According to the American Pet Products Association, 85 million families in the United States own some type of pet (that’s almost 67% of the whole country!).  As much as we love our pets, they need our help.  There are several ways of getting a pet.  For example, there are local breeders, pet stores, or you could find listings for a dog or cat on websites such as Craigslist.  However, the sad reality behind buying your beloved pet from a breeder or pet store is that you are most likely supporting a puppy/kitten mill.  Puppy/kitten mills are notoriously known for their horrific treatment of their animals, as most puppy/kitten mills only care about revenue rather than providing the proper nutrients, living conditions, and love that a puppy/kitten needs.  Puppy and kitten mills are detrimental to our pet’s lives, and we as pet owners need to stop supporting businesses that work with puppy and kitten mills.  How can we do this?  The answer is simple: adoption.  According to DoSomething.org, “Every year in America, it’s estimated that 2.11 million puppies are sold that originated from puppy mills, while 3 million are killed in shelters because they are too full and there aren’t enough adoptive homes.”  This is the sad reality, but we as the people can stop this once we educate ourselves on how to save our furry friends around the United States.

What are puppy/kitten mills?

As stated above, pet mills are commercial pet-breeding facilities that focus on the increase of profit by producing as many puppies and kittens as they possibly can and selling them to pet breeders, pet shops, and yes that means PetSmart and Petco.  Pet mills are known for not caring about the physical and mental well-being of their animals.  Specifically to puppy mills, female dogs who are used for breeding are given little to no recovery times between litters.  When these female dogs can no longer have any more litters or develop diseases (most likely from such poor living conditions of puppy mills), the female dog will either be sold or killed because to the puppy mill owners, those dogs serve no purpose as they will not bring more profit.  Dogs and cats that are raised in mills are usually kept in small cages and are rarely let out to play, walk around, or even use the bathroom(even some dogs and cats are forced to sleep in their own feces and urine).  The food provided to these animals is oftentimes contaminated and does not meet the nutritional requirements, which oftentimes leads to malnourishment.  As you can see, the conditions these dogs and cats go through are inhumane and cruel.  You might ask, why do puppy and kitten mills still exist today?  The reason is that people still chose to buy from organizations that puppy mills make a profit off of, the biggest being pet stores.  Many people are naive to the fact that when you buy a puppy or a kitten from a pet store that it most likely came from a puppy/kitten mill.  Instead of buying from pet stores, consider adopting, not shopping.

Why should I adopt rather than shop for pets?

Adopting your next furry friend is often an option that is overlooked amongst families.  Unfortunately, too few people adopt animals from local animal shelters and adoption centers, and in order to make space for new animals in the shelters, dogs and cats have to be euthanized.  According to the ASPA, “Approximately 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized (670,000 dogs, 860,000 cars).”  By adopting an animal from an animal shelter, you will save the lives of two animals- the furry friend that you adopt and a homeless animal that can be rescued because of the space you made available.  There are numerous benefits to adopting your next pet:

1. Adoption is less expensive than shopping from breeders/pet stores- Adoption prices range from average $50-$200 while buying from a breeder or pet store can cost anywhere from(on average) $500-$1000.  Also, there are many additional costs associated with buying from a breeder or pet store, as most of the dogs/cats you will buy will not have the required vaccinations they need and are not spayed/neutered.  Most of the time, shelter animals are completely up to date with their vaccinations, and the animals are already spayed/neutered.  
2. Animal shelters and rescue groups have plenty of healthy, well-behaved animals waiting for a home- The animals that live in animal shelters are surrounded by a great support system of animal-loving humans.  Even though some animals come from tough situations, they quickly rebound due to the nurturing environment they are in at the shelter.
3. You will save a life– As stated previously, when you adopt, you save two lives: the pet that you adopted, and the homeless pet you made room for by adopting your new pet.  Many animals ins shelters get euthanized due to a lack of adoptions made.  
4. By adopting, you are choosing to fight against puppy/kitten mills- Puppy and kitten mills have been proven time and time to be a terrible organization that does not care about the well-being of their animals.  To the owners of puppy and kitten mills, profit is the only thing that matters to them.  When you adopt, the money you pay for your furry friend goes to the shelter directly and its employees.  However, if you were to buy from a pet store and even sometimes a breeder, you are (unintentionally) supporting puppy and kitten mills as some of the money you pay a pet store will go back to those terrible organizations.  Choosing to adopt will help get rid of puppy and kitten mills and liberate the animals going through cycles worth of torture.

Adoption has been a great choice for many people.  Animal lover Shelli Dinerman has made it her passion to advocate for animals and take a stance against organizations that business with puppy mills.  Dinerman has 2 dogs now and got one from adopting and the other from buying from a breeder.  For her dog that she bought from a breeder, she stressed how important it is for people to do their research from where they are buying from.  “I almost got in a bad situation where I almost bought a dog from a breeder that got their puppies from puppy mills, but lucky for me, I did my research and did not put myself in that situation.”  Dinerman emphasized that not all breeders are associated with puppy mills, but it is important to do your research on the places you are getting your dog to make sure that you don’t get put in a bad situation.  In the end, Dinerman found a bejan-poo puppy named Trixie right outside West Chester that has been a perfect fit for her and her husband.  Their next dog named Alvin came from a rescue named Salfid Rescue Souderton.  She told the organization that she was looking for a Chihuahua-mix, but they ended up getting Alvin who was a hound mix.  “You have to be open to adoption, as you may think you want one breed, but sometimes you might not get the exact dog you are looking for.”  Dinnerman stated that she loves both of her dogs, but recommends that families consider adoption first.  “The more we give money to breeders and stores that work with puppy mills, it gives puppy mills more ambition.  Once more people adopt, it will help close down puppy mills.”

If you are on the fence about adopting your next furry friend, consider adoption.  When we adopt, we are putting an end to puppy mills that are notoriously known to abuse their animals.  Plus, you are saving animal’s lives when you adopt.  To learn more about how you can adopt, check out the SPCA or your local animal rescues/shelters.