A group of protestors took to the street in front of Animal House on May 7, but the pet store’s owner said their claims against his business are unfounded.
The picket line of about 20 people included Calgarian Tracy Mahdi, spokesperson for the Facebook group ‘Boycott Animal House Okotoks.’ She said the purpose of the demonstration was to raise awareness of puppy mills.
Mahdi said her group believes pet stores selling puppies are putting the emphasis on profits rather than animal care, and they are trying to encourage people to stop buying dogs from retail stores.
“We don’t want to see them go out of business, we want to see them stop selling puppies,” said Mahdi. “We believe change is affected by reducing their consumer dollars.”
The group meets outside a Calgary pet store every Saturday with their signs to protest puppy mills, she said. This was their first time in Okotoks.
“If people stop showing them support by not buying puppies, it becomes a market that no longer makes sense for them to be in,” said Mahdi. “If that takes an all-out boycott to get them to change their ways, then that’s okay too.”
Animal House owner and dog breeder Ty Marshall said the puppies sold in his store do not come from puppy mills. He said they are from his own farm and a handful of breeders, whose professional kennels “would put some houses to shame.”
“We want to produce healthy puppies,” said Marshall. “You see the bad breeders and puppy mills showing up on the news and the Internet, but those are few and far between. All our dogs get painted with that image.”
He said the Alberta SPCA has not had any concerns with Animal House or with his farm, where he breeds dogs.
Rowland Lines, communications manager for the ASPCA, said the organization does not have an active investigation against Marshall or the pet store.
“He could be truthfully saying he’s in compliance but other people may not agree with what he’s doing,” said Lines. “They could have complained about how he runs things even if he’s not doing anything wrong.”
Marshall said he runs his store and his farm at a very high standard. He said it’s important his puppies are healthy and come from reputable breeders in good standing with the SPCA.
During the recent parvo virus outbreak in Okotoks, many Facebook users began pointing the finger at Animal House.
Marshall said none of the puppies were sick while they were in his store. Though one dog purchased at Animal House was confirmed to have contracted parvo virus, he said the rest of the litter she came from has not been sick.
He said with an incubation period of three to 14 days, it’s difficult to know where the puppy contracted the disease.
