In mid-November, hundreds of dogs were rescued from a Carroll County, Va., puppy mill. Only one of the 25 animals we rescued now remains at Orange County's Animal Shelter -- a young, female Jack Russell terrier.

A number of these animals, such as a pregnant Cavalier King Charles spaniel and her puppies, will ultimately find homes through placement partners, but the majority of them have been directly adopted by community members.

We received hundreds of inquiries about these and other puppy-mill puppies that reached the Triangle. Expressions of anger and indignation over the conditions in which they were kept -- for instance, in elevated rabbit hutch-like enclosures -- were matched by deep and genuine concern about their welfare.

Without such community sentiments and support it would not have been possible for us to commit to take 25 animals at the request of the Humane Society of the United States. As a result of its undercover investigation of the puppy mill industry in Virginia and its coordination with Carroll County authorities and animal advocates, HSUS made this request to animal-service and welfare organizations not only in Virginia and the Carolinas but throughout the eastern United States.

One certainly hopes that such ongoing mutual support and collaboration will result in much better regulation of all commercial breeding operations as well as the effective prosecution of individuals who fail to comply with animal care requirements. The idea that there would be more than 1,000 dogs at the mill from which these were rescued is virtually unfathomable. And the inadequacies of their conditions were apparent in many ways -- not least in a placement partner's loss of six recently born puppies as a result of their mother's severe mastitis and despite their intensive care.

Surely, not supporting such operations is just one of many good reasons to adopt a shelter animal. So, in the spirit of the season, if you are so inclined, consider "taking one home for holidays." In addition to the remaining rescued Jack Russell terrier, there are many other wonderful cats and dogs available at our own and other shelters.