Puppy Mill Awareness #BtC4A

For today's Blog the Change, I am beyond thrilled to introduce you to Lee, the One and Only, and his dad, Gary!  I met Lee and Gary last year at Denver Pet Expo and found their story very inspiring.  Lee is a very sweet boy and allowed me to cuddle him for quite a while.  His dad told us about how Lee is a puppy mill survivor.  When I got home, I checked out their Facebook page and discovered just how much Lee and Gary do to raise awareness about puppy mills.

I interviewed Lee and Gary this week to share their amazing story and cause with all of you.

I know you and Lee do a lot to raise awareness about puppy mills.  How did you get involved with this cause?  How did Lee come to live with you?

I had heard about puppy mills but didn't know how bad they really were until I started following Lola on Luka and Lola's Facebook page December 2012. 

Lola was a Maltipoo that was released by the breeder at the age of 2 months old, she was born with one eye and Sandra did a great job at educating people about puppy mills and having fun as well.
Sadly Lola passed away at 6&1/2 Months of age due to a brain disorder caused by improper breeding in the mill.

That inspired me to start volunteering for the rescue that saved Lola and it just so happened that my first shift as a volunteer was the rescue of 84 puppy mill dog's on July 14, 2013 that memorialized her called "Lola's Legacy Rescue" .

Photo courtesy of Gary Daley.

Out of those 84, Lee, The One and Only was one of them and my niece got to take Lee through intake.  Lee spent 8 years in a puppy mill.

I saw Lee get named, two month's later he was still available for adoption so I was going to try to foster him when a wonderful lady offered to pay his adoption fees so I took her up on the offer and on September 21, 2013, Lee came home with me. Two days later we started our FB page.

For those who may not know what a puppy mill is, could you please explain what these operations are and how they work?

A puppy mill is a large-scale commercial dog breeding facility where profit is given priority over the well-being of the dogs. 

Puppy mills usually house dogs in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions without adequate veterinary care, food, water or socialization. In order to maximize profits, female dogs are bred at every opportunity with little-to-no recovery time between litters. Puppy mill puppies, often as young as eight weeks of age, are sold to pet shops or directly to the public over the Internet, through newspaper ads and at swap meets and flea markets.

In a puppy mill, dogs are often kept in cages with wire flooring that injures their paws and legs—and it is not unusual for cages to be stacked in columns. When female breeding dogs reach a point of physical depletion and can no longer reproduce, they are often killed.

Because puppy mills focus on profit, dogs are often bred with little regard for genetic quality. Puppy mill puppies are prone to congenital and hereditary conditions including heart disease and blood and respiratory disorders. In addition, puppy mill puppies often arrive in pet stores and in their new homes with diseases or infirmities ranging from parasites to pneumonia. Because puppies are removed from their littermates and mothers at a young age, they also often suffer from fear, anxiety and other behavioral problems.  You can learn more about puppy mills HERE. 

What types of things do you do to raise awareness about puppy mills and how does Lee help you with this cause?

Lee, The One and Only has a Facebook page, helps to educate people about the horrors of puppy mills.

Photo courtesy of Gary Daley.

We like to raise awareness by attending pet expo's, adoption events, meet and greets and protesting pet stores. We encourage people to tell at least one person a day about puppy mills and that adoption is the best option.

We also promoted and donated to the making of the Documentary Dog by Dog which focuses on why puppy mills are still in existence today. 

Our goal is to shut down puppy mills, we know there are responsible breeder's that produce quality puppies. They only breed their dogs twice and only have a small amount of Dog's.

How did Lee change your perspective on puppy mills?

Lee helped me understand how cruel mills can be, While he is very healthy physically, Lee suffers from PTSD, lack of socialization and will not come to me, I have to chase him to certain place's to pick him up! 

Every day gets better for Lee, whatever he can overcome is a blessing. He has taught me patience and what unconditional love is, as afraid as he acts sometimes I know he loves and counts on me.
Lee also has no teeth because he drank from a rabbit bottle for 8 years instead of a bowl which caused a large amount of bacteria to live in his mouth. He had 14 teeth when he was saved, they were bad so they were all pulled.

Photo courtesy of Gary Daley.

Seeing the struggles Lee and a lot of puppy mill survivor's that we have met go through tell me that puppy mills are a cruel and inhumane business and must be stopped.

What's the most important thing you want people to understand about puppy mills?

I want people to know that puppy mills are legal and the USDA regulates these breeder's. Without getting graphic dog's are treated like livestock and there is no regard for the well being of these dogs. Once they can't produce anymore, they are "tossed away", killed or hopefully rescued. When you buy a puppy from a pet store online or at a flea market you are supporting a very cruel industry.

Adopt! Don't Shop! That is how we will stop this madness

Photo courtesy of Gary Daley.

What can people do to raise awareness about puppy mills?

If everyone educated themselves and then told at least one person a day about puppy mills. Share informational post's about them on your wall and with anyone you can The more that know the better

What can we do to help the dogs in puppy mills?

The best way to help is to end the sell of puppy's in pet stores and online. That will close puppy mills down and then there won't be such a thing as puppy mill survivor.

Be the Voice; Speak for Us!

Thank you so very much, Gary and Lee, for the awesome interview and for all that you do to raise awareness about puppy mills.  You are both awesome!  Don't forget to Like Lee, the One and Only's Facebook page!