I’m writing about a matter that is close to my heart, and also a very important one whether you love hunting dogs or lap dogs. My prior experience has been in Social Services, in which I dedicated over 15 years serving children who came from emotionally disturbed, physically and sexually abused backgrounds. I was very naive of what goes on in the dog world, and now I feel compelled at this time of my life to devote that same compassion for the dogs. You don’t necessarily have to be an animal lover to be effected by some of the inhumane treatment that goes on at puppy mills. Unfortunately, most of these dogs share a very small pen throughout their entire lives. They never have walked on grass, no exercise, no vet treatment, never been bathed, and of course not to mention a lack of any loving affection. Some dogs when they are rescued actually need to have the chain around their necks surgically removed since their necks have grown around the chain that was placed on them since they were pups. Surprisingly, this is all legal in some states, as the dogs are considered livestock. There are a few ways in which you can reach out to help this matter. One way is to rescue a female dog. Females are made to produce multiple litters a year totaling well over 100 puppies, which lead them to develop tumors from so many suckling pups. After about eight years of producing the females are no longer profitable and their lives are cast away and suddenly ended. A second way to help is to be aware of your new puppy’s breeder. Ask questions prior to purchasing a pup. And thirdly, write to your state legislature to help change these livestock laws if this is going on in your state. If you didn’t already see the disturbing and powerful Oprah show on puppy mills, you can view the show on YouTube. Please do your due diligence as you see fit. I am doing mine and we are currently looking into a rescue. We’ll keep you posted as to how it turns out.