About

Every year, millions of cats and dogs are euthanized in shelters across the US. Many of these animals started off as family pets. They were either abandoned, left to fend for themselves on the cold, dark, dangerous streets, or even brought to the shelter by the ones they thought cared for them. Some pets were given as "gifts," only to be discarded by the receiver who didn't want it in the first place; others adopted from breeders or pet stores, and some even return to the shelter from which they were adopted.

All too often to parents allow their pet to become pregnant and give birth, most of them doing so to teach their children the "miracle of birth." What these parents should be doing instead is showing their children the "tragedy of death." Because of this useless life lesson, millions of perfectly adoptable animals are killed in shelters. These new litters of cats and dogs go out to not just real families with good homes, but to animal labs, puppy mills or catteries, and other not-so-good homes.

A main reason people allow their animals to have litters is for the novelty of pure-bred animals, as if they are better than the poor mutts in the shelters. Unfortunately, pure-bred animals in pet stores have a high chance of coming from a puppy mill or cattery, and have a likely chance of developing a behavioural or health disorder. People who argue this don't stop to think why a reputable breeder who loves his or her animals would sell their litters to pet stores with no idea of where the animal is going or how it will be treated. The local mall in my area recently received a new shipment of puppies, which came in a semi-truck, with cages lining the walls of the trailer. What reputable breeder sends their animals in a semi?

Animals in shelters can be euthanized in one of a few ways. The most humane, and the most often practiced, is lethal injection. The next common way, because of its affordability and being less expensive than injection, is a gas chamber, which takes up to twenty minutes at times for some animals to die. Other shelthers (unconfirmed if this is practiced in the US or not)have been known to poison their dogs and cats with cyanide inside their food, only to cause the animal to die a very slow and painful death. The horrific nature of these euthanizations isn't deserved by any living thing. If more animals were adopted instead of bought from breeders and pet stores, this kind of torture will inevitably become less and less prevalent.

Puppy mills have been known to exercise a plethora of ways to deal with thier animals. Some mills have been know to "debark" dogs by shoving metal rods down their throats to damage the voice box (sources: [x] [x] [x]). Breeding animals are forced to live in confined spaces where they have little room to move, be social, or do anything your happy playful family dog loves doing most. Instead, they are forced to give birth whenever they are able, being bred many times a year. Would you like to give birth to a baby every year? The animals have at least two to three or more litters a year. Quite a damper on the body. Animals that die may be fed to the current living animals to reduce waste. When food is available, it is usually the poorest quality available. Some states have laws that require these operations to be licensed and inspected. Others don't have any restrictions whatsoever. Go to this website to see what restrctions your state has: https://gateway.hsus.org/spm/bigpicture/index.cfm

What Can I Do to Help?
Whatever you do, don't buy from pet stores. You may think that these animals still need a home, but buying from them only increases the need for more animals to fill the shelves. Buy buying from a pet store, you are directly contributing to the puppy mills themselves. Some pet stores only adopt out animals from shelters, such as my local PetsMart. They are worth supporting.

Spay and neuter your pet. Not only will this prevent any unwanted litters (or unneeded litters), there are also several health benefits for your happy pet.

Volunteer at your local shelter. There are both no-kill shelters and county shelters that need your help. Offer to be a foster parent to an animal. If you don't have time to volunteer, donate to the shelter. They are always in need of pet food, both wet and dry, blankets, toys, leashes, collars, etc. Call your local shelter for a more detailed list of what they might need.

Spread the word. Let your friends and family know about the dire need for these poor, perfectly adoptable animals in shelters that need homes and to not buy from breeders or pet stores. Word of mouth is wonderful, or you can print out a pamphlet to pass out to classmates, co-workers, or passersby.

Owning a a pet is a huge responsibility. You not only have to take into account the cost of actually adopting the animal, but veterinary bills, spaying/neutering, food, toys, damage the animal might cause, etc. It's not only monetary heavy, but emotionally as well. Don't get a pet if you're not going to be home more than half the day. Make sure your pet has plenty of room to run around and play. Look at the specifics of your animals breed(s) to see if they have any sensitivity to things like children, temper, etc. Don't ever give a pet as a gift, unless the receiver is expecting it. It's a hige responsibility to dump on someone, especially children.

If you have any more suggestions, comments, or things I should add to this information I've provided, please don't hesitate to leave a comment or PM me. I would like to improve this in any way possible. Thank you.

Frequently Asked Questions (or Statements)
Quote:
UR VIDEO IS SICK AND DISGUSTING!!!!!! UR A BASTERD!

Yes, I actually did receive this PM. All I can comment on is this person did not read my profile. My intention is not to piss you off, regardless of what you may think. My intention is to bring you the shocking reality of what goes on behind the scenes. I only hope that this video inspires you as much as it did me. It is disturbing, I agree, but it's a hard reality we have to face.
Quote:
You seem to be kind of downing breeders. Not all breeders are bad.
Again, I agree. The information provided certainly came across that way. No, I don't disapprove of people who breed pure-bred dogs, though I think breeding for shows is, for lack of a better word, stupid. Pure breds were originally bred as certain types of animals to do certain tasks, like dachsunds to hunt badgers, sheepdogs to herd sheep, hounds to hunt... their meaning is lost anymore. Now all people want them for is the "pretty" factor. There are plenty of pure-bred animal rescue groups that could set someone up with a pure-bred dog if they really wanted one, and not have to go to a pet store. ^^

I think my dislike for the novelty pets came when my sociology professor told me about breeding his hunting dogs. He whelps the female with relatives to keep strong genes in the family, and kills the puppies that develop deformities. It made me wonder if that really happens with many breeders or not. =/

I'll address any other questions that may come up on here.


Some useful links:
Stop Puppy Mills Website
Prisoners of Greed
Petfinder
Animal Shelter.org

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Comments

Viewing 10 of 20 comments.

lonewolfjc11

Report | 01/03/2010 12:46 am

lonewolfjc11

It's really sad to see what these people are doing to these animals... crying I wish this video will open the eyes of the people, for them to help the conditions of poor pets....
reptileluver101

Report | 10/31/2009 12:13 pm

reptileluver101

i have a comment about the video (not in a bad way.) i volunteer at an animal shelter, and they dont kill animals that dont get adopted. there's a cat that's been there for four years and still hasnt been adopted. don't you think it'd be cool if shelters told you ahead of time if they had kill policies or not. :3. ik i'd like it alot better;though those shelters may get overcrowded then. i guess there's no easy solution xD
sarina_x_screams_x_murder

Report | 09/25/2009 10:07 am

sarina_x_screams_x_murder

I just watched your profile video.
thats terrible and so selfish.

I am ashamed at what the human race has grown to be and represent.
D'=
selfish hags...........
Lady Callie G

Report | 09/23/2009 11:39 pm

Lady Callie G

Those are really huge numbers and I don't even know what to say. How can anyone do that? I don't understand.....
Complete_Spazz

Report | 08/25/2009 4:25 pm

Complete_Spazz

Go to mod forums.
Complete_Spazz

Report | 08/22/2009 7:20 am

Complete_Spazz

Umm.....Lets do it in the mod section. More privicey. WOH That sounded wrong.
Complete_Spazz

Report | 08/21/2009 6:49 pm

Complete_Spazz

Heyy. We should talk about the event. You know, details, Time, etc.
-Spazz
_the door to light_

Report | 08/19/2009 7:12 pm

_the door to light_

I saw your video it made me die inside, Why would people treat animals this way? because humans are acutally animals also each dog,cat,frog,fish,bird ect.
has a life and needs to live it well animals should be treated like most people with a safe home with water and food. I am willing to do anything so that puppy mills will no longer exist. I wish instead of a shelters animals that have no homes will be living in a santuary with lots of trees, grass, food, and water
Complete_Spazz

Report | 08/17/2009 2:54 pm

Complete_Spazz

Yeah...Whats even more supprising, are the people who don't even care. I have three dogs of my own, And all of them are well cared for, and mabey even a little spoiled. Love 'em to death.
Complete_Spazz

Report | 08/17/2009 10:10 am

Complete_Spazz

Your video is really sad... Seeing that poor dog get thrown into the the dumpster like that really touched me...It's people like the makers of that video, and the members of Green that will put a stop to this...If you can, may I ask that you put this video into a topic in the forums? Others have got to see this.