Sherri_Ly's Blog

Warren County Sheriff's Department charged a man today with multiple counts of animal cruelty.  Deputies say they found 22 dogs in a dark, freezing barn along with one dead chihuahua in a garbage bag.  They found 7  more dogs at his home in Linden, VA.

When the suspected puppy mill owner Michael Smith saw me knocking on the door he locked the door and refused to talk.  I'd be afraid to show my face on TV too if you saw some of these pitiful animals.  Most were emaciated, skin and bones.  Some of the dogs had feces matted fur.  The Sheriff's Department says many of the female dogs were pregnant.  One of those pregnant dogs was still a puppy herself, bred at just 4-6 months old. 

My question is why?  You can still breed animals, take care of them lawfully, and make money.  Is it that difficult to have some humanity?  The Humane Society raised another interesting question?  Are people who demand and buy theses puppy mill dogs part of the problem? 

The dogs are part of the investigation now and it's up to the courts what happens to them next.  The Humane Society and Sheriff's Department already have a list of people who want to adopt these dogs.  Yet there are thousands of dogs and cats in shelters everyday that no one will adopt and end up euthanized.  Where are the people to rescue those animals who are not pure bred puppy mill dogs featured on TV?