Buying a Dog Instead of Adopting Promotes Animal Abuse

Certain breeders, particularly in Eastern Europe, have taken advantage of high demand to force female dogs to have litter after litter, and in poor conditions. Puppies then live and are transported in unsafe, stressful environments.

Buying a dog instead of adopting

Kids love watching dogs in the windows of pet stores, and adults too are captivated by those puppy dog eyes full of love — and the desire to be loved. But too many of us are oblivious of the debate between buying a dog and adopting. Many have no idea of the damage that is happening behind the scenes.

It’s natural for humans to feel empathy for other living beings. Deep down we know that the dogs in store windows are suffering, even if we don’t stop to think about why the puppies are in that condition. All we care about is buying a dog and giving him our love.

Where do puppies come from?

Without realizing it, we become part of the sometimes cruel world of dog breeding. Have you ever wondered where puppies come from? In Europe, many come from inexperienced breeding sites in eastern countries such as Slovakia and Hungary.

These places, kept running by the sale of dogs all over the continent, are dedicated to the procreation of purebred puppies, their product.

To produce their product, mothers are reduced to mere machines. They are confined in small spaces, poorly fed and prone to infection and dehydration.

Litter after litter, the females turn into production equipment, atrophied by lack of physical activity. Their only function is to keep production going, even as they wear down little by little.

What interests breeders most is money, so naturally they exceed the female dogs’ capacity. They don’t care if they destroy their reproductive organs or if a dog dies in the process.

Experts in canine reproduction say it’s best to wait between the female’s heat cycles before breeding her with a male again. However, due to poorly enforced or nonexistent laws regulating dog breeding, most dogs in the industry are physically and psychologically harmed.

Puppies with health problems, viruses and depression are the result of unjustly mistreating living creatures. In a production mentality like we described, dogs have one purpose, and if they don’t meet it, they end up being slaughtered and replaced immediately.

Buying a dog instead of adopting turns us into unwitting accomplices. We could be unintentionally harming and violating the rights of the dogs kept and “produced” there.

Birth, transportation, and sale

At five or six weeks of age the puppies are weaned and taken to dark rooms where they are placed in plastic boxes or cages filled with paper to absorb their waste. Their food and water dishes are in the cages too, a situation that’s perfect for spread of viruses and infections.

The dogs then go on cruel journeys that may last over 72 hours. The only stops are at pet stores who have ordered puppies from the ‘distributors’. Anywhere from 150 to 200 puppies cram into vans in cages stacked on top of each other.

Between the cages, there is a strip of absorbent paper, the only thing keeping urine and feces from falling from the upper levels down to puppies below.

There are no stops for the puppies to stretch their legs, breathe fresh air or see the sun. Hydration and feeding are not monitored every four hours as recommended. They are still too young to be subjected to such stress, yet they carry certificates – false ones – of hygiene and health.

The high demand for purebred dogs such mistreatment. The breeders (or puppy mills as they are called in some countries) put business profit over life, and even deny that these conditions harm the dogs’ physical and psychological health.

Pet stores, online stores and underground businesses promote the sale of puppies. In many cases the dogs are sick, having been drugged with antibiotic cocktails before they’re bought. The puppy owners find themselves constantly fighting canine parvovirus and the like. Sometimes the puppies can’t beat the diseases and fall victim to them, dying after a few days.

Adoption saves lives

Animal shelters give stray dogs a warm place to stay, love, and health. Most are there because they are not purebred. Meanwhile, many of us are supporting the business of buying dogs, unaware of the abuse going on behind the scenes.

Adopting not only saves the lives of dogs living on the streets but also helps protect other dogs from the abuse of puppy mills. Shelters give dogs a chance at life and health.

If adoption rates increase, the demand for puppy mills will gradually decrease. In short, it will force the doors of those who treat animals like merchandise to close. Love and care is all that these animals ask for, and in exchange they offer their unconditional love.