More Bergen Pet Stores Bought Dogs From Inhumane Puppy Mills, Scathing Report Reveals

Two Bergen County puppy stores, including one from Paramus, have been cited in a scathing report by the Humane Society of the United States on the inhumane treatment of puppies by New Jersey pet stores.

Fashionable Pets in Paramus and New York Puppy Club were included in the report. In an undercover investigation, the Humane Society visited all 29 pet stores in New Jersey that sell puppies to examine them and see if they were posting required breeder information about their puppies.

According to the report, Fashionable Pets refused to disclose any breeder information regarding the puppies. No information was posted on or near the dogs’ cages, as required by the New Jersey Pet Protection Act. The HSUS stated that it could mean the puppies could be from, “unlicensed or noncompliant facilities,” but could offer no such proof.

According to records the store provided to the borough, Fashionable pets purchased at least one puppy from Johnny Drake’s J&M Kennels in Missouri in December 2015.

Dake was cited for violating the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) in 2014, including when a dead puppy was found dead outside in the freezing cold, “in a statue-like state,” the report stated.

No one at Fashionable Pets answered the phone when contacted by Patch Tuesday.

The New York Puppy Club in Edgewater had a bulldog puppy from Linda Baker of Okie Pets in Oklahoma in its store in July. According to the report, Bake had several AWA violations in 2014 and 2015, including having a number of sick and injured dogs.

Several pet store owners are refuting reports' findings.

“The Humane Society’s goal is to take all New Jersey consumers’ rights away to obtain a puppy of their choice. Their goal is to only have consumers be able to purchase a dog from a shelter or rescue,” said Cindy Knowles, the owner of Furrylicious, a puppy store in Whitehouse Station that was also in the report. “The Humane Society should not be dictating a New Jersey family’s decision on what is the right pet for them.”

That is also the goal of some state legislators. The state Senate passed legislation this year that would prohibit pet stores from purchasing puppies from anywhere except shelters and rescue organizations. The state Assembly is now considering the legislation.

Knowles testified before the state Senate regarding the legislation.

“New Jersey already has the strictest laws for sourcing and transparency,” Knowles said. “A pet shop is the only place with the resources in place to take care of it.”

Puppy stores and puppy mills made headlines in New Jersey recently after 67 puppies were found inside a van at the Just Pups Paramus location in April.

LoSacco and his brother, Leonard, were charged with 134 counts of animal cruelty after the puppies were found in the van outside the Paramus store. They pleaded not guilty.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com

Related: Several N.J. Pet Stores Buying From Inhumane Puppy Mills, Scathing Report Reveals

Related: 50 Dogs Found In Freezing Van Outside Paramus Puppy Store: Police

Related: Just Pups Owner Charged With 134 Counts Of Animal Cruelty

Photo: Some of the puppies found in cages in a van in near-freezing temperatures outside the Just Pups store in Paramus. Courtesy of Paramus Police Department