[kandy]

I think for some buyers, when the seller says the dogs are CKC registered, the buyer assumes that means Canadian Kennel Club, when in fact it's more likely the Continental Kennel Club - who will sell you a certificate saying your Tabby Kitty is actually a purebred Irish Wolfhound for the right price. As for the AKC, unfortunately, they are still in the dark ages IMO. They care nothing for the ethics of a breeder, if the breeder is constantly throwing sick puppies or even the health of the dogs in the various dog shows. All they care about is if both parents were also AKC registered, and in the case of show dogs - if they have the correct appearance. For them to impose some restrictions on the registration of puppies would not effect the ethical breeder, it would only effect the mills. I thoroughly read through the AKC's requirements to have pups registered looking for possible ways to get a supposedly reputable breeder banned from being able to get pups registered. I always tell people that 'having papers' does not equate to 'being healthy'.

I am appalled at the sheer numbers of people that ignore what goes on around them. We had a bigger petstore move into our area 2 years ago. Here I was, all excited - made my mom go with me, even though she doesn't have any pets right now. I'm ooohing and ahhing over the brands of food they have, the treats, the toys, etc - and I walk around a corner to find a tank with puppies in it. Ugh. I found a man greeting people who I assumed was the owner. I asked him straight out why he was supporting puppy millers by having these dogs here. He starts the whole speel about they aren't from a puppy mill, they are from a government certified breeder. He was quite shocked when I told him that ANY person or breeder selling dogs in a commercial venue has to be certified by the dept of Agriculture, but the certification itself means nothing. It is supposed to have provisions for inspections and such, but they don't have enough employees to do that - so it's basically just paying a fee every year. I also told him, over and over, that NO respectable breeder would allow their dogs to be sold in a pet store and that he should participate in adoption clinics rather than sell people sick dogs. His final word before I walked out was that he does allow our Humane Society to have adoption clinics there, but he was a businessman and people want the smaller dogs that he sells.

It wasn't too long after he opened that the puppy mill story ran on Oprah - and I've seen a few letters to the editor of our local newspaper warning people about where these pet store puppies are coming from. Even with the exposure, the vast majority of people I come into contact with have no clue where pet store puppies come from or have even heard of a puppy mill or know what a puppy mill is! I get so frustrated and my husband tells me that he believes less than 1% of people have any clue about puppy mills - even with the increased publicity (he actually says I'm the only one...lol). And then of course you have the folks who know where that pup in the window came from, and still buy it.

It won't ever stop until people quit supporting the pet stores that sell the dogs. It's a simple matter of economics. As long as the demand is there, the puppy mills will stay in business.