Puppy mills are breeding facilities that produce purebred or hybrid (mixes of purebred) puppies in large numbers. The puppies are sold either directly to the public via the Internet, newspaper ads, at the mill itself or are sold to brokers and pet shops across the country. The documented problems of puppy mills include overbreeding, inbreeding, minimal veterinary care, poor quality of food and shelter, lack of socialization with humans, overcrowded cages and the killing of unwanted animals no longer able to produce babies.

To the unwitting consumer, this situation frequently means obtaining a puppy facing an array of immediate veterinary problems or harboring genetic diseases that do not appear until years later. In 1994, Time magazine estimated that as many as 25% of purebred dogs were afflicted with serious genetic problems.

Sadly, some dogs are forced to live in puppy mills for their entire lives. They are kept there for one reason only: to produce more puppies. Repeatedly bred, many of these "brood bitches" are killed once their reproductive years are over. Thousands of these breeding operations currently exist in the United States, including some in Wisconsin.