Burbank should follow national trend

I regard Burbank as a cutting-edge and progressive city. However, I was extremely disheartened to find that the city is behind the curve in the national effort to ban the sale of puppies and kittens in pet stores. Puppies for sale in pet stores usually come from puppy mills, which breed dogs for profit only, keeping puppies and dogs in cruel and inhumane conditions. These puppies are often abused and quite ill. People looking for a lovable companion will find an abundance of loving puppies and dogs in the Burbank and Los Angeles animal shelters, desperately waiting for a home.

Every puppy purchased from a pet store contributes to the Burbank and Los Angeles crisis of pet overpopulation and equals another animal the cities must euthanize. Nearly 100,000 pets were euthanized in 2011 in greater Los Angeles animal shelters. Dogs purchased in pet stores are not spayed or neutered, so the possibility of these animals contributing to the overpopulation epidemic and further crowding the Burbank Animal Shelter is extremely high.

There are so many pet stores that actually care about pets and are successful in joining with local shelters to assist in the adoption of homeless puppies. Please, City Council, join the national trend and ban the sale of puppies in pet stores. It’s a moral imperative.

Kim Batchko
Burbank