Local agencies are still reeling from the weekend discovery of a Jasper County puppy mill, that housed more than 40 malnourished dogs.

The seizure brought in the New York City-based American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and other state-based animal welfare groups.

Allison Cardona, ASPCA director of disaster response, said puppy mills are ongoing problem not just in Mississippi, but throughout the nation.

“Every time you buy a puppy from a pet store, it comes from a puppy mill operation,” she said. “There are places all across the country where profit is put over the actual care of the animal.”

Cardona urged those in the market for a pet to investigate their decision, travel to a breeder’s home or get one from a shelter.

“We have to stop these puppy mills from being in operation,” she said. “What I hope is that people, if they see something that’s not quite right, no food or water, to report it to the police or local rescue operation.”

Cardona said she commended the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department for taking the matter seriously and investigating it.

Charles Chaplin, executive director/president of the Waynesboro-based Tailwaggers for Life, provided transportation of the dogs to the Oxford-Lafayette Humane Society in Oxford, Miss.

Chaplin said this is the first puppy mill case he’s worked on in the state of Mississippi, but there are suspected others.

“A puppy mill is where a person has several different breeds producing puppies without giving the females a break,” he said. “That’s not to say that there are not a lot of responsible breeders out there. But, these particular ones are just in it for the money.”

Chaplin said it’s difficult to build a case against a puppy mill because the cooperation of local officials is needed.

“They have to be willing to step up and investigate and press charges against them,” he said. “In this case, Sheriff (Kenneth Cross) is the one that made the move.”

Chaplin said the puppy mill located in Jasper County was set up properly, but the dogs were suffering from lack of care.

“Many of them had no teeth,” he said. “Their hair coats were matted so bad that it was pulling hair out of their skin. One dog had a deformity from birth and couldn’t even walk on its back legs.”

Chaplin offered some simple advice for those looking to purchase a dog.

“Ask to see the parents and how they’re cared for,” he said. “If they’re willing to show you the parents of the dog and they look to be in good shape, more than likely they’re taking care of all of their animals.”

Chaplin said groups like Mississippi F.A.C.T. (Fighting Animal Cruelty Together) are working to change the laws in the state of Mississippi regarding animal cruelty and neglect.

“Right now, misdemeanor offenses are all that you can get,” he said. “They hope to get a law through in the next session that would change it to a felony.”

In Jones County, Sheriff Alex Hodge said there aren’t many reports of puppy mills, but the office does field calls of animal neglect.

Dr. Wayne Adams, a Meridian-based veterinarian, who provided physical exams on scene, said this was the first puppy mill rescue he had worked on.

“My job was to see if the dogs were stable enough to transport,” he said. “Two were sent to emergency hospitals, and three are in my care here. I’ve got two small basset hounds that were not strong enough for travel and another basset hound that has a uterine infection.”

Adams said most dogs rescued were suffering from emaciation and malnourishment.

“They just weren’t being fed and taken care of,” he said. “They had eye infections. Some had deformed legs and limbs. There were a lot of dogs with skin infections or parasite infections.”

Unfortunately, Adams said there were some dogs that had to be euthanized.

“One dog had a large hernia with their intestines hanging on the inside of their leg,” he said. “A couple had severe medical conditions where nothing could be done to enhance their life.”