ShareThisKelley McQueen transformed from animal lover to activist when she spotted a sign twirler hawking the sale of Great Dane puppies outside a bank.
Since then, the Banning, Calif. woman has been chasing down "backyard breeders" who sell puppies or kittens in front of stores, at swap meets, in parks and from the trunks of their cars.
These unlicensed street vendors usually are not registered with the American Kennel Club, and they break laws by selling unweaned, untagged and unvaccinated animals that often have congenital defects and end up in the pound. Sales can be lucrative, often impulse buys, fetching up to $1,200 in cash for a purebred pup, say police.
Several weeks ago, McQueen helped boot illegal pet-sellers from squatting outside two locations in Riverside -- Citibank and Target -- after she pestered store and bank officials, police, animal control and businesses with calls, letters, e-mails and condemnations on her Web pages.
"After months of seeing purebreds in pens on a grassy area between the sidewalk and Tyler Street, I finally snapped," said McQueen, 61.
Terry Sheldon, a volunteer who works with McQueen's small animal rescue group, said she was aghast to see beautiful golden retriever puppies there one weekend. Then a truck pulled up with a litter of pit bulls.
"I don't get in anyone's face, but I'm a 5-feet, 170-pound pit bull," said Sheldon, 51, who runs a day care in Riverside.
Some breeders flatly denied that they were selling dogs from their car trunks. Two women peddling Chihuahuas took off after Sheldon told them they were trespassing and snapped photos of them using her phone.
"I never assume they know they're doing something illegal," Sheldon said.
After law enforcement issued several $100 citations for "transient vending" and trespassing, the illegal trade along Tyler Street has dropped off dramatically in the past six months, said Lt. Bob Williams, the Riverside Police Department's area commander for the West policing center.
Other communities are catching on. Temecula launched a crackdown last Sunday on puppy pushers in the commercial strip district on Rancho California Road, according to Rich Johnston, deputy director of code enforcement and building safety.
"It's a public health issue more than anything," said Robert P. Miller, director of the Riverside County Department of Animal Services.
Miller said he has no way to track the number of sellers, but he said they tend to be more prevalent in less-affluent communities where people want quick cash.
Often the animals are smuggled in from Mexico, are sick, and haven't been vaccinated, examined, spayed or neutered. They're ultimately destined for the pound once buyers realize care is costly.
Rescue groups estimate that about two-thirds of the 53 million dogs in the U.S. come from backyard breeders and say those are the single greatest cause of pet overpopulation.
Unregulated breeders tend to fly under the radar and elude authorities. Animal experts say they lack knowledge about their breed -- how to socialize the dog and maintain its health. They don't vet prospective pet owners to ensure quality care.
Worse, successful backyard breeders sometimes expand and morph into puppy millers, with profit as the only motive and sick and abandoned dogs as their casualties.
The government can crack down with laws against trespassers, sellers without business licenses and with animal protection measures.
The problem is that sweeps by city inspectors are usually stopgaps and the offenders gradually return, officials say.
McQueen regards herself as an unlikely, even reluctant advocate. As much as she champions the cause, "I hate confrontation," she said.
McQueen, a Redlands native, retired from a career in commercial credit and collections with hotels "for something less stressful." She lives with six dogs, including her mascot, Goldie, whom she adopted 18 years ago from the Redlands shelter.
She started doing private pet adoptions in 1995 and then formed a small nonprofit group in 1998, Mill Creek Rescue Inc. In the past 13 years, McQueen has placed 5,000 mutts and domestic kittens in homes.
McQueen realizes there's no quick fix for the backyard breeders. To rally support, she has gathered more than 600 signatures on petitions to stop illegal pet sales in the city of Riverside and to ask commercial owners across the U.S. to prohibit pet sales and giveaways on their property.
Rita Gutierrez, field services commander with Riverside County Department of Animal Services, said public education is critical to halt these vendors.
"Why would you give a stranger $200 or $300 on a street corner when there are shelters full of very cute dogs?" Gutierrez asked. "If you take away their business, they'll go away."
E-mail Laurie Lucas at llucas(at)PE.com
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
