Meet Nicole Galvan of Puppy Mill Free AZ in Tempe

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Galvan.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Nicole. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I adopted June, a puppy mill survivor, in 2011. At the time I thought that puppy mills were illegal. June, an Italian greyhound, was about 7 years old when she found her way to me and she had been used as a breeding dog in a puppy mill for her entire life. Her bottom jaw was missing because she never had proper dental care. She was afraid of open spaces because she had never been outside of her cage. Her legs were permanently bent forward and she had herniated discs in her spine because she stood on wire caged flooring her entire life. She bred so many puppies that her bones are brittle and her legs are collapsing. I thought that whoever did this to she has to be in jail. Then I found out that nothing illegal had been done to her. Puppy mills are legal. They are regulated by the USDA, and they supply pet stores with puppies.

After learning the truth about puppy mills, I found out there was a pet store in my city selling puppies from puppy mills so I wrote to my city councilors and started a petition and a Facebook page to raise awareness. Eventually, I was able to pass June’s Law in Tempe – an ordinance to ban pet stores from selling puppies from puppy mills. But soon after that, the local pet store’s owners went to the state legislature and introduced a law to ban cities from regulating pet sales. That’s when my Facebook page went to state-wide puppy mill awareness and I gathered a group of people to start protesting at the state capitol and in front of the malls that had pet stores selling puppy mill dogs.
I fought very hard to stop the state legislature from protecting pet stores that sell puppy mill dogs, but unfortunately, they passed a law to protect them anyway. And the Governor signed it even though we got more people to call against that bill than any other bill in that 2016 legislative session.

Ever since then I’ve been working to raise awareness about Arizona’s puppy mill pipeline. Last year Puppy Mill Free AZ became a part of the non-profit, Bailing Out Benji, and I became Arizona’s Team Leader. Thanks to this partnership, we now have the resources to do tabling events, conduct investigations, pull government records, and we have a website so that people can find information about Arizona’s pet stores and the puppy mills they get their puppies from.

It’s been quite a journey but every day I feel like we are making an impact and getting one step closer to ending Arizona’s largest puppy mill pipeline

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My biggest set-back was definitely the day the governor signed a bill to ban cities from regulating pet sales, allowing the pet stores to continue selling puppy mill dogs. It was a very hard day for me, but it just made me more motivated. Since then I’ve been setting up protests outside of malls with stores that sell puppy mill dogs every single Sunday. We’ve been able to reach a lot of people and we will not stop until every pet store allows only rescue dogs and every puppy mill dog is out of a cage and in a home with adequate vet care, good food, fresh water, a soft bed, a family to call their own.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Puppy Mill Free AZ – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Puppy Mill Free AZ raises awareness about Arizona’s puppy mill pipeline. We inform the public about the puppy mills used by Arizona pet stores and we encourage people to adopt a rescue pet, or at least see the mother of a puppy in person if they insist on getting a puppy from a breeder. We warn people to never buy a dog online.

I am most proud of the fact that we have a very dedicated group of volunteers that show up to protest and educate alongside me, even when it’s 117 degrees outside. I am proud that we collaborate and work with other animal welfare groups and that we dedicate all of our time and resources to making the world a better place for companion animals.
I think what sets us apart is that we do our research and we provide the public with factual information about the connection between Arizona’s pet stores and the puppy mills where they get their puppies from.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In the future I’d like to see the day when we don’t have to protest in the 117 degree heat anymore because all of Arizona’s pet stores will have switched to a humane model – allowing rescues to facilitate adoptions, instead of selling puppy mill dogs.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bailingoutbenji.com/how-you-can-help/bailing-out-benji-teams/arizona-bob-team/
• Email: puppymillfreeaz@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/puppymillfreeaz/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PuppyMillFreeAZ/

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