MEDIA RELEASE ; 7 June 2010
For further information or interviews, please contact: Janet Nixon 0407 019 692 or 0410 676 365 ; janetnixon@dogsnsw.org.au
Promoting Responsible Dog Ownership
Dogs NSW says no to puppy farms
Dogs NSW is strongly opposed to sub-standard dog breeding operations, which sell either purebred or mixed breed dogs to unsuspecting buyers to the detriment of the dog. “Puppy farms” or “mills” are often characterised by substandard health, welfare, breeding, and socialisation practices of puppies and concentrate on volume and large-scale breeding to maximise financial profit. “It’s a sad fact that some dog breeders are trying to make a quick profit by cutting corners when it comes to properly raising dogs.
Puppy farms can put at risk the dog’s wellbeing through overcrowding and unsanitary conditions. They also cause dogs to miss out on the socialisation aspect of growing up. Dogs lack interaction with humans in these establishments,” explains veterinarian and Dogs NSW spokesperson Dr Peter Higgins. “Many breeders I work with treat their puppies as honorary members of their own family, and spend a lot of time getting them ready for life with other humans.
Puppy socialisation is one of the most important aspects of raising a dog. Unsocialised dogs can have all sorts of behavioural problems which get worse later in life,” argues Dr Higgins. Such substandard practices can potentially cause great suffering to the dogs kept on the puppy mill premises and lead to unsuspecting purchasers buying dogs that may have temperament and health problems which become costly in the future. Dogs NSW recommends the following when buying a puppy:
Visit the place where your puppy was raised and meet its parents. Assess for yourself that the parents are happy to meet you, and appear well trained and cleanly kept. Assess that the dogs at the kennel are social and that the property and any kennels are on display for you, and well maintained. This is unlikely to be the case at a puppy farm or mill.
“Prospective owners need to take their time when deciding on whether a puppy has been properly raised. It sends a strong message to those who exploit dogs in this way that what they do is totally unacceptable,” advises Dr Higgins. Dogs NSW looks forward to continuing to work with responsible welfare organisations to promote high standards of breeding.
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Dogs NSW is located at: The Bill Spilstead Complex for Canine Affairs, 44 Luddenham Road,
Erskine Park, NSW, 2759
Companionanimalnews 
The only trouble here is that a lot of the public do not know about puppy farms or even know that this sort of breeding goes on….we need to educate the public to show them what these places are like & where not to buy your puppy from….advertising showing what these places look like & how these dogs are suffering at the hands of inhumane people who are just out to make a quid!as socializing is so important to dogs so is educating the public to make owning a dog their responsibility in looking after them. Also Dogs NSW would not be known to a lot of people….here again is the advertising part….this is why a lot of people go to pet shops to buy a puppy as they do not know where else to go….especially the ones who are buying a puppy for the first time….we need more information to show the public where they can buy a breed dog & also a cross breed dog…..