Publication/Event date: 2013-01-13
Publication name: Radar Online
URL for more info: http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2013/01/britney-spears-urged-to-join-lawsuit-vs-store-where-she-bought-her-sick-puppy/
Summary:
Britney Spears is being asked to join in on a lawsuit that has been filed against Barkworks, the chain store where she purchased her teacup Yorkie puppy, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.

The Companion Animal Protection Society (CAPS) has harbored a battalion of attorneys to work on behalf of plaintiff Kim Haba in a lawsuit filed against Barkworks on Dec. 14, 2012 in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

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Publication/Event date: 2013-01-12
Publication name: Lisle Patch
URL for more info: http://lisle.patch.com/announcements/puppy-parlor-protest-1-12-2012
Summary:
Another peaceful demonstration educating the public about the back room of the puppy parlor.  Today the puppy parlor installed "security cameras" at the back door to the back room in the alley.   They were putting up signs that say "Smile you're on camera".  I watched one of the two men dress from the back of a van they were using, putting clothes on from the van, pants down, zippers being pulled up, thank the high heavens I didn't see any more, looked away, what a class act, cigarettes hanging from their mouth....installing these so called "cameras".   They are probably fake, but just how really stupid can you be?  We know we have to hide the back room, so we'll put up cameras????  What a blatant admission of guilt.  I have NEVER seen this on any business anywhere.  Why would you put that on a back door to your business?  This is a business that sells to the public.  The public has a right to know what they are buying.  Why would somebody do this?  Because they don't want you to see what you are buying?  Smile, puppy parlor, you're on camera.

Publication/Event date: 2012-10-31
Publication name: Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation
URL for more info: http://www.maal.org/los-angeles-says-no-to-missouri-puppy-mills/
Summary:
The Los Angeles City Council voted NO to puppy mill cruelty. It did so by passing an ordinance prohibiting the sale of dogs in pet stores in the City of Los Angeles. The only exceptions are for dogs obtained from a municipal animal shelter, non-profit rescue, or humane organization. The ban also prohibits the sale of cats and rabbits in pet stores.

This is a commendable effort to halt the cruelty of puppy mills and it will have a direct impact here in Missouri. The City Council recognized that many pet stores in Los Angeles were nothing other than puppy mill outlet stores. The Council realized that if citizens of Los Angeles continued to purchase puppies that originated from Missouri, the cruelty of puppy mills would continue unabated. The Council acknowledged that the ultimate solution to puppy mill cruelty rests at the retail end of the business.

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Publication/Event date: 2012-01-03
Publication name: Cindy Lu's Muse
URL for more info: http://cindylusmuse.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-cause-to-celebrate-la-barkworks-closes.html#.UOcLU4njlZ9
Summary:
Something has me stumped. A major event occurred recently in Los Angeles, California. One with significance for all who care about the welfare of pets. And yet…the L.A. media didn’t run the story – or anyone else. It sits quietly, like a well-guarded secret. Let’s blow the lid off this thing, and then rip open the treat bags and celebrate… Barkworks in L.A. has closed following pressure from protesters! Barkworks has been documented as one of the many pet shops that sells dogs from puppy mills.

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For Immediate Release

Barkworks Pet Store Folds Under Pressure From Anti- Pet Shop/Puppy Mill Nonprofit

Following a protracted anti-puppy mill campaign by The Companion Animal Protection Society, the Barkworks pet store in Los Angeles’ Westside Pavilion will be closing.

LOS ANGELES – The Westside Pavilion location of Barkworks, the largest pet shop chain in the Los Angeles area, is closing for good on Monday. Barkworks has been the target of investigations and campaign outreach by the Companion Animal Protection Society (CAPS), a national nonprofit whose primary focus is the pet shop and puppy mill industry.

After YEARS of CAPS investigating and protesting inside the Westside Pavilion, BARKWORKS, a puppy mill front, is CLOSING! Thank you to ALL the activists who joined us for the massive protests!

Publication/Event date: 2012-12-24
Publication name: Lisle Patch
URL for more info: http://lisle.patch.com/announcements/puppy-parlor-on-main-street-protest
Summary:
Puppy Parlor on Main St. in Lisle sells dogs from puppy mills. This store sells dogs from Dennis & Donna Van Wyck, Prairie Kennels, a puppy mill in Iowa, and many other puppy millers.  The Companion Animal Protection Society has the undercover investigation of this kennel, please visit www.caps-web.org to view it.  And if that's not bad enough, we would also like to know why there are over 40 adult dogs, two to a cage, being fed with hamster tubes in the back of the store.  The cages are stacked on each other, three high.  Are the dogs breeding back there?  That's how the puppy millers do it.  They put two dogs in a cage and force them to breed.  The owner will not allow anyone to view the back room, but we have inspection reports from the Illinois Department Of Agriculture with the pictures they took.  Is this a puppy mill in Lisle?   I walked in the alley behind the store and could hear the dogs screaming and crying.  Do they ever get out of the cage?  Just where do these dogs go to the bathroom?  In the cage?  Do they get any vet care?  Do they get anything at all?  The smell by the back door is horrendous!  Please everyone, take a walk back there and get a whiff of this, and hear the dogs screaming.  In my opinion, this is animal abuse and running a puppy mill.  We held a peaceful protest on Sunday and will continue to educate the public every weekend.  If you want to join us, that would be great! Join us at our next protest, Saturday December 29th from 1:00 - 3:00. Please contact me at CAPS, website above,  Ida McCarthy, if anyone has any information on this place.  Thank you!

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Publication/Event date: 2012-11-12
Publication name: Care2
URL for more info: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/los-angeles-ordinance-bans-retail-animal-sales.html
Summary:
They don’t call it the City of Angels for nothing. We’re not being sarcastic — Los Angeles has a serious soft spot for little furry critters. Last month, on Halloween, the L.A. City Council pulled off an impressive trick: formalizing its approval of an ordinance that bans the retail sale of dogs, cats, and rabbits, becoming the largest American city to do so.

You heard right. In the future, the dogs, cats, and rabbits seen in Los Angeles pet stores will be from shelters or rescue groups. Products of puppy and kitten mills will simply not be available for sale in L.A. Animal advocates around the country are cheering this as a giant leap toward the Golden State becoming the largest no-kill community in the country. Way to go, Los Angeles

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