Throughout America, puppy mills are a hotly contested subject.  Puppy mills are usually big buildings that have two dogs, (a strong male and a strong female) that breed and keep breeding throughout their entire miserable lives, while being cooped up in small wire cages.  Some think puppy mills can be harmful.  Puppy mills can harm the female and young puppies living inside by giving them parasites and many other diseases.  In the long run, puppy mills can also cause over-population of one species and create many behavioral issues.  In contrast, some believe that puppy mills are good because they produce a great deal of useful dogs that can help people with disabilities.  They can also bring in money for the poor and provide the unemployed with jobs.

First of all, puppy mills can harm the female breeder dogs.  For example, in the article on dosomething it was stated “Female dogs are usually bred at every opportunity with no recovery time in between litters.”  Also, coming from the same article, “After a few years, females are physically depleted to the point that they can no longer reproduce, they are then often killed.”  Therefore, puppy mills are simply using female dogs and constantly breeding them to the point that they can no longer reproduce; at which they are killed.  This is not right! We need to stop this torture that these dogs have to go through.  

On the contrary, puppy mills can produce very useful dogs.  They can yield dogs that help guide visually impaired people or people with disabilities.  Mentioned in the Newsela article, “Service dogs,” the author notes that “Dogs are a man’s best friend.  They can help people who are blind, or people with disabilities.”

Alternately, puppy mills can also take a toll on the puppies living inside.  For example, the food and water provided is usually unsanitary.  In the article,  it was explained that, “Often times, the water and food provided for the puppies is contaminated and crawling with bugs, resulting in malnouishment.”  Hence, with little or no veterinary care, these puppies can be in very bad health.  In fact, in the same article, it was stated, “Most puppy mills have no veterinary care, climate control, or protection against the weather.  Puppies in mills are found with bleeding or swollen paws caused by feet falling through the wire cages, severe tooth decay, ear infection, dehydration, and lesions to their eyes which often leads to blindness.”  Behind the scenes, puppy mills usually do not have clean-up control; so many times dogs are walking around in their own urine and feces.  As the article reported, “there is no clean-up control, and because there are no regulations againts it, dogs are living in urine of feces for long periods of time.” 

On the other hand, puppy mills do supply dogs that can detect when their owner is having abnormal activity inside the body.  They can sense if someone is having a stroke or a heart attack.  In the Newsela article, “Service dogs,” it stated, “Some dogs can sense abnormal activity in the brain and heart, and many times, are able to detect a heart attack or stroke.”  Therefore, puppy mills can also be useful and helpful.

Unfortunately, puppy mills can also cause behavioral issues because often times puppies are separated from their mother before they learn any life skills or how to socialize.  Puppy mills can also cause over-population of one species of dog - resulting in killing or turning some of the unwanted dogs stray.  In the article at cesarsway, the author stated that, “Puppies are often separated from their mothers too soon, resulting in development and socialization difuculties, and serious behavior problems later on in life.”  The article also indicated that, “Each year, about 2 million dogs are born in puppy mills worldwide.  This causes many dogs to go stray or to get put down.” 

However, another reason why puppy mills can be good is because they provide people with jobs and money.  Puppy mill owners make an average of about $300,000.00 per year and provide employees with a good-paying job.  For instance, in the article at Madonna of the Mills, the author acknowledged, “Puppy millers can make more than 300,000 dollars growing puppies per year.”  Thus, puppy mills are not just bad - they can be good too!

To conclude, puppy mills can be very harmful to the dogs living inside, and can cause over-population and behavioral complications later in life.  However, puppy mills can also be very helpful; such as aiding people with disabilities and blindness, providing people with jobs and money, and detecting medical problems inside the human body.  It is very important to shut down bad puppy mills because they are essentially dog-abusing structures.  One way to help stop these terrible places is to not buy your dog from a local pet store or online, as those dogs are usually from puppy mills.  Instead, adopt your dog from a local shelter or a breed-specific rescue group.  Puppy mills are very bad because when a puppy’s food is unsanitized and crawling with bugs, it is not healthy to be eating.  Also, when a female dog is put down because she has been bred too much and is no longer able to reproduce, it not fair to the dog at all.  Lastly, behavioral problems could also lead to aggressiveness, or even death, and over-population could lead to dogs becoming stray or being put down.  That is why we need to turn towards the fight against puppy mills, and stop their horrible practices!