Breeding for Profit In Rural America.
Traditional livelihoods, such as farming, have become more challenging due to rising land costs, changing agricultural markets, and modernization pressures. Breeding dogs is now a large part of the economy in rural America. It offers a stable and lucrative income source that requires less land and labor compared to farming.
Dogs in commercial breeding facilities are legally treated like livestock, rather than pets. Dogs are forced to have litter after litter, confined to barns and sheds. Vet care, space and warn humane interaction is minimal. Many operate in ways that prioritize cost over the welfare of the dogs.
Demand for Purebred and Designer Dogs
The increasing demand for specific dog breeds, especially designer breeds like Cavapoos, Goldendoodles, and Mini Bernedoodles, has driven the expansion. Breeders have tapped into this market by producing high-demand breeds for pet stores, brokers, and increased online puppy sales.
Minimal Overhead Costs
Many breeders keep the dogs in kennels retrofitted in barns or sheds on their properties, reducing the need for extensive infrastructure beyond what they already own. Land, barns, and structures are converted into breeding facilities with minimal investment.
Concentrations Of Commercial Dog Breeders in Rural America.
High concentrations of commercial dog breeders are located in rural communities across the country. The highest concentrations of commercial dog breeders in rural America can be found in the cultural communities of:
- Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
- Holmes County, Ohio
- Shipshewana, Indiana
- Daviess County, Indiana
- Southern Illinois (Arthur and surrounding areas)
These rural regions and communities often present a charming, rural facade, but behind the barn doors collectively, high volume commercial dog breeding operations house thousands of breeding dogs.
Conditions for Breeding Dogs
Many breeders are licensed commercial breeders operating with federal or state dog breeding licenses and some are not. Commercial breeders often keep the dogs in kennel setups designed for high-volume production. While these operations can comply with USDA and state regulations, the standards for housing, care, and space are minimal:
Housing: Dogs are typically kept in dark barns with limited heat and electricity, pole buildings, or similar facilities.
Lack of Socialization: Dogs in these facilities live with limited human interaction.
Cages: Overcrowded and stacked cages are common, with the size only required to be six inches larger than the dog itself.
Overbreeding: Dogs in these facilities can be forced to bred at every heat cycle, often until their bodies can no longer produce litters. Inbreeding can increase health and genetic issues.
Vet Care: Minimal veterinary care is provided, as it can cut into profits.
These conditions can lead to physical and emotional suffering, which is why it is critical to research and visit any breeder you are considering purchasing a puppy from.
Behind The Barn Doors of Rural America.
Commercial breeding dogs are essentially considered livestock, especially if the breeder holds a USDA license. Housing can be outfitted for large (hundreds) or small (twenty) scale dog breeding. The dogs spend their lives living and breeding in these facilities. Their purpose is to produce puppies. Many shut down emotionally and are living and forced to breed with painful conditions.
How Are Puppies Sold?
Commercial breeders, utilize multiple methods to sell puppies, including:
Pet Stores: Puppies are often sold through puppy brokers who collect litters and transport them to distribution centers. From there, they are sold to pet stores across the country.
Online Websites: Many breeders use well-known online platforms to sell their puppies. These websites cater to the dog breeders in rural communities who do not use the internet or technology. They photographers to take pictures of the puppies, name them, write a bio about the puppy and list them for sale on the website. The website will then give the breeder a folder on each dog so they know what puppy the customer is calling about:
Lancasterpuppies.com
Greenfieldpuppies.com
Keystone Puppies
Infinity Puppies
Websites we call puppy broker websites, list the puppies and do the communication with the buyers.
PuppySpot.com
Crockett Doodles
Pawrade
Other websites allow the puppy seller to list and sell their puppies directly. These sites are known to have puppy sellers using fake or multiple names and shady business practices.
Puppies.com (formerly PuppyFind.com)
Direct Sales: Puppies are also sold directly to consumers through breeder websites, social media, flea markets, and classified ads.
What happens to the breeding dogs after they are ‘used up’?
Once a breeding stock dog is no longer producing a profitable litter for a commercial dog breeder, it is usually killed. Some are taken to dog auctions and sold in “as is” condition to other puppy farmers hoping to get another litter out of them. Very few are rescued.
Some used up breeding dogs are being remarketed, sold online as rescue dogs needing to be rehomed. They list and sell via well-known online puppy broker websites such as Puppies.com (formally Puppyfind.com), Lancasterpuppies.com, Greenfieldpuppies.com, Dogsnow.com, NextDayPets.com and many others.
