Commercial puppy mills prioritise production economics over welfare, causing chronic suffering for breeding dogs and health problems in their offspring.
Breeding dogs in poor commercial operations live in permanent confinement with inadequate socialisation, exercise, and veterinary care. Repeated pregnancies without adequate recovery cause chronic physical deterioration. Puppies removed too early from mothers and siblings have compromised immunity and behavioural development. The downstream welfare cost to buyers falls on animals who show the consequences of poor breeding through their entire lives.