Puppy farm defined.

westwicklow

What's the definition,in legal terms, of a "puppy farm" please?
There are a number of agricultural sheds in my area with lots of pups in them.

redvictoria

As there appears to be no legislation governing the breeding of puppys solely for commercial gain, I presume theres no legal defination and "The breeding of puppys solely for commercial gain" is as close as youll get.

Call me Socket

It's tough to put an accurate description on a puppy farm. There aren't really any defined 'legal terms'.....but they are described as a premises which uses multiple breeds for year round breeding (without having carried out the relevant health checks) and have several puppies for sale at any given time. Generally the dogs and pups are kept in poor and dirty conditions with little human contact. The bitches and dogs tend to be in ill health, and therefore the pups will be the same as everything is passed on to them. They can look healthy on the outside, but unfortunately many of them die only weeks or months after being bought. Someone who hasn't done their research and buys one of these pups thinks they are getting a healthy, happy puppy, and just aren't aware that the pup needs treatment til it's too late.

The tricky thing with this is that buyers presume that if a pup is registered with the IKC then that guarantees good health and a reputable breeder. It's not always the case though. Members of the IKC mass produce pups too.