PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- State officials are adding more dog kennel inspectors and posting inspection records online in an effort to strengthen what some have criticized as lax oversight of canine breeders. Animal advocates are hopeful the new measures will help Pennsylvania rid itself of so-called "puppy mills," breeding operations that they say result in neglected or abused dogs kept in tiny, unsanitary cages. "What we are making an effort to do is, if people are in (the breeding) business, they're either doing it right or, if they're not, they're not in that business," said Jessie Smith, deputy secretary of Pennsylvania's Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement. The bureau recently hired new inspectors to focus on large kennels. An online system also now allows anyone to look up kennels in the state and see their inspection reports from 2006 and 2007. "I don't know if that's one of the smarter things that they've done or one of the stupider things, because now everyone can see what is going on," said Bill Smith, who runs Main Line Animal Rescue in Chester Springs. The online system, which went up in May, shows that some kennels that sell more than 1,000 dogs annually haven't been inspected for a year and a half. State law mandates that kennels get inspected at least once a year, and it's a policy of the Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement to inspect them at least twice a year. Cori Menkin of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said rescue shelters were being inspected about twice as often as large kennels. Some shelters must undergo quarterly audits since they receive state funds for rescuing and housing strays. "I have no idea why they wouldn't be focusing on the larger breeders because they tend to be the most problematic. It's certainly a lot more difficult to manage 1,000 dogs than it is to manage 30," Menkin said. The number of puppy mills in Pennsylvania is unclear, in part because animal advocates, pet shop owners and breeders don't agree on the definition. The ASPCA defines a puppy mill as "a large-scale commercial dog breeding operation where profit is given a higher priority than the well-being of the dog." "They start looking at these dogs like livestock. These aren't family pets to them anymore," said Bob Baker, a veteran investigator for the ASPCA and Humane Society. "You can take a beagle and put it in a cage the size of a washing machine and it could stay there its whole life." But just because a kennel is raising a lot of dogs or making a profit doesn't make it a puppy mill, said Lisa Peterson, spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club. "A long time ago, any large-volume production of dogs -- regardless of the conditions -- might have be called a puppy mill," Peterson said. Shirley Hershey, owner of TLC Kennel in Lancaster County, received positive inspection reports at her large operation. "People don't understand how you can have a larger operation and do a very nice, top job," Hershey said. "That's the part that frustrates me. A puppy mill does not depend on the size." Gov. Ed Rendell favors further regulation of canine kennels, including doubling the size of many cages and mandating exercise for dogs. An investigation last spring by The Morning Call newspaper of Allentown found that kennels across the state received satisfactory grades despite unsanitary conditions, cramped cages and diseased dogs. More than 90 percent of Pennsylvania kennels received perfect ratings in all 26 categories. Ken Brandt, a lobbyist for the Pennsylvania Professional Pet Breeders' Association, said he is glad the inspections are now available online because the vast majority of kennels have good practices. "I think what that'll show is that the problem is not nearly, nearly as large as what a lot of the animal rights people say," Brandt said. Libby Williams, founder of the New Jersey Consumers Against Pet Shop Abuse, said she has heard hundreds of complaints about puppies sold at pet stores with pneumonia, joint problems, diarrhea, deafness, parasites and ear, eye and respiratory infections. Williams said she is cautiously optimistic about Pennsylvania making a dent in puppy mills with the new inspectors and online records. Already she said she's starting to see more violations posted. "We do wish it could've been fixed yesterday, but we know it's going to take a long time," Williams said. "The problem was left untreated for so many years. Nobody cared. Nobody cared."

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