Is Your Dog Fearful, Distant or Showing Compulsive Behaviors? A New Study Shows Puppy-Mill Dogs Suffer from Long-Lasting Serious Psychological Harm.
Dr. Frank McMillan, lead researcher and director of well-being studies from Best Friends Animal Society, will alert your listeners to the startling facts discovered in a survey of 1,169 former puppy mill dogs: Dogs used as breeding parents in puppy mills show significantly high levels of fear, They have pronounced compulsive and repetitive behaviors such as spinning in tight circle and pacing, They are less trainable, They are more likely to soil a home, They have heightened sensitivity and resistance to being touched or picked up, and Buying a puppy from a pet store contributes to the likelihood that the parents of that puppy must continue to endure a poor quality of life in a puppy mill.

The dogs confined for breeding purposes in puppy mills were compared to those which were considered “standard pet dogs” raised in loving homes, in the study conducted by Best Friends and the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School of Medicine. Best Friends is a leading advocate for humane treatment of animals, and an organization which seeks to make the public aware of the danger of puppy mills for both the animals and the unsuspecting pet owner. Puppy mills are the source of most dogs sold in pet stores today. Most previous studies have focused on the unhealthy conditions and the physical issues faced by animals raised in puppy mills, but this is the first one to look at the psychological ramifications. It will be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science.