A Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) follow-up investigation has found that Petland stores are still supporting puppy mills, including some of the largest and most notorious in the country.
The new intensive study analyzed thousands of pages of public interstate health documents in multiple states, revealing that almost every Petland store in the country is buying from puppy mills, either directly from commercial breeding facilities or indirectly through middleman brokers.
Two of the worst offenders included “Perfect Puppies” in Iowa and the Hunte Corporation in Missouri. More than 80 stores were linked directly to the Hunte Corporation alone, a massive Missouri broker that resells about 80,000 puppies a year and has documented Animal Welfare Act violations.
The new investigation of Petland’s puppy sources also traced shipments of puppies from out of state brokers to more than 95 percent of Petland’s domestic stores, revealing once again the chain supports puppy mills.
The HSUS also found that several Petland stores continued to buy from some of the facilities the HSUS clearly named and exposed as part of their initial Petland investigation in November, including MAM (Mike and Melanie Moore’s) Kennels in Missouri and Charlene Koster’s kennel in Kansas—puppy mills where more than 100 dogs were filmed running back and forth in small wire cages. Read one family’s story: Heartbreak at Petland
Supporting Cruelty
As implausible as it might seem, the HSUS investigation found at least two Petland stores in Florida still buying puppies from the facility associated with Kathy Bauck in New York Mills, Minn. Bauck was convicted of three counts of animal torture and one count of animal abuse in March 2009, the same month the East Orlando Petland store purchased several puppies from her facility. Health certificate documents show that the Largo Florida Petland store also purchased at least one puppy from Bauck’s kennel in February 2009. See where your local Petland gets its puppies
“Petland claims again and again that they deal only with a special selection of breeders,” said Stephanie Shain, senior director for the HSUS puppy mills campaign. “Our new investigation proves that the vast majority of their stores are buying either directly or indirectly from puppy mills and brokers—large-scale commercial facilities where puppies are treated like nothing more than a cash crop.”??
In addition, the investigation also found two Petland stores buying from a convicted animal abuser, others buying from individuals with long histories of Animal Welfare Act violations, and some who held no USDA license at all. (Even licensed and legal commercial kennels can still be puppy mills, where 100 or more breeding dogs have been found confined for life to small wire cages.)
Since the original Petland investigation was released in November, a consumer lawsuit has been filed against Petland and more than 600 former Petland customers have contacted the HSUS to tell their heartbreaking stories. HSUS has also led three nationwide demonstrations this year at Petland stores across the country to tell the chain to stop selling puppies and start supporting pet adoptions instead.
Please speak out against Petland’s illegal and inhumane practices. Tell Your Story Here or Put Your Pet on the HSUS’s “Pets Against Puppy Mills” page.
Your best friend will thank you.
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