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"O" No They Didn't: The AKC, Puppy Mills, and Oprah

Written by PETA

Posted 04-08-2008

After Oprah aired a hard-hitting exposé of puppy mills last week, the folks at the American Kennel Club had the audacity to publicly praise the show, while they were presumably maneuvering frantically behind the scenes to make sure that the breeders they’ve been vigorously defending for decades don’t take a hit as a result. PETA President Ingrid Newkirk wrote to Oprah yesterday to thank her for doing the show and to point out that the AKC is no friend of dogs and never has been. You can read her letter here.

Tags:

animal testing, ABC, puppy mills, finals, Oprah, huskies, MSU, of, North, White Rain Carolina, UNC, tar heels, wildcats, sparty, akc

Recent Comments

lizbeth commented:

Apr 8, 2008 5:10 PM

Dear Oprah.. and you thought the puppy mills were bad.. most prob you dont' konw yet.. still.. still about fur farms .. they are even worse.. at least at the puppy mills most of if not all of the puppies bred get a chance to go to a good home..at fur farms.. all the baby animals bred there..face.. the same fate as their parent.. ie.LIFE IMPRISONEMENT AND..a DEATH SENTENCE.. each and every one.. you pity the imprisoned dogs in puppy mills and purport never to support this horrible trade ever agian..and then you turn the other cheek and support an even more HORRENDOUS trade in the inhumane treatment and killing of animals.. yes fur farms..by buying and wearing furs.. saying you abhor one..and yet support another .. is well.. you may as well say you object to dogfighting but enjoy watching bullfighting.. as is evident..you tend to 'draw' the line where and as far as your sympathies will go.. if you really were the caring person you always tend to purport and show to your public and audiences you wouldn't wear furs!! it really is as simple as that!
Lynn O'Toole commented:

Apr 8, 2008 5:00 PM

I've been to many of Missouri's infamous dog auctions. Here the dogs that will be used for breeding or are nearing the end of their productive breeding lives are sold to people interested in making a fast buck. Here you will find the auctioneer making statements like "Don't let that messed up jaw keep you from bidding those puppies don't come from there. If she can produce one more litter you've got your money back right there." Here you find the light of hopelessness in these intelligent animals' eyes. Here you also find the AKC present ready to provide those "papers". NO dog whether from a shelter or a breeder should be adopted or sold intact. Spaying and neutering should be a requirement before they are released to anyone and that is a standard that the AKC should require. THEN you will see a significant impact nationwide in the numbers of homeless pets euthanized.
kelly commented:

Apr 8, 2008 3:57 PM

And I found this about the AKC puppy mill business httpweblogs.baltimoresun.comfeaturesmuttsblog200804akcpraisesoprahexpose.htmlcomments
Nora commented:

Apr 8, 2008 3:54 PM

Well done Ingrid. I was one of these ignorant persons to buy a purebreed dog and no their not better than a shelter dog. My next dog that I adopt will be from a shelter and kudos to Oprah for exposing me my family to the sad and tragic world of these poor dogs in puppy mills. Thank you PETA for your work in giving these poor animals a voice.
kelly commented:

Apr 8, 2008 3:51 PM

There is a propuppy mill lobbbyist who seems to be making terroristic threats against people who expose puppy mills or even talk about them He apparently has a history of this His name is John Yates and he runs the American Sporting Dog Alliance Oil City PA which supports all kinds of puppy mills including hunting dog puppy mills Apparently he is not just a puppy mill lobbyist he owns a puppy mill See this httpweblogs.baltimoresun.comfeaturesmuttsblog200804evenbeforeherpuppymill.html This John Yates is not just a liar he is making all kinds of threats and seems to be violent. I hope the authorities can protect innocent people from his activity!
kelly commented:

Apr 8, 2008 3:30 PM

Most of the AKC's big bucks come from registering puppies born in puppy mills! They are the biggest hypocrites on the planet. They even have a Puppy Mill Committee. The AKC breeder Patti Strand who is on that has a group called NAIA that opposes puppy mill regulations. And supports animal cruelty. You can find these propuppy mill breeders in breed clubs breed federations and the big fakeout RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNER groups that is code for breeder! These are the people lobbying FOR the puppy mills and against rules and laws in YOUR state. All that puppy mill money pays for their dog shows and many of them also are running commercial businesses themselves even though they claim to be "responsible" They don't want to get licensed and pay taxes.
John Carmody commented:

Apr 8, 2008 2:20 PM

Well done Ingrid let's hope this letter also makes her click and say no more FUR!
Barbara commented:

Apr 8, 2008 2:19 PM

Just go to the Oprah website and check out the discussion board on this Puppy Mill show. You will not believe how many AKC Backyard Breeders are throwing hissy fits and bizarrely attacking PETA for "not doing anything" about the puppy mills. It seems that many of them believe this is some kind of huge conspiracy to "take away their rights". I'm not kidding even though it is somewhat comical. All of them are of course "responsible breeders" ... as if you'll ever meet a breeder who proclaims himherself to be an "irresponsible breeder". Still it's fantastic that Oprah Winfrey did this show. That she said she would in future only adopt is a huge win for the animals. I hope she will continue to champion more causes like this.
Rex's Mom commented:

Apr 8, 2008 2:01 PM

I guess Ingrid didn't want to step on Oprah's toes by asking her to please clear her closets of any furs she may have hanging there. So I am still wondering does Oprah still wear fur or not? You can't claim to love animals if you still wear their hides on your back!
Eric Silberstein commented:

Apr 8, 2008 11:14 AM

AKC jumped in to get on Oprah's good side in order to create a better public view. You might say they used Oprah for good PR. Shame on you AKC!

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