Many people ask, "What is a Puppy Mill ?". This question has a long and detailed answer that usually takes some time to explain. In short, a Puppy Mill is a factory of sorts, fueled by greed and specializing in the mass production of puppies. It is their puppies that we refer to as 'Mill Dogs'.

When properly bred by a respectable, reprutable, honest owner, females dogs should have (roughly) a maximum of 1, maybe 2, litters of puppies per year. Most good breeders will not even breed their dog this often. In most cases, there is only 1 litter per year. The reason behind this is the health and life of the puppies. When a mother dog carries and gives birth to her puppies she passes on very important nutrients and vitamins to the pups; both while they are still inside her and in her milk after they are born. Also, for 7 to 8 weeks after birth the pups learn valuable life lessons and behaviors from their mother as well as skills and necesities. When all of this is taken into account and all of this takes place, the result is usually happy, healthy puppies that grow to be happy, healthy dogs. This is extremly not the case with a Puppy Mill puppy.

A Puppy Mill puppy (Mill Dog) unfortunatly does not get to enjoy the same content, healthy life as a well bred responsibly bred puppy. First of all, a Mill Dog's mother is bred over and over again until she dies of birth exhaustion only a few short years (if she's lucky) into her life. Majority of Mill Dog mothers do not live to see 3 years of age. Once her puppies are born they are taken from her and raised elsewhere and she is once again force-bred and becomes pregnant again. Her puppies go on to be raised in cold steel cages- the same cages they were born in. Like their mother, they are given little food and water, and no veterinary care. They are also crammed into a tiny cage with as many other dogs as the Mill owner can fit into one cage. From here they grow to be emaciated, cold, hungry and alone. What puppies die in there conditions are simply thrown in the trash. The puppies who do survive to be approximatly 4 to 6 weeks of age will move on to the goal of the Mill Dog...the Big Box Pet Store outlets.

Here in the Big Box Pet Store, Mill Dogs are sold for huge amounts of money and sold without papers. What customers are really being sold is a dog that will grow to have behavioral problems, genetic disorders, emotional problems, mental problems and poor health. These dogs are put on planes at 4, 5 or 6 weeks of age (it is illegal in Canada to ship a canine that is younger than 8 weeks of age) and slapped into glass planneled cages to be viewed by customers and priced at amounts 10 times their actual worth. This is the result of being born from a mother who has been bred so many times that she has no more nutrients to pass onto her pups. This is the result of being taken from their mother after birth and being raised by humans or machines. This is the result of have little food and water and no veterinary care.

Here is the saddest part...MANY people buy these puppies. Fooled by the tricks and lies of the Big Box Pet Stores, these people actually believe that they are purchasing a purebred dog. They get around this obsticle by calling them 'Wholebreed' or 'Wholebred' dogs. This of course is a lie and further complicates and worsens the situation. A 'Purebred' dog is a dog whose mother and father are the same breed. A 'Wholebred' dog is a dog of made up of any 2 breeds. This is where made-up breeds such as 'Labradoodle' and 'Puggle' come from. To make matter worse, some people actually pay over $500, even $1000 for a mix breed dog. Some Big Box Pet Stores even go as far as to sell 'barkless' breeds. People usually think it funny at first to find, for example, a golden retriver or a maltese that does not bark. What the consumer does not understand is that these puppies have been 'debarked' long before they reach the store. 'Debarking' is done by ramming a steel rod down a young puppies throat. This severes the vocal chords and/or destroys the voice box, thus leaving the dog 'barkless'.

A normal respectable breeder will charge someone around $ 700 to $ 1000 for a pet puppy (a puppy that is not to be shown in dog shows). The breeder may also charge someone $ 1000 to $ 5000 for a show quality puppy ( a puppy that is shown in dog shows). Please remember, a good breeder will screen, interview and check references before ever placing a dog in a home. GOOD BREEDERS DON'T SELL PUPPIES THROUGH PET STORES. A good breeder will also let you see at least one parent of the puppy and will provide you with papers. The puppy will also be AT LEAST 8 weeks of age and have been properly cared for by its mother. At the bottom of this page is a checklist. Please use it if you are planning on bringing a purebred puppy into your home as well as your life. By supporting the pet stores that supply us with Mill Dogs we are, in turn, supporting the Mills.That means: Supporting the mass breeding of puppies for money.

There will later be pictures on this site of the inside of Puppy Mills that have been discovered in North America. I warn you now that these images are graphic and heartbreaking. If you would like immediate further information, please check out various Puppy Mill informant sites such as: No Puppy Mills Canada and No Puppy Mills USA. Also, some readers may wish to know that some of the largest Puppy Mills in Canada are found in Quebec and New Brunswick. If you cannot see the dog's parents, or contact it's breeder or see it's CKC or AKC papers, or you have to pay a large amount of money for a 'Wholebreed'...9 chances out of 10...you are facing the product of the pet industries hidden shame...Puppy Mills.


Looking to Buy a Puppy?

Use the following checklist to make sure your puppy is from a reputable breeder. If the breeder does not meet the qualifications below…please go somewhere else.

1 - Breeder has records on three generations of bloodline information documented on pedigree certification.
2 - Breeder should want to know about you and ask you questions.
3 - Breeder is aware of how many times female is bred in past two years with a careful observation of allowing dog to recoup two cycles in between.
4 - Breeder provides proper sanitation, health, veterinary care, and socialization to foster healthy/adjusted pups. There is clean room air and suitable room temperatures which can be measured by instrumentation gauges.
5 - Breeder has a return policy (because they care about the future of the animal) for the lifetime of the dog.
6 - You may see the sire & dame (mother and father),so there is nothing hidden and that the breeder is locatable.
7 - Breeders do not sell through pet stores, but through their reputation, purebred club affiliations, and breed specialty magazines.