Broward declares Puppy Mill Awareness Day
Susannah Bryan
Sun Sentinel
Hate puppy mills? Celebrate Puppy Mill Awareness on Sept. 27
The anti-puppy mill campaign picking up steam throughout the nation has reached County Hall.
Broward county commissioners have declared Sept. 27 as Puppy Mill Awareness Day, urging residents to adopt, not shop.
Michele Lazarow, a Hallandale Beach city commissioner who has championed the anti-puppy mill crusade, was presented with the proclamation Thursday at the Governmental Center.
Lazarow told the crowd she got involved in the movement after buying a sick puppy from a local pet store.
"After realizing that other people were routinely experiencing this financial and emotional cost, I have dedicated my life to stopping this from happening to others," she said. "It is time that we pull back the curtain of the puppy mill industry and understand that 99 percent of all pet stores get their dogs from mills or large commercial breeding farms."
Don Anthony, a spokesman for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida who has partnered with Lazarow, urged the county to follow the lead of 80 cities around the nation that have already banned the sale of commercially bred animals — including 12 in Broward.
County Commissioner Beam Furr, who presented Lazarow with the proclamation, said Broward plans to pursue a ban soon.
"As a dog owner, I know that family dogs and cats are not pets, they're family," Furr said in an email."Yet nothing hurts a family like watching a family member grow sick to the point where you can no longer care for them. Unfortunately, puppy mill breeders have put families in Broward County in this horrible situation too many times.I hope that Broward County and the cities can continue working on this important issue as part of our goal to make Broward a no-kill shelter community."
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Contact
Commissioner
Michele Lazarow
400 South Federal Highway
Hallandale Beach 33009
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
954-457-1320