I was just reading a little about PA puppy mills (I'm guessing the pet stores around here stay "local"). The sick thing about it is, many of the PA puppy mills were (are) run by Amish farmers. You know, the ultra-relegious sect that shun "modern life". Apparently they decline to remember about "all God's creatures" and all that - real relegious, huh? And I guess shunning modern life doesn't apply to making hordes of money from breeding dogs. One article I read had an interview with one of these Amish puppy mill owners - he said there was no difference between dogs and other livestock. That people need to remember that dogs aren't human beings.
Well, personally, I think my dog can be a lot more compassionate than most human beings. No one else will give a rat's behind if I'm sick or upset, but my dog knows, and he's a comforter!
And also I guess there's a "conflict of interest" (according to the USDA, I guess), because shutting down these farmers would inhibit the agricultural business.
It just makes me sad because it seems like everyone knows about these puppy mills, but they're still up and running. And what about the products of these puppy mills? What about all those dogs at the pet store? Just because they've been produced like an assembly line doesn't mean they don't deserve love, a good home and a good life. But doing so just propagates an already out of control problem.
It's just disgusting.