Finally, someone in Missouri is paying attention to the state’s reputation as the number 1 puppy mill breeder in the country.

A new agriculture chief took office in January, and is ramping up protocols of the state’s 4,000 shoddy and inhumane dog-breeding businesses.

Known by many an animal welfare advocate and rescue operators as the “Puppy Mill Capital of the Country,” Missouri has historically been lax on enforcing a 1992 program for protecting animals cared for by breeders. With the rural environment of the Ozarks and breeders hidden among hillsides, it can get complicated…

However, so far, in combatting the problem, new Agriculture Director Jon Hagler has:

- named a new program coordinator

- asked for a re-examination of old cases

- ordered a review of internal procedures

- stepped up inspections and the issuing of citations to violators

- started Operation Bark Alert, which allows people to report unlicensed breeders directly to him by e-mail

But Hagler said his agency simply does not have the means to conduct inspections every year as required by law. “We cannot regulate 3,200 licensed breeders plus every animal rescue, shelter and dog pound, and go after unlicensed breeders with 11 total inspectors.”

According to an article on MSNBC.com, the Humane Society of the United States’ “Stop Puppy Mills” campaign says Missouri should stop licensing breeders until it has enough inspectors.

State audits in 2001, 2004 and 2008 sharply criticized Missouri’s regulation of puppy breeders as ineffective and lax, citing management conflicts of interest, spotty inspections, few sanctions and failure to track repeat offenders.

The article says that state authorities can shut down breeders, revoke their licenses, fine them and ask local prosecutors to bring criminal charges of abuse or neglect. But Tim Rickey of the Humane Society of Missouri said the Agriculture Department rarely pursues charges.

Inspection reports show that the state instead encourages violators to reduce the number of dogs to a more manageable level or below the threshold of regulation.

Although the problem is rampant and plagued by repeat offenders, who are charged, fined, get their dogs taken away, then go and buy new ones at auction, Rickey said he is pleased with what the new agriculture director is doing.

“Their focus seems to have changed,” Rickey said. “They are working harder to shut unlicensed facilities down. They are seeking prosecutions. This is all new and unproven.”

What do you think about this? Is Missouri doing enough to enforce its laws? Is any state doing enough to enforce its laws? How do you feel about state puppy mill legislation?

Some information courtesy MSNBC.com. Click the link for more details on Missouri’s problem.

Does anyone else’s kitty try to prevent them from leaving on trips like this…? Mine sure do…

Most pet owners do it — they give gifts and cards from their pets to their owners on holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries. We give presents to our pets, so why not give them to others from our pets, right? Perhaps this is just in my family…but I don’t think so.

Anyhow, I put together this list of Mother’s Day gift ideas from the pets. All are pet-themed items that any pet-loving Mom would adore.

A pet photo book is a hardbound record of your favorite furry one’s firsts achievements and proudest moments. Choose from two different themes, Paw Prints or Wild Side. The glossy hardcovers feature 1 photo on each of the front and back covers. The stitched binding ensures that it’ll last for years – even with all of the open and closes! Pet photo books are definitely coffee table bound and a fun alternative to framed photos!

Another fun Mother’s Day gift from the pets? A pet photo mouse pad. Since we’re all pet bloggers here, we spend quite a bit of time on the PC, so why not have your favorite friend’s picture close by? Choose from several mousepad designs and layouts to showcase your color or black and white artistry. Made of a thick high-density foam these mousepads will be keepers due to their beauty and quality. Pet photo mouse pads come in two themes, Dog’s Day and Cat’s Meow.

Yet another fun idea from Fido to Mom is a pet photo address book.  Select from multiple cover layout options to design your pet photo address book cover. The front cover inside is also customizable so you can include a logo, URL, quote or whatever you want to make it uniquely yours!

Another fun Mother’s Day gift from the pets is a photo calendar. Show off your photos of your favorite canine friend in this calendar tribute to dogs. Add captions and custom dates to your pet photo calendar. Choose your start month and design your cover to create a museum-quality calendar. Hangs from a European-style hanger for a polished look and durability.

For a long-distance hello or a little surprise for the inbox, send a pet-themed Mother’s Day ecard from AmericanGreetings.com! Choose from almost a dozen Mother’s Day pets ecards, from cute to funny to heartfelt!

What ideas  can you think of to give Mom from the pets this Mother’s Day?

The state of California is following up it’s rigorous enforcement protecting farm animals (Prop 2) by now making further moves to protect more domestic animals.

Assemblyman Pedro Nava recently introduced a bill to crack down on puppy mills in California. Called the Responsible Breeder Act of 2009, the new legislation would prevent the inherent cruelty associated with mass breeding of dogs.

Specifically, the bill would limit the number of intact — not spayed or neutered — dogs or cats a breeder can maintain to 50 animals, while creating exceptions for shelters, veterinary facilities and the like. The bill is patterned on laws that passed last year in Virginia and Louisiana.

Let’s help add California to this list of states that protect dogs in puppy mills and encourage responsible breeding practices. Contact legislators in California and ask them to support AB 241, the Responsible Breeder Act of 2009.

For more information and to see a form letter to send to CA legislators, go  to Care2.

The ASPCA, Humane Society of the United States and Social Compassion in Legislation are working together to pass this legislation. Let’s add our help to move California to the list of states that protect dogs in puppy mills and encourage responsible breeding practices — please act today.

Another oldie but goodie, I wrote this article over a year ago but re-surfaced it when I was honored enough to guest post for the blog Paw Talk. Paw Talk is a wonderful newer pet blog that I would encourage you to check out. They have featured many of us pet bloggers on the blog recently and have some great articles.

Anyhow, I guest posted and contributed my article about Sasha, my 8-year-old wonder cat who is helping to heal a cancer patient. Hope you enjoy…

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They say there is something special about a rescue animal. They know adversity. They know brutality and pain (unfortunately). They know neglect and the human race’s emotional bankruptcy.

And they know – eventually – when they’ve been saved.

Sasha is a special cat who has moved on from her rootless beginnings to help save someone else.

Sasha suffered severe neglect until I rescued her when she was about 6-7 months old, and to this day it shows in her quiet little personality. I call her my little “teeny one” because she is tinier than tiny. She’s teeny. She is all fur. Even her meow is teeny. But her spirit is soaring and bigger than a lot of humans’ I know. (I, however, like most animals better than I like most people).

Sasha grew up with me in a college town in a house full of five girls, on a friendly neighborhood street. She would sit in the windowsill (going in and out at her own free will since I took the screen out for her) for hours and have conversations with the birds, squirrels or whatever else was alive, in front of her, and smaller than her. She always butt in when any of the roommates was eating anything, and I mean anything: yogurt, goldfish crackers, potato chips, fast food sandwiches (lettuce and all), macaroni-n-cheese, egg salad, tacos, chicken paprikash, and of course, ice cream.

Since she and my other cat are outdoor cats, obviously they spent many sunny Colorado days hanging out in my yard and the neighbor’s yards. My next door neighbor took quite a liking to them and used to leave food and milk out for them constantly (even when I asked her to stop). I would come home and pull in the driveway and see my two cats standing on the hood of her truck livin’ it up with wet food and milk. It drove me NUTS.

One time Sasha was catnapped. It was two days before Halloween and Sasha is black-as-night over her ENTIRE body – pads, feet, belly, ears, everywhere. And she has green eyes, so she is some psycho-nut’s Halloween dream. I was an absolute disaster for three days. I had signs posted by the second day and went to every neighbor’s house up and down the street and across the creek (even though there was no possible way she could have crossed it) every day. Finally, the day after Halloween my roommate was outside smoking when she heard really loud meowing. She followed the sound and started calling Sasha’s name. Sasha kept answering her and finally my roomie was just two houses down the street.

These idiot guy neighbors stole Sasha for the reward money. My roomie literally busted in there and stole her back and said they would be lucky if we didn’t call the cops on them. Of course, I’m sure Sasha sauntered over there looking for some lovin’, or chasing a bird or something, and probably ended up sleeping on their porch, and probably gave them the sweetness when they came home from class, and that bore a beautiful friendship. Years later I still wonder what really happened… I was beginning to realize that Sasha gets around quite a bit.

To read the rest of the article, click here or go ahead and stop by Paw Talk.

Oh man, was this a tough one. I got countless adorable pictures of all different breeds of puppies and kittens. This was the hardest decision yet to make in my contests! Thank you so much to all who entered, and especially to those who entered pictures of adult dogs and cats – they were all fabulous entries but this was a puppy and kitten photo contest only so no prized could be awarded for adult pets.

I finally decided to award the winning prizes to one kitten-lover, and one puppy-lover. Here they are in first and second place order:

Linda Hunt’s picture of Jezabelle:

And Ann Marie Kinoo’s (from the Bumpass Hounds) picture of Brutus Maximus:

Here are the other top two entries that get honorable mention:

J.A. Fox’s picture of Jesamine:

And finally Renee Sinsky’s picture of “Kitty:”

Congratulations to the winners and the runners-up. And thank you so much to all who entered. Stay tuned to find out what the May contest is next week!

I wrote this originally over a year ago but think it’s worth re-introducing. This is the story of our white Golden Retriever Gibson, and how he came to be ours…

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Someone asked me on our nightly stroll last night how we happen to find a white Golden Retriever.

I had just read a story on MSNBC called “Buying a Dog? Beware of Breeder.” Since the gentleman asked and I had just finished reading the article, I felt the need to tell him the whole story. (He probably regretted asking me later).

Gibson (the white Golden’s name) was littermates with Benson (our red Golden). When the family chose to take Benson home 7 years ago, Gibson was one of the last two pups left. We felt horrible for leaving him alone. (*Important note: I wanted a shelter dog but the decision was not mine to make.)

The breeder had some serious acreage on his plot with tons of room for the dogs to run around. They had very nice pens, lots of greenery and a big fat sticker and papers that said they were AKC registered. The dogs seemed healthy enough (although you and I both know Goldens are infamously inbred but you can never tell if the breeder lies about it or not) and happy enough.

Benson was a great addition to the family. After he turned 5 months old, we returned to the breeder (without warning) to get Benson’s papers.

What we found was an absolutly horrifying site. The “other” side of the house, the part that wasn’t green and lush, the part with no pens, was filled with trash, overgrown sharp brush (dangerous in the California desert in summertime), old car parts, farm equipment and such. There was no water bowl, no food dish, no nothing.

And then there was Gibson.

He barreled over to us, tail between legs but SO happy to see a human. Gibby was in terrible condition. He was skinny, had bloody feet and was very dirty. (You can really see dirt on a white dog.)

We practically knocked down the door of the place (we had mistakenly happened upon the wrong side of the property) and said we were here to get Benson’s papers, and, oh by the way we are taking this dog and getting your AKC and USDA breeding license revoked.

When we got Gibby home (we impolitely slammed down $500 – more than a fair bargain- on the table and said “we are taking this dog”) and to the vet, turns out he had fleas, ticks, ear mites, and multiple leg and foot punctures from fox tails. Fox tails are these needle-like weeds that are very dangerous to animals in the desert. They enter through the feet and are so thin they can travel in an animal’s blood stream all the way to the heart and puncture it.

We did report the breeder to the AKC AND the USDA, and they both said it’s very hard for them to control every single breeder who displays their name.

You have GOT to be kidding me.

They pretty much just said they would take note of the breeder but they don’t have enough time or resources to get out there.

I personally wanted to stand in front of this jerk’s house and farm and tell every single person who walked up in the next couple months (I assumed the mother was carrying another litter on the “good side” of the property) what this breeder was REALLY about. I would have been arrested though for multiple things and I probably would have wound up in a fist fight with the owners of the place.

The MSNBC story states:

“Just because a breeder has a license from the USDA doesn’t mean much. USDA minimum standards for housing and exercise are bare bones. The agency requirement for cage size…is just six inches taller, wider and longer than the dog inside… The USDA waivers the exercise requirement of 30 minutes per day for at least five days a week if the dog is housed in a cage with twice the floor space.”

The article also says the AKC requirements are less than savory and that all AKC papers certify is that both parents were of the same breed. Who knew?

Read the full article here.

As far as the AKC goes, it actually says right on their website that they don’t “guarantee the quality or health of dogs in its registry.”

Gibson, whose picture I have used multiple times in this blog since he’s so handsome, thankfully has turned out to be the absolute sweetest, most gentle and observant dog I have ever known. He kisses kids gently in the face when we pass them on the street, he smiles at you (literally) when you walk in the door, he purrs (from being brought up around cats), and has the most delicate nature. He does have that blessed Golden personality but there’s a little something special added in because he came from such hard beginnings. (He could use some help in the training department but that’s our fault for spoiling him rotten!)

I’m pretty sure the fault lies in the actual breeder here, but I was surprised to see the outright lack of requirement that the AKC deems. It was after this happened that I learned more about the horrors of some pet breeders and what some of the animals are subjected to.  I have since become an even bigger advocate of shelters and rescue pets.

Does anyone else have any history (good or bad) with AKC or AKC registered breeders? Share your experiences with me please.

Just in time for Earth Day this week, this one’s from Petside.com, one of my favorite sites…

Petside has searched the earth for the best eco-friendly pet toys. Show your pet that being environmentally friendly can be fun. Go Green with Petside’s Pick for the Top 10 Earth Friendly Pet toys.

#1 Orbee-Tuff Glow For Good Ball

We love this toy. Not only is this ball recyclable and non-toxic, but 100% of the wholesale cost of this doggie-durable, buoyant, bouncy, minty Glow for Good Ball goes directly to the Planet Dog Foundation, a not-for-profit arm of Planet Dog whose mission is to support canine service programs. This ball is great for the aggressive chewer!

#2 Huck ball

This is not your average ball. Actually, the grooved shape, makes this toy look less like a ball and more like a yo-yo. But that’s what makes it so great. The indents make bouncing this ball fun because it goes in all directions! Not only does this ball bounce like crazy, it even floats in water. The Huck ball is part of the Zogoflex line with contains 10% post industrial recycled plastics, uses 100% recycled paper for packaging, made in the USA and recyclable. Although the Huck ball is durable, it might not hold up to the most aggressive chewer but it does come with a one time replacement guarantee. The Huck ball is a real winner!

#3 Kitty Catnip Fortune Cookies

Can you say homemade? This one made our list, not just because it’s so darn cute but because it’s made of recycled fleece and stuffed with organic catnip. The Chinese take out boxes come in your choice of pink or blue and contains 3 fortune cookies. Also, seller BowWowzerZ supports pet rescue. 10% of its sales will be donated to a local animal rescue group. Does it get any better?

#4 Simply Fido Organic Pet Toys

Simply Fido Organic Pet Toys are some of the most adorable toys we’ve ever seen. They are made of organic fabrics and with all-natural dyes. Organically grown, the fibers in each toy are unbleached, untreated, and unprocessed so Simply Fido Toys are 100% environmentally friendly! Each toy is about 10″ long and has stretchable arms and legs and a squeaker. Choose from 4 different Squeaker Ring characters: Lolly the Lamb, Oscar the Monkey, Wally the Bear and Lucy the Rabbit.

#5 Stuff ‘N Fetch It

Use this Stuff ‘N Fetch It dog toy to teach scent recognition, come, fetch, hold and carry. Fill with treats or scent, toss it and call back for a reward. Intended as an interactive play toy and not as a chew toy. Made from pre-consumer recycled fire hose material.

#6 Itch Cat Scratcher

Itch’s cool design makes this scratcher look more like art than a toy. It easily mounts on the wall for secure vertical cat scratching. The carpet insert is replaceable and it is made of 100% rapidly renewable bamboo plywood or LPL with 100% recycled wood fiber. Catnip can be placed behind or rubbed onto the inserts to further entice scratching. Now that sounds like fun.

#7 West Paw Zogoflex Zisc

We know that playing fetch with a ball can be fun, but your playful pup might be more of the disc type. So we’ve included the West Paw Zogoflect Zisc. Made from soft, yet durable Zogoflex material, the Zisc is aerodynamic and flies through the air with speed and accuracy. Its pliable material allows your dog to pick it up from flat surfaces with ease and will not hurt or damage their soft mouth.

This is the second Zogoflex toy to make our list! Like the Huck ball the Zisc contains up to 10% post industrial recycled plastic & uses 100% recycled paper and corn based PLA plastic in packaging. When your pet wears out a Zisc, simply mail it back to West Paw Design and they will recycle it back to be a new toy!

#8 Hemp Rope Toys

Does your dog love to play tug? Get Earth Dog’s Eco-Friendly Hemp Rope Toy. These hemp rope toys are 100% Romanian hemp and are offered in two sizes. Not only will your pet love playing with this, 10% of earthdog profits go to Kody’s fund, a non-profit organization that funds spay and neuter programs. How great is that?

#9 Wooly Dust Bunnies

Organic dye-free wool is wrapped into “bunny” pompoms. Each bag comes with 6 wooly dust bunnies, a little packet of catnip for encouragement, and a simple organic cotton washing bag. Your cat will love chasing these around the house!

#10 Chase the Hemp Cat Tail

From the Field cat toys are made with strong and durable hemp fiber material and filled with organic catnip. These natural and holistic toys are also 100% biodegradable.

This was on the news last night and I just had to post it today. First time I’ve heard of a program like this helping people find a haven for their pets when they are facing foreclosure. From wkyc.com:

CLEVELAND — Family pets are among the foreclosure crisis victims.

Some are found abandoned and others are dropped off at over-crowded shelters.

The exact numbers of pets affected aren’t known, but the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to animals estimates one in 159 homeowners is at risk of foreclosure and over 60 percent of homes have one or more pets.

That adds up to a whole lot of pain and suffering for the families and the animals they love.

When Army Veteran Una Biami lost her home to foreclosure, it wasn’t just her future in jeopardy, but that of her guinea pig, cat and dog “Abbey.”

“I was crying big time for a couple of days because I didn’t know what to do,” Biami said.

She turned to a program called “SAFE,” conceived by Heather McNally Milko.

“They’re thrilled. They call us angels. They can’t believe that someone is offering this service to them,” McNally Milko said.

“SAFE” finds shelters, like the Barkley Pet Hotel, to take in family pets whose owners lost their homes, are victims of domestic violence or have medical emergencies, at no charge to pet owners.

Barkley Pet Hotel President Howard Perlmuter says “Winston” gets the same pampering as the paying customers.

“Grooming, day camp, everyday swimming in the pool — It’s a lot of special tender love and care and special attention,” Perlmuter said.

Winston’s owners lost their home. He’s been here a month.

“We’ll take care of them until the family can get back on their feet,” McNally Milko said.

In a year of its existence, “SAFE” has found temporary housing for 30 dogs, 72 cats and a guinea pig.

Biami wrestles with finding work and a roof over her head, but finds a peace of mind when it comes to her pets.

“Wherever I’m at, I’ll be safe and all my babies will be safe with me,” She said.

“SAFE ” is holding a benefit for pets and people Saturday, May 16 at the Barkley Pet Hotel. Admission is $15 and there is an auction, art show and refreshments.

All proceeds go to the cost of caring for these abandoned animals.

From upi.com:

“The first U.S. pet-only airline will begin full service in July, the company said Thursday.

To start, Pet Airways will serve five cities: New York, Washington, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles, WFOR-TV of Doral, Fla., reported Thursday.

The station noted that pet passengers will travel in the main cabin, not in the cargo hold, as happens with some traditional airlines.

Many airlines have announced recently they will no longer accept pets on board their planes, the station said.

The Delray Beach, Fla. airline said it will be ready to fly July 14.

The station said from the time pets are dropped off at the carrier’s pet lounge, animals will be under the care of trained attendants. Plane cabins will be climate-controlled and have the level of fresh air circulation that pets require. ”

What do you think about this? Would you send your pet on this airline?