Bangalore: When you buy pets, check whether they are healthy. Improper care of animals at pet shops is causing concern as they are often neglected.

Cats and dogs pass on diseases to their young ones, and these remain unnoticed until it is too late.

According to Moore of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), breeders usually do not give the pets' proper veterinary care, adequate food or exercise.

Female dogs generally breed twice a year and these are abandoned or sold once they no longer are able to give birth. The pet, which develops complications at a later stage, becomes a liability henceforth.

Says Ashwath, a veterinarian: "Many a time, the big dogs suffer from pneumonia, kennel cough, mange and ringworms. And if left uncared for, they pass these on to the pups as well. Cats too suffer similar conditions. The furry bundles are usually shoved into lofts, into kitchen cabinets or above the cooking ranges — wherever there is space."

Most of the breeders are not bothered about the requirements and lack awareness on proper pet care. "There have been instances where breeders did not realise that the mother dog has to be cleaned and kept in a tidy place before she littered."

The law defines cruelty to animals as "negligently depriving or causing to be deprived any animal in his/her possession or custody necessary care, sustenance or shelter."

The awareness among the authorities has been visible and it is indicated that the charges of cruelty to animals are forthcoming.

According to Snehalatha M., a member of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, there have been many instances in the city where the pets bought from breeders were sick or injured and succumbed to diseases that surfaced at a later stage.

Breeding and selling pets is a business, and the importance of taking proper care of animals before they are sold is often ignored.

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