Commissioners refuse to issue kennel license
A Mount Vernon woman, who has raised toy dogs for years, has been informed by the Skagit County commissioners she will not receive a kennel license for her home-based business. Marjorie Sundberg’s dog breeding business far exceeds the parameters of a “home based business”, according to the Commissioners. Sundberg has over 200 dogs housed on the property. The Commissioners suggested fifty dogs would be more in line with a “home based business” license.
This issue has been a neighborhood problem for years, with complaints the breeding operation would cause property values to fall. Additionally, neighbors complained about the smell and the noise of 200 barking dogs.
Puppy mills and back-yard breeders are present in every community. You read their advertisements in the classified ads. The ads describe the breed, age and “cuteness” of each puppy. And of course the cost – hundreds of dollars in most cases. What the ads don’t tell you? That the puppy has not been socialized; he has lived his short life in a wire cage. That the puppy has never seen a Veterinarian; may not have even the basic vaccinations. That the puppy is scared of people, other than his immediate caregiver. This isolation stunts the emotional growth, causing behavioral problems in the puppy. Read about
Buffy ,one such puppy, on the Best Friends Network .
You will find the unsocialized dogs and puppies at the local shelter – animals deemed not suitable for family life. Waiting to be euthanized. Shelters are not just a collection point for mixed-breed dogs; they also receive many purebred animals, many with behavioral problems which began with the isolation of the puppy mill.
The treatment of dogs and puppies in breeding facilities is the focus of a Best Friends campaign and the Humane Society of the United States at
http://stoppuppymills.org . These organizations cannot do it alone.
How you can help:•Do not purchase animals from back-yard breeders or puppy mills.
•Do not purchase animals from retail stores that support this industry.
•DO support your local humane society, shelter, or animal rescue. Don’t see what you’re looking for at the shelter or in rescue? Ask them to “put you on the list” for when an animal comes in that would fit in with your family.
•Raise awareness in your community about local back-yard breeders and puppy mills. Newspaper reporters are always looking for stories; find out which reporters are “animal lovers” on your local paper, and cultivate that relationship.
• Taxing authorities are always interested in unreported income.
•Educate. Most people are unaware of the “living” conditions of the animals.
•Use the internet. If you have a web page, link to a site that carries the message you embrace.
•Donate generously to animal-rights groups, such as Best Friends, that oppose the puppy mill industry. Be sure to earmark on the check “stop the puppy mills.”
Story and photos by:
Georgia Butterfield
Best Friends Network team
(animals depicted in these photos do not represent animals at the Skagit County breeder.)