Why We Do What We Do

For all of those that wonder why we do what we do:

Murphy

I received a call yesterday morning from a very distraught woman who had purchased a Bulldog puppy for almost $3000 at Petland in Crystal Lake, Il. She was able to get “credit” to buy this…dog from a credit company right down the street. She has two children and another dog and did not know about puppy mills until now. The now was when the puppy that they all fell head over heals in love with for only a short two weeks, died of pneumonia. The vet that checked him(Petland’s vet) said he was fine. Petland said “Sometimes that happens, he did not get sick here”. I won’t go into the rest of the details but he went to a second vet who confirmed the pneumonia diagnosis.

The “breeder” Rosemary Woods of Missouri, is the “reputable” breeder Petland told her the puppy came from. We all know the truth here. She is a USDA approved breeder with hundreds of dogs on her property.
Yesterday afternoon they buried that little guy in the yard. His name was Murphy. Another family who had to explain to their little children what happened to their new puppy.Another family with huge vet bills and credit card bills that will last longer than Murphy’s life. Every day over and over this scene is played out across this country. Textbook case. What did Murphy ever do to deserve this? What about his mother in Rosemary Wood’s mill ? She’s still churning out more puppies until she dies. What did this loving family ever do to suffer like this?

 

This is animal cruelty in it’s largest form.  Thousands of dogs suffering and dying every day at the hands of greedy, cruel monsters.  Please help us raise awareness and stop the cruel world of puppy mills. Do it for Murphy.

Act By Monday To Stick Up For Mill Dogs!

The USDA has officially announced a draft of their new rules that would require Internet breeders selling multiple puppies and kittens to be federally licensed and regulated by the U.S.Dept of Agriculture. This is the first time any kind of Internet regulation has been proposed.

The new rules require large-scale dog and cat breeders selling their unseen puppies and kittens who sell over the internet, phone, or mail to be licensed and regulated.  This is to to make sure they have been provided with humane standards of care.

Please send in your comments to the USDA in support of these changes by Monday.  Please hurry, this is your last chance to submit comments!

Submit your comments online to tell the USDA that you support stronger regulation of internet puppy mills or at the following address:

Docket No. APHIS-2011-0003-0001
Regulatory Analysis and Development
PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8
4700 River Road Unit 118
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238

Learn More

View a USDA fact sheet about the proposed rules
View the proposed rules
Is The American Kennel Club supporting puppy mills?
The Puppy Mill Industry in Missouri

What do I say?

1. The proposed rules are necessary to ensure that all breeding animals are monitored for their health and humane treatment regardless if their puppies are sold in pet stores or over the Internet.

2. The proposed rules will protect consumers who purchase a puppy sight unseen over the Internet and will help ensure that they receive a healthy puppy.

3. These rules will help encourage dog breeders to open their doors to the public so buyers can see the conditions in which their new puppy is raised or be subject to inspections by USDA.

4. These rules will help concentrate the regulatory efforts of USDA on those facilities that present the greatest risk to the welfare of the animals.

5. These rules will hold breeders accountable to normal sensible regulations that good reputable breeders are already doing and will not place an undue burden on any responsible breeder.

6. Thank USDA for proposing these rules and encourage them to implement them as written.

This is your opportunity to truly make a difference for the animals.  You can be assured that the dog breeders and their allies will be swamping USDA with letters of protest.  We need you to refute any such attempts to weaken USDA’s proposed new rules.

Creating a Compassionate Future

This summer, The Puppy Mill Project is giving a series of nine presentations at various animal shelters to educate young people about the issue of puppy mills.

The children, ages ranging from 6-12 years old, are learning in an age-appropriate manner about puppy mills, adoption, rescue, and what dogs need to live a happy life.  Since we never want to leave with unanswered questions, we always have a question and answer session at the end.  With a powerpoint presentation and interactive activities, TPMP is teaching the younger generations in the hope that they will be future compassionate consumers.

Taking place during camps, we are giving presentations at Anderson Animal Shelter in South Elgin and DuPage Animal Care and Control in Wheaton.

These presentations are crucial for children to understand what puppy mills are, where puppy mill dogs are sold, how mill dogs are treated, and that the children/families can make a difference simply by adopting/rescuing instead of shopping.

We are trying to help the children understand how inhumane mills are and how they can take action.  They are the future consumers who will hopefully make compassionate choices when they become adults and can impact their parents by sharing what they learned in the presentation.  These partnerships with the humane education camps are a win-win for all parties involved.

So far we have recieved rave reviews about these presentations and the children highly enjoy them.  At the same time, they are taking home a valuable lesson that will influence their choices in years to come and they leave the presenations knowing they can make an immediate difference by spreading the word.  The best part?  We educated 180 young people who will in return educate their family and friends.  The power of youth outreach is outstanding!

Help Support TPMP!

Fields Auto Group is running a simple online event to bring awareness to their new Facebook presence and to donate to a worthy cause. To support TPMP, all one must do is simply “like” their Facebook Page and tell them that we are your favorite charity. If chosen Fields Auto Group will donate $1,000 dollars to us.  Thank you for supporting TPMP!

Click HERE to go to their Facebook page.

Join us in this year’s pride parade!

Join us and invite your friends, neighbors, and family members to join us in this year’s Gay Pride Parade!  March with TPMP’s float to educate millions of parade-goers about puppy mills.

 

When: Sunday, June 24, 12 noon

Where: Montrose/Broadway area.  Exact line up location to be announced.

Contact: Please RSVP to stacey580@comcast.net to let us know how many will be attending.

 

This event draws millions of people from all communities, many of which live in neighborhoods that have pet shops in operation.  Therefore, we need a presence in the parade.  The parade is a great time and our float looks amazing, with a sound system pumping music to add to it.  Can you handle the challange of having fun and spreading our message all in the same day?  Walk with us to make a difference!

 

Please no children or dogs at this event. Our walkers will be passing out our TPMP beads and carrying banners.  Please wear TPMP t-shirts and comfortable shoes for walking (no one will be riding on the float).  Also, bring water and the spirit to celebrate a day of diversity, acceptance, and puppy mill education.  The mill dogs are depending on us!  Come out and have a great time.

 

Some pictures from last year’s parade…

 

Mothers?

Many have done it.  Walked into that pet store and gawked at those cute little puppies on display.  Played with them behind the glass, remarked about their adorable puppy-dog faces, and then left the store with a feeling of wanting.  Although those dogs behind the windows look quite healthy and hearty, most do not even give a thought towards where these animals came from and what conditions the parents are in.  Actually, most forget these dogs even have parents.  The fact of the matter is, 99% of pet store puppies come from large and small scale commercial breeding facilities called puppy mills.

Breeding stock dogs or the mothers the in mills receive no pleasures.  They are simply treated like livestock.  Although they are often pictured on websites in a warm family environment, most do not even receive the gentle touch of human interaction or do anything that is natural to them.  The dogs are bred every heat cycle, or six months, until they can no longer produce.  Once no longer profitable, these poor animals are often shot, drowned, or poisoned.  Very few get rescued.

Despite how deplorable these facts are, this is not even the truth of it all.  Many mothers in the mills are housed in wire cages, often causing medical injuries to their feet.  Often exposed to extreme temperatures or kept inside dark buildings, these dogs do not get veterinary care or grooming.  Often, they are kept in their own waste.  Because of these facts, dogs that breed are often extremely matted and sick.  As long as they are profitable, it does not matter what condition they are in.  The puppy mills will force them to breed.

The people who manage the puppy mills only care about the money gained.  Unfortunately, they are missing the fact that dogs are living creatures who can feel pain, loss, and happiness.  In the puppy mill industry, there is no regard to life.  This does not even include the sick dogs sent to pet stores and sold online that are often the results of these breeding businesses.

Thankfully, there are many ways to avoid supporting this industry.  There are countless animal shelters in any given area and even more dogs looking for a permanent home.  If you are looking for a specific breed, there are many specific breed rescues.  A quick internet search will do the trick.

If you absolutely would like a breeder, finding a responsible one is a must.  A responsible breeder will allow you to meet the mother, see where the dogs are kept, and will be interested in how you will care for the dog.  If they do not meet these expectations, it is best to walk.

Although some may get lucky and receive a healthy pet store dog, it is extremely important to make the connection between the puppy and its mother suffering in the mill.  For each face behind the glass or in that picture online, there is a mother, which many forget.  Please, take some consideration of the origin of the dog before buying.  There can be change for these dogs and this change can start with you.  Adopt, don’t shop.

Mothers in the Mills Benefit a Huge Success!

We are happy to say that our second annual “Mothers in the Mills” benefit was a huge success.  Over 250 people showed up to support TPMP and had a great time doing it.  A great location, great dinner, and great presentation added even more to the benefit.

After a half hour of socialization, #19, a slide show presentation created by two of our members was shown.  #19 followed the story of a dog named Ruby, who was rescued from a puppy mill.  Read from Ruby’s view, it brought our guests right into the story emotionally and empowered them to take action.

After the presentation our first ever “Kindness to Animals” awards were given out to four deserving people.  Greg Gordon, owner of the Dog Patch pet store in Naperville, received our first ever award for converting his store to a humane business-model.  Following his award were three Chicago officers who busted a puppy mill truck to a local Chicago pet store. Truly a great way to honor those who do good in the community!

After the slide show, dinner was served.  Veggie patties, fish wraps, veggie hot dogs, mac n’ cheese, and fries were brought out.  A delicious meal, the deserts only added to the tasty food at the benefit.

Throughout the entire event, a silent raffle was going on.  We had many amazing items donated by our supporters.  We thank them very much for their donations.  Along with this, raffle tickets were also purchased for a prize of Starwood Hotel points.  One lucky winner took home the prize.

A great band was there, proving entertaining music for all to dance to.  Altogether, it was an amazing night of bringing recognition to those forgotten mothers in the mills.  We hope to see you next year!

The three police officers receiving their “Kindness to Animals” awards.

Greg Gordon recieving his “Kindness to Animals” award.

Last Chance to Register!

This Saturday is the day of our annual benefit to honor “The Mothers in the Mills,” so if planning to register, this week will be your last chance.  Join us for a fun night of dinner, drinks, dancing, auctions, and special guests.  This year we will be highlighting Greg Gordon of the Dog Patch, who made the choice for his store to go humane and two police officers who busted a puppy mill delivery truck.  Come out and support The Puppy Mill Project!

Register Here

Five Simple Ways to Help Puppy Mill Dogs

There are many, many ways to help TPMP in our cause.  Here are five simple ways that you can help us achieve our goal in your everyday lives.

1. Yes, one voice CAN make a difference.  Dialogue can be your best tool to help mill dogs.  Work education into your daily conversations.  Tell your friends and family about puppy mills and direct them to our website.
2. Did you receive one of our brochures?  “Take it, read it, pass it on,” is what we always say.  Leave one at the local train station, the waiting room at the doctor’s office, or anywhere that someone can pick it up.
3. Use social media to spread the word.  So many people are on social media websites nowadays and simply posting a status update, picture, video, or tweet can reach out to many.
4. Support your local shelter.  These groups get dogs from mill raids, puppy mill rejects, and owner surrenders when a puppy mill dog has health problems.  Many have great educational programs and simply volunteering your time or donating can make a huge difference in the life of countless animals.
5. Most of all, do not buy a puppy from a pet store, internet site, classified ad, or un-responsible breeder.  This creates demand for puppy mill dogs and they will only replace them with more.  Try your local shelter or rescue.

Although these are only small tasks, one person can make a difference, no matter how big or small.  There are many dogs up for adoption now and so many get euthanized each year.  You can help put an end to puppy mills and euthanasia if you only adopt. 

As Mother Teresa puts it, “We can do no great things, only small things with great love.”

If you are interested in doing even more for puppy mill dogs, TPMP has many volunteer opportunities as well.

Chicagoland Family Pet Expo Draws Huge Crowds

This past weekend, hundreds of people traveled to Arlington Park for the annual Chicagoland Family Pet Expo.  The three-day event featured many rescues, pet product vendors, and dedicated non-profit organizations.

TPMP hosted an educational booth where we were able to hand out hundreds of brochures to the public, some of whom did not even know what a puppy mill was.  Educating uninformed people always makes tabling events worth it and this one was no exception.  TPMP was happy to hear so much support and enthusiasm towards our cause. 

We were honored to hear inspiring stories, meet many great people, and network with countless rescues.  One of the days, we even had a rescued puppy mill dog at our booth to give the education a sentimental touch.

TPMP is happy to say that the expo was a complete success.  Thank you to all who stopped by our booth and supported us.  We hope to see you next year!