LEE COUNTY, Fla. -- Four In Your Corner has been digging deeper into several recent puppy mill busts in Southwest Florida.
Two people were arrested in Monday's bust in Clewiston on charges of cruelty. Animal experts said Florida law does not require licensing and inspection for individual breeders.
"Florida is one of the states that doesn't require a licensing procedure for breeding operations that's unfortunate you see situations similar to this," Tim Rickey with the ASPCA said.
"There's no requirements, they can breed as many as they want, how often as they want," Jennie Curtis with the Gulf Coast Humane Society said.
Curtis said the trauma puppy mill pets go through is often irreversible.
"The mental stuff we find after we've spent a few days with them is they aren't socialized so they're afraid of people, they're afraid of loud noises," Curtis said.
Curtis said rural communities like Clewiston are known for puppy mills because they're so easy to hide.
"We're horrified. We can't believe things like this go on. We're shocked, you feel bad you want to do whatever you can to help," Curtis said.
