Dog Talk with Uncle Matty: Christmas Pups
By Matthew “Uncle Matty” Margolis Cocaine and marijuana aren't the only things being smuggled into the States from Mexico. Monday evening, border patrol officials in San Diego County stopped Raul Jimenez Gonzalez at the Tecate Port of Entry and, while discussing a bottle of tequila, saw something move in his back seat.
The agents lifted a blanket and discovered 15 mixed-breed miniature poodles. All cute as the dickens. All sick as a dog. Most of the pups have parvovirus, which can be fatal -- and could have been prevented.
According to reports, Jimenez Gonzalez told officers he was taking the puppies to Los Angeles to be sold as Christmas presents. This isn't the first time he's played Santa Claus. He was accused of smuggling 27 Christmas puppies in 2006 and 11 in 2007. Ho, ho, ho.
Yes, Virginia, 'tis the season for puppy smugglers, puppy mills and pet stores.
The enormous demand for Christmas puppies baffles me. For most households, the season is louder, busier and more stressful than any other time of year: people coming and going, travel plans to arrange and accommodate, parties to host and attend. Not to mention an abundance of poisonous plants and shiny glass objects that are largely absent from the house the rest of the year. And outside -- where you and your young pup will be spending a lot of time -- it's cold, gray, icy and snowing. None of this is conducive to the warm, stable environment in which a new puppy thrives.
But when considered against the harsh realities of puppy trafficking and puppy mills, the demand for Christmas pups is more than perplexing. It's reckless.
San Diego Department of Animal Services Director Dawn Danielson commented on the market for smuggled puppies during the holiday season, saying, "Unfortunately, most of these puppies are sick. So the buyer ends up spending a great deal of money trying to save the puppy's life, usually without success."
This is the reality for many pet-store and puppy-mill dogs and cats. The products of careless breeding with little to no regard for genetics, they spend their first eight weeks in bleak, unsanitary and often inhumane environments. And the people who buy them -- either from pet stores or irresponsible brokers -- wonder what went wrong when puppy gets sick.
Compound all of this with the fact that shelters and rescues are filled to capacity. Between the recession and the housing bust, humane societies and animal services are struggling more than ever to stay afloat and accommodate the influx of abandoned pets. If a dog lover has their heart set on a Christmas canine, shelters, rescues and responsible breeders should be where they do their shopping.
But let me offer this one suggestion for those who are on the fence. The perfect Christmas gift for the person -- especially a little person -- who is dying to get a dog is a gift box filled with books about breeds, DVDs on training, and a leash, a collar, a blanket and a few toys for the pup you'll begin looking for after the holidays. Wrapped in a big red bow, of course.
Woof!
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Dog trainer Matthew "Uncle Matty" Margolis is co-author of 18 books about dogs, a behaviorist, a popular radio and television guest, and host of the PBS series "WOOF! It's a Dog's Life!" Read all of Uncle Matty's columns at the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com, and visit him at www.unclematty.com. Send your questions to dearuncle.gazette@unclematty.com or by mail to Uncle Matty at P.O. Box 3300, Diamond Springs, CA 95619.
Copyright 2009 Creators Syndicate Inc.
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