Iowa's First Statewide Puppy Mill Awareness Event

Iowa has more than 230 USDA licensed “puppy mills” or commercial dog breeders, with more than 23,000 adult dogs that live out their lives in cages.

(This number doesn’t include the unlicensed commercial dog breeders that we often hear about in the news!)

Iowa, alone, sells more than 100,000 puppies to pet stores and over the internet. After seeing a lack of knowledge among Iowans about this topic, it was clear that something more widespread needed to be done. I decided to reach out to many shelters across Iowa, and many of them jumped at the opportunity to help spread awareness about puppy mills in their area.  Although puppy mill awareness day is September 15, that isn’t stopping these guys from making puppy mill awareness a month long event.

 Below is a partial list of participating groups that wanted to join in for a great cause. These groups deserve a huge thanks from all of us, as they are the heroes in our state. Please consider attending one (or all!) of these events and help those that are truly trying to save lives and remember to stop by their facebook pages and thank them for all that they do! (Please keep checking the original article frequently, as it is updated daily with new events!)

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DECORAH, Iowa- September 8th, 2012. The Humane Society of Northeast Iowa (formerly known as PAWS) will be hosting an “Adopt, Don’t Shop” event at Critters and Such Pet Care 2339 179th Ave, Decorah from 11am to 1pm. It is up to you to free the HSNEI youth from their cages with donations for keys! This amazing group of volunteers really took this idea and ran with it! Please consider attending this fun and informative event!  For more information, “like” their facebook page and stay up to date on the latest news in your area!

MASON CITY, Iowa- September 15, 2012…. Please visit the Humane Society of North Iowa at their facility to check out their new puppy mill awareness display! They will have a booth set up with information for a few weeks in hopes of spreading the word! Don’t forget to “like” their facebook page.

DAVENPORT, Iowa- Friday, September 21st, 7pm – 10pm K9 Kindness Rescue will be hosting Trivia Night at the Knight’s of Columbus 1111 W. 35th Street Davenport. This fun event does cost $10 per person or $80 per table, but it is a fun-filled night that is sure to entertain and educate you! Call 563.391.1908 to make reservations – tables fill up quickly! They are non-profit and all of the proceeds will go to animals! Please like them on facebook and stay updated on this event and more! 

WILLIAMSBURG, Iowa- September 23rd, 2012. Safe Haven of Iowa County is hosting their “Walking Fur All Fours” annual dog walk, and will be highlighting puppy mills! I will add the location and time of this event when I am made aware of it!  Join this great cause on facebook!

FORT DODGE, IOWA- October 7th, 2012. Almost Home of North Central Iowa will be hosting their Family Flashback days at…. This fun family event will include races, pie throwing, other games, as well as events that will educate the visitors about puppy mills. Head on over to theirfacebook page  and stay updated on the latest news from Almost Home! 

DAVENPORT, Iowa- October 14th, 2012.  The Humane Society of Scott County will be hosting their annual Fall Fur-stival at their facility 2802 West Central Park Avenue, Davenport from 2-4pm. Lots of fun, games and education is to be had at the Tail-gating PAW-tay… Top Tail-Gaters choose a theme with games and recipes to share but no alcoholic beverages, please! Earn the most Visitors’ Choice votes for your PAW-tay and win a Best of the Lot prize! Want to show your team spirit? Pet parents- dress your pet  up to show your team spirit and  YOU could win the Top Prize vote from a celebrity judge! Please visit their facebook page for more info. 

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   Here are a few of our out-of-state participants. 

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DAMARISCOTTA, Maine- September 8th, 2012. The Maine Citizens Against Puppy Mills are attending WOOF STOCK at Round Top Farm in Damariscotta, Maine from 10 am til 4pm. Over 23 rescues will be in attendance as well as the H.S.U.S, Maine Friends of Animal. Our partners, The Maine Citizens Against Puppy mills will be having an educational table there, educating many of the consumers on the dangers of shopping for pets! This event will also have an all breed dog show, agility demo’s, obedience demo’s, a yard sale and all around dog fun all day long! Please consider attending this fun event and don’t forget to “like” them on facebook! 

WOODBURY, Minnesota- September 9th, 2012. Peke N Chin Midwest Rescue will again be participating in the Open House held at All Breed Obedience in Woodbury from 10 am to 2 pm.  This is a terrific event focused on what families can do with their adopted canines for fun once they bring them home, such as rehabilitation, therapy work, search and rescue training, obedience classes, etc… All members of the public who attend are encouraged to bring cat and dog food that is donated to the participating rescue groups at the end of the open house! Please consider attending this event   and please give this rescue the thanks that they deserve! Head over to their facebook page and give them a shout out! 

OMAHA, Nebraska- September 16th, 2012. The Pug Partners of Nebraska are hosting a Car &Dog wash at the  The Green Spot Omaha – 72nd and Pacific (1110 South 71st Street Bay K Omaha, NE 68106).  They will working fundraise and raise awareness about puppy mills! The prices are $10 for a car wash/$10 dog wash/ $10 dog nail trim, or all of the above! Click here for the event on facebook and don’t forget to “like” this amazing rescue on facebook. They work hard to rescue many pugs from puppy mills! 

SALEM, Massachusetts- September 22, 2012 from 12 – 5 PM. Please join PMAD as they help to spread the word about puppy mills in their area! Not only will they be spreading awareness about puppy mills, they will also be having a pooch parade, doggy kissing booths and many more activities! Join them on facebook and check out their event page for more info! 

CHICAGO, Illinois- September 30, 2012 12:00 pm. Join The Puppy Mill Project as they march down Michigan Avenue in honor of Puppy Mill Awareness Day. Route Begins at Michigan Avenue and the Chicago River. Help them show Chicago and the world that dogs are still man’s best friend! Register for the event here.

St. Paul, Minnesota- October 6th, 2012. Peke N Chin Midwest Rescue will be attending the The Great Minnesota Pet Together  at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds International Bazaar from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. They will be taking this opportunity to not only adopt out some of their adorable rescues, but educating many about puppy mills and the effect they have on homeless animals in shelters and rescues across the nation. Please consider attending this event and showing your support to Peke N Chin Midwest, as they have rescued many dogs from puppy mills! Don’t forget to head over to their facebook page!

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(This original article will be continuously updated as I receive more event info. Some groups are still putting the finishing touches on their event info.) If your group would like to be included in this event, please send us an email at peopleforanimals2011@hotmail.com …. Join the rest of the state in standing up against puppy mills! If you are interested in brochures about puppy mills, please send me an email as well and I will send you the file! 

I would like to send out a special thanks to Happy Medium,  who worked very hard on flyers for these events! They were efficient, hard-working and I would recommend them to anyone that needs marketing of any kind!

**I also want to note that Bailing Out Benji never asks for donations. All of the work we do is simply because we love animals.**

While there is another puppy mill awareness event going on in September, I was asked never to mention them in my articles as we are not “affiliated” with each other. Please do not try to correct this non-mistake in the comment section as it will be deleted.

And AS ALWAYS, please “like” Bailing Out Benji on Facebook. And don’t forget to share this article, to give these events the publicity that they deserve!