Tell Lawmakers To End Cruelty In Pennsylvania’s Puppy Mills

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Sponsor: The Animal Rescue Site

Pennsylvania promised to protect its dogs, but years later, thousands still suffer in filth and neglect while the state renews licenses for the very breeders breaking the law.

Tell Lawmakers To End Cruelty In Pennsylvania’s Puppy Mills

In 2008, Pennsylvania passed landmark legislation to end its long-standing reputation as the puppy mill capital of the East. The Dog Law reforms were meant to protect breeding dogs from lives spent in filth, confinement, and neglect. Nearly two decades later, the promise has not been kept.

A new investigation by Lady Freethinker found that neglect, cruelty, and squalid conditions persist in kennels across 36 counties1. Dogs were discovered trapped in dark sheds, standing in their own waste, or panting in enclosures where temperatures climbed over 100 degrees. Some had untreated injuries. Others, sick or unsellable, were killed and discarded as if their lives meant nothing.

Even licensed kennels — facilities approved by the state — were cited for filthy floors, poor ventilation, and matted, urine-soaked coats. Yet most of these operations remain open. Many have been cited repeatedly over several years and continue to receive license renewals with little more than written warnings or small fines2.

Reform Without Enforcement

Investigators and advocates agree: the law is not the problem — enforcement is. The Pennsylvania Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement has been underfunded and understaffed for years, making it nearly impossible to monitor hundreds of breeding facilities statewide2. Without enough officers or consistent oversight, even serious violations go unchecked.

In 2025, Pennsylvania ranked among the top five states in the Humane World for Animals’ “Horrible Hundred” report, which lists the nation’s worst offenders in commercial dog breeding3. Inspectors documented recurring violations: cages caked with grime, food and water contaminated with feces, and dogs left without veterinary care. One breeder in Lancaster County had been cited for welfare violations nearly every year for a decade.

Lives Lost in Bureaucracy

Budget cuts and political hesitation have allowed this suffering to continue. Animal welfare laws are meaningless when those sworn to uphold them lack the tools or will to act. Each inspection photo — a trembling dog in a rusted cage, a puppy hidden in a filthy pen — exposes a system that values convenience over compassion.

Advocates are calling on lawmakers to fix what’s broken: fund the enforcement bureau, hire more wardens, and make inspection data public so that no breeder can hide abuse behind a state license. These simple actions can stop generations of dogs from being born, bred, and broken in silence.

Take Action

Pennsylvania’s dogs have waited long enough. Every day without action is another day animals suffer in cages while their abusers go unpunished. Sign the petition calling on the Governor and the Pennsylvania General Assembly to increase funding, strengthen oversight, and enforce the laws meant to protect them.

It’s time to keep the promise — and end the cruelty for good.

More on this issue:

  1. Evan Shamoon, Lady Freethinker (27 October 2025), “New Report Exposes Ongoing Neglect and Abuse in Pennsylvania Dog Breeding Kennels.”
  2. Timothy Alexander, MyChesCo (29 October 2025), “Pennsylvania’s Puppy Mill Problem Persists Despite Years of Promises and Reform Efforts.”
  3. Clark Kauffman, Pennsylvania Capital-Star (14 May 2025), “Pennsylvania Puppy Mills Cited in National Nonprofit’s Annual Report of Violators.”

The Petition

To the Governor of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania General Assembly,

Pennsylvania once vowed to end its reputation as the puppy mill capital of the East. In 2008, sweeping reforms were introduced to protect dogs from the filth, neglect, and suffering that had plagued breeding kennels for decades. Yet nearly twenty years later, countless animals still endure lives of misery behind closed doors.

A 2025 investigation by the nonprofit Lady Freethinker revealed that licensed breeders across the state are still violating basic welfare standards. Dogs have been found in cramped, filthy enclosures without clean water or ventilation. Others suffer untreated injuries and illnesses, forced to live in darkness and waste. Despite these clear violations of state law, many of these operations continue to receive renewed licenses — facing little more than small fines or written warnings.

This failure is not due to a lack of legislation. It is due to a lack of enforcement. Pennsylvania’s Dog Law reforms cannot protect animals if there are too few officers to uphold them, too little funding to inspect kennels, and too little public oversight to hold violators accountable.

We call on the Governor of Pennsylvania and the General Assembly to take immediate action to strengthen enforcement and restore integrity to the state’s animal welfare system by:

  • Increasing funding for the Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement so inspections and follow-up investigations can occur regularly and effectively.
  • Hiring more officers dedicated to monitoring and investigating breeding operations across all counties.
  • Requiring annual public reporting on kennel violations, enforcement actions, and repeat offenders to ensure transparency and rebuild public trust.

These measures are not only practical — they are moral imperatives. Dogs are sentient beings capable of fear, pain, and love. To allow them to languish in neglect while breeders profit from their suffering is to fail in our most basic duty of compassion.

By restoring proper enforcement, we can close the gap between law and justice. We can make sure every dog in Pennsylvania — from the smallest puppy to the oldest breeding mother — is treated with the care and dignity they deserve.

A stronger, more transparent system will not only protect animals. It will reflect the compassion and humanity that define a truly civilized state.

Sincerely,

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