Part 5 of Inside of Julies Jewels In 2010 Julie had a heart attack brought on by stress. Julie realized that she could not handle the number of dogs they had at that time and began giving away and selling dogs to reduce her numbers. Julie knew there had to be changes made if she were to continue. The concrete and drainage system that had been put in years earlier was helpful. Other breeders came in to help Julie through that crisis in her life. Just before Julie’s heart attack, they had begun to be harassed by animal activists. Accusations were made. Julie admits that she was not doing her best at that time as she was sick and had no energy. She had the heart attack shortly after that. While Julie was sick the harassment continued and never stopped. When I asked Julie what her advice to other breeders would be, she said, “If you start getting harassed just quit because it will never stop.” I was surprised. Julie did not seem like the type of woman to be bullied into anything. She was selling out. All the dogs were going to auction the following day and Julie and her family would no longer breed dogs. While some find joy in that, I worried about what would happen to these dogs at auction. Here, they were happy, content, well cared for. At auction, it was anyone’s guess as to who would get them. Julie explained that she was not a quitter but her family had been so affected by the harassment that she felt it was in everyone’s best interest. I talked to her daughter who spoke of school friends who shunned her after the newspaper article came out. The community had turned their backs on this family. They were now the dreaded “puppy mill” down the road that had seemed to soil everyone. Julie’s mother was not in great health and Julie’s father was in their house at that very moment, slowly dying of cancer. I begun to understand why Julie felt she had to give up. For me, this family, these people, became real human beings. They stopped being puppy millers or breeders. They were people….people with problems and heartaches just like any other people. As I watched a dog lick Julie’s hand, I thought as I have many times, that animals have so much more compassion than humans. We continued through the facility. Julie showed me the heating and cooling system which were run with propane so that if the electricity went off, the dogs would still be comfortable. Julie and her mom were happy to answer any question I had. If I saw an area or a building I had not been in and asked to go see it for myself, I was allowed to do that. She showed me the raised beds they had made so dogs would not be sleeping on concrete. I walked through the play areas and watched each dog greet this family with joy and I felt happy for these dogs, until I thought about the fact that they were all going to auction the next day.
Posted on: Sat, 21 Jun 2014 20:30:00 +0000
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