Respect that Puppy Mama

By SAM URETSKY

On Mother’s Day, we celebrated two mothers; M, who had two children, and Jenny – number of children unknown. We first met Jenny at the Louisville Metro Animal Shelter, although it was sort of computer dating – the shelter had posted her picture on their web site, and that was enough to send us on a trip to the shelter.

When we met her, Jenny was a picture-perfect adult beagle, with a face that could grace a t-shirt or coffee mug, but we were warned that she had a heartworm infection – which was depressing. Heartworm is easy to prevent, but untreated may lead to caval syndrome. The FDA explains the syndrome: “There is such a heavy worm burden that blood flowing back to the heart is physically blocked by a large mass of worms. Caval syndrome is life-threatening and quick surgical removal of the heartworms is the only treatment option. The surgery is risky, and even with surgery, most dogs with caval syndrome die.” Even treatment for less severe infections can be risky. The FDA advises that the best treatment is prevention. Jenny survived the treatment, and now takes one pill once a month.

The veterinarian told us that Jenny had delivered at least one litter of puppies, probably more, and while she had been found as a stray, she had probably been set loose by a puppy mill that didn’t want the bother or expense of treating her. While dog catchers have a poor reputation in cartoons, the Animal Control Officer almost certainly saved Jenny’s life. Animal’s Angels, an organization that focuses on farm animals, reports that dogs are literally mass produced so that the breeders can rake in as much profit from the offspring as possible. Right now, there are anywhere between 2,000 and 3,000 USDA-licensed breeders operating in the United States. Some of these operations can be so large that they contain 1,000 breeding dogs at the same time. What’s not included in that figure is the number of unlicensed puppy mills that exist; the ones the USDA has not approved and does not know about. These are not the breeders who care about the dogs, who take care of their breeding pairs and provide good living conditions and veterinary care.  While puppy mills have names that try to indicate love for the animals, their conditions are shameful.

Last March, WLKY produced a report, “More than 400 dogs living in squalor removed from KY puppy mill.” The report stated, “... the dogs were stuffed in tight spaces and many of them were covered in fecal matter that was hanging from their fur … All of the female dogs at the mill were pregnant during the bust, some of the dogs were apparently actively giving birth during the seizure.”

The Humane Society, which this May issued its annual Horrible Hundred list, noted that while the COVID-19 pandemic had increased the demand for dogs during the lockdown, the Department of Agriculture, already weak in its enforcement responsibilities, had cut back on inspections, even of breeders previously cited for animal cruelty. “For at least three years in a row, the USDA has failed to revoke a single dog breeder license or significantly fine or penalize any problem dog breeders under the Animal Welfare Act. And once again this year, a comparison of state inspection reports and USDA inspection reports continues to show that USDA is failing to cite or even inspect some dealers with a history of state-documented humane care deficiencies.”

State agencies seem to do a better job, and in one case, a breeder was sentenced to 30 days in jail, but this was a unique occurrence. Fines, when levied, tend to be mo more than a minor annoyance.

Things worked out for Jenny. Even after years of living in a puppy mill she retained her beagle personality, survived both heartworm and the treatment, and found a home with friends (two cats) and service staff (two bipeds). It doesn’t work as well for other dogs. Some die of malnutrition and infection, and some are so affected by mistreatment that they can neither be sold nor adopted. The ASPCA estimates that each year, approximately 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized — 670,000 dogs and 860,000 cats. It’s not enough to say “there oughta be a law”; there is one, it oughta be enforced. And, unless there are special needs for dogs with special traits and skills, Adopt, Don’t Shop.

Sam Uretsky is a writer and pharmacist living in Louisville, Ky. Email sdu01@outlook.com.

From The Progressive Populist, June 15, 2021

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