I Bought My Dog from the Pet Store
My boy, Toby
Almost eight years ago, I bought my dog from the pet store. He was adorable and weighed all of four pounds. He had (still has) the sweetest face. I fell in love and so did my husband. We paid $1500 to bring him home with us. We named him Toby.
I was 22 at the time and knew nothing about puppy mills. Now I know different. Puppy mills churn out puppy after puppy without regard to any of the dogs involved. If you were to visit a puppy mill you would find hundreds of cages with one or more dogs per cage. There would be adult dogs and puppies. Some dogs would be sick or injured; full of mange and fleas. Others would seem perfectly content, but that is because they have given up. You would see female dogs that have had 3 litters in as many years. And what happens to these dogs when they are no longer of use to the puppy mill? Well their fate is sealed and I would rather not go into detail.
The dogs at a puppy mill are treated simply as products. They are not loved. They are barely cared for. They must produce litters or perish. The lucky puppies are sent out to stores to be purchased. But when this happens, people are putting money into the pockets of the puppy mills. Some people feel as if they are rescuing pet store dogs from the puppy mills they came from. While this may be truth, purchasing a puppy mill dog is supporting the puppy mills.
Would I do it again? If it were 8 years ago and I was in the same position, knowing what I know now, yes I would still buy my Toby. But that is because I know the love and joy he has brought to my life. But I will never purchase a dog from the pet store again because I refuse to support cruelty to animals.
Toby is so lovable and I can see why you love him so much. I don’t think puppy mills are going to disappear anytime now but let’s hope they find nice people like you to take care of the puppies wherever they land up in including the pet stores.
Toby is cutty one.