Arizona group treats beagles rescued from Missouri puppy mill

Braxton Perez, 11, holds Lindie, a beagle rescued by Arizona Beagle Rescue on Sunday. Lindie was one of 28 beagles rescued from a puppy mill in Missouri. Members of Arizona Beagle Rescue said the dogs were kept in wire cages and were barely alive.   ¦  Betty Reid/The Associated Press

PHOENIX — An Arizona animal-rescue group is helping treat dozens of beagles from a large Missouri puppy mill.

Colorado-based Mill Dog Rescue Network made a deal with the puppy mill owner to take 100 dogs. If they hadn't been rescued, officials say they would have been shot or drowned.

They haven't named the puppy breeder but say it had been warned about its dogs and, by law, needed to get rid of them.

Twenty-eight of the beagles are now in the care of Arizona Beagle Rescue.

Beagle Rescue officials say the dogs have medical problems caused by neglect and abuse. The dogs, which before were sleeping on wire, now have pillows and blankets.

Puppy mills breed dogs in mostly inhumane conditions and sell them to pet stores.