|
| |
Ways and Means
Ironically, one day after I submitted my last TNT column profiling commercial
transport of puppies, the infamous Petland deal became front page news. Everyone
was caught off guard concerning this AKC proposal but the timing could not have
been worse. Anyone previously uninformed about the commercial breeding industry
got an instant education after an August 14 truck fire killed 60 puppies en
route from a Midwest broker to northeast pet shops. AKC delegates were
understandably upset that a contract with a pet shop chain supplied by this
transporter was presented as routine business during a meeting.
Their reason for the plan may well have been justified from a business
standpoint. AKC regularly emphasizes that “dog registrations have been on a
downward spiral since 1992” At the 9/12 meeting, AKC’s CFO tactfully got to the
heart of the matter stating the need to “address the needs of all customer
groups” This is unquestionably a well tested business model that has worked to
advantage for the Kennel Club in England. He went on to clarify this plan,
explaining that “AKC is embarking on a strategic relationship with Petland that
involves educating their employees about the benefits of AKC registration.”
Actually the plan involved more than education. Even so, the potentially
valuable information likely to be dispensed by Petland sales clerks remains open
to debate. The arrangement would have allowed Petland store clerks to complete
online AKC registrations for customers at the time of sale, including a
processing fee to Petland. AKC argued that this would not only ensure the
registration of AKC eligible puppies, it would provide them with a platform for
education and oversight.
It is also questionable how much income this would generate. There are 136
Petland outlets in 30 states, concentrated mainly in the Northeast. The chain is
well established in the tri state area, where the majority of mill raised
puppies are sold. However, it possesses nowhere near the size or brand
recognition of Petsmart or Petco. Although neither of those chains sells puppies
AKC has merchandise that could be marketed in pet shops. This would have had the
same results of raising awareness about AKC, dipping into the pockets of pet
shop customers and promoting responsible dog ownership- without endorsing a
practice it has traditionally condemned.
Throughout the meeting delegates asked if AKC eligible Petland puppies would be
furnished with limited or full registrations. They were informed that this
designation is the breeder’s prerogative. And of course, the breeders of Petland
puppies are far removed from the action. Nor is it unlikely that a Petland clerk
would be stepping into this role, as AKC regulations make no provision for that.
Another point, which was not raised at the meeting, was exactly how the online
registration process could be utilized for brokered puppies. AKC registration
procedures permit online registrations only for puppies registered by the
breeder or acquired directly from the breeder. As far as I know, AKC regulations
also make no provision for online registration of brokered puppies.
The precise content of the contract was not made public although it was defended
as a means to “promote AKC registrations” This is a valid argument. After
enjoying a century-long monopoly on the dog registration business, AKC now finds
itself in the middle of the capitalist fray. There are now 22 organizations
competing with AKC for registration fees. As AKC termed it “their registrations
are being pirated”.
Kim Townsend, owner of the Nopuppymills.com website furnished the following
statistics supporting this assertion. “I sorted through 5000 records from my
PetShopPuppies.com databases. Until 2001, AKC had virtually 100% of the
[registration] market...they had 100% up until 1998, then a few other registries
started showing up with less than 1% of the puppies being sold in pet stores.
So, I started my chart beginning in 2002, which is when I began keeping records
of pet shop puppies (customers that have purchased puppies earlier, dating back
to 1988, also completed reports, which is why I have earlier statistics).
Attached is the chart. You can see AKC is really hurting.” She also notes. “Just
recently, in the last few months, almost all Hunte puppies are AKC registered”
Hunte not only brokers and transports puppies to Petland franchises, they own
several of them.
300,000 - 500,000 commercially-bred puppies are sold annually through pet shops.
This industry has been plagued by complaints of animal abuse for decades. In
theory, at least, there is a functional regulating system in place to oversee
the industry. At this delegate meeting it was reported that AKC inspected 4500
high volume breeders last year. It was also stated out that the Petland contract
would provide AKC with greater latitude to conduct “care and condition”
inspections. However, AKC has no authority to inspect brokers or pet shops. In
fact, pet shops are not regulated by USDA or in many cases by any state agency
Kim also provided this information regarding USDA inspections.
“The USDA is the federal agency primarily responsible for policing commercial
dog breeding. Currently 70 inspectors are employed to do this. The total number
of USDA licensed facilities includes 4869 Class A breeders and 1217 Class B
brokers (licensed to breed as well as broker puppies). So as of August 2006,
there are 6086 USDA licensed dog dealers. Between Oct 1, 2003 and September 30
2004 USDA conducted a total of 13,886 inspections including 6001 inspections of
4571 Class A and B commercial dog dealers. From the period 1 Oct. 2004 to 30
Sep. 2005, USDA inspections reported 20,845 violations affecting 1,364,358
animals. This includes zoos, research facilities, etc. in addition to commercial
breeding operations.
Each inspector conducts approximately 200 inspections per year. Based on a 5 day
work week, 11 paid federal holidays and 2 weeks paid vacation, an inspector
works 239 days a year. That averages to less than one inspection a day. That's
using the averages of 70 inspectors and the 2004 figures. Many people try to
show that USDA is serious understaffed, and they absolutely are NOT! In puppy
mill states in the Midwest, especially Missouri, and inspector can easily do 10
inspections a day, including drive time. But, in places like South Dakota, for
example, that may have 30 licensees in the entire state...some 100 miles apart
and an inspector may only average one a day.”
Obviously, additional supervision is not going to resolve the widespread
problems associated with the commercial breeding industry. So, it is
questionable whether AKC playing a greater role here would make much of a
difference.
The fact that the Petland deal was discussed in Executive Session indicates the
board had some suspicion how the news would be received. They should not have
been surprised by the fancy’s overwhelmingly negative reaction. Breeders
habitually spend more money on their dogs than they can justify. However, no
self-respecting dog breeder would consider selling to a commercial breeder to
make the rent money- or expect his peers to overlook such actions because of
extenuating circumstances.
For decades, serious breeders have agreed to bite the bullet, and put up with
stringent requirements, rising fees and intrusive inspections to protect our
studbook. And commercially bred puppies have long been regarded as the chief
threat to the integrity of the studbook. AKC regularly reports on DNA parentage
testing - and resulting suspensions and litter cancellations. This pales in
comparison to the danger posed by crossbred puppies certified as purebred and
subsequently introduced into breeding programs. And we all know this goes on.
Merle Chihuahuas and Pomeranians are just two recent examples of previously
unknown colors suddenly surfacing in purebred gene pools. It is common knowledge
that the AKC studbook contains suspect bloodlines. But, as serious fanciers, we
know which ones these are and we avoid them. We not only submit to AKC policies
we do damage control on a personal level to protect the integrity of our breeds.
But compromising the studbook is far from the only drain that commercially bred
puppies place on responsible breeders
Commercially-bred rescue dogs place a tremendous emotional and financial strain
on our resources. Almost every breed club engages in ongoing fundraising to keep
their costly rescue programs afloat. Breed clubs not only pour countless
thousands of dollars into cleaning up the mess created by the commercial
breeding industry. Personally, I don’t know a single breeder that has not at one
time or another adopted or fostered dogs coming from these sources. Someone is
definitely making money on commercially produced purebreds- but someone is also
footing the bill for this unregulated industry.
One of the earliest threats to AKC’s existence came about because its
“customers” felt disenfranchised. Within a decade of AKC’s formation, fanciers
made it clear that they not only wanted a registry service, they wanted to
participate in policy making agendas. AKC responded to this demand- at first as
a matter of survival. For decades, clubs participated in AKC political affairs
on some level but many important matters continued to be decided behind closed
doors. This two tiered system really did not come into question until breeders
found themselves caught between a rock and a hard place in the early 1980s-
namely the AR agenda and the commercial breeding industry. Breeders (real ones)
wanted AKC to take a serious stance on these issues threatening purebred
survival. AKC eventually began confronting the legislative dangers of AR after
much harm had already been done. They have been much slower to address the
problems created by the commercial breeding industry. In the days following the
Sept. 12 meeting, the fancy made its feelings on the subject abundantly clear
and the Petland contract was ultimately canceled.
“In the past few weeks we have received many comments about this agreement, both
positive and negative. We have listened to the concerns and because this issue
has become so divisive, we believe it is in the best interest of our sport and
the American Kennel Club not to go forward with this initiative.” Ron Menaker,
Chairman of the Board, Dennis B. Sprung, President and CEO
The fancy breathed a sigh of relief but the instigating problem remains. There
is no question that AKC is in need of new revenue sources but they may be
overlooking one of their most valuable resources- the potential long-term
contribution of novice breeder/exhibitors. In defense of the Petland deal, AKC
also pointed out that elitism could be the death knell of the sport. This is
true, but courting commercial breeders is not the only way to encourage a more
user-friendly environment.
Another topic raised at this meeting was the fact that show entries are dropping
in part due to dearth of new people entering the sport. Purchasing and
registering a puppy in no way guarantees an individual’s future contribution to
AKC activities on any level. Perhaps AKC should focus more efforts on
cultivating and retaining the interest of novices. For one thing, experienced
breeders and exhibitors are far more likely to provide responsible dog ownership
advice than Petland clerks.
Every successful breeder and exhibitor started out as an enthusiastic novice.
Later successes can eclipse our memories of the hurdles encountered at that
stage of the game. Beginners are consistently made to feel uncomfortable and
unwelcome at shows, and actively discouraged from trying their hand at breeding-
due to their lack of experience. On the other hand, their lack of experience
makes them a perpetual defenseless target for unscrupulous breeders and
handlers. It is easy to understand why they give up and get out. Ironically,
these are generally the people who made the effort to do some research and took
the time to purchase their dog from a reputable breeder. Rather than playing
with fire by handing out full registration privileges to pet shop buyers, we
would be better advised to stop squandering our most precious resource.
|