Behind the Scenes at a Puppy-Selling Pet Store
"In January of 2005, when I was 19, a national pet store chain opened in my small hometown. Being an animal lover without many job prospects, I attended their open interview and made it all the way through to being hired. Even when I applied, I knew of puppy mills and knew this pet store provided
puppies via the Hunte Corporation – the largest broker (middleman) of puppy mill puppies in the entire country. I can't make excuses for working there anyway, but in the time I worked at this chain, the inside look I got has become invaluable for sharing with other people.
During training, the issue of puppy mills was raised. These stores are a franchise, and the owner of this store was very nervous and tense when dealing with our questions. He insisted that he had traveled to Hunte's facilities and toured them and that they were incredibly clean. He did not, however, visit any of the actual breeders – only the Hunte Corporation facility where puppies are brought in to get ready for shipment. When asked about touring breeders or the conditions in which the breeders kept their dogs, he quickly changed subject after insisting that Hunte had assured him the breeders are reputable and the dogs well taken care of.
A week into training, the puppy truck came. A large semi truck backed up to the back of the building and all the employees lined up outside to help with unloading. We were allowed to look into the truck – cages stacked on cages with water and places for food. It wasn't filthy, but it stank overwhelmingly of
urine, feces, and vomit. The dogs looked terrified, some clearly not old enough to be away from their mothers. After looking at the truck, the doors were closed and the puppies were handed out of a small door on the back, one by one. I carried a few; the one I remember most was a shivering, scared Bernese Mountain Dog girl who was completely sticky and smelled so badly I nearly vomited.
As each puppy was brought in, it was looked over by a local vet on the pet store's payroll. In exchange for inspecting the animals, buyers would receive discounts at the vet's practice and we were supposed to really push people to go to him. The vet noted any defects or illness. Those with minor defects (small fontanelles, minor joint issues, minor upper respiratory infections) were then bathed and placed in the glass-front cages, ready to go. Those who were significantly more ill were 'quarantined' – kept in a plexiglass incubator-style box and given medication. No real measures beyond that were taken to prevent the sick dogs from infecting healthy ones. The ones with severe defects – large soft spots and major deformities – were sent back onto the truck to be returned to Hunte. We were told that the 'defective' puppies and the puppies that got too old to be in the store were either given back to the breeder or sold to pet stores with lower standards. What the breeders did with the puppies after return was never
clarified.
I was able to sneak a peek at the purchase price on the dogs. The managers will always insist that after vet work, they barely 'turn a profit' off of the animals. They encourage you to say the same thing to customers who question why they should pay four figures when they could “just get one for free.” However, the average “healthy” puppy only receives a worming and their first set of shots. That's all. I do not remember, exactly, the purchase prices on the dogs – but I do remember this: Some of them were under $100. None of them were over $500. At the grand opening of the store, the cheapest dog we had was $800.
The cages for the dogs were not very large. Each dog had enough room to stand up, turn around, and lay down, since that's all that the store was legally required to provide. Small puppies generally had a 'roommate' while large ones were in the largest cages alone. Some of the smaller puppies had feet so small that they'd slide into the holes in the grating on the cages. I voiced a complaint about this, but I was told that they'd eventually 'learn to balance' on the plastic-coated wiring on the cage. A friend came into the store and mentioned the same thing and received the same response.
If a dog was popular, it'd usually get a couple hours out of the day outside of its cage, being socialized and played with. The less wanted ones would only come out if someone wanted to see them or an employee decided to play with the pupp to entice someone to buy it. They did not get much exercise or
stimulation; each cage had a chew toy, food, and a water bottle.
All floor staff that are not assigned to small pets or fish are expected to sell puppies. Puppies and supplies are the big moneymaker for pet stores who sell them. The chain I worked for paid employees minimum wage plus commission. The more puppies you pushed, the more money you made. You could make a commission off anything in the store, but when it came down to it you could make commission off of a $1 bottle of fish food or off of a $2000 puppy – so the pressure was there to sell as many dogs as possible in one pay period. It did not matter if the dog was not right for the person – the only thing that mattered was the sale. One of the tricks we were taught is to encourage the people playing with the dog to 'give it a name' and engage any children present in talking about the puppy instead of the parents. If the dog appeared to be sick, we were told to inform people that the dog simply had a 'little bit of a cold' and that it would clear up within days. If the people could not afford the price tag, we had financing. One quick call and the puppy was theirs. This was especially encouraged because you could finance their entire purchase – which meant selling them the most expensive food, crates, toys, treats and other
supplies.
What was best for the animal was of no concern. Again, it was about the sale. One young girl came in and purchased a bloodhound to live with her and her parents in their small apartment. She was 18, so she could buy the animal – but without the permission of anyone actually responsible for the home. This store was persuaded by a very angry father to accept the return of the dog, but this was the only case in which I saw a live animal accepted for return to the store. When it came to supplies for pets, again, all that mattered was the sale. A man purchased an English Mastiff puppy and didn't want to spend money on an appropriate sized cage. I turned the sale over to my manager, who gladly sold the man a cage in which the puppy couldn't even lay down comfortably.
Eventually, I became more and more disgusted with how the shop ran and the clear disregard for the animals expressed by the manager. I turned puppy sales over to other employees and stuck around the supplies areas. And despite all that, even knowing better, my boyfriend at the time purchased a little red and white basset hound from the store. This gave me access to something I hadn't thought to get ahold of before: an example of the USDA reports for a breeder of one of the dogs in the store. The USDA breeder number is available in the registration packet of every dog that comes from a large-scale breeding facility. USDA breeder information is open to the public, but it is a lot of work to gather it all yourself. I turned the number over to Pet Shop Puppies, an anti-mill organization that will give you free USDA breeder reports if you have the number. (website: http://www.petshoppuppies.org/psppuppyreport.htm)
What I read was horrifying. I knew, already, puppymills were bad. The one who bred this sweet little basset, however, was especially bad. She came from a breeder with over 300 dogs and a list of USDA violations as long as I am tall. They had dogs with untreated wounds, injuries, illnesses, carcasses left around the property, expired medications in use – you name it, they did it. This was the final straw for me. I printed up a copy of the entire USDA breeder report and wrote a long and well thought out resignation letter to go with it. I posted it on an anti puppymill forum for members to check over and give feedback. Three days later, I went into the store to turn in my resignation and pick up my paycheck.
When I entered, a backyard breeder who worked there as an assistant manager looked surprised and said, “Oh, I thought you quit.” I said, “No, not yet” and went into the back to get my check. The manager present in the store that day saw me and immediately looked uneasy. She picked up some papers off her desk – a printed copy of my resignation letter. Nowhere in my forum post had I mentioned my exact location, only the name of the national chain. To this day, I'm not sure how it made it from forum post to the store itself. What was done, was done. I had hoped to speak with the owner, but I was told to leave and not come on the property again.
After I left, during a conversation with my own veterinarian, I learned that many local vets were banding together against the store. Parvo rates in the community had skyrocketed and they were seeing dogs with multiple genetic issues every single week – and it all traced back to that pet store. More than a few of these high-priced pet store puppies died within weeks of purchase – some from illness, some from serious overlooked genetic problems. These refused to become part of the store's discount program and offer incentives for bringing your pet store puppy to their practice. They spoke out openly about the pet store, and over the course of a few short years, that store was put out of business. It's now been replaced with a nicer, bigger, small chain store that does not sell animals and offers local rescued cats for adoption instead.
I will say this. Everything in those stores is meant to elicit an emotional response. The sad, lonely puppy behind the glass. The cheerful salespeople with quick answers to all of your concerns. The little rooms you go into to meet a puppy. The employee who asks “So, give him a name yet?” is working on commission. The one who seems so friendly with your children knows that your kids are the in road to your wallet. Too many people want to excuse buying a pet shop puppy by saying that they “rescued” it from that pet store – and if they act like that, employees are supposed to prey on them, as well. “Oh, he would just love a real yard and a family to play with instead of this cage!” It's business. It's marketing. Those puppies are a product. The store doesn't care why you buy the dog, whether it's a good fit for you, or if you'll end up with a dead puppy before the month is up. They just care about getting it out the door with you. If it dies, you'll get a discount on another one – and given the markup, they'll still make quite a tidy profit.
Believe me, if you think any pet store that sells puppies is innocent, I've seen it behind the scenes. Even with an animal-loving staff and a clean store, the dogs are still victims – and less so than their parents, who are living in squalor. Every purchase from one of those stores enables the cycle to continue, and as long as people keep falling for the heartstring-tugging marketing tactics, dogs will suffer needlessly."
puppies via the Hunte Corporation – the largest broker (middleman) of puppy mill puppies in the entire country. I can't make excuses for working there anyway, but in the time I worked at this chain, the inside look I got has become invaluable for sharing with other people.
During training, the issue of puppy mills was raised. These stores are a franchise, and the owner of this store was very nervous and tense when dealing with our questions. He insisted that he had traveled to Hunte's facilities and toured them and that they were incredibly clean. He did not, however, visit any of the actual breeders – only the Hunte Corporation facility where puppies are brought in to get ready for shipment. When asked about touring breeders or the conditions in which the breeders kept their dogs, he quickly changed subject after insisting that Hunte had assured him the breeders are reputable and the dogs well taken care of.
A week into training, the puppy truck came. A large semi truck backed up to the back of the building and all the employees lined up outside to help with unloading. We were allowed to look into the truck – cages stacked on cages with water and places for food. It wasn't filthy, but it stank overwhelmingly of
urine, feces, and vomit. The dogs looked terrified, some clearly not old enough to be away from their mothers. After looking at the truck, the doors were closed and the puppies were handed out of a small door on the back, one by one. I carried a few; the one I remember most was a shivering, scared Bernese Mountain Dog girl who was completely sticky and smelled so badly I nearly vomited.
As each puppy was brought in, it was looked over by a local vet on the pet store's payroll. In exchange for inspecting the animals, buyers would receive discounts at the vet's practice and we were supposed to really push people to go to him. The vet noted any defects or illness. Those with minor defects (small fontanelles, minor joint issues, minor upper respiratory infections) were then bathed and placed in the glass-front cages, ready to go. Those who were significantly more ill were 'quarantined' – kept in a plexiglass incubator-style box and given medication. No real measures beyond that were taken to prevent the sick dogs from infecting healthy ones. The ones with severe defects – large soft spots and major deformities – were sent back onto the truck to be returned to Hunte. We were told that the 'defective' puppies and the puppies that got too old to be in the store were either given back to the breeder or sold to pet stores with lower standards. What the breeders did with the puppies after return was never
clarified.
I was able to sneak a peek at the purchase price on the dogs. The managers will always insist that after vet work, they barely 'turn a profit' off of the animals. They encourage you to say the same thing to customers who question why they should pay four figures when they could “just get one for free.” However, the average “healthy” puppy only receives a worming and their first set of shots. That's all. I do not remember, exactly, the purchase prices on the dogs – but I do remember this: Some of them were under $100. None of them were over $500. At the grand opening of the store, the cheapest dog we had was $800.
The cages for the dogs were not very large. Each dog had enough room to stand up, turn around, and lay down, since that's all that the store was legally required to provide. Small puppies generally had a 'roommate' while large ones were in the largest cages alone. Some of the smaller puppies had feet so small that they'd slide into the holes in the grating on the cages. I voiced a complaint about this, but I was told that they'd eventually 'learn to balance' on the plastic-coated wiring on the cage. A friend came into the store and mentioned the same thing and received the same response.
If a dog was popular, it'd usually get a couple hours out of the day outside of its cage, being socialized and played with. The less wanted ones would only come out if someone wanted to see them or an employee decided to play with the pupp to entice someone to buy it. They did not get much exercise or
stimulation; each cage had a chew toy, food, and a water bottle.
All floor staff that are not assigned to small pets or fish are expected to sell puppies. Puppies and supplies are the big moneymaker for pet stores who sell them. The chain I worked for paid employees minimum wage plus commission. The more puppies you pushed, the more money you made. You could make a commission off anything in the store, but when it came down to it you could make commission off of a $1 bottle of fish food or off of a $2000 puppy – so the pressure was there to sell as many dogs as possible in one pay period. It did not matter if the dog was not right for the person – the only thing that mattered was the sale. One of the tricks we were taught is to encourage the people playing with the dog to 'give it a name' and engage any children present in talking about the puppy instead of the parents. If the dog appeared to be sick, we were told to inform people that the dog simply had a 'little bit of a cold' and that it would clear up within days. If the people could not afford the price tag, we had financing. One quick call and the puppy was theirs. This was especially encouraged because you could finance their entire purchase – which meant selling them the most expensive food, crates, toys, treats and other
supplies.
What was best for the animal was of no concern. Again, it was about the sale. One young girl came in and purchased a bloodhound to live with her and her parents in their small apartment. She was 18, so she could buy the animal – but without the permission of anyone actually responsible for the home. This store was persuaded by a very angry father to accept the return of the dog, but this was the only case in which I saw a live animal accepted for return to the store. When it came to supplies for pets, again, all that mattered was the sale. A man purchased an English Mastiff puppy and didn't want to spend money on an appropriate sized cage. I turned the sale over to my manager, who gladly sold the man a cage in which the puppy couldn't even lay down comfortably.
Eventually, I became more and more disgusted with how the shop ran and the clear disregard for the animals expressed by the manager. I turned puppy sales over to other employees and stuck around the supplies areas. And despite all that, even knowing better, my boyfriend at the time purchased a little red and white basset hound from the store. This gave me access to something I hadn't thought to get ahold of before: an example of the USDA reports for a breeder of one of the dogs in the store. The USDA breeder number is available in the registration packet of every dog that comes from a large-scale breeding facility. USDA breeder information is open to the public, but it is a lot of work to gather it all yourself. I turned the number over to Pet Shop Puppies, an anti-mill organization that will give you free USDA breeder reports if you have the number. (website: http://www.petshoppuppies.org/psppuppyreport.htm)
What I read was horrifying. I knew, already, puppymills were bad. The one who bred this sweet little basset, however, was especially bad. She came from a breeder with over 300 dogs and a list of USDA violations as long as I am tall. They had dogs with untreated wounds, injuries, illnesses, carcasses left around the property, expired medications in use – you name it, they did it. This was the final straw for me. I printed up a copy of the entire USDA breeder report and wrote a long and well thought out resignation letter to go with it. I posted it on an anti puppymill forum for members to check over and give feedback. Three days later, I went into the store to turn in my resignation and pick up my paycheck.
When I entered, a backyard breeder who worked there as an assistant manager looked surprised and said, “Oh, I thought you quit.” I said, “No, not yet” and went into the back to get my check. The manager present in the store that day saw me and immediately looked uneasy. She picked up some papers off her desk – a printed copy of my resignation letter. Nowhere in my forum post had I mentioned my exact location, only the name of the national chain. To this day, I'm not sure how it made it from forum post to the store itself. What was done, was done. I had hoped to speak with the owner, but I was told to leave and not come on the property again.
After I left, during a conversation with my own veterinarian, I learned that many local vets were banding together against the store. Parvo rates in the community had skyrocketed and they were seeing dogs with multiple genetic issues every single week – and it all traced back to that pet store. More than a few of these high-priced pet store puppies died within weeks of purchase – some from illness, some from serious overlooked genetic problems. These refused to become part of the store's discount program and offer incentives for bringing your pet store puppy to their practice. They spoke out openly about the pet store, and over the course of a few short years, that store was put out of business. It's now been replaced with a nicer, bigger, small chain store that does not sell animals and offers local rescued cats for adoption instead.
I will say this. Everything in those stores is meant to elicit an emotional response. The sad, lonely puppy behind the glass. The cheerful salespeople with quick answers to all of your concerns. The little rooms you go into to meet a puppy. The employee who asks “So, give him a name yet?” is working on commission. The one who seems so friendly with your children knows that your kids are the in road to your wallet. Too many people want to excuse buying a pet shop puppy by saying that they “rescued” it from that pet store – and if they act like that, employees are supposed to prey on them, as well. “Oh, he would just love a real yard and a family to play with instead of this cage!” It's business. It's marketing. Those puppies are a product. The store doesn't care why you buy the dog, whether it's a good fit for you, or if you'll end up with a dead puppy before the month is up. They just care about getting it out the door with you. If it dies, you'll get a discount on another one – and given the markup, they'll still make quite a tidy profit.
Believe me, if you think any pet store that sells puppies is innocent, I've seen it behind the scenes. Even with an animal-loving staff and a clean store, the dogs are still victims – and less so than their parents, who are living in squalor. Every purchase from one of those stores enables the cycle to continue, and as long as people keep falling for the heartstring-tugging marketing tactics, dogs will suffer needlessly."
