Should pet shops be regulated?...If so, why?

They should. What goes on in those, at least from what I hear, is disgusting.

Yes. They are potential breeding grounds for all kind of diseases, not to mention the question from what sources they get their animals from and how they treat them.
They should be held to similar hygiene standards as hospitals and clinics.

I don’t think pet stores should be in operation period. There are so many animals up for adoption at shelters already, they don’t need to make a business out of animals.

No question about it. They sell puppy-mill dogs, illegally imported herptiles and birds, can treat animals cruelly, and need to be carefully vetted.

inb4 “but the free market hurr durr”

I’m parroting what pdworkin says :)

Those places are a disgrace to humanity. I don’t have a problem seeling pets (many of you know I breed Goldens) but they solidly support puppy mills. I can’t STAND that.

I agree w/ @pdworkin

@Symbeline…Thanks for your reply…Very few people see what goes on in the “back room”

@ragingloli…Thanks ragingloli…I do agree.

@HumourMe…Thanks for your input!

@pdworkin…I had to google puppy-mill dogs…That should be outlawed…Thanks for the heads up.

@phillis…Hi phillis, thanks for your reply…I had to google “puppy-mill”...I had no clue this was going on.

@BBSDTfamily….Thanks

Hi, azlotto! It was going on for so many years before I ever knew anything about it! I didn’t learn about it until maybe three years ago, when I researched breeding goldens. It’s a despicable, inhumane practice :(

Well, I agree with everyone!! Always have gotten my animals from a shelter.

Faye! Hi, darlin! It’s good to see you!

I’ve seen the responses… just want to point out that almost all pet stores get their dogs from puppy mills. Even “breeders” of purebred puppies can be secretive puppy mills. It’s ALWAYS best to adopt, from a local shelter or rescue. Doesn’t really matter if it’s purebred or mixed if you’re getting it as a companion, right?

Hi, Stemny! Good to see you! I wasn’t a backyard breeder

Personally I believe that pet shops should only be allowed to sell things for your pet and not sell pets themselves. Here in the UK it is not longer accepted to sell dogs and cats in pet shops but a lot of the small animals (hamsters, mice, rabbits, reptiles etc) still are.

@phillis What kind of dogs did you breed? Just curious, it’s something I always wanted to do when I was a kid!

Golden retrievers :)

Absolutely. At most pet shops, the animals look unclean, mangy, and unhappy. At one pet store I visited, customers were not allowed to touch or play with the puppies unless they were going to buy them. As a result, the poor puppies engaged in neurotic behaviors, like excessive barking, jumping, and trembling because they were so deprived of contact with humans or other dogs. Businesses like that one should be shut down.

Good God, ld! I would have made it a point to be the squeakiest wheel the ASPCA and other authorities ever heard, until that place was close down permanently. That’s the saddest thing I ever heard, animal related. They were so close to finding loving homes, but those chances weer ripped away from them. Good grief :(

@phillis I think the owners have already shot themselves in the foot. The last few times I went, hardly anyone was there, and people who did go in left pretty quickly. I believe their days are numbered.

I don’t typically gloat over the misfotunes of others, but in this case I’ll make an exception

The pet shop in the mall here is like that… and the pups are obviously from a puppy mill.. a litter here and there of purebred dogs that look sick and weak.

It should be against the law to sell dogs in pet shops. Period.