Last Chance for Animals and Best Friends Animal Society held a press conference Saturday in front of Posh Puppy, a pet shop in Beverly Hills.
The animal welfare activists presented evidence of a sixteen-week investigation. The dogs sold at Posh Puppy in Beverly Hills and their Tarzana shop are supplied by California puppy mills, where the dogs are kept in inhumane conditions.
Reports that the $21,000 a month lease is available were confirmed yesterday.
Click here to see the broker listing. Posh Puppy is no longer selling live animals in Beverly Hills and will soon be closing its doors.
"The puppies look posh, but behind the scenes, it's not so posh," said LCA spokesperson Carole Raphaelle Davis, pointing to an enlarged photograph of suffering dogs in a mill in Littlerock, CA, which supplies Posh Puppy.
"These dogs are outside in the cold, in anguish and dogs deserve better. The public needs to learn the truth," said the LCA spokesperson. "It is unprincipled to buy a dog when we kill four million dogs a year in our nation's shelter system. The shelters are full of beautiful, purebred dogs and until the cages are empty, there is no excuse for breeding, selling or buying dogs. This store and other pet shops that sell live animals in Los Angeles are all puppy mill fronts."
Author Jana Kohl made an appearance with her dog Baby a puppy mill survivor who had her leg amputated because it was broken in the wire cage in which she was confined for nine years. Her vocal chords were cut out so that she would not bother anyone with her barking. Jana Kohl is releasing a book titled,
“A Rare Breed of Love", about Baby and her long journey from a puppy mill into a loving home.
Below is a full transcript of the LCA statement to the press:
The "posh" puppies' parents are living in canine supermax prisons—puppy mills, where the dogs are kept in inhumane conditions. The dogs are out in the elements, suffering from cold and neglect. They are sick, in anguish, in pain and driven insane by the never-ending confinement to a wire cage. They are bred and bred until they're dead.
LCA has investigated the puppy mills that supply Posh Puppy and other pet shops in LA and have uncovered the truth. These people have lied to the public. The dogs are from mills. We have the proof.
LCA and Best Friends Animal Society want to say that we never intended to put anyone out of business. They can do very well by selling accessories and we have offered to go away if they go humane. We just want them to stop selling live animals in their stores and on the Internet.
Over 30% of the dogs in the shelter system are pure-bred dogs. There is no need to buy a pure-bred dog in a pet shop. The very same dogs are abandoned at the pound, waiting to get adopted for a small fee. It costs US taxpayers 2 billion $ /year to house and euthanize these animals. 4 million dogs are killed per year in our nation's shelter system. The pet stores, the puppy mills, and the BUYERS contribute to the crisis of pet overpopulation. It is unethical to buy a dog when we kill 4 million a year. Until the cages are empty, people who breed, sell or buy dogs are unconscionable—unprincipled.
Another thing we want to add is that the public is getting ripped off at pet shops. The puppy mills LCA investigated in Los Angeles County also supply other stores. The posh puppies selling for up to $4000 in the Beverly Hills location have litter mates, brothers and sisters of the same parents, selling in lower rent stores in Korea Town for as little as $500. It's the same dog, basically, with a widely different price. The customer is getting ripped off.
Lastly, I want to congratulate everybody who worked so hard here for 15 long weeks. The whole country is behind you. This is one little store in one little city but believe me, this signals change. I have one thing to say to millers who are supplying pet shops in Los Angeles. Get a cash crop that doesn’t scream.
And millers: don’t think you can hide behind a USDA license. There is a USDA stamp on dead hamburger meat at Ralphs. Millions of dogs are suffering right now in USDA licensed facilities. It might be legal, but that doesn’t make it right.
And I have one thing to say to other pet shops in LA. If you’re selling puppy mill dogs, we’re coming to your store next.
Recently returning from a dog auction in the mid west, Jennifer Krause of Best Friends Animal Society was also on hand to answer questions from the press.
”This is proof that no matter how nice a store is, no matter if the puppies are AKC registered, no matter what the stores tell you, THIS (pointing to the photo poster of Yorkie in Little Rock) is where the puppies come from," said Jennifer Krause.
“A reputable breeder does NOT sell their dogs at a pet store or online. A reputable breeder will ask you to their property and oftentimes screen an adopter.
There are thousands of wonderful, cute, loving, healthy animals overfilling LA city and county shelters, many of them purebred. There is no need to breed more when the shelters are euthanizing hundreds a day right here in Los Angeles.
By purchasing a puppy online or at a pet store, you are directly contributing to the problem. By adopting at a shelter or from a rescue group, you are not only saving that particular animal's life, but making room for another animal within the shelter system.”Article by Writer, Carole Raphaelle Davis, author of “Jinky, the Dog of a Hollywood Wife.” Click here to follow Carole’s blog.
Story Posted by: Jennifer Krause, Best Friends Campaigns Team
Main Photo: Posh Puppy's supplier in Little Rock, California, Courtesy Last Chance for Animals, Undercover Investigation Team
Photo of Carole Raphaelle Davis and Salli Sammut, of “The Lange Foundation" with “Winfrey”, who was named after, and featured on Oprah’s “Puppy Mill” episode.
Press Conference photo features Jana Kohl, and “Baby” and Posh Puppy protesters, Courtesy of Jennifer Krause
Photo of Best Friends volunteers and rally supporters Kim Sill, Dana Miller and her fiancé, Courtesy of Jennifer Krause
Photo of Best Friend’s staffer, Jennifer Krause and mom, Barbara McClure, Courtesy of Kim Sill