Petland Responds to Puppy Mill Investigation

By Teresa Jun - email

The Humane Society of the United States claims it has uncovered puppy mills that have ties to Petland, a national retail pet store chain.

The eight-month investigation involved Humane Society investigators visiting 35 of the large breeders linked to Petland.  The investigators say they documented several USDA violations.  "Dogs kept in too-small cages, inadequate veterinary care, and some of the breeders were found with sick or even dead dogs in their cages," said Kari Nienstedt, Arizona State Director for the Humane Society of the United States.

The organization says it can link 17,000 puppies from alleged puppy mills to several Petland stores across the nation.  It's not clear whether any puppies in the investigation were sent to stores in Tucson.

In a corporate statement, Petland denounced sub-standard breeding facilities.  On its website, it states that "Petland works with USDA licensed and governed professional breeders.  Above and beyond the USDA guidelines, members of the Petland Field Operations Team make personal inspections of breeder facilities."

The two Petland stores in Tucson are locally owned and operated.  They were not directly part of the Humane Society's investigation.  Owner Peter Sher calls the investigation's findings an overly broad accusation.  "It makes a generalized claim about every member of an entity, without investigating that particular store," he said.

Customers at the mid-town location on Thursday were mixed about whether this would keep them away.

"This store is associated with Petland, so it kind of makes me sit back and think about other options before immediately purchasing a dog," said Lisa Odom.

"At this store, you can just tell by the way the animals are taken care of, and the way the workers show us where the animals come from, I can tell this is a legit franchise," said Adia Pickens.

Humane Society of the U.S.: http://video.hsus.org/

Petland: www.petland.com