{"id":11938,"date":"2016-05-05T07:01:04","date_gmt":"2016-05-05T07:01:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/?p=11938"},"modified":"2016-06-04T02:39:19","modified_gmt":"2016-06-04T02:39:19","slug":"did-you-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/2016\/05\/05\/did-you-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Did you know?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Did you know, each day 10,000 humans are born in the USA \u00a0– and each day 70,000 puppies and kittens are born.<\/p>\n

\"Cats_Multiply_Pyramid1\"<\/p>\n

Dog Auctions<\/div>\n
January 12th, 2011
\nI wish I were a fiction writer and the details within this blog were simply a product of my imagination.\u00a0 Unfortunately dog auctions are a painful and despicable fact of life. As much as I dislike crafting blogs that are \u201cdowners\u201d I\u2019ve recognized the importance of educating as many people as I can about animal-related issues that undermine our humanity.\u00a0 Dog auctions certainly fit the bill.<\/div>\n
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In case you are unfamiliar with dog auctions let me fill you in.\u00a0 Envision rooms filled floor to ceiling with crates and cages each housing dogs whose sole purpose in life is to make puppies.\u00a0 Every dog in the room is identified by the number on the auction tag hanging round his or her neck. There are purebreds of multiple varieties although some might not be recognizable as such given their lack of health care and horrifically overgrown hair coats. And, of course, there are plenty of \u201cdesigner hybrids\u201d the mutts that are purposefully planned because they are \u201call the rage\u201d and their litters will garner thousands of dollars.\u00a0 One would think these rooms filled with dogs would be chaotic and noisy.\u00a0 In fact the quiet is eerie; these are dogs with broken spirits- too scared to vocally protest and too disassociated from their miserable existences to invite attention from the humans peering into their cages.<\/div>\n
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Six auctions are held every year in Farmerstown, Ohio.\u00a0 In fact the next one is later this week on January 15th<\/span><\/span>.\u00a0 If you happen to live near Farmerstown, I encourage you to attend.\u00a0 You will be surrounded by puppy mill proprietors who have come to socialize, discuss their trade, and buy and sell \u201clivestock\u201d. There will also be some representatives from breed rescue organizations, hoping to place some winning bids that will alter the dismal fate of as many dogs as is affordable.\u00a0 Don\u2019t take a camera with you- it will be confiscated.\u00a0 You see, these are rather covert affairs- journalists and photographers are not allowed.\u00a0 The photographic images accompanying this blog were obtained via an undercover operation.\u00a0 At the upcoming Ohio auction 463 dogs are slated to be auctioned.\u00a0 The dogs bringing the highest prices will be those with proven fertility records; already pregnant bitches are highly valued.\u00a0 Details about each dog\u2019s breeding behavior and previous litter sizes are provided, but information about basic temperament or breed-specific inherited diseases within the family tree will be\u00a0\u00a0 unavailable.<\/div>\n
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If you attend an auction in Ohio, be sure to look for and meet Mary O\u2019Connor-Shaver.\u00a0 You will find her at the peaceful protest that is a visible presence on each and every auction day.\u00a0 In my mind Mary is a hero, working tirelessly to convince Ohio legislators to ban dog auctions from her state.\u00a0 I hope you will visit her websitewww.BanOhioDogAuctions.com.\u00a0<\/a>; Mary has been a huge source of information and inspiration for me.
\n1. Boycott puppy mills.\u00a0 This means never ever purchasing a puppy from a pet store or from an on line source (site and sight unseen).\u00a0 Visit your local shelter (a surprising number of purebred dogs wind up there) and contact local breed-specific rescue organizations.\u00a0 If you decide to purchase a puppy from a breeder please take the time to read my article titled \u201cA Dozen Simple Ways To Be Certain You Are Working With a Reputable Breeder\u201d (http:\/\/speakingforspot.com\/blog\/?p=749<\/a>).
\n2. If you live in a state that sanctions dog auctions (Ohio, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Arkansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, Missouri) write your legislators and appeal to them to stop this madness.\u00a0 And if there are efforts within your state to create legislation banning dog auctions, please pitch in.\u00a0 This might involve organizing rallies, writing letters, and gathering signatures of support.
\n3. If you don\u2019t reside in a state that sanctions dog auctions, write letters to the governors and legislators of the eight states that do.\u00a0 Let them know you will no longer support their state in terms of travel and commerce until their dog auctions cease to exist.
\n4. Let your veterinarian know how you feel about dog auctions and puppy mills, and encourage him or her to take a public stance against them.\u00a0 Goodness knows, they see first hand the horrific health issues and accompanying heartbreak produced by puppy mills.
\n5. If you are a teacher, educate your students about puppy mills and dog auctions.\u00a0 Teach them about responsible ways to adopt a dog.\u00a0 I firmly believe that educating children about these issues is the key success.
\n6. Please share this blog with anyone and everyone you know who loves a dog, and encourage them to take action.
\nMy youngest child attends college in Athens, Ohio.\u00a0 During a recent Parents Weekend visit my husband, daughter and I checked out Petland, the pet store in Athens. We found no fewer than three dozen utterly adorable purebred and designer hybrid puppies- undoubtedly puppy mill progeny.\u00a0 There were plenty of customers in the store that day interacting with the pups and contemplating adoption. I chatted with the store manager about the Boxer pup on display and asked to see the paperwork documenting if Boxer cardiomyopathy existed in the pup\u2019s family tree.\u00a0 Boxer cardiomyopathy is an inherited heart condition that prematurely ends the lives of afflicted dogs.\u00a0 She responded by saying, \u201cNo, we don\u2019t have that paperwork but no problem because Petland guarantees full refunds on any dogs that develop symptoms caused by an inherited disease.\u201d No problem for Petland that is\u2026\u2026..
\nWhat are you willing to do to help stop this madness?
\nBest wishes,
\nNancy Kay, DVM
\nDiplomate, American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine
\nAuthor of\u00a0 Speaking for Spot: Be the Advocate Your Dog Needs to Live a Happy, Healthy, Longer Life
\nRecipient, American Animal Hospital Association 2009 Animal Welfare and Humane Ethics Award
\nRecipient, 2009 Dog Writers Association of America Award for Best Blog
\nRecipient, 2009 Eukanuba Canine Health Award
\nBecome a Fan of Speaking for Spot on Facebook
\nPlease visit http:\/\/www.speakingforspot.com<\/a> to read excerpts from Speaking for Spot. There you will also find \u201cAdvocacy Aids\u201d- helpful health forms you can download and use for your own dog, and a collection of published articles on advocating for your pet\u2019s health. Speaking for Spot is available at Amazon.com, local bookstores, and your favorite online book seller<\/div>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Did you know, each day 10,000 humans are born in the USA \u00a0– and each day 70,000 puppies and kittens are born. Dog Auctions January 12th, 2011 I wish I were a fiction writer and the details within this blog were simply a product of my imagination.\u00a0 Unfortunately dog auctions are a painful and despicable fact of life. As much as I dislike crafting blogs that are \u201cdowners\u201d I\u2019ve recognized the importance of educating as many people as I can about animal-related issues that undermine our humanity.\u00a0 Dog auctions certainly fit the bill. In case you are unfamiliar with dog auctions let me fill you in.\u00a0 Envision rooms filled floor to ceiling with crates and cages each housing dogs whose sole purpose in life is to make puppies.\u00a0 Every dog in the room is identified by the number on the auction tag hanging round his or her neck. There are purebreds of multiple varieties although some might not be recognizable as such given their lack of health care and horrifically overgrown hair coats. And, of course, there are plenty of \u201cdesigner hybrids\u201d the mutts that are purposefully planned because they are \u201call the rage\u201d and their litters will garner thousands […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2,1,17],"tags":[29,28],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11938"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11938"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11938\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12030,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11938\/revisions\/12030"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ohiopetexpert.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}