Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks for the review copy, which I received free of charge in exchange for this honest review. This book is for sale now.

Kress provides a great deal of salient information in this pet store expose; she’s done her research, and explains the ways in which laws fail to protect pets sold for profit, and she has some strong proposals of her own.

I expected to appreciate this book more than I did. I am a volunteer for Seattle Beagle Rescue; I write this review with Beagle Bailey, the fourteen-year-old rescue dog I am caring for in his golden years, flopped on my foot. I am also a fool that once, many years ago, purchased a cocker spaniel from a pet store. (As far as I know, nobody in Washington State actually puts puppies in a display window anymore, but sometimes they broker a purebred adoption.) That dog was gorgeous, but she was a mean little shit, and we had to adopt her out to an older couple that didn’t have children. At the time I figured it was a matter of bad breeding practices, but after reading Kress’s book, I have to wonder what was done to that pup when she was tiny.

The information here is solid, but the writing style didn’t work for me. You can only read so much wall-to-wall horror without wanting to put the book down; I get it already, don’t beat me! In addition, there’s a personal thread about the struggle she and her spouse went through trying for a (human) baby, and while I suppose that might have worked, somehow it didn’t. Instead of feeling confidential, it felt both disjointed and like an overshare.

Once I had begun reading, I realized that although I didn’t know all the low down, dirty details, I have known for decades that nobody should buy a dog from a puppy mill or a pet store, which is more or less the same thing, and it’s widely known. For many readers, this isn’t new information. Most people that go that route do it not because it’s a smart or ethical thing to do, but because it’s easy. When I made that error back in the ‘90s when I bought the cocker, it was known to most people, and to me, that this is an unwise way to get a dog, but I was already badly overbooked time-wise. A solid breeder is often hours away, and sometimes not even in the same state you reside in. And although there’s a lot of bandwagon talk about the benefit of adopting shelter animals, I had failed at this not once, not twice, but five times.

In four cases I had brought animals home that had contracted fatal diseases prior to their shelter vaccinations; the illnesses were dormant, and the shelters weren’t to blame, but when you hold a dying kitty in the veterinarian’s office that many times, you rethink shelter adoptions. And then there was the wild card puppy that turned out to be a German Shepherd and Coon Hound mix. She was one of cutest puppies you’ll ever see, and very healthy, but I can’t deal with a large dog; couldn’t control her, and she kept accidentally hurting the babies. Again, I had to search for a more appropriate home and was lucky to find a great family for her, but it was wrenching. My husband sat down and cried when that family drove away with our dog.

So I am leery of the promise of shelter adoptions; purebred rescues are great, but to get the very best dog for your needs, a solid, reputable breeder is the way to go. None of these variables appears here that I saw; I did abandon the book halfway through, so it’s possible it came up, but this didn’t appear to be the trajectory.

Those that want to know all the details, whether for personal knowledge or as animal rights activists, may want this book, but if you are looking for a sometimes sad but enjoyable read, something that balances out the joys of responsible dog ownership with the cautionary information about disreputable sources, this isn’t it.

This is a timely book as there seems to be growing awareness by the public of the inherent horrors and abuses in the puppy mill system. The more light shed on this topic, the better. That being said, I didn’t just like the book for it’s political statement; I really enjoyed reading it as a book. The author writes clearly, her research seems well done and her more personal anecdotes are touching. Well done, Ms Kress.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a dog lover and enjoy reading books about them.

Rory Kress is a journalist. She and her boyfriend (now husband), Dan, had just moved in together and decided to get a dog. They went to what they thought was a reputable pet store and spontaneously bought a Wheaten Terrier which they named Izzie.

Rory started to wonder about Izzie's background and that led her to start investigating the commercial dog-breeding industry in the United States and this book is the result. She did a massive amount of detailed investigation, speaking with government officials and undercover agents who went into puppy mills, visiting puppy mills, breeders and dog auctions, interviewing people who have bought puppies from pet stores and puppy mills, and more. She even had Izzie analyzed to see what effect being a puppy mill puppy had on her (it did).

The book was hard at times to read given the treatment of the dogs. It's amazing that with all the regulations and laws in place that puppy mills still exist and breeding dogs are treated has horrific as they are. Yet with all this knowledge out there, buyer still turn a blind eye and buy dogs from pet stores or breeders without first checking out the conditions.

Here in Toronto pet stores can't sell cats and dogs (yay!). They can, though, sponsor adopt a thons with animals from rescues. That's how we've gotten our cats.

Adopt, don't shop!

The author reveals the truth about where those cute puppies in the pet stores come from in unflinching and brutally honest writing. Anyone considering buying a puppy from a pet store needs to read this.

Thought it was a good premise, and certainly good research, it just wasn't that interesting. I'm from the state author was most focused on, while who would likes puppy mills? Certainly not me, just wasn't crazy about the book.
Thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free, it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

Thank you to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book!

When I first saw this title and understood what it was about, I knew I would want to read it. Although in Australia we have different laws regarding the sale of animals, here too we have the problem of 'puppy mills' and it has recently been making headlines. Victoria has actually recently imposed a ban on pet shops selling puppies; a move that I hope in time will lead to less dogs being bred this way. Already in NSW, I have visited many pet stores and chain stores that only host rescue events. Hopefully we aren't too far behind Victoria.

This book primarily is an investigation into where puppies come from in America, and the laws that are in place to 'protect' the puppies, but in reality seem to protect the breeders. Some of the requirements for housing and treating animals is absolutely sickening, and this is just the legal minimum requirement of care. These stressed out, sickly dogs go on to produce litter after litter, until they are 'humanely' killed. The lucky ones are given to rescues or shelters. It was so sad to read of the absolute minimum these dogs receive, if they even get that at all.

The good news is there are small leaps and bounds being made in the industry, just like here in Australia. It's not a problem we can take care of overnight, but one we can all work together towards. It's obvious the author has done exhaustive research into this subject and must be commended in always keeping her opinions back, while still trying to find the truth.

A sad book, and a wake up for some no doubt, but books like this need to exist. Four stars.