In Belgium, about 1.5 million dogs and 2.2 million cats share our homes. While some of these animals have been adopted in a shelter or bought from a responsible breeder (one who cares about the animals’ welfare), many more puppies and kittens have been acquired from bad breeders. These are generally importers of puppies from Eastern Europe - what are known as puppy mills – which deal in a wide range of breeds.
The young animals sold by these businesses are often sick, weak, unsocialized and have been separated prematurely from their mothers. These breeders care nothing about the health of their animals. Many puppies suffer from giardiasis (symptomized by bloody diarrhoea), kennel cough, dermatophytosis and parvovirus. Finally, it is all too frequent that this situation ultimately results in the tragic death of the puppy, bringing tremendous sadness for the whole family, as well as high veterinary fees.
Breeding machines
This is the classic scenario. And what about the mothers of these puppies? They are treated as nothing more than breeding machines - whether they’re in Belgium or Eastern Europe. The situation is so deplorable that, after drugs and weapons, the illegal trade in animals is now the third most lucrative criminal activity in Europe.
Read here how to recognize a bad breeder!
Faced with all this animal suffering, on December 3rd we launched a new campaign against puppy mills. In a seven-minute documentary, we present you with testimony from six witnesses.
