Chicago City Council can protect puppies from phony rescue groups

Allowing pet stores to sell puppies from commercial breeding facilities known to spread diseases to humans is dangerous and cruel.

SHARE Chicago City Council can protect puppies from phony rescue groups
Puppy_Mills.jpg

The Chicago City Council this week may vote to close a loop hole in an ordinance restricting the sale of animals from commercial breeding facilities that purport to be rescue groups.

AP

Thank you, Ald. Brian Hopkins for introducing an ordinance to close a loophole in a ordinance on pet stores sourcing their puppies from phony rescue groups. 

Allowing pet stores to sell puppies from commercial breeding facilities that have been known to spread zoonotic diseases to humans is dangerous, especially given the current global pandemic. In commercial breeding facilities, dogs often are kept in cramped cages with wire floors and routine or urgent veterinary care is not obtained. The females are used to constantly produce puppies that are sold at unreasonable prices purely for the profit of the commercial kennel. 

We applaud Chicago’s commitment to become more humane by tightening pet store requirements to promote adoption from legitimate shelters and rescue groups. We urge the City Council to vote yes on this issue.

Michele Patterson
Animal Wellness Action
Puppy Mill Committee Chair
Washington

SEND LETTERS TO: letters@suntimes.com. Please include your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes.

Police doing their job

I watched video of the encounter between Chicago Police officers and protesters at the Christopher Columbus statue, and I was appalled by the behavior of some of the protesters. They ruined a peaceful march by throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks and then claiming police brutality when the police attempted to arrest them. Are you kidding me?

Stop bashing our police for doing their job. 

Tom Plach, Norwood Park

1950s Cubs all over again

Watching the Chicago Cubs and White Sox exhibition game on TV, I was reminded of all the empty seats in Wrigley Field for weekday day games in the late 1950’s. Philip K. Wrigley was too cheap to install lights for night games. The upper deck was not even open for seating. I also remember having to beg for mustard to put on my plain, dried-out Wrigley Field hot dog. 

Thank God back then for Jack Brickhouse and WGN! Now that’s gone, too.

Daniel M. Filipek, Mount Prospect

This is a war

The United States will deal with the COVID-19 pandemic far better if and when it begins to function like one country, with strong and coordinated leadership based on science, rather 50 “countries” led by governors. Citizens must take personal responsible for their behavior, keeping themselves and their loved ones safe while also safeguarding the health and welfare of others. We are fighting a war on multiple fronts. The sooner everyone acts like it’s a war, the better the outcome for our country.

Mary F. Warren, Wheaton

The Latest
Ald. Jeanette Taylor, chair of the City Council’s Education Committee chair, said she’s disappointed that Johnson and his allies in the Chicago Teachers Union backed away from the fully-elected, 21-member board he once supported. “This is not going to be as easy a transition as people think,” she said. “We’re used to a top-down system.”
Alex Caruso has been looking for a defensive showing like the one he and his teammates put on display in the win over the Pacers, but Caruso also knows it needs staying power. Could Javonte Green help that process moving forward?
Christian I. Soto, 22, was charged with murder, attempted murder and home invasion, officials announced Thursday. Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd said earlier investigators haven’t determined a motive for the attacks.
Can a message generated by an algorithm ever match hearing from a human?
White Sox fans from all over will flock to Guaranteed Rate Field on Thursday for the team’s home opener against the Tigers.