posting your furbabies picture.

A ripple that travels across the sea can start with a single stone thrown into that sea.

 

[Toby's Mom]

 

[pico's parent]

Ahh, Nichole, you hit the hard spot in my belief system. I, too, have wrestled with that situation recently. In the pet store, actually, where the grandmother was in the playroom with her grandsons where they let you play with your selection until you can decide on one. I couldn't do it. I was chicken to risk being thrown out of the store. In my defense, I had stopped in on a whim and was simply not prepared for the emotional tsunami as I saw the puppies in their crates. I am by nature a conservative and somewhat cautious individual and not given to reacting without thought.

Having thought about this more since that visit I have decided that while I will not deliberately set up such occasions by visiting pet stores, I will risk hurting someone's feelings in any other situation I find myself in by calmly and reasonably (after much oohing and aahhing and congratulations over the new family member and after learning of the baby's origins) suggest that before adding to their family in the future they might want to know certain things about the origins of pet store animals. In the past I have been giving out the MO website but since that would now require so many cautions to the potential visitor to that site it may deter them from going there so I now use SM as a referral.
(now you see why I have posted so much on this subject. )

I am described by many as a "very nice person" but I have learned that you occasionally have to step on a few toes to enact reforms and see that justice is done. I try not to inflict permanent damage when I do so, only get the attention of that person. Again, those pet store puppies' mothers and fathers have no one else to speak for them if we don't.

One last thing. I would very much like to hear your opinion on this and don't see why you should withhold it. You seem to be able to express yourself reasonably and maturely without resorting to meanness and name-calling and some of the other tactics I have seen at times from anonymous posters. So, let 'er rip! Debate is the benefit of the luxury of free speech that we have.

 

[doctorcathy]

its so intimidating to post when you guys are writing a page worth of all your thoughts and feelings. when i was in san diego, i met this girl Cassy who wanted to buy a dog at that petstore near my condo. anyway, she was carrying a little tiny dog (it was 8 weeks old) and she was telling me that she was thinking about getting it. anyway--i told her straight out to not do it. i was like "look, that dog is pooing and peeing and then sleeping in it". and the cashier was like "its not hard to housebreak a dog and besides, that dog is going to be sooo small" and i was like "hardly, look at my dog, she was that big when she was 13 weeks old, and yours is 8 weeks....that dog is going to be pretty big".

anyway, she didnt get the dog...i told her to wait to get a dog because its a lot of hard work.

3 months later i'm at IKEA and she's there. i had sprite and ellie with me and i show her and she's all like "i got a teacup poodle---but shes bigger than your dogs". i was like "how old is she" and she was like "3 months old". people are sooo ignorant. i basically told her that her 'teacup' wasnt a 'teacup' and that her dog was big. OH, and she gave her dog to her parents because it was hard taking care of her. :wacko: people make me crazy

 

[pico's parent]

See Doctor Cathy, that wasn't hard! All it takes to post a long-winded opinion is passion........ :lol:

And I could feel your frustration when confronted with ignorance that just won't learn. However, I am in sales and have been for upteen years and I learned a long time ago something that was re-iterated recently by a top sales pro in the local Business Journal: You have to tell your story up to a million different times, a million different ways until you make the sale. People only hear a small fraction of what you say and that is filtered through their own belief system so you just have to keep saying it over and over until finally they "get it".

Don't give up the good fight, Doctor Cathy. You are more influential than you think.

 

[doctorcathy]

You're soo right. my sister said that in a magazine, people only "see" or remember 10% of what they read. And you have to advertise at least 4 times to see it....and it takes 8 or 9 times for people to actually read it. and i think its true. my brother and sister have been advertising their company in the Robb Report for 3 yrs...they didnt get calls till 6 months after they started advertising.

i would like to think that my posts influence people....it still sucks when you tell people facts and they ignore it, you know?

I am not good at all with politics or laws or whatever----but is there some way that we could all start a petition or something so that petstores cant sell puppies? or strict laws against puppymills or breeders? it would be great if there were some large start up fees to start breeding dogs---so then people would be discouraged to do it. lol.

thanks

 

[Toby's Mom]