According to The American Veterinary Medical Association, dogs are the most commonly owned companion animals in the U.S. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), they are also the most abandoned animals in the U.S. Further data provided by the ASPCA estimates that every year 3.9 million dogs are placed in shelters, and 1.2 million of them are euthanized due to overpopulation. This overpopulation is largely the result of a lack of pet adoption due to competition with dog breeders and puppy mills. According to the ASPCA, 28% of dog owners purchase their pets from breeders or puppy mill supplied pet stores. When people choose to adopt their dogs they are not only saving their life, they are also helping to curb the overpopulation of pets in animal shelters as well as standing against the harm caused to animals by puppy mills.

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The bond between humans and canines has developed over the course of thousands of years. Information provided by ScienceMag.org estimates that dogs were domesticated sometime between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago. SmithsonianMag.com explains that as the years have passed, dogs’ key relationship with humans progressed from that of hunters and protectors to that of casual companions. With the popularity of canine companionship rising over the years, the market for commercial breeding establishments was born. Commercial breeding establishments were created in order to quickly breed mass amounts of purebred dogs to meet consumer demands. According to studies, of the 10,000 puppy mills that exist in the U.S today, only 3,000 of them have ever received regulation by the U.S Department of Agriculture.

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Generally speaking, animal rescues run on pure donation and goodwill of animal lovers. It is very rare for an animal rescue to receive any help or funding from the government. These rescues are dedicated  to rescuing unwanted, abused, neglected, abandoned, and relinquished pugs and placing them into new forever homes.

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