As the public has become more aware of the horrendous treatment dogs receive from puppy mills, interest has increased in adopting dogs from shelters or rescues rather than buying puppies from pet stores. Pet store demand for cute young puppies is one of the main reasons for the growth of the puppy mill industry. Many people are now trying to find ways to shut down puppy mills. The result of these trends has been to increase the adoption rate as well as increase people’s desire to donate their time (volunteer) and/or donate money to the cause of eliminating puppy mills. Unfortunately, as mentioned in another article, rescue groups are not all the same. It has become very important that before donating money to a rescue group, you educate yourself on the many “issues of concern”. This article will discuss issues related to puppy mill dog rescues and rescue/adoption scams to allow for comparison with local shelters and small rescues.
(1) Puppy mill rescue groups.
These groups are generally small compared to animal shelters and may or may not have their own facilities. they usually claim be No Kill organizations, and are generally 501(c)(3) and non-profit organizations. Their funding comes from donations and the sale (adoption fees) of their rescued dogs. Some No Kill rescues maintain that status by transferring unwanted dogs to other rescues or shelters.
Originally, these groups worked undercover to secretly attend dog auctions sponsored by puppy mill breeders. Rescue volunteers would “buy” (for very small amounts of money) the dogs that were no longer wanted by puppy mill breeders. If not purchased, the dogs were usually killed in inhumane ways. In recent years, many puppy mill rescues have gone from stealth to building “relationships” with puppy mill breeders. Now, when a puppy mill breeder has dogs that he no longer wants, a call is made to a rescue and that rescue simply drives to the property and loads the unwanted dogs.
The leaders of these rescues go to great lengths to convince the public that they are fighting the puppy mill industry with this new tactic; but in reality, they are supporting these breeders. The most difficult problem for these breeders is to eliminate the dogs that they no longer need. It was disturbing images of scores of dead dogs and stories about breeders gassing their unwanted dogs that alarmed and moved the public to action. Now, rescues are solving that problem for breeders and creating the space needed for breeders to continue.
None of these rescues have the authority to shut down puppy mills; and the bailouts avoid some methods that would speed up the closure of these puppy mills so as not to damage their “relationships” with these breeders. (One such method would be posting information on their websites about these puppy mills so the public can pressure the USDA and AKC to force inspections and closures.)
To their credit, these rescues save some dogs’ lives. However, many of these dogs are older, ill with both physical and mental problems, never house trained; and for the money spent to rescue and rehabilitate one dog from the mill, many healthy dogs could be saved from shelters. This is a very controversial topic and you will have to decide your own feelings about it.
For anyone contemplating leaving large sums of money in their will to a puppy mill rescue group, there is an important issue to consider: how long will the group exist? Where most shelters have been around for decades, most puppy mill rescue groups have only been around for a short time (1-10 years). If the puppy mill problem is solved, the leader moves out, or a rescue closes, what happens to the pack, the kennel, the property, and her money?
(2) Adoption/rescue scams.
These usually occur over the Internet. Some puppy mills are beginning to use the Internet to sell their dogs under a dog rescue fake id. People think they are getting a rescue dog when in fact they are buying a puppy mill dog directly from the despicable breeder.
Rarely will you find a legitimate or non-profit 501(c)(3) status or a USDA license for online sellers. They always claim AKC registration, but they don’t send the documents with the puppies. Bait and switch is a common practice. The puppy you receive is not the puppy you thought you would receive.
Unfortunately, there are also some licensed rescues that do really despicable things like go to disaster areas, “rescue” all the little dogs, bring them back to their own facility, and then sell them instead of trying to find the actual families. Another despicable act is taking advantage of special sale events at hostels. These rescues buy the small dogs at low prices from special events and then sell the same dogs at much higher prices through their own “rescues.” Some “rescues” and individuals also buy cheap dogs advertised on the Internet and then “adopt” them for more than they paid.
The list of potential scams is quite long and will be an article in itself. For now I just want you to be aware of what can happen so you are looking for it.
Note: Legitimate shelters, rescues, and good breeders have websites. This is normal and expected. It is the individual dogs being advertised that usually indicate a scam. Stay away from “free puppies” that have a small “relocation” fee. Don’t be fooled by the “sad stories”. “These puppies belonged to my mom who just passed away.” Don’t have them send you a dog. Thoroughly research any breeder listed online. Never donate because of a phone request until you have researched the organization. Don’t let yourself be pushed too hard to donate. NEVER buy a dog you haven’t seen in person or donate it to a group you haven’t visited.
Remember that the question of understanding the differences between different types of rescues is the first of ten “issues of concern” related to adopting a dog and/or donating to dog rescues. The other nine topics will be discussed in other articles.