Your Mission: Promote improved conditions for dogs in puppy mills and raise awareness about how to get a dog without supporting cruelty.

Why? Puppy mills, mass dog breeding operations, house dogs in shockingly poor conditions. What’s worse, puppy mills churn out puppies to supply pet stores while dogs in shelters wait for loving homes. There aren’t enough homes for them all!

Life is particularly bad for "breeding stock," dogs who live their entire lives in cages and are continually bred for years, without human companionship and with little hope of ever becoming part of a family. These dogs receive little or no veterinary care and never see a bed, a treat, or a toy. After their fertility wanes, breeding animals are commonly killed, abandoned or sold to another mill. The annual result of all this breeding is hundreds of thousands of puppies, many with behavior and/or health problems.

How? Write letters to your lawmakers. Educate your family and community about proper dog care and the cruelty of puppy mills using the steps below.

1. Know your stuff. Because a puppy mill is a business, the facility is designed purely for profit, not for the well-being of dogs. Dogs in puppy mills receive little or no exercise or veterinary care and never see a bed, treat, or toy. At the federal (national) level, current laws provide minimum-care standards for puppy-mill animals, but puppy mills can get around these laws, either by selling directly to consumers (thereby avoiding U.S. Department of Agriculture licensing requirements) or by simply avoiding the reach of law enforcement (with so few USDA inspectors and minor fines, it's easy to stay in business).

Every state has different laws regulating the care of dogs in puppy mills.  Some require kennels and breeders to be licensed and inspected, while other states do not. How does your state define proper care?  Are puppy mills required by law to give proper sanitation, ventilation, or nutrition for their dogs? Learn the laws for your state at http://gateway.hsus.org/spm/bigpicture/index.cfm. 

Once you know the laws of your state get to know the steps that people can take to be sure they bring healthy pets into their families while not supporting cruelty. Read our Stop Puppy Mills HOTSheet to get the facts. 

2. Get the law on your side. Write letters to your state and federal lawmakers. Let them know that you are concerned about how dogs in puppy mills are treated. Ask them to make the puppy mill issue a priority. Or thank them if they have supported these laws in the past. Visit humanesociety.org/leglookup and enter your zip code to find your elected official. For tips on writing to legislators, see page 9 of our Mission: Humane Action Guide. You may also want to consider sending a letter to the editor of your local newspaper (see page 7 of the Mission: Humane Action Guide for help).

3. Pass it on. Use your knowledge to help educate others about what a puppy mill is, how the dogs’ needs are not being met, and how people can help by getting dogs from local shelters or rescue groups instead of pet stores and the Internet. Choose one of the options below. 

Option A: Present to younger students in a local elementary class or community youth group using these steps:

• First, contact a teacher or group leader whose students you would like to work with. Introduce yourself (include your grade and school) and explain that you are working on a service-learning project to help children learn about proper dog care and puppy mills. Set up a date and time that works for you and the teacher or youth leader. Check with your guidance counselor or club advisor to see if you can go during your school hours or as part of a service-learning requirement. Many high schools release students well before elementary schools do, so you may be able to do your presentation right after you get out of school.

• You’ll need a plan and materials. Do plan on being active and fun; Don’t plan to simply stand up before the class and lecture. Engage the students with visuals and interactive activities. For example, draw a large picture of a dog and other pictures representing the things dogs need to be healthy and happy--food, water, shelter, veterinary care, grooming, training, exercise, toys, bedding, and love and attention. Cut out the dog care items and ask students to come up and tape the most important items around the dog (e.g., a food bowl in front of him). Discuss with students why each item is important. A stuffed dog and actual dog care items that can be placed on or around it also works well. Consider holding up a large photo of a dog in a puppy mill to show the students and ask them whether that dog is receiving proper care. Think about printing the Puppy Buying Tips and fliers from humanesociety.org/puppymills  for each student to take home to their families.  

• Run your plan by the teacher or group leader, asking him or her to make sure it is age-appropriate.

• Write out your presentation and practice, practice, practice (out loud)! Make sure you are comfortable with the material so that you do not have to read your presentation word for word. Checking notes or an outline periodically is okay.

• Before the big day, make sure you have all the materials you will need including your presentation notes or outline, props, and enough of any handouts you will use for each student. For more tips on giving a presentation to a classroom or group, visit Humane Society Youth's Resource Center.  

 Option B:  Create a short video or Public Service Announcement (PSA). Upload your video to YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, or another video sharing site. Think about using some of the information located in the Puppy Buying Tips and fliers from humanesociety.org/puppymills as a resource.

4. Tell us about it. Fill out our Mission: Accomplished form . Send it to us along with copies of your letter to legislators and your written presentation or video/PSA web link. We’ll send you a Mission: Humane T-shirt!