We need a new name for "puppy mill"

That sounds far too palatable.

Northwest Cable News (and other media outlets) obtained and aired a copy of the video used to document the puppy mill raid from Snohomish County in January.

Sick enough? Yeah.

Well, yet another mass breeding operation was busted up in Washington, this time in a rural southeastern county.

Apparently they thrive like weeds over there. Who's going to complain? Neighbors? They have none.

Since the recently-passed "puppy mill bill" doesn't take effect until 2010, I think I will send a form letter to all 39 counties in Washington and ask them to provide their specific plans for law enforcement response once it does hit the books. How do they plan to enforce this law? Will they dedicate any resources? Will they make these victims at least somewhat a priority?

I'll need volunteers to write letters to the county governments in question. If they realize upfront that there are watchful eyes, perhaps they will reconsider any plan to look the other way.

Stay tuned.

Is there any hell hot enough?

Prosecutors in Snohomish County, Wash. have charged Jason and Serenna Larsen with six counts of felony animal abuse in connection with a suspected puppy mill "ring" operating in two adjacent counties.

The Larsens are alleged to have overseen one of several properties in which dogs belonging to a woman -- who has not yet been charged, but is under investigation -- were severely neglected, left in dangerously unsanitary conditions, and in one case was placed into a freezer and left to die.

Read the story from Seattle's KOMO News.

'Nuff said. For now.

Dog Wrangler

So here I am, babysitting two of my favorite dogs on the planet.

Portia and Gucci's daddies are stomping around Panama (hey, they've been everywhere else: Why not?) and I'm spending a good part of my days keeping a border collie entertained.

Anyone ever had a border collie? I think the term "hypervigilant" was coined in their honor. I have never been tracked this closely .. even by my editors :)

Gucci is an elderly dachsund who is failing in sight and vision. She gets around the house quite well, but I snatch her up and snuggle her every chance I get.

Why do I share these anecdotes?

Simple.

There are people out there who claim to be properly prepared to oversee "kennel" operations of 50 dogs, alone.

One word: Bullcrap.

NO ONE can keep on top of the basic physiological needs of evolved animal companions with that sort of ratio. Whom do you think you're fooling?

I suppose your bottom line is pumping out puppies for sale to people unaware of the horrid conditions in which their parents live. Most likely you don't even know who their parents *are*. Shame on you.

As we approach Mother's Day, I want to send a wave of love and sympathy for the momma puppies kept shackled and shut out from a normal life, so that these "business owners" may turn a profit.

Rant over.

Busted!

Support The Bark magazine, a stellar publication dealing with a wide variety of issues of interest to dog people and animal lovers in general. Thank them for publishing my puppy mill story by subscribing. You won't be disappointed.

Make a pledge to help stop puppy mills!

My fundraising campaign has hit $650 in pledges from dog-loving angels.

Help me meet the goal of $2500 by May 13! Even a small $10 pledge will add up if enough of you band together.

Who loves animals?

Most people do. Even the hardcore type that present a curmudgeonly facade is likely to be defensive of her or his relationship to a pet.

There's not a shred of curmudgeonry in Ron Reagan Jr., but his national talk show on Air America radio is hardly the venue you might expect for a discussion of puppy mills and animal abuse.

But after emailing a link to my fundraiser to his producer, Tina Nole, I was invited to appear on the show and talk about my work.

See, Ron and Tina are big-time dog-lovers. BIG-time. Some of you may be familiar with Ron's work as emcee for big-time dog shows. Tina, I suspect, is also a dog freak. I know this because I sent them a news release for a fundraiser in February aimed at raising money for the Skagit and Snohomish county rescue groups and shelters. Bad timing on my part: They were just set to go national (congrats, guys!) and it would have been inappropriate for their format.

Fast-forward to the publication of my article in The Bark magazine, and my fundraising campaign to initiate a nationwide investigative journalism spree, and you have a suitable topic for a radio show hosted and produced by a couple of mutt nuts. Yay for dogs!

So on Monday, May 4, at 7 p.m. EST, I'll be in Ron's Seattle studio, live, on-air, answering questions about the local and national implications of mass-breeding, otherwise known as "puppy mills."

Tune in for Ron's entire show. It airs from 6-9 p.m. EST on Seattle's KPTK AM 1090, and other Air America stations around the country (check with the Air America site to locate a broadcast in your part of the world, or stream it live from Seattle's site).

They say politics is a dog-eat-dog world. Just maybe they don't know the half of it.