An undercover video investigation shows that many New York area pet stores are getting their pets stocked by so-called “puppy mills” with a history of USDA violations.

The Humane Society of the United States checked out over 100 New York area stores and found most of them bought dogs from puppy mills. NBC New York cross-checked that list with USDA inspection reports and found that many of the breeders had USDA violations. You can read the full investigation here.

Puppy mills concentrate on breeding large numbers of dogs at a time and conditions can be cramped, and exercise, veterinary care, and interaction with other dogs and humans can be limited. The socialization that happens, or doesn’t happen, during the first 14 weeks can be crucial to whether behavioral problems crop up later, Dr. Ann Hohenhaus of the Animal Medical Center in Manhattan told NBC New York.

After being confronted with where their puppies were sourced from, the pet stores interviewed by NBC New York pledged to investigate and cut off any suppliers who were found to be puppy mills.

The piece airs tonight on NBC New York at 5pm.

View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.

NY Pet Stores Supplied by Puppy Mills: Humane Society [NBCNY]
HSUS Undercover Investigation Exposes the Suffering Behind New York Pet Stores [HumaneSociety.org]

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