If you know anything about puppy mills and backyard breeders, you will be able to spot what is going on here a mile away. No reputable breeder would sell their puppies to a pet store, so where do you suppose all these "designer mixes" and "purebred" puppies are coming from? Puppy mills. First off, you will most likely have to wait months before you are able to take your puppy home from a breeder. Unlike puppy mills, they are not forcing their female dogs to breed over and over again until they can no longer produce puppies (which at that point they are either auctioned off or killed). Not to mention, these breeding dogs will spend their whole lives in small wire cages in extremely unsanitary conditions. The goal of a puppy mill is literally to maximize profit by reducing overhead (aka prioritizing profits over the health and well-being of the animals).
It's common for people to think that by adopting a puppy from a pet store, they are "saving" that puppy, which could not be further from the truth. Purchasing a puppy mill dog only helps to keep puppy mills in business. If you are going to spend $3000 on a dog, then you would be much better off adopting from a reputable breeder. Not only will your dog be temperament tested, properly socialized, and well-nourished, but you will most likely end up saving thousands of dollars on veterinary bills in the future.
You do not "adopt" a pet from Friendly Pets. You buy a pet. There is a big difference between the two considering there a little to no screening procedures, no contracts, or follow-ups when you "buy" a pet. In other words, pet stores could care less where these puppies end up. This is clearly evident in the way Friendly Pets keep these puppies crammed in tiny cages with wire bottoms. Oh and one other thing, you may notice that these puppies will be "AKC Registered" but beware, this DOES NOT guarantee that these puppies are healthy and well cared for. ALL it means is that the puppy's parents both had AKC papers, which are easily obtained if the breeder follows certain standards (LOW standards).
PLEASE do not adopt from this store, or ANY pet stores for that matter. It's hard to resist all the cute faces when you go into a pet store, trust me I know, but the puppy mill industry is quite literally banking on that. Go to your local rescue or go to a reputable breeder instead. You'll be helping to put a stop to the exploitative and deceptive practices these stores employ by putting them out of business. This will make it much harder for puppy mills to make a profit and drastically lessen their incentive to continue breeding. read more