The horrors of the Lancaster County puppy mills is a prime example of how our government officials from county to state to national level have turned their backs on the farming community. It is one thing to allow agribusiness factory farms to move in on needy farmers and steal their dignity away. But it's worse to think we have taken away the Lancaster County farmers' staple crop of tobacco which was grown on our farms for generations and not help them by introducing a equally sustainable cash crop in its place. Instead, our government simply looked the other way. Now we are up in arms because they have found that raising puppies is a lucrative business. I am not for tobacco. Nor am I for the continued abusive business of raising dogs in these horrendous conditions. I am for our government officials to come clean on their silence in helping our family farmers. When tobacco crops were stripped from our farmers' fields in this county we could have easily reintroduced another strong, productive and financially sound crop in allowing our county farmers to grow industrial hemp. Industrial hemp is one of the easiest and profitable crops grown today. Its uses are incredible. For those of you snickering, thinking I'm talking about "grass" or "weed", do some research. One would have to "smoke" an entire acre of the stuff to even get the same feeling as a glass of beer!

Industrial hemp is used in the production of everything from clothing to rope to vitamin supplements all over the world, the closest being Canada where those farmers are reaping the benefits. I commend the only political party willing to stand up for family farmers and the plight that our government has put them into, resorting to puppy milling to save their farms. I'm glad to hear that the Green Party is willing to push the reintroduction of industrial hemp for our family farmers. East and West Hempfield Townships were named that for a reason! Let's give our farmers back their livelihoods so they don't have to resort to running puppy mills in Lancaster County.

Sounds like a problem that Gib Armstrong and others should be looking into inorder to get better control of puppy breeding practices.

Industrial hemp sounds like an excellent alternative to puppies. There are also organic vegetables which the tourists would snap up, furniture, sheds, the list goes on. If puppies are such a good honorable business than why are there hundreds of unlicensed puppy mills, why aren't dogs listed on the Department of Agriculture's web site as a product since they are considered an agricultural product, why do some of these mills use code words to identify the location to the brokers, and why is it such a hidden secret from the general populace and of course the tourists. Obviously no one is that proud of it.
For every dog produced in these puppy mills, a shelter dog is killed. There is absolutely no need to produce millions of dogs, common sense tells you that there is more supply than demand or homes. And to breed dogs to be sold for research! Unbelievable!

Right on the money baby.

Marie N, your post is full of misconceptions. The Dog Laws may say that wire cages can't be used or feces can not pile up, or fall on other dogs, BUT, in puppy mills these conditions DO exist. This is the problem with puppy mills. They do not adhere to the weak, inadequate "laws". Look up puppy mills on the internet and educate yourself. The illegal breeders are indeed a huge problem, but so are the licensed ones. Both licensed and unlicensed practice inhumane treatment, and total lack of care. Dogs in these places receive no adequate nutrition, their teeth are infected and rot out by age 3, they have eye and ear infections, fleas, worms, tumors. They are kept outside in wire cages and have frostbitten ears and feet. Or they are kept in dark dank stinking barns or sheds, wire cages stacked high. The mother dogs are bred time after time as early as 6 months of age. They are never ever let out of the cages. These unfortunate mothers produce the puppies that are shipped in crowded refrigerator trucks to the pet stores you want to buy a pup from. The pups are not socialized, thus it is very hard for them to be a good pet. They are inbred, many have birth defects that do not immediately show up.
As far as the Puppy Lemon Law goes: that is weak and inadequate as well. Buyers must notify the Seller within 2 days of purchase that the dog is ill, and they must provide a certifications of health within 5 days from the veternarian. This is totally unreasonable as many of the diseases do not show up that quickly after purchase, and the dog may not even be able to be seen by a veterinarian in that short of time. Money spent on vet bills can easily exceed the purchase price and the current law only requires the breeder refund up to the purchase price.
Your comment that Humane Societies are worse than these dog factories is one that I can't comprehend. Granted each one has their own set of standards. But if you educate yourself you will find that the majority have only the best interests of the dogs and puppies at heart. The Humane League of Lancaster County is non-profit, run on donations. in 2003 the expenditures were more than the receipts. They work tirelessly to find good homes for countless deserving pets. Volunteers give many hours of service. People dump their animals there for many ridiculous reasons, but the Humane League takes them all in. It is not a money making venture, but the cash crop puppy mills certainly are.