Animal Awareness

"Cowspiracy," a Netflix documentary, explains that consuming meat/fish products is not environmentally sustainable. Highlights the costs of animal agriculture/aquaculture on our planet.

"Food Inc.," another Netflix documentary, shows the abusive practices of slaughtering animals for human consumption in the meat industry that are common in factory farms.

"The Puppy Store" in Merrick

Owner arrested for animal cruelty: http://www.liherald.com/stories/merrick-puppy-store-owner-arrested-on-animal-cruelty-charges,100705

Shocking Google Reviews:

"The store seemed very clean and the puppies seemed to be well taken care of. The staff seemed very nice and helpful. I have always been against purchasing a puppy from a store, I know better than that but I couldn't resist. The dogs are not healthy and they do not come from a breeder. All though the owner gave me all the records for my pup and told me he came from a breeder, I learned through my research that my pup came from a mill. Basically he lied to me about where the pup came from and that he was healthy, he's a salesman and he needs to sell these dogs. DON'T BUY FROM HERE, GO TO A SHELTER OR A BREEDER. He has been sick since the day he came home. Cough, worms, parasite and he barely eats. I've been to the vert 3 times in 2 weeks and he's not getting any better. I went to the vet recommended by this store and yes everything was included but he's still sick so that doesn't really matter now. I have a poor sick little puppy to take care of."
"This place is terrible. My dog got groomed here and he had to be given antibiotics due to trauma to his eye that caused an ulcer. The reason is unknown fully but the vet said most likely from shampoo. I called to just let them know to be careful next time and was spoken to rudely and surprisingly was cursed at and hung up on. If I could give a zero I would. The way this place is run is terrible they do not care for animals, only money."
"The only reason this store gets any star whatsoever is because they sold me a puppy that changed my life forever. Prior to buying our 6mo. old Chiweenie (on sale), these reviews terrified me and sadly I have no choice but to write my own. Having said that, I am 99% sure this store is purchasing dogs from puppy mills, and 100% sure they are practicing an extremely suspicious business. So many things about this store simply do not add up: 1. The man who allegedly owns the store is not only rude, but offensive and unprofessional. My first interaction was him DRAGGING THE PUPPY OUT OF THE CAGE AND THROWING HIM ONTO THE FLOOR in the play pin. The poor puppy was shaking in the corner for 10 minutes before he got up. 2. HE REFUSED TO SHOW US MEDICAL RECORDS while simultaneously offering another pup's folder to the family right next to us. As soon as I came back with a legal document stating they were legally obligated to show them, the woman - all of a sudden - was bubbly and attentive. If that doesn't scream sketchy I don't know what does. 3. When I asked where his breeder was from, they said Missouri. Anyone educated about puppy mills knows that Missouri has the least strict laws on puppy mills. They even had an official certificate from his breeder, Phil Hoover. Has anyone googled Raymond Hoover from Long Island? You will find him on the Top 100 Worst Puppy Breeders list in America, for treating his animals inhumanely. 3. They get mass deliveries of puppies every Wednesday. Interesting. 4. After putting our deposit on the Chiweenie and waiting 2 weeks for him to get examined so we could take him home, they assured us he was "perfectly fine" but had no record of his examination. They said to call their vet. They had no record either. 5. They had a truly lovely Vet Tech present in the store who clearly cared about the animals and initially said the Chiweenie definitely needed more shots, after which she was yelled at by the owner. All of a sudden his shots were perfectly up to date. 6. The Chiweenie was visibly bow-legged from living in a cage for 6months. 7. We looked in the folder with the records they gave us, and there were over 4 forms that they failed to sign when we purchased the pup."
"I came in wanting a cavapoo, I was shown a cavapoo who I was told was completely healthy. The next week, the day before I came in to pick up my dog, I just wanted to ask a few NORMAL questions about the medical record, breeding, etc about the dog. I was told i was to "stop looking at the internet and stop talking to other dog owners". That should have been my sign to run. I was told I'd get all my info the day I brought home my dog. The next day I came in and they brought my dog from "downstairs". I thought that was weird but didnt question. immediately when i brought the dog home, she had a runny nose. The next day the symptom persisted along with sneezing. I called the store and was told I'm worrying too much and that it's normal. The next day my dog would not eat, drink, play, eat treats, etc and was lethargic and wouldn't get out of her cage. By evening she began throwing up from the "medicine" the store gave us. We knew this was an emergency so we brought the dog to the vet. The vet confirmed the dog had pneumonia. We asked the vet how could this be when we only had the dog for 1 full day. The vet said the dog was already sick and was in late stages of an illness. we would have to pay 2000+ to cure her. This was a lot for my family considering we bought her for that price (crazy i know). We had to return the dog the next day. unfortunately the guy who works there is nasty. his first response when we said we wanted to return her was "you shouldn't be owning a dog". Meanwhile this store KNEW she was sick and kept quiet, which was why she was kept in isolation the time we picked her up, after doing thorough research. The vet also confirmed the dog was sick when we bought her. Only after argument we were able to obtain the right to return the dog due to the Lemon Law. Poor puppy, we had already grown so attached to her and vice versa. The man retorted why didn't we go to the vet his store recommended bc it would have been free. GOOGLE THE VET THEY ARE REQUESTING, IT HAS THE WORST REVIEWS. The point besides that is THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE FALSELY CLAIMED THE DOG WAS HEALTHY WHEN IT WAS NOT. THEY SHOULD NOT BE SELLING SICK DOGS TO INNOCENT BUYERS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR A NEW FURRY FRIEND. IF THE DOG WAS ILL THEY SHOULD HAVE TREATED HER BEFORE GIVING HER TO US. So unfair. i hope no one else has to go through such pain for a pet who should be a forever friend. DO NOT BUY FROM THIS puppy store and most importantly ALL puppy stores. They are all scammers who want money"
"DO NOT BUY A DOG HERE! This place is terrible! The owners are so mean and nasty! They don't talk to you when you walk in the store unless it's to yell at you for doing something "wrong." All the dogs are sick and terrified. There are some shady things going on at that place. A lady used their grooming services and her dog came back injured requiring medical attention."
"This store is a nightmare!!! The puppies are sick , dirty & unkempt . the cages are rusty & filthy , the staff is rude & the new owner (of the PUPPY STORE) has NEVER owned a dog in his life! The grooming is in the basement & the (grooming) dogs are exposed to disease because they have to walk through the puppy area (w/ the sick puppies) to get down there . If you go there for grooming YOUR DOG IS EXPOSED TO DISEASE! Last time i heard ... there is a law against animal cruelty ... this place should be shut down :("
"Terrible place to buy your new pet. The moment we stepped into the store we were stared down by two men behind the counter. As we walked to the back of the shop where the puppies were we were yelled at by one of the men to sanitize our hands rather rudely. We did so and walked in to only be stared down by another two men (workers). We barely looked around for one minute before one of the men from behind the counter came up to us again only to ask did we sanitize our hands! We told him we did again... he proceeded to stand behind us as we looked around and watched us as well as the other two workers. We felt like we couldnt breathe, they were on top of us the entire time making us feel very uncomfortable. I was afraid to play with the dogs, not a welcoming place at all."