Petside Items: Hoarding or boarding?

It’s not new news that 752 dogs — mostly Chihuahuas — were taken Thursday from what officials called a "puppy mill" just outside of Tuscon, Arizona, but the deeper issues of this situation may never be fully unraveled.

How do you stash 800 animals in one homestead, even if they are the size of toy breeds? How is it that the homeowners have not been charged with a crime? And what about the neighbors? Was there some secret code of silence? I can’t imagine my neighbor sneaking that many animals in or out without me noticing.

And since Wanda and Billy Jones were known to advertise their pups for sale on the Internet, surely people saw ‘strangers’ driving up and pulling out with something in a bundle or a small cage?

So, when is the right time to take action? Our friends over at The Pet Blog offer some tips on what to do if you smell a rat in your neighborhood.

The local Arizona Humane Society faces huge financial challenges for the intake, care, and adoption of these new residents. Screening of the well-meaning new parents is also an arduous task.

And guess what, those stray cats I mentioned the other day in Randolph, Iowa have been given a reprieve. The city council voted to stop the $5 bounty after groups convinced them there were other options – mainly to focus on cutting down reproduction instead of roaming.

Indulge me in another ‘I told you so’ moment – as a matter of fact, elsewhere in Iowa – the pets being orphaned from foreclosures strikes again.

West Michigan is also taking a hard hit, as pet owners suffering foreclosure often end up downsizing to apartment buildings that don’t accept pets.

Just to brighten things up a bit for the weekend, let’s not forget St. Patrick’s Day.

Our good friends at Polka Dot Pup have some great suggestions as to the original meaning of going green!

Send us your news items from you town at stories@petside.com