Zeus

Hi,

I'm Zeus, and my mom and dad rescued me. I was living at a puppy mill, and the owner wasn't making money selling dogs, so she was persuaded to give up her dogs. I was about 10 months old and had never lived in a home before, just in a kennel. What a difference!

Mom calls me an "instigator" because I'm always trying to get the other dogs to play with me by nipping heels and ears. I like playing with the small ones, like Zia and Linus and Rerun.

Dad says my father must have been an armadillo because I have such a long, skinny nose and hardly and chin. He has such a sense of humor!

Seriously, I told you I was raised in a puppy mill, and I need to tell you about them.

Responsibly breeders use only proper bloodlines, and guarantee their puppies. Puppies are usually not sold before they are four months old, because they need this time for proper socialization with their mother and littler mates. During this time the breeder can determine which ones may be of show quality and which ones are pets.

Puppy mill breeders often sell their puppies at six to eight weeks of age, barely weaned and able to eat commercial food. Sales usually take place on public property such as flea markets and in front of grocery stores, where buyers cannot see the parents or the conditions under which they were raised. Should genetic deformities become apparent, or other medical conditions, the sellers are long gone.

Conversely, these buyers are often "impulse" buyers, who see a cute puppy and decide on the spur of the moment, to buy it. Little thought is given to a growing puppy's needs and when the puppy outgrows the "cute puppy" stage, it often ends up in a shelter or abandoned on the street.

But I was lucky.

Zues