Think occasionally of the suffering of which you
spare yourself the sight. ~Albert Schweitzer
Not photoshopped! This is real!
I'm a native of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. This is my first blog post as Ambassador of animal rights and welfare. I'm a golden mantled ground squirrel often mistaken for my smaller chipmunk cousins because of my stripes.
I am passionate about making the world a better place for all life. My current mission as I travel around the world is to bring attention to the many changes so desperately needed for all my furry, feathered and finned friends.
My first big initiative through my campaign PAWS FOR LAWS is to create legislation that will put an end to puppy mills. Most puppy mills are legal to operate in the United States! The goal of PAWS FOR LAWS is to put an end to the puppy mill atrocity. I also want to see mandatory jail time for animal abusers.
HEARTS UNITED FOR ANIMALS (HUA) is a national no-kill animal shelter, sanctuary and animal welfare organization dedicated to the relief of suffering. They rescue dogs from all over the country and specialize in long distance adoptions. They take creatures who are lost, afraid, hungry or ill and comfort them, give them a warm, soft bed, good food, medical care and most of all, love. READ WHAT THEY KNOW ABOUT PUPPY MILLS at this link:.http://www.hua.org/about-puppy-mills.html (The website host is having issues with links today. My apologies!) 
The Puppy Mill documentary explores the domestication of dogs and how our demand for the ultimate family pet has led to increasingly inhumane treatment.
According to the Humane Society, " In most states, a breeding kennel can legally keep dozens, even hundreds, of dogs in cages for their entire lives, as long as the dogs are given the basics of food, water, and shelter." This is outrageous people! This should be illegal and perpetrators of the law should be punished with mandatory jail time.
The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) that congress passed in 1966 outlines a bare minimum of standard care for cats and dogs and certain breeds of other animals sold commerically. One big loophole is that dogs sold through puppy mills over the Internet or directly to the public are not federally regulated at all.
The Humane Society reports that "only large-scale commercial facilities that breed or broker animals for resale—to pet stores for example—are required to be licensed and inspected by the USDA because they are considered "wholesale" operations. Those that sell directly to the public—thousands of facilities that breed and sell just as many puppies as their wholesale counterparts—are not required to adhere to the Animal Welfare Act or to any federal humane care standards." MORE INFORMATION WHAT YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
Don't buy puppies from pet stores unless you know first hand the source of the puppies. Visit your local animal shelters instead or personally know your breeder and the dogs' living conditions. Bear in mind, there are so many homeless dogs out there who long to be loved. AND ONE MORE THING! Pass this link on to people who care. Post it on Facebook, Twitter, your blog and websites. Help Jasper and Chippy and his recruits get the message out. Many thanks!
Read the list of things that can be done to help stop this atrocity at HUA: http://www.hua.org/about-puppy-mills.html
Look for a coming blog by Boy Chip and Chippy where they are reporting from the streets of Greece. Animal abuse is heart wrenching there and needs the world's attention to help generate change.
