According to the UK Kennel Club, one fifth of puppies will die or become ill before they turn five years old. Canine health crises have been attributed to unscrupulous breeders, rising living costs, and virtual sales in the coronavirus pandemic.
A Kennel Club survey of over 3,000 British dog owners found that 22% of puppies die or become ill before reaching the age of one year. According to The Telegraph, this number rises up to 36% for dogs that were purchased before their owners meet them.
It is clear that puppy buyers who have never seen their puppies in person are not caring about their health. According to the Kennel Club, there’s been an increase of threefold in people purchasing puppies via social media. A third have bought dogs without ever seeing them in person.
One in nine dogs are now being collected from a neutral location, meaning buyers aren’t able to see the conditions in which they were raised.
No matter where their puppies are from, owners find themselves increasingly unable to pay for vet bills when their pets become sick. The Kennel Club discovered that 33% of all new owners agree with this statement, despite inflation exceeding 10% in the UK and the possibility of a severe winter for millions of Britons. “I don’t know if I can afford to keep my dog if the cost of living continues to rise.”
“The virtual puppy buying habits that were normalized during lockdown – which have enabled shady breeders to thrive – have combined in a perfect and terrible storm with the cost of living crisis,”Mark Beazley, chief executive of Kennel Club, said.
“For anyone thinking about getting a dog, please avoid this heartache and incredible suffering, and make sure you find a responsible breeder, who absolutely prioritizes your dog’s welfare above anything else,”He concluded.
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