The East End is dog and cat country, we love our pets. Lots of people and organizations have homeless pets for adoption, many of them purebred. You can find a wonderful pet for you and save a life at the same time. Why do I say, save a life? Homeless pets are euthanized daily, approximately 3-4 million are euthanized each year in the U.S. At the same time, another 8 million are purchased. What can we do to stop the killing of innocent cats and dogs?
First, stop the breeding of dogs and cats in commercial breeding facilities. Many of the dogs and cats that are purchased are bred in "puppy mills" and sold in pet stores. The sale of these cute babies is a lucrative business for the pet stores and for the puppy mills. Puppy mills are most profitable when they keep their costs low; provision of medical care, nutritious food, grooming, exercise, fresh air cost money and are routinely withheld. They get very little love and affection over their lives as they are used as breeding machines.
If you walk into a pet store that sells these puppies, you will see no hint of this. In fact you may be told the puppies are from a local breeder, certainly from a reputable breeder. But please check the paper work on the puppy; many puppy mills that sell to New York pet stores are located in Missouri, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Arkansas, Kansas, and Iowa. People in Suffolk County tried to outlaw the sale of puppies in pet stores but found we were pre-empted by New York State law. It would be great if our state representatives would take an interest in this, but I see little sign of that happening. So it is up to us! Get the word out about the probable source of puppies in pet stores and how important it is to adopt.
I heard that last weekend, people protested the puppy mill breeding in front of pet stores located in Aquebogue, Coram and Huntington. I have included photos from the protest in Aquebogue. Hopefully their message was informative to those who saw them.
An alternative business model for pet stores is to allow adoption in their stores. It will be interesting to see how the pet stores adapt to the shift in consumer preference.
Finally, spay and neuter all pets. One day soon, we will be a no kill nation. Thank you!
