LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
PUPPY farming is the disgraceful and blatant exploitation of dogs for profit.
Despite research having repeatedly shown that there are too many dogs bred for the available responsible homes, the greed of the mass breeders and puppy farmers seriously undermines animal welfare.
Puppies are churned out by female dogs who are then killed or re-homed when no longer regarded as profitable.
The puppy farmer will try and sell you more than a puppy; they will also try and convince you the dogs in their factory are treated as individuals who are loved and respected.
But, sadly, they are not.
When visiting a puppy farm you will observe isolated, timid, frightened and sometimes aggressive dogs who do not respond to the name that may, or may not be labelled on their walled or wired cell.
Online videos also reveal the sad existence of these poor dogs.
These are not loved companions, but merely commodities.
The Victorian government is correct to legislate against puppy farms.
Those who truly respect and care for dogs encourage the public to rescue those who have been abandoned.
If you really want a specific breed or ‘designer dog’, you can save a life by adopting a dog from a rescue group, shelter or pound.
Contrary to the claims previously submitted to this paper, it is a no-brainer that designer dogs are also rejected.
As the huge diversity of dogs in shelters and pounds demonstrates, no kind of dog is safe from being dumped whether it is when they are no longer a puppy, when their breed is no longer fashionable or if their family moves and leaves a faithful friend behind.
Discriminating between breeds perpetuates the myth that some breeds are superior, when the truth is that all dogs are special and wonderful animals when loved and properly cared for.
However, there is one truly unique type of dog those who have been rescued.
An abandoned dog, whose loyalty has previously been betrayed by a fickle person, will provide their rescuer with love that knows no bounds.
