Oprah upcoming show exposing puppy mills

[Gudrun's Mom]

I received an email from a member of my kennel club that stated Oprah was having an upcoming show exposing puppy mills. This is the info I received.

Gudrun's Mom

On Friday, April 4 at 4:00 pm EST, OPRAH will air a show exposing puppy mill horrors and working to educate the public on how to stop supporting them through purchases of their "products" at the pet stores. Lisa Ling did the investigation, and was as disgusted and appalled as those of us who work with the dogs rescued from these places. Please spread the word about this episode. Please watch the show, listen to the stories, and open your heart to the atrocities these sweet animals have to live with. Then, take action to stop the mills and the stores that treat animals like cash crops.

[Cdn1050]

I have my VCR already set to record it. I don't normally watch the Oprah show, except for when she has Lisa Ling do investigation segments. Those ones are always interesting.

[Nishasmom]

Yep...I just DVR-ed it ; I love modern technology .

But I am so glad she is doing this; the general public sees NOTHING wrong with getting a puppy from a pet shop ; either that, or they feel like they need to "rescue" the dog. Maybe this will make some of them think about it.

[momof3]

Thank you for the info. Not only am I set up to record, but I have passed on the information to all of my animal - loving friends and family so the education about puppy mills can continue,

[brunie's mom]

Good! Maybe after that Oprah could do a segment on BYB's....since she bought 3 Golden Retriever puppies (at the same time) from a huge commercial breeder in California. The "breeder" did not show her dogs, or do any health tests....just breeds 'pretty Goldens' and the celebrities pay big bucks for them.

Gina

[maxcat]

Originally Posted by momof3

Thank you for the info. Not only am I set up to record, but I have passed on the information to all of my animal - loving friends and family so the education about puppy mills can continue,

Me too. I am looking forward to watching the episode and yet I know I will barely be able to look at the TV.

[observer]

Yes, I've often wondered where Oprah has gotten her own dogs (she has some little ankle biters too, of some breed...) Hopefully she and her celebrity friends will learn something.

[Blitz31]

Excellent, I sure hope she mentions Thunder Valley Rottweilers in TN. With Joan Foote being exposed for what she is, a criminal.

[TrinaJ]

I cant wait for that episode to air in Australia....In the meantime, i hope that I will be able to view it on youtube or something similar. Looking forward to watching it.

Hopefully this will educate people and they will think twice before buying from a pet store or a byb.

[Gudrun's Mom]

I volunteer at our Humane Society and have seen a couple of large cases where they have taken dogs from local puppy mills. Needless to say it was very upsetting. I admire the Humane Soc. workers as they go into these deplorable places and have to try and rescue the dogs that are left. It takes a lot of time proving neglect and legal procedures to close a puppy mill and generally the Humane Soc. must have a police escort with them to go onto the property. Fortunately a good many of the dogs can be rehabilitated and placed in loving home but a certain percentage never can be adopted due to their health and temperaments.

Let's hope that Oprah's show creates more awareness of this problem so potential dog owners will seek their puppies from reliable breeders. If the demand from the pet shops isn't there the puppy mills will not make a profit and close up. However it just isn't the pet shops that are selling these pups, it's also directly from ads in local papers. When I see an ad that offers many breeds of dogs it is a red alarm that they are simply breeding for a profit. Public awareness is the only way to stamp out puppy mills and even then some will slip through the cracks.

[Sasha's Mom]

Well, I don't think Oprah *genuinely* cares. It's all scripted to make the audience go ooohhh and ahhhhh and cry, and the money rolls in. I'm glad that she is informing the public, but then I again I also don't think she cares that much, hence the fact that she got the 3 puppies from a BYB. Heck, she can get as many dogs as she'd like - at the end of the day, I doubt she's the one who takes care of them anyways. Isn't that what assistants are for?

[Cdn1050]

Originally Posted by Sasha's Mom

Well, I don't think Oprah *genuinely* cares. It's all scripted to make the audience go ooohhh and ahhhhh and cry, and the money rolls in. I'm glad that she is informing the public, but then I again I also don't think she cares that much, hence the fact that she got the 3 puppies from a BYB. Heck, she can get as many dogs as she'd like - at the end of the day, I doubt she's the one who takes care of them anyways. Isn't that what assistants are for?

I know she has a couple Goldens (one died last year when it swallowed a tennis ball) and wild and untrained two cocker spaniels. I know that because she had to have Cesar Milan come help her gain control of the one little dog.

[missingmarley]

Thanks too for the info - my DVR is ready to go as well!

Oprah may or may not care a lot herself, but it's hard to ignore her amazing influence - as long as she's using it for good, more power to her. It would, however, be great if, instead of seeking out three "pretty goldens," she would have taken a tour of her local shelter and given three of THOSE dogs a better life.

I always wonder about celebrities and their dogs - how much interaction do they really ever have? I fell in love with Judy Davis decades ago when I read that she refused to do movies outside Australia, because it would mean leaving her dog behind given the lengthy quarantine required. Trouble is, I don't even know if it's true - who can believe what we read in the celebrity press anyway? I know Renee Zellweger (I think) was very attached to her dog, took him on set and stuff. Then there's George Clooney and his late potbellied pig, who he seemed to really like.

[webangel2b]

I just reposted this on the "breeding" area of the board.

I think she does care, no matter what anyone else says. True dog/animal lovers which I believe she is, always care.

[moz205]

Ok, my TiVo is ready. Can't wait to see this and am spreading the word.