Shih Tzu dogs rescued in Allegan County 'have opened people's eyes about puppy mills'

ALLEGAN, MI – The more than 380 dogs rescued from a Cheshire Township puppy mill on April 9 have come a long way from the un-groomed and urine-soaked state they were in on that day.
Some of the Shih Tzus have already learned their new names and were running around playing with each other outside at the Allegan County Animal Shelter on Tuesday, waiting to be adopted and taken home.
Around 36 dogs and six puppies rescued from the puppy mill remain at the shelter in Allegan, Julie Kowal, office administrator of the Allegan County Animal Shelter, said. A few of the dogs have found new homes and the rest have been taken in by other area shelters.
The shelter has received more than 1,300 applications to adopt the dogs and have narrowed the candidates down to 70 or 80. The people who are chosen to take home a dog will be required to attend a puppy mill seminar on April 30 to learn how to care for the dogs.

Nicole Cappello, 16, volunteered at the Allegan County Animal Shelter to help socialize with the rescued dogs and make them more adoptable.

None of the dogs needed to be euthanized, but many are in need of some emotional re-habilitation, Kowal said.
"Some of them aren't used to the attention and are a little stand-offish," she said.
Kowal said the attention the dogs have brought to the shelter have helped increase the number of adoptions at the shelter by 50 percent in the past couple of weeks because people have come in and seen other pets in need, Kowal said.
"This has opened people's eyes about puppy mills. It highlights the importance of spay, neuter and adopt," she said. "You don't have to go to a breeder to find a good pet."
Kowal said potential owners will be coming to the shelter to meet the dogs so that the dogs will go home with the best fit possible. While the majority of the applicants will be disappointed to learn they won't be getting one of the rescued dogs, she hopes they will look for other dogs already in shelters to adopt.
A "thank you party" will be held on May 20 at the Silo in Allegan from 1 to 7 p.m. to show the shelter's appreciation to all of the vets, groomers, volunteers and people who donated money or other goods. Don Brown has helped organize the event that will feature six bands, food, a cash bar and more activities that will be announced later.



Two of the dogs rescued from the Allegan County puppy mill play outside of the Allegan County Animal Shelter.