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

Several New Jersey pet stores are purchasing animals from puppy mills that have inhumane practices, including one that shot animals in the head as a form of euthanasia and another that kept small dogs outside in sub-freezing temperatures, an undercover investigation by Humane Society of the United States revealed.

Investigators with the Humane Society visited all 29 pet stores in New Jersey that sell puppies to check conditions and see if they were posting required breeder information about their puppies. The society said it also examined documents that reported the origins of more than 1,400 shipments of puppies sent to pet stores in 2015 and 2016.

The HSUS published a report Monday on the extensive investigation.

Some of the stores, including Fashionable Pets in Paramus, failed to disclose any breeder information to the potential buyer, in apparent violation of New Jersey law, the report states. Some of the puppies at NY Puppy Club in Edgewater were in cages so small that they could do little more than turn around.

“It does bring up a lot of animal cruelty concerns,” said Kathleen Summers, director of outreach and research for the investigation. “If they are coming from distant states, that type of sale is particularly troubling. Responsible breeders want to meet the people who are buying their puppies.”

The results show that New Jersey pet stores are buying animals from breeders with documented violations of the Animal Welfare Act.

Wayne Puppies purchased puppies from J. Maassen Inc., of Rock Valley, Iowa. The U.S. Department of Agriculture cited the breeder's owner Judy Maassen in 2014 for shooting animals in the head with a shotgun at close range as a “routine method of euthanasia.” The breeder was also cited for poor housing conditions.

The same store reported that it purchased puppies from Bob Mackey of Sayre, Oklahoma. Mackey was cited has having several dogs with advanced dental disease, rodent feces in and around where the dogs’ food was stored, and having a Shih-Tzu with a “red, blood-like liquid” covering its eye, the report states.

Wayne Puppies also purchased puppies from Shonda Madison and Madison Kennels, of Missouri, according to paperwork submitted to the township, the report states. Madison was cited in December 2015 for keeping small, short-haired dogs outside when temperatures had been as low as 29 degrees and not giving the animals adequate protection from the wind and rain.

The owner and manager of Wayne Puppies, who refused to give her name to Patch, refuted the Human Society’s claims. She said that she has worked with her breeders for years and has never had any problems with them.

Wayne Puppies was also written up and fined earlier this year for 27 violations of the Pet Purchase Protection Act, Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced.

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.

In that case, the state filed a six-count complaint against the store's owner, Vincent LoSacco, alleging that he misled customers about the health of puppies sold in his four North Jersey puppy stores. He faces civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each of the 32 violations mentioned in the complaint. At least one customer said her dog died just a few months after buying it. Others said they spent thousands of dollars on veterinarian bills to care for their sick dogs.

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

Vincent LoSacco was written up earlier this year for violating Missouri regulations regarding the keeping and sale of dogs and puppies. The violations ranged from having unhealthy dogs to not maintaining proper health records. He denies running a puppy mill and doing anything wrong.

“You can’t always take the sales talk at these places at face value,” Summers said. “From what we know, the Just Pups situation was one person getting caught for doing something that a lot of other pet stores are doing.”

Several North Jersey municipalities — including Paramus and Wyckoff — have banned the sale of puppy mill dogs since LoSacco’s case came to light.

The state Senate passed a bill earlier this summer that would require stores to only sell cats and dogs obtained from pounds, shelters and animal rescue organizations. The state Assembly will now consider the bill. The legislation — a revision of the New Jersey Pet Protection Act — was referred to the Assembly Agriculture and National Resources Committee, which could decide whether to advance it further or kill it.

“The bill would help a lot,” Summer said.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com

Related: Wayne Pet Store Facing $13,500 Fine From the State

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

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

Photos: 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