The Last Petland in Michigan

Pam Sordyl used to work in finance at General Motors; now she's driving serious change in the fight against puppy mills.

Two years ago, after learning about a new pet shop in her southeast Michigan hometown, she founded the Puppy Mill Awareness Meetup. The group started talking to local businesses and citizens about how the store supported puppy mills in Missouri. It worked, and the store closed.

But her mission didn't end there. In late 2008, the Humane Society of the United States released the results of an 8-month investigation into Petland, the country's largest chain of puppy-peddling pet stores. They found that the puppy-purchasing practices of these franchises were largely, as expected, supporting puppy mills. After the report, they launched a series of rallies and actions across the country to get puppies out of Petland stores.

The Puppy Mill Awareness Meetup took up the challenge. They started out by taking the protest to the Petland store in the city of Westland. Soon after, they learned that people were organizing around the Petland in Sterling Heights, too, and joined up with them. In front of that store, they were challenged by an employee ... who ended up protesting alongside them in her Petland uniform. The Sterling Heights store closed within a month. The Westland store held out a little longer, but last month, that store closed down, too.

The group has become increasingly savvy in their campaigns. Sordyl always fully researches a store, using public information like Department of Agriculture shipping records and inspection reports about the kennels where the dogs come from. The group also educates the public, reaches out to pet stores before they open and watchdogs dog breeders. The dedication of rally leaders and local activists, along with several other ingredients, are all part of the group's recipe for success.

Now, they have their sights set on the store in Novi — the last Petland in Michigan.

Before organizing a protest around a store, Sordyl contacts the owners, asking them to choose adoption instead. "It seems like they are deciding to go out of business instead," she said.

The stores don't have to take a Puppy Sales or Bust! position; the point is to get them to stop supporting the cruel puppy mill industry in favor of helping homeless pets find homes. It's a win-win situation. For the trifecta: Puppy Mill Awareness Meetup would not only stop holding demonstrations, but they'd actively help promote the newly puppy-friendly store.

In an economy where high-priced puppies are harder for people to buy, the move toward adoption makes good business sense, too.

So far, Petland Novi hasn't seen the light, despite the negative publicity they've received through local news coverage and the advocacy group's efforts.

The store is located in the popular Twelve Oaks Mall, so the upcoming holiday shopping season is a key time to get the message out there. Puppy Mill Awareness Meetup has a calendar full of planned meetups outside of Petland Novi (in addition to other local puppy-selling stores) to educate holiday shoppers and pressure the store to choose adoption.

Add your voice to the petition asking Petland Novi to do the humane thing and stop selling puppies.

Photo credit: Cara StHilaire