Misery in Missouri

   Claire McCaskill, the Missouri State Auditor, has released her second audit of Missouri's commercial dog breeding industry.  The December 2004 audit is a follow-up to the critical audit of 2001 and once again McCaskill is asking the Missouri Governor to pay heed to the industry that has labeled Missouri the “Puppy Mill Capital of the World”.  In a letter to Governor Holden, McCaskill states, “…most of the problems previously reported still exist. These problems have eroded the integrity of the inspection program which is designed to help ensure canines are safely and humanely treated.”

   New Jersey veterinarian Pamela J. Schott is well aware of the problem seen in Missouri puppies sold in pet shops.  Schott reports, “Brokers’ trucks full of pooled puppies travel from state to state, ending in the suburban and urban areas of the East and West coast. Pet stores buy the puppies off the trucks. Infectious disease and zoonoses (including recent cases of Leptospirosis and Giardia) are threats.”  Schott maintains that many veterinarians are unaware of their state laws that oversee the sale of puppies at pet shops.  She is thankful for individuals and organizations which help to make veterinarians aware of consumers' rights when a client “buys a lemon”.

   Puppy Lemon Laws are gaining momentum across the country.  New Jersey Consumers Against Pet Shop Abuse (NJCAPSA) campaigns for awareness in their state.  New Jersey ranks 3^rd in the country for pet shop puppy sales and has one of the best puppy lemon laws in the nation.  NJCAPSA works to bridge the gap between the consumer, the veterinarians and the law.  NJCAPSA president, Libby Williams, reports that even in situations where the consumer is clearly protected under the law, “Some pet shops use stalling tactics or bully customers into accepting less than the amount they are entitled to by law.”

   NJCAPSA is not alone in their campaign to educate consumers.  A December 17th press release from the New Jersey Attorney General's Office warns, "Purchasing any pet should not be taken lightly...Look for a notice informing you of your rights when purchasing an animal. Pet dealers are required by law to provide you with a copy of the notice."

   Last Chance for Animals (LCA), is deeply concerned about the breeding dogs in Missouri licensed kennels.  LCA has recently stepped up their campaign against licensed puppy mills and an investigator working for LCA comments, "Having been inside numerous puppy mills I can say that those in Missouri are among the worst.  The conditions of the dogs I've seen go beyond the definition of animal abuse. Thousands of dogs suffer daily in Missouri because the state refuses to enforce the very law passed to protect them." 

   Kim Townsend, a Missouri resident for 28 years, runs a website called PetShopPuppies.com which provides free reports to the owners of pet shop puppies.  The reports document the USDA inspections on the breeders and brokers supplying pet shops.  “I’ve researched over 2000 puppies and the story is almost always the same.  The customers have no idea where their puppy originated and more often than not, they were deceived by the sales people at the store,” Townsend stated.  “When these customers see the USDA inspections, they are shocked and saddened by the conditions in which the parents of their puppy must live.”

   Nancy Grove, a life-long resident of Missouri and president of the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation (MAAL) is not surprised by the second audit of the Missouri Animal Care Facilities Program.  “MAAL has long been concerned about the conditions and lack of adequate oversight in many of Missouri 's 1400+ licensed commercial breeding facilities.  Like the previous ACFA audit issued in 2001, this follow-up audit is critical of the state's animal facility inspection program and the Missouri Department of Agriculture's failure to rectify most of the problems cited in the earlier audit.”

   MAAL was instrumental in passing the law in 1992 which governs Missouri dog breeders.  Oddly enough, the Missouri dog breeders were supportive of the law because of national attention to the Missouri puppy mill problem in the late 1980s.  Some states boycotted Missouri puppies and the effect on the dog industry was crippling. 

   So what has gone wrong with the program which was supposed to clean up the problems in Missouri puppy mills?  According to opponents of the dog industry, the state hired a fox to guard the henhouse.  The 2001 audit of the state regulatory agency enforcing the Animal Care Program notes that both the director of the program and one of the inspectors operated their own commercial dog breeding facilities.  Of the ten major areas of concern cited in the 2001 audit, this conflict of interest was the only one resolved as of the 2004 audit.  The audit states, “The two individuals are no longer affiliated with the inspection program.”  The audit goes on to conclude that violations are not always observed or cited during inspections, and the state is not aggressively pursuing enforcement actions against marginal facilities. 

   Missouri ’s puppy mill problem may seem like an unimportant and distant concern in other parts of the nation.  Townsend disputes that misconception and stresses that the lack of enforcement in Missouri puppy mills is more of a problem outside Missouri than it is in her home state.  “When OPEC raises the price of oil, we are all concerned because we know it will directly impact our lives.  The conditions seen in Missouri puppy mills have spread to all parts of the nation and consumers pay the price for sick, defective, unsocialized and poorly bred puppies flooding pet stores on both the East and West coasts.” Townsend continues, “Sadly, the breeding dogs in Missouri puppy mills have little or no protection because the law designed to protect them is not being enforced.”

   Consumers do have a choice but first and foremost they must educate themselves.  Many adoptable pets are available - including puppies and purebreds - from animal shelters and rescue organizations nationwide.  If someone insists on buying a puppy, they should also insist on seeing the conditions in which the puppy was raised.  This is not possible when buying puppies from pet shops, but at the very least a customer should insist on a copy of the breeder's USDA inspection and pictures of the sire and dam of the puppy they are interested in.  If the pet store refuses to provide this information, the consumer should shop elsewhere!