Our Commitment
Petland’s mission is to enhance the human-animal bond and provide life-long companions for our customers. We’ve created strict requirements to help us follow that mission. Petland is dedicated to improving conditions for all dogs in the communities we serve. We do this by encouraging the highest standards of pet care. Our stores establish relationships with pet providers, and we hold our independently owned stores responsible for visiting the facilities from which they purchase puppies for their stores.
Watch the videos below to learn the story of where our puppies come from.
Where do Petland Puppies come from?
1. USDA licensed breeders and distributors
With no direct violations in the previous 24 months. Petland’s operations team stays busy traveling the country visiting breeders. Our operations team looks for breeders that are committed to improving animal welfare. Petland’s Vice President of Animal Welfare Education leads visits to approved breeders to observe their compliance with Petland’s standards. He also works with local, state and federal regulatory agencies and legislators concerning animal welfare issues and education. Petland requires our breeders to provide:
- Safe and comfortable housing with ample room
- Frequent socialization and exercise
- A state-issued health certification
- A consulting veterinarian
2. Hobby breeders as defined by the Animal Welfare Act
These are the small-scale breeders who raise their dogs in a humane manner.
Petland Standards: The Highest Breeder Requirements
In our many years of business, we have been leaders in encouraging the betterment of breeders. We require our breeders to comply with all federal, state, and local laws and to maintain our own standards for breeding.
APHIS inspectors from the Animal Care division conduct unannounced compliance inspections to ensure that the animals receive good care and treatment.
We require our breeders to go above and beyond these strictly enforced standards. Here are a few things we require our breeders to provide for the pets in their care:
- A consulting veterinarian providing good medical care.
- A consulting vet must create a written program for the breeder to follow that ensures the health of the dogs and is available for the USDA to inspect and review.
- The breeder must maintain written veterinarian records of the medical care they perform.
- The vet must provide vaccinations against diseases and parasites such as:
- Parvo
- Distemper
- Hepatitis
- Leptospirosis
- Rabies
- Bordetella
- Internal parasites (intestinal worms, heartworms, blood parasites)
- External parasites (fleas, ticks, flies)
- Prior to arrival in our store, every puppy will have received a minimum of two vaccinations against the major viruses that can affect puppies and dogs.
- Every puppy will be current on de-wormings and preventatives against common parasites (Coccidia and giardia).
- The vet also consults with the breeder operations team to provide good nutrition, exercise, hygiene, and socialization for the puppies and dogs.
- Safe and comfortable housing.
- We require all our breeders to maintain structurally sound and protective housing that keeps the dogs and puppies at their facility dry and clean.
- It must protect animals from injury and have no sharp edges or places for them to get hurt.
- It should keep them from getting out and into trouble while providing them enough space to walk, sit, and lie comfortably.
- It also must have convenient and easy access to clean food and water.
- Frequent socialization and exercise.
- During our breeder visits, we make sure our breeders provide opportunities for the dogs to exercise – with other dogs and with humans.
- This includes access to an open area or run or a group area where puppies can play with each other.
- A state-issued health certification.
- Every puppy that is sold to Petland must have a State issued health certificate from the state of origin and signed and attested to by a licensed veterinarian.
An ongoing, transparent process
At Petland, we investigate any claims about breeder facilities that don’t meet our requirements. We recognize and respect sensitivities to these issues, as no one is more sensitive than we are to our puppies’ health and care.
