I never could understand the frenzy over Beanie Babies, the crazed collectors snapping up all that mass-produced, made-in-China plush as if it would appreciate in value someday, like a turn-of-the-century Steiff teddy bear.You can have quality, or you can have quantity””they generally don’t go hand in hand. So how could all those millions of pricey purebred puppies frolicking in pet shop windows possibly be coming from reputable dog breeders? Answer: they aren’t.As the Humane Society of the United States has revealed after a five month undercover investigation, factory farms in America’s heartland are churning out Chihuahuas and Yorkies so that folks like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears can flaunt fluffy fashion accessories.The HSUS took undercover footage in Pets of Bel Air, the boutique where Paris and Britney bought their prop pooches, and discovered invoices showing that—contrary to the claims of Tom Demick, the chi-chi pet shop’s owner””some of the puppies on sale did, indeed, come from puppy mills. Oh, and Demick’s shop hasn’t actually had a permit to sell puppies for three years, a minor detail that Demick described as “an oversight.”L.A. Animal Services didn’t see it that way, and shut the place down shortly after the HSUS made its findings public.Many of the massive dog breeding operations that provide places like Pets of Bel Air with their puppies are run by corn and soy farmers as a lucrative second business, according to Wayne Pacelle, president of the HSUS. As Pacelle told the New York Times, “these puppy mills apply an agricultural mind-set to the breeding of dogs.”Sounds like a new kind of corn dog, and not a very appetizing one. When are mutts going to get their due? After all, they’ve got that one-of-a-kind je ne sais quoi.For a list of 10 things you can do to help stop puppy mills click HERE.
Katie:
Nicole: 
Giulia:
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Kerry:
Chloe Marshall, a 16-year-old beautician in training, is 
