I started a couple of fun threads but now here's a serious one.


Amy worked at three different pet stores in Suffolk County before opening her own store (that does not sell animals). Here's what she says:

"The puppies sold at his store that did not come off of these trucks were shipped by air to either La Guardia or Kennedy. They arrived in filthy crates filled with many puppies, not all of them alive.

The puppies that came into the store looking “healthy” would go right onto the show floor. If the puppy was “sick” it would go to the “Iso” room. All illnesses were lumped together — puppies with kennel cough, parvovirus , distemper, all would go in the same room. The shop owner, not a veterinarian, would then determine the medical treatment the puppies would receive.

Every morning when we arrived for work the puppies would be filthy, covered in excrement, screaming and hungry. These were the lucky ones, some just sat and shook, others were removed from their cages dead. The shop owner would be compensated by the broker for puppies dying within a certain time frame after delivery. There was no incentive to make these puppies healthy by sending them to a vet. That would cost money and affect the bottom line.

After a week or so in recovery, and as demand required, they went to the sales floor. As sales associates we were never advised to counsel potential buyers on the appropriate breed for their family. We were given bonuses based on our gross sales. The other two stores I worked in that sold puppies differed very little from this.

...

Reputable breeders with high standards of care do not sell their puppies to ANY pet stores for resale. The only option for pet stores wishing to make a profit selling puppies are puppy mills.

I do not sell animals in my store because it is impossible to do so without contributing to this barbaric trade. I wholeheartedly support this legislation and thank Legis. Jon Cooper and Legis. Ed Romaine for introducing this bill "

http://northfork.patch.com/articles/opinion-feed-bag-owner-says-she-will-not-sell-animals-in-her-store