Peaceful Pet Store Protest: Beverly Hills

I agree. I thought it went really, really well. I was truly inspired by the very large crowd of animal lovers who gathered to show their support for the cause. There was a real sense of unity amongst everyone. The glue was definitely Carole Davis, who was our fearless (cheer)leader throughout the day! Although the activism was strong, it was not intimidation that won at the end of the day. The protesters seemed to have a genuine ability to relate to those who drove by, walked by or glanced from across a busy Wilshire Blvd., and that made it a success. It was quite impressive to see holiday shoppers, balancing Tiffany's (Barney's and Neiman's) bags, while still making an effort to deliver an approving smile. Drivers marveled at the bold signs waving in the air, while sweet, shelter dogs pranced around, in a strut that seemed to express a genuine gratitude for life itself.

We closed them down on the busiest puppy buying day of the year!

I'm so tired and my voice is gone but I want to thank all the great people who came out to the rally. The sun seemed to shine just for us and all the passers-by were so supportive. Everyone there met new friends and all the furries were perfect.

I will write up an article about the rally for BF today with all the wonderful photos. It was a great success and I truly believe that this is the start of something bigger.

I realized yesterday that collectively, all across America, we could actually close these puppy stores down. If we stood there in front, with adoptable dogs and facts about puppy mills, people would listen and the stores wouldn't be able to take the heat. They'd lose their businesses.

It is legal to assemble (at least in this country) and we should excercise our right and close them all down.

Spread the word to your community and close the pet store near you!

Today was a success, and unfortunately these horrible pet stores will continue on, but we have to hope that the public is wiser and will not shop at these stores that sell animals.
Maybe one day there will be a nationwide protest against these pet stores and get lots of news coverage so people will get it.
Thanks

We've had a huge turnout today and it was a really great event. A lot of people were reached, got flyers about the truth of petstores like Posh Puppies and the vast majority was supportive and honking. Some people showed us their dogs in their cars and said they are rescues, posh cars and all. We did not have a single negative experience and that just shows us how much people truly dislike the puppy mill business. Store owners offered us their restrooms and water. The best thing is that "Posh" stayed closed today (they had a sign in the window stating "for the safety of our puppies and clients we will be closed today" - oh hell yeah we made them loose money on the busiest day of the year). One guy told us we should put them all out of business.
So, three cheers to dogworld in that sense - you're on the loosing end (and no, we don't wear diamonds and most of us today were vegans, so duh can't win the last word with us I guess).
Andrea

dogworld:
do you know a store that sells puppy's that does not get them from a puppy mill? from what i understand there are no stores who could get pups from a breeder. I have spoken to about 100 breeders who said they only sell to the person the dog is going to live with. From my research stores say they sell about 3-5 dogs a day and weekend 5-7 so you do the math, that is about 20 or so dogs a week and 80 dogs a month. So if a dog that is raised healthy and breed can breed two litters a year then the numbers are way off and I do not know how a store can sell as many dogs as they do with out getting them from puppy mills. As for only getting dogs from the shelter not all of us feel that way. I feel people have a choice, I have a pure breed dog however I went to meet with the breeder in her home and saw where my first dogs home was. I made sure she did not come from a puppy mill. I think all anyone is saying is if you want a pet either go to a breeder and do your homework or go to a pet adoption, or a shelter. Knowledge is a great thing.

Thankyou to all you wonderful animal lovers who attended todays protest, if we just reached a handful of people to adopt and not buy it was SO WORTH IT. Everyone was SO NICE and pleasant and the police were so supportive.
Thanks Hollywood Jinky for putting this together and many more!!!
All the shelters dogs and cats thankyou and let's put an end to homeless animals and the killing of millions of dogs and cats every year.
Bless you Best Friends.
Binky (thrown out of a moving truck on the freeway) but lives a life of luxury now.

point noted. some stores do screen their buyers. but to follow your point, that means none of you ladies should wear any diamonds, designer labels, jeans, the list goes on and on. diamonds as you know are all blood diamonds slaving HUMAN beings, not dogs. no matter if the diamond store says they are not blood diamonds, they are. most designer labels manufacturered abroad have kids as young as 6 years old working in subhuman conditions. any of you ever eat a hamburger or a steak? those cows sometimes aren't allowed to even take one step on their whole lives to keep the meat tender. where does it end? the bottom line is you can't force someone to do something just because you believe in it. just like religion, you can't force someone to believe and be exactly like you. how can you tell someone what to do with their own money? they can spend it on whatever they want. the same right that gives you your voice to protest (which i agree) is the same right that gives another to do what they want. forcing someone to ONLY adopt or rescue is not fair either. some people want a purebred puppy and not a dog that's been abused or lost by someone. we have a problem with humans overpopulating the earth. so should we tell everyone to adopt and not have kids anymore? adopting a child is heroic and nobel. but you can't force everyone to do it. to each his own. happy holidays everyone

Dear Dogworld:

I concede there are Many good pet stores out there. They are the ones that DO NOT sell animals. The one thing missing when a pet store sells a dog or a cat is a caring individual who thinks about the animal first and not their pocket. If the pet store is selling for local breeders, those breeders obviously don't care where those puppies go and therefore they don't fall anywhere near the word "reputable" Right now with all of the publicity surrounding how the breeding dogs are kept etc. Any person or family who shops at a pet store has just decided they don't care about the animals in the breeding facility (mill). They are closing their eyes and ears to what has been an educational blitz. I believe it is time to lump the customers who buy puppies in with the Puppy Millers. They are supporting the industry and doing so inspite of the horrors they know exsist. I believe that shopping at a pet store for a puppy is like going to a toy store that is owned by a child molester. I feel that strongly about it. The public can't say any longer they didn't know. If they don't know they have closed their eyes and ears to the puppy mill information that is in the newspapers,on local news boardcasts, tv shows, email postings, billboards, and on everyones lips. Shame on the pet store customer and if they purchase a sick puppy they got what they deserved. They will hopefully have learned their lesson and won't do it again.

but can't you concede that there are actually GOOD pet stores out there? granted, probably one out of a thousand, but some do it right? some only sell a few puppies a month because they get it from genuine hobby breeders and people's homes. there are stores that sell puppies from the litter's their client's puppies had only. just saying, let's judge each case individually and not paint a with a broad brush. that's ALL i'm saying. don't feel like i'm attacking you guys. i'm just saying there are better ways to go about this. that's all.

Dogworld - I suggest that you begin your BF "studies" by studying Mabel's blog. She is the real expert on breeders' horrendous profiteering. She can show you exactly why adoption and not breeding is what's needed. Mabel can best speak against selling animals for profit when millions of homeless animals are euthanized every year in the USA alone. Look at what Mabel went through to "produce" puppies for profit. As for the idea of a pet fixing a bad marriage or making a perfect gift - a rescued and/or special-needs pet from a place like BF can work miracles like that many times over. As to "hostility" on the part of protestors in this situation - this rally is about a lot more than one person's discomfort regarding the issue of how pets are produced. This is about a brutal and gigantic pet industry that produces gargantuan levels of suffering while stooping to horrendous depths of depravity and animal cruelty while pretending to "love animals" and care about "cute pets." As to folks being angry though - you're darn right I'm angry! No animal should ever had to go through what Mabel has gone through! Peaceful doesn't mean catatonic - pun intended. Having a sharp mind and using one's sharp tongue to speak the truth about animal abuse does not constitute violence. Violence is what is being done to hundreds of thousands of imprisoned, suffering animals in the name of producing "pets to buy." Violence can also mean toning down open discussion in the name of conflict avoidance, to the point that all that remains is a bland concensus that has no meaningful strength or ability to galvanize people into ongoing and powerful action for justice. Too often the expression "peaceful" is an excuse for holding back when what is desperately needed is expressive and articulate public outcry. During the 19th century here in the USA, activists within the US anti-slavery movement were often accused of being too agitated and not gentle and peaceful enough in their adament quest for an end to slavery. Nowadays animals are enslaved for breeding still. Untold hundreds of thousands of dogs right here in the USA are enslaved for breeding to produce pets-for-profits. Read Mabel's blog - and think about how those puppies for sale actually get produced en masse for the "pet industry." I am pleased and proud to say that my life is not a popularity contest. I am dedicated to fighting against violent enslavement and torture of animals - period. If it weren't for people like me and more so, animals like Mabel would be long dead by now. "Talk is cheap - life is short."

dogworld, No one has said anything that isn't peaceful. If you are still unconvinced of the horrors behind the scenes, the places where they breed dogs to sell to pet stores, please look at www.banpuppymills.com.

I don't think that once you know the facts, once you actually see what is happening to these puppies' mothers, that you could continue to defend puppy stores, which are supplied by these places.

We want peace for the animals in the shelters. While you buy, shelter dogs die.

You are on an animal welfare website with hundreds of thousands of members. We are very strong and are not in this for profit.

You have entered the true animal loving world of Best Friends. I suggest you spend your time learning about animal welfare issues here,instead of attacking genuine members. This is a great, supportive place to learn about the issue of the pet trade.

Carole Raphaelle Davis, my real name. Do you have one?

Dear Kittychump, what about all the people who's bought a puppy from a pet store and they are 100% healthy? They've had no genetic defects whatsoever. What if that dog or cat was the greatest addition to their family? What if that dog saved a marriage, or a family drifting apart? You can't paint the entire pet industry as evil with one brush stroke. That's like you being racist if this was a topic about a person. Try to filter and find good in people individually. I work in Nebraska. I know puppy mills. But all I'm saying is you can't say ALL breeders are evil. You can't force people what to do with their hard earned money. If they want to buy from a pet store, then let them. But let's just try to educate people so that they would adopt. That's all I'm saying. This is why it's so ironic that this is a "Peaceful" pet store protest. You guys seem hostile to me...

see that's EXACTLY what i mean! you are so angry and judgmental and sooo defensive. why can't you just educate people through peaceful means? why is everything "oh yea? then come out and let's fight?" i don't understand how someone so angry like yourself can help these poor dogs. and you bringing up these cars on myspace is just silly. you think myspace is like the bible or something that's all 100% true? you really think all those people in people's profiles are REAL friends of theirs? you think everyone's age and everything is all real? grow up PLEASE.

"Dogworld" you remind me of "catwithnoname" who is really the institutional cat-hoarder my daughter & I have filed charges against in Pennsylvania, whose real name is Virginia Kresge Justiniano [see my BF Network blog, keyword "CWNN"]. Just like her you have no profile & you just suddenly signed onto BF e-mail so you could try intimidating real-life animal lovers who refuse to back down when big money tries to intimidate and corrupt. True to form "Dogworld," you characterize yourself as an animal-rescue version of Mother Teresa- supposedly you're selfless and self-sacrificing; but in reality the reek of profits pervades your socalled message.

This rally will not be stopped by the likes of you. This campaign is a blessing to animals; it will teach passersby that real people really care. It will bring the point home during the holiday "shopping" season when too many people secumb to breeders' and sellers' hype & spin - to buy animals without proper info or proper training and longterm planning. We real BFers know from experience that purchased animals one week can suddenly become dumped animals the next week - and hoarded and dying animals from that moment on! "Dogworld" let's change your name to "Moneyworld." Doesn't that fit you better? I'm betting that name is a perfect fit! Or how about "Grinchworld" seeing it's the season that Santa's bringing lumps of coal to breeders and puppy-mill collaborators!!

"Onwards & Upwards" with the rally - and with no more "pets for profit"!!!

Hello to the anonymous "dogworld" poster. Who are you? A friend of the breeder? You just joined the Best Friends network TODAY in order to post. You have no profile.

What rescue org are you with? People who are truly involved in rescue (like I am) know exactly what it costs. It's very expensive to spay and neuter, and especially to give med care to all the injured and abused dumped animals...many of them from pet stores.

Come out from behind your anonymity. If anyone is defaming anyone's character, it is you defaming mine.

I stand for something pure. Save a life and adopt. It's that simple.

I'm also not crazy about white Bentleys, I think they're tacky but that's just my opinion. Unless of course, you're using the white Bentley to go down to the pound and fill it with homeless dogs. Now THAT would look cool!

Carole knows exactly what it takes to run a rescue because she is a HUGE VOLUNTEER for rescue groups, yes it COST ALOT! This will be a peaceful protest to educate people to adopt and not buy their pets. She is not jealous of these people. If you look at the myspace website it's pretty disgusting selling animals for profit.
These dogs and cats are companions not breeding machines!

Dear Caroleraphaelldavis, you are telling people to have a "peacful" demonstration yet you criticize, judge, "gag," and defame someone's character. You are a hypocrite and just a jealous human being. For you to think all the cars on the myspace site actually belongs to them is asinine and shows your ignorance. Why don't you educate people right and use peace as you say instead of causing harm or bringing yourself a lawsuit? Try to educate people on adopting pets ONLY. It's people like you that bring people like me in the REAL dog rescue work bad reputations. People think we are money hungry since we charge for a dog being rescued, when people do not know how much money it takes to run a rescue. Educate people, do not judge and put others down. You are just trying to feel holy or righteous over people. Please set a good example since YOU are the one who's championing this event!!!

Unfortunately, Jinky will not be coming to the protest, he's too mad! He's a bitey boy (from being abused before he landed at the pound) and might try to tear into puppy buyers. He's uncontrollable and wil not obey the picket guidelines. I can see him taking a giant dump right in their doorway and getting me arrested!
His wife Finley and his partner Lamby will be there.
To get a look at his wife and boyfriend:
www.hollywooddog.blogspot.com

I hope the LA members come out for this exciting event. We're going to have fun and show puppy buyers that the REAL Christmas spirit is in GIVING, like in giving a homeless dog a loving home.

Merry Christmas everybody!
Jinky's mom, Carole Raphaelle Davis

Btw, check out posh puppy's website on Myspace. They are friends with the Kardashians and show off white Bentleys, Aston Martins and Porshes along with the dogs they sell. (gagging)

I will be here with my gorgeous rescued dogs. I passed by another pet store selling puppies the other day, the big sign in their window said "Puppies for Sale -- New stock just arrived". Stock??? These puppies are stock? They are living beings! I am so disgusted by the thought process of the puppy mills and the puppy store owners. We must shut them down!

This is brilliant & the photos at the top and inside of this story are excellent - prayers for an excellent and educational rally!! :)

Thankyou Hollywood Jinky! We need to put an end to the senseless killing in our shelters! Let people know that Britney Spears & Paris Hilton are not roll models for animals, if you want good Karma in your life please adopt. Let's close down these pet stores that sell animals!
Binky

I also read The Diary of Jinky
It really is funny

If anyone wants to read a very funny book, look for The Diary of Jinky : Dog of a Hollywood Wife by Carole Raphaelle Davis.

Jinky was a rescue dog!