The Life of a Dog in a Puppy Mill

Scared filthy  Bad mouth

 Frostbite testes Frostbite on ears

These dogs came from

Their are hundreds of thousands of dogs suffering in kennels across this country, just like the ones you see here that we rescued.

They are kept in small cages for their entire lives and are bred every time they come into season from six months of age twice a year every year, year after year after year.

They freeze in the winter and swelter in the summer, never to know a loving touch. never a toy, never a soft bed or a treat, never anything to do but stage at bars of the cages in the Puppy mill prison they only just survive in.

Imagine spending your whole life barefoot in a tiny wire cage, feet always bloody and painful.
When you go to the toilet, it collects in a big pile underneath you, never cleaned, the stench rises in the summer heat, uric acid burning your eyes and nostrils.......... covered in flies........the dogs go blind over time. Your only protection from the sun, rain, wind, and snow is a torn canvas tarp that blows in the wind on top of your cage. You are constantly forced to breed, and your puppies are taken from you too young and sold, to pet stores.
When your done breeding and you are not worth feeding, like us above, they dump you at a vet to be killed........or worse! they leave you to die in agony. Sandy.

    Ariel photo outside pens open to all weather.

The Two Stories below must not be copied or re- produced in any way, the stories belong to Puppymillrescue, Inc and the authors.

 We funded this rescue below and the Two women who wrote about it do not want their names  appearing on this website for their own safety. They sign the stories ( A volunteer rescuer ) but we will now call them by  pseudonym's for copyright protection purposes.

My footsteps through a Puppy Mill

By Cindy Doe.

What I had Witnessed that day nothing could have prepared me for the sights I seen and the stench that I will never forget.

It began in the first building I entered.

The lightening was very poor but yet well enough for me to see the horrid conditions these cries were coming from. The smell was so bad that it brought your whole stomach up in your throat. And stung your eyes so bad that it blurred your vision to a degree.
There were dogs everywhere crammed into very small wooden box's that were no more then 5x3 in size.
In each one of these boxes there were anywhere up to 5 or more dogs in each,
Stepping on each other and trampling to get to the end for me to touch. There was one box full of Chihuahuas and one very tiny very pregnant girl that was being trampled to death. There were line after line of these makeshift boxes in a small building with no windows no ventilation.
I left that building and walked around to the back side of the building and there were larger dogs out side in pens they were in mud-holes with empty food & water dishes, Some did not have even dishes in there pens. they were covered in the mud they were forced to live in. As I walked by them they all just begged at there fences for me to come and give them a soft touch of a human hand, And maybe they were hoping I had some food for them to eat.
As I walked into the next building there were even more dogs lined in the same boxes. there were tiny ones from Chihuahuas to very large Boxers, All in the same size box. The large dogs did not even have the space to turn around not to mention lay down to rest if they had wanted to. I went into 4 buildings of this each one seemed worse. There were dogs that were very ill and needed vet care.
I remember well one Boston Terrier that will stay with me for ever, His eye was so swollen with infection it hung out of his head, the size of a Plum. Many of the Boston's had severe cheery eye. Others were just so matted and grown out I could not tell what breed they even were. There were dogs with many cuts and wounds that were infected.
There was just no end to the horrors I seen that day and the stench.
I just wanted so badly to free them all. Even out in the wild they would have a better chance of survival. How one sleeps at night that are millers I will never understand. For I know each night I go to bed I still see the same picture in my head of all these poor innocents begging for me to take them out. That day will be embedded into my heart forever.
I whispered to them that I would be back. ( A volunteer rescuer)

 Inside View of a Puppy Mill in North Carolina through the eyes of a rescuer.

By Donna Doe

As a rescuer pretending to be a breeder, going inside a large multi breed puppy mill was an emotional roller coaster from sadness to disgust and horror.  Having to keep an emotionless face and not react to what I saw and learned was the hardest part.

It is difficult to get inside a puppy mill and if you should find one contact PuppymillRescue.  Please do not attempt to go in to see for yourself, as it may ruin the hard efforts of those who have already gained access.

When I arrived, there was an eerie silence and a strong acid smell engulfed the entire yard. The miller talked about the dogs as we headed to one of several buildings. The dogs heard us approaching and they began to bark and whine.

As I stepped inside a building a stronger putrid smell took my breath. My eyes started watering and with the dim lighting it took a couple of minutes to see the dogs. The barking was deafening.

There were small dogs, Poms, Dachshunds, Chihuahuas, and Pugs, crowded in rows of small wooden boxes that were too high for them to see over. Their world was only wooden sides. Dogs were circling and stepping on each other as they frantically jumped up trying to see over the top, some begged for attention, and some were motionless. Some cowed in fear.

On the other side were mostly larger breeds crowded in small inside boxes that opened into small outdoor runs.

One little pregnant Chi was being trampled and the miller said the pups would be born in the next few days.
When the miller’s back was turned, I was able to give a few a kind touches. When inquiring about a particular dog, the miller’s hand would move in circles just above the dog’s heads. This created more panic as they tried to escape from the hand. The miller grabbed the dogs by the hair or which ever body part could be caught as they were handed to me for inspection. When held the dogs remained motionless in fear. There were toothless dogs and some with only a few rotten teeth.

The miller explained how she stuck her finger inside their mouth to remove loose teeth and as it was easy, there was no reason to pay a vet to do this.

We entered another building much the same as the one before. I will forever be haunted by a Boston Terrier mom with one tiny pup in a small wooden box. The mother was frantically jumping for attention, but she was stepping on the pup. The miller kept screaming at her to stop and said that the other pups were trampled to death by the mother dog. I walked a little further down the rows of dogs hoping that if I moved away the dog might stop jumping and the miller would stop screaming at her. The screaming continued and as I turned, I saw the miller pick up a long wooden board (2x4) and it rose above the miller’s head.

The miller noticed me watching and as the board swung down the miller’s arm moved slightly to the side and the sound of a hard hit against the top of the box echoed throughout the building. Feeling horror and anger, had the dog been hit my cover would have been blown as I could not have remained indifferent. Realizing that the board was there for a purpose, I have no doubts that it had been used on this dog. The pup’s cries were pitiful and I walked over and saw this mother dog with eyes tightly closed flattened on the floor against the back of the box trembling in terror. She did not look at me or make a sound.  She did not move again while we were in that building.

As we were leaving the building, I noticed a tiny female min pin in a small wire cage placed away from the other dogs. A rear leg was at a weird angle. The miller said the dog hurt her leg, but she was fine. I asked if a vet had checked her leg and the response was no. This tiny girl trembled in silence. When the miller walked away, I reached thru the wire and softy touched her. This girl tugged at my heart.
The miller showed me Shih Tzu, Yorkie, and mixed puppies, all sizes and ages. The miller would bring out arm loads of pups from an area I had not seen.  They were covered with dried feces and fleas. As the miller held them, they never wiggled or moved, but remained motionless in fear.

Around the buildings were many dog pens with small and large breeds. Their enclosures were mud with several inches of standing water and feces everywhere. The larger dogs only had metal barrels for protection from the cold and rain.
Around the buildings were many dog pens with small and large breeds. Their enclosures were mud with several inches of standing water and feces everywhere. The larger dogs only had metal barrels for protection from the cold and rain.
The other buildings in this mill were the same or worse conditions, but housed different breeds. There were numerous dogs with eye injuries, large cherry eyes, infected eyes, and skin infections, which were obvious at a glance.

The dogs rescued from this mill have had no teeth, no lower jaws, broken jaws, broken bones and were matted with feces hardened hair. One little Pom was so badly matted on his rear end that he could not go to the bathroom. Some dogs have Heartworms, intestinal worms, and some with medical problems that required surgery. All were filthy with fleas. We now know that some lived with constant pain and without vet care. Millers do their own medical care, if any, in order to save money. This was explained by the miller.

Each time I enter a mill, the dog’s eyes tell their stories and the sight of these mill babies will forever be etched in my mind. Their eyes plead for someone to rescue them from their life of horror
A Volunteer Rescuer
 

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