These poor little creatures have been victims of cruelty, suffering, and torture. Every day they have to wonder whether or not they will eat or even live. Puppy mills vary in size some hold about ten dogs while others can hold over 1,000 dogs. You would think that puppy mills are illegal but they aren't. There are rules about how you have to run your puppy mills but a lot of times they aren't followed. If people come together we can ban and make puppy mills illegal for good! Meet Harley, a little Chihuahua. Sadly he was born in a puppy mill where he stayed for years. His home was a small wire cage on the ground that cut into his paws. He didn't have a bed, toys, a bone to chew on, or fresh water. He didn't know that a dog could be treated with kindness and have all these good things. In his mind life was all about staying in a cage only to get out and go help make more puppies. The older Harley got the worse he got. Because of all the bad treatment he got in his life he developed health problems. He became crippled and he had a terrible cough. Come to find out Harley was going through heart failure. His owners knew he was dying so they no longer wanted him. They were going to toss him in a dumpster to die but luckily the You Chihuahua Rescue saved him and got him the help he so desperately needed.
Puppy mills are known as a place that breeds dogs for money instead their well-being. No one knows how many mills are in the US because not all of them are licensed. Most puppy mills today are located in Missouri but that changes from year to year. There are even some here in Greenbrier. In puppy mills the dogs live in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. They don't get much food or water and aren't cared for like they should be. In most puppy mills the dogs are kept in wire cages which will sometimes be stacked on top of one another. As a result of this the animals on the floor get all of the waste the dogs from the dogs on top of them.