Berthoud Bans Puppy Mills, Should Grand Junction?
Should Grand Junction follow Berthoud's lead and ban puppy mills?
The Humane Society Of The United States describes a puppy mill as."...an inhumane high-volume dog breeding facility that churns out puppies for profit, ignoring the needs of the pups and their mothers." Here are a few puppy mill facts...there's are over 10,000 puppy mills in operation in the US. 194,000 dogs are kept solely for breeding purposes. Over 2 Million puppies originating from mills are sold in the US every year.
City officials in the front range City of Berthoud voted unanimously to ban puppy mills. Surprisingly, they're the only Colorado municipality to do so. The ban also prohibits local pet shops from selling dogs bred and raised in a commercial breeding facility. You would think in a 'progressive' state like Colorado there would be more cities that have similar bans in place.
I have a dog-breeder friend back in Missouri. She lives on a farm in southern Missouri. Her place is beautiful. The dogs live a wonderful life! They're fed the finest dog food, have super-nice kennels, and have lots of room to roam. That's how it's supposed to be done! Unforcheltully, there are those that see the animals as nothing more than a revenue stream and operate under the rule that the more puppies, the more money they'll make.
Berthoud's vision to ban puppy mills was inspired by Harley's Dream. This organization is named after a Chihuahua who lost an eye while at an Oklahoma puppy mill. He was later rescued and adopted by a loving family. The organization's members advocate for the adoption of similar ordinances banning the mills.
Is a puppy mill ban an ordinance that Grand Junction should consider? What about other cities in the Grand Valley and along the western slope?
A reminder, the Roice-Hurst "Shelter Break" 2019 is this week! On Friday, June 28th "Canine Convicts" or "Feline Felons" raise "bail money" to care for the animals that are locked up awaiting their forever homes. Find out info on this special event by clicking HERE.
Credit: Fox31