Following the other thread on pet shop puppies, I thought I'd ask for some advice. This isn't really relevent to the other topic, so I thought it would be better to start a new one.
I have a pet shop near me that sells puppies, they're not pedigree so don't come from a traditional puppy farm, but I think they originate from irresponsible owners who let their bitch get pregnant and then can't be bothered to find homes for them. The pet shop pays for them and the rescue centres don't, so guess where they take them?

The pet shop is part of a fairly small chain all in the north east, and they have been fined before for the appalling conditions they keep their reptiles in.

I've decided to do something about it. I've got an idea of the course of action I'm going to take, and wondered if anyone can give me any advice (or even help if you're in the area!).

The first thing I'm going to do is get some evidence from as many trainers and behaviourists as I can that explains how psychologically harmful the pet shop environment is to young puppies, and how it interrupts with their socialisation, teaching them that people are very scary, as well as making the house training difficult because the poor pups have been shut in a cage, forced to go where they stand so they don't make the effort to be clean any more. I'm going to get all the information, and send it to the pet shop first, give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that they don't already know. I will point out that there are pet owners in the region (myself included) who will never buy anything from them because of the policy on selling livestock. If they made a stand against this trade, and stopped selling them for the good of the animals they may find that they wont lose any profit because responsible owners will start shopping there again.
I'm then stuck on what to do next! I would like to lobby the council to not reissue their license, and go to the papers to publicise how damaging it is to dogs and cats to be bought in this way. If that didn't work, I would want to organise a demonstration outside their shops, handing out leaflets containing the facts to shoppers and people walking by. My question is, how much of that is illegal? Has anyone else attempted something similar and what happened? Any advice or things I should be doing that I've missed out?

thanks in advance,
Jo

Good for you Jo :-)
I have no idea re: legal implications. Hopefully someone here can help. We need more people like you who are prepared to try and do something. I really wouldn't know where to start but Good Luck!

Why don't you get in touch with a local dog charity/rescue centre and see if they can help you with researching the legalities etc? Also evidence from new puppy owners (bought from the shop) who have had more than the average problems might help?

You'd have to be careful in any literature you produce (leaflets etc) that you don't actually name the shop and don't say anything you can't back up with hard facts. However there is nothing wrong with handing out leaflets in a public place (ring your local police station to let them know what you're planning) promoting the use of rescue centres and reputable breeders etc ;)

There might also be a charity nearby that does neutering/spaying at a reduced rate for those on benefits - I'm sure they would let you publicise this on the leaflet. Maybe you could gather everyones ideas and come up with a 'non specific' leaflet that could be used in lots of different areas?

Good luck :)

I think another problem with dogs being sold in pets shops is alot pf people walk past and see how cute they look, buy them without really thinking about it then realise how much time and money it can cost to have a puppy.

If you stage a demo outside a pet shop I am about 85% certain they can have you moved on by the police. I would check with the council first about this to make sure you will not get yourself into trouble. I don't think anyone could stop you from handing out leaflets unless the front of the pet shop is a car park which they own, if it is a pavement owned by the council then you should have no problems. The pet shop probably know how damaging selling pups can be in their shop but they do it anyway.

Good luck though, I agree with you 100% that dogs should not be allowed to be sold in pet shops and what happens to those that are not bought????