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Nov 28, 2006 7:25 pm US/Eastern
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CBS 2 Consumer Report: Ugly Side Of Dog Stores
That Adorable Pooch May Have An Unfortunate Past
by Kirstin Cole
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
They're irresistibly cute, tiny little fur balls of love, just waiting to be the favorite family member. But there is a very ugly side to the dog store business.
"We get calls every single week from people who have bought dogs from pet stores and the puppies soon fall ill and they spend thousands of dollars to save the puppies lives," said Stephanie Shain with The Humane Society of the United States.
We pay thousands for designer dogs but The Humane Society is waging a battle against pet stores. Its new study shows consumers who purchase puppies from a pet shop may end up with a sick or dying dog that may have come from a puppy mill. The result?
"A variety of intestinal problems, pneumonia, a disease called PARVO," said Shain.
Kathy Noble paid $1,300 for Lucy, a miniature pinscher, at Pet Paradise in New Jersey. But just days after she came home, a vet diagnosed the little dog with a laundry list of problems, including pneumonia. What did the store have to say about it?
"They wanted us to bring her back and they would give us another puppy," said Kathy.
But that was impossible, since Kathy said the family had already bonded with little Lucy. Instead, they spent more than $700 with a vet to nurse her back to health.
Lucy wasn't the only one. Fifteen people complained to the state about Pet Paradise in 2005. And in a letter obtained by CBS 2 News, the county health board was looking into whether to suspend the store's license. The owners would not talk to us on camera, but told us by letter that the store, "... has sold approximately 9,000-10,000 healthy puppies ... since 1999."
The store's license was never suspended, and the store reimbursed Kathy the $700 in vet care.
"Our vet said she's one of the lucky ones. He even said we probably saved her life," Kathy said.
This is just one example of what the Humane Society calls an epidemic. If a puppy is on the gift list, choose a reputable breeder, see where the dog is born and meet the parents.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)