The Wallkill Rotties!

Have you heard of the Wallkill Rotties? No? Well, very briefly, there is this 64-year old woman who lives in Middletown, New York. She had a puppy mill (aka unlicensed dog-breeding centre) with around 74 Rottweilers. According to reports, these dogs were in deplorable and heart-breaking conditions - bent legs, blind in one eye, housed in mud and filth, skin issues, flea ridden cages, stale food and water; it was almost unbelievable.  

On Facebook, there was a rage among dog-lovers and rescuers alike, all striving to get people to sign a petition for maximum punishment for her cruelty. The petition can be found here, signed by 12400 people currently. A dedicated group on FB, which currently has 3325 members has been doing a wonderful job of spreading the message, helping in finding foster homes for the rescued dogs and collecting money for the cause.

Personally, I was shocked after reading the reports and seeing the pics of the pain and misery these dogs had to go through. I urge every reader of this post to check out the Facebook group. The dedication, empathy and determination of the supporters comes so clearly through! And God knows those dogs needed it. I really shudder when I think of how many dogs worldwide must be being subjected to terrible abuse for the sake of money. 

The tale related by one volunteer really tugs at my heart. Ive reproduced it below from the Petition Page:

I was a volunteer there on the second day of clean-up and this is the tale I have to tell....

When we arrived on this 'persons' property she had the top of her driveway chained off preventing any vehicles from entering. As I am not good at judging distances, I will just tell you the drive way is LONG. Approx 10 of us climbed over the chain and carried 40lb bags of donated dog food up this long driveway to feed and leave for the owner.

The first kennel I came upon was separated from the others and had a small young female full of milk, but no puppies. She circled and whimpered, clearly distraught at not being able to find her puppies. We did the best we could to find a semi dry, safe place to leave the bags of dog food and continued on to where the 'real' kennels were. My heart sank. As a Rottweiler owner for 15+ years, to see the condition these dogs were in made me wish I wasnt a human.

Walking the length of dilapidated, uncovered kennels, I saw dogs that were born with black hair, now brown with caked mud. I saw dogs with eyes swollen shut from infections. I saw dogs with legs so bowed that you could fit a basketball between them. One little girl had paws that turned completely in, her front legs so severely bowed she could barely walk. I saw dogs, so shut down, they laid in the far back corner of their kennels with eyes that said "please just let it end". In one kennel, was a small female, missing a front leg, stuck in mud so thick she couldnt walk; in another a dog with an eye that looked like it had been pushed in, the eyeball a solid milky white color. An occasional rat running parallel through the kennels, the only form of 'toy' these dogs have ever seen. Kennel after kennel after kennel, of what was once a noble, intelligent breed, circling in their enclosures, broken mentally and physically.

All of us swallowing our anger and heartbreak got to work cleaning the empty kitty litter containers used for water... broken and bent metal bowls with jagged edges for food. We fed and we watered, we gave treats to those trusting enough to take them. All of this being done, while being watched by the owner of the property from a second floor window of her house.

Tarps were brought to partially cover the kennels and give the dogs some semblance of refuge from the elements and provide shade. Blankets were brought to put in the sparse, dirty, broken Dogloo houses, barely big enough for a dog 50lbs, never mind 2-3 rottweilers.

Eventually the owner came out of her house. She approached me and stood in front of me staring directly at me. In that moment what I saw made my skin crawl. Dark, empty eyes looking at me and for the 1st time in my life I knew I had met someone completely devoid of a soul. She walked away and proceeded to refuse the tarps, the blankets and the dog food. She wanted all of it removed from her property. ALL of it.

When the time had come that all the dogs had been fed and given fresh water and there was little else that could be done for the day, I picked up a bag of dog food, forcing my feet to put one in front of the other and walk away from these dogs, knowing I was leaving them behind in hell. After a 3 hour drive home, I changed my clothes, showered, sat on the floor with my dogs and sobbed for the rest of the night.

This is why I signed this petition!

Courtesy: https://www.change.org

That puppy in the window!

All the posts labelled That puppy in the window! are dedicated to the dogs who are worse-off due our mistakes, intentional or not!  Being a new pet owner myself and having learnt some very harsh lessons, I feel obligated to share them with you.
So you decided to get a pet? A puppy or a kitten possibly. Is your mind conjuring up a “cute” puppy??


How would you go about it? Would you just go to that shop near your house and get one? Or ask around for a  person who sells puppies and pick one? Or would you check for puppies online and find breeders in your city that sell pups?



In India atleast, from what I have seen there are 3 major factors that determine this choice – Breed, looks & price!

Let us quickly review these criteria:

Breed – Often, too little thought is put into the breed of the dog. Breed is often selected based on size and appearance. The importance of choosing the right breed cannot be discussed in this one post but heres a quick summary – at the very least you, need to think of the following when you are choosing the breed of your dog:

1. Do you want a working dog?
2. How big is your house, how much yard space can you give your dog?
3. How big do you want your dog to be; saw its mom? 
4. How much exercise does your dog need daily? Can you provide it?
5. Are the the weather conditions in your city suitable for the breed?  
6. Would you want dog to be a guard dog?
7. What will you do if the dog gets too big and powerful to handle? 
8. Are you a lap-dog person?
9. Are you willing to put up with a dog that sheds hair?
10. Do you want a "show dog"?

Although it should not be the deciding factor, take a breed selector quiz online, it’ll give you an idea of the factors that the choice of breed should be based on!

Appearance – possibly the most misleading criteria. Like they say appearances can be deceptive; but in this case, it can not only be deceptive but potentially quite disturbing for both you and the dog  if you base your choice solely or mainly on the appearance. Consider these things when you are considering getting a puppy thats “cute”.

1. How was this puppy bred? Did the breeder test the parents for genetic defects and health before breeding? Or is he/ she a backyard breeder? Genetic issues like Degenerative Myelopathy can show up later in life and be very painful for both the dog and you!
2. Is the puppy registered? Are the parents registered? In India, the puppy (if coming from a responsible breeder) will mostly be registered with the Kennel Club of India! Pure-bred dogs will usually have their pedigree on the Pedigree Database!
3. Is the puppy socialised? Is the breeder aware of puppy imprinting?
4. Does the puppy confirm to the breed standard? Does the puppy’s mom confirm to the standard?
5. How did the breeder choose the two dogs for breeding?

In India, where the dog industry is actually quite undeveloped for the most part, you may find that the breeder has no idea what you are talking about when you ask these questions. If you are buying from a family who keeps dogs and doesnt bother with the above, I’m not saying it is bad. I’m just saying you should be aware and prepared for the issues the puppy may have! Our two puppies were bought from a puppy mill, only we didn’t know it then. It doesnt make the happiness our dogs bring us any less, we love them just the same. But we all need to be aware. The other thing that goes into  this decision is – for every puppy we buy intentionally from a puppy mill for whatever reason, we are endorsing the practice. Do we want to do that?

Price – Price is important, not just the price of the puppy but also the cost of maintaining it. Do your homework on the probable expenses of every kind – food, vaccinations, vet visits, medical emergencies, kennels or yard fencing, etc. Regarding the price of purchasing the dog,  the lower a dog/ puppy is priced by a seller, the harder you need to inquire why! I’ll leave it to you to figure this one out! :)

Image Source - http://www.alegoo.com