Should I Buy a Puppy from a Pet Store?

Once you’ve finally decided you’re ready to bring home a furry friend, you may become a little eager to find them. So heading straight for your local pet store to peruse all the cute faces in the window seems like a great idea. That is, until you learn that these irresistible puppies often come with a dark past: Many are born and bred in puppy mills, which are mass-breeding facilities run by inhumane breeders who neglect to provide them with adequate living conditions or veterinary care. Unsuspecting families can wind up having to pay for their new puppy’s expensive health issues, or worse, some of these puppies won’t even survive.

Where do pet store puppies come from?

Puppies in pet stores often come from puppy mills. Because pet stores need a constant stream of puppies to keep up with supply and demand, they often turn to third-party puppy mill brokers or breeders.

Puppy mills are commercial dog-breeding kennels where mother dogs are confined for most of their lives, churning out litter after litter of puppies to be sold on the Internet, at flea markets, or most commonly, in pet stores. “Dogs are viewed as livestock or agricultural commodities, rather than as pets,” says John Goodwin, senior director of puppy mills at the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). “Think rows of cages of dogs that are just being treated like breeding machines to mass produce puppies.”

According to the HSUS, there are an estimated 10,000 puppy mills, in which 500,000 dogs are kept solely for breeding purposes, currently operating in the United States. 

“They’ve got 30 glass-display cases, and they need to keep them filled all the time with a variety of different types of puppies,” Goodwin says. “When you walk into a store that sells puppies, most people don’t think to ask themselves, ‘Where is that puppy’s mother?’ And she’s usually in a cage in some Midwestern puppy mill.”

Why you shouldn’t buy a dog from a pet store

Every pet-store puppy purchase perpetuates this cycle, putting money directly into the pockets of puppy mills. Even pet parents with good intentions — those who want to “rescue” puppies from a pet store — are only emptying a cage that another puppy will soon fill. 

If you suspect that your local pet store may be supporting puppy mills, the first question to ask them is where the puppies come from. If the employees claim they came from a farm, that may actually be a euphemism for a puppy mill.

Beyond the very real concerns of supporting puppy mills, here are three more key reasons why you should reconsider buying a dog from a pet store.

Puppy breeding is unregulated

Pet stores frequently claim that their puppies come from a USDA-licensed breeder, which seems official and regulated. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. “Most people don’t know that the USDA allows the owners to keep dogs in cages that are only six inches longer than their body,” Goodwin says. “You could double or triple that and still have a dog who’s living a miserable life of extreme confinement.”

Many USDA-licensed breeders have repeatedly violated the Animal Welfare Act, which outlines specific minimum standards of care (shelter, food, and water). However, any regulation is lacking, to say the least: They are rarely fined and are often allowed to renew their licenses. 

Pet stores are unhealthy for puppies — and their pet parents

Pet store employees often neglect to seek veterinary care until it is too late. And while some states have passed puppy “lemon laws” that offer reimbursement for veterinary bills, most have limitations. Similar to vehicle lemon laws, these are put in place to protect consumers if a puppy is ill or found to have a hereditary disease within a specific timeframe. Otherwise, new dog parents who quickly grow attached to their new family members will spend whatever it takes to keep their puppy alive. 

Puppies raised in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, like those in puppy mills, bring illnesses with them that can spread unchecked. Canine parvovirus, which has a fatality rate of more than 90 percent if left untreated, is a highly contagious viral disease that causes infectious gastrointestinal illness. Campylobacter, a bacterial intestinal infection, can spread to humans and cause nausea, vomiting, fever, and diarrhea. Not exactly the fun anyone hopes for when bringing home a cute new puppy.

Some states have shut down the puppy-mill pipeline

Some states have started cracking down. California was the first state to ban the sale of puppy mill dogs in pet stores in 2017. New York, home to around 10 percent of all puppy-selling pet stores in the country, followed suit in 2022. Six other states (Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington) have passed similar legislation to help stop the ongoing supply-and-demand cycle that keeps puppy mills in business. 

Where can you adopt a dog?

If you’re ready to adopt a puppy or dog, start with Adopt a Pet to find a local shelter that has the breed, age, and gender of pup you’re looking for. They’ll help you find the right match. So do your homework, and be ready to answer some questions. Is anyone in your household allergic? Are there any young kids in your home? Do you want a small or large breed? Who will share the responsibility of tending to the dog’s daily needs? Some organizations will also help with veterinary costs and behavior training if needed. From there, you may be able to spend time getting to know the dogs in their care — and of course, sometimes all it takes is one look to fall in love. 

Millions of animals enter U.S. shelters and rescues each year. When you adopt, you can feel good knowing your money is going directly to organizations that are actively trying to help animals. While some are victims of cruelty, others are surrendered due to lack of access to care or pet-friendly housing, or their pet parents have passed away. Scared and confused, many are already house-trained and may even have experience with other pets or young children. Adopting means you’re not only bringing home a new family member — you may even be saving a life.

Commonly asked questions

Are puppy mills illegal? 

Unfortunately, puppy mills are not illegal. “People are allowed to have commercial dog-breeding kennels, and none of the commercial dog-breeding regulations have gotten to the point where we can be sure that all of the dogs are living good lives,” says Goodwin. Anti-cruelty laws don’t apply as long as the animals have access to shelter, food, and water — even if that shelter is a cage that’s too small for the dogs to live in comfortably.

What happens to puppies who aren’t sold? 

Puppies who aren’t sold are sent back to the broker or breeder and face a “very uncertain fate,” according to Goodwin. “We can’t expect anything good to come from a dog getting sent back to a puppy mill.” If the puppy is sick or has some sort of congenital issue or physical defect that doesn’t make them good breeding stock, “That’s probably a death sentence.” 

How do I ethically get a puppy? 

If you want to get a dog or puppy ethically, go to your local rescue or shelter. If you have your heart set on a specific breed, you can find many breed-specific rescue groups. You can find adoption-ready puppies of all shapes and sizes on Adopt a Pet. The price of adopting a dog will also be far less expensive than buying one.

Where can I go to play with puppies? 

If a puppy party sounds too good to be true, it probably is: Renting puppies from unethical businesses can also support inhumane breeding practices. “I’m concerned about any business model that relies on a steady stream of puppies, because you get to the same problem,” says Goodwin. Instead, consider researching shelters and rescue groups in your area that may offer interactions with their adoptable pups for folks who volunteer. You can walk them, take them for an outing, and some places even offer sleepovers.