There are very few things as cute as puppies, at least in my opinion. I can’t wait to get older so I can have my own place, where I can curl up on the couch with a good book and a tiny, snow white little puppy. It’s only a minor setback that I am allergic to dogs; it’s something I’m willing to overlook and live with.

With some variation, I’m sure most people would agree that this is a pretty appealing scenario. I think that’s why there is so much concern about where the dogs come from, because let’s face it, dogs are like children to most of us.

We watch them grow up, play with them, comfort them when they are sick and take care of them. They are everything to us, and for that reason, animal activists are against puppy stores.

Susan Helmink, president and co-founder of Companion Animal Resource and Education Center, said most people do not get enough of the right information when dealing with puppy stores.

“The puppies that are sold commercially tend to come from breeding facilities,” Helmink said. “There is not much attention paid to their health and welfare.”

That may be true for some puppy stores, but the Lucky Puppy Boutique and Barkery in Marketplace Mall is different. I should know, I saw it first hand.

The Lucky Puppy just opened this past summer, much to the dismay of the local Humane Society.

Since then, it has dealt with a steady flow of angry letters and nasty stories. Most recently, the store was the center of a recent expose on the news accusing the business of buying their puppies from a breeding facility, often referred to as puppy mills.

Hurt and dismayed with the recent events, Kari Pryor, owner of the Lucky Puppy, decided to speak out and tell her side of the story, which is often underreported.

It was a normal day, just like every other day, when the wife of a wealthy doctor walked into the store to buy a dog. She played with the dog for three hours, and Pryor felt she was ready to take the dog home. The woman signed the contract, paid more than $1,000 and took the dog home.

Less than 12 hours later, the woman brought the healthy dog to the Champaign County Humane Society, turned over the papers and the dog, and walked out of the doors, leaving her puppy.

Those papers supposedly proved that Pryor buys her dogs from puppy mills, but Pryor said that is not the case.

The breeder in question is Puppy Haven Kennels, who is not certified by the American Kennel Club, one of the most well-known dog breeding registration associations.

According to Puppy Haven’s Web site, there is a reason it has lost its breeding certification from the Kennel Club, which has nothing to do with its facilities.

Puppy Haven’s Web site said it feels loss of its certification was a personal attack on the kennel because it had stopped dealing with the Kennel Club due to defects with its dogs.

Because the Kennel Club lost a big client, it decided to get back at Puppy Haven by barring it from registering its dogs.

Puppy Haven now deals with other licensing companies and it has no problems.

As a response to this accusation appearing on the news, two clients called the Lucky Puppy and inquired about the breeder because they were worried about their dog’s health.

“We gave them the breeder’s contact information and Web site,” Pryor said. “After they did their research, they were satisfied. We gave them the opportunity to return their dogs, but they didn’t need to. They were content.”

The personal relationship that Pryor develops with her customers is important to her, which is why Pryor is so upset about the current situation.

“We just don’t know what happened with this woman,” Pryor said. “I gave her my cell phone number in case she needed me, as I do with all my customers. I put myself out there and she didn’t reach out to me.”

Pryor wonders if the store could have done anything different to make this woman’s experience a better one, but came up short. Her main concern is for the welfare of the puppy, and she honestly thought she was doing what was best for the dog.

“The puppies’ health and their well-being is our main concern,” Pryor said.

You could see that when you walk in the store; the walls are neatly decorated with clothing and accessories for the dogs, the counter showcases home-baked dog treats and the displays that hold the puppies are neat, clean and have toys for the puppies to play with. Everything about this store screams that it is a family friendly atmosphere and not like the typical puppy store.

The store only sells six dogs at time, and keeps them up to date with regular baths, shots and any other care the dogs might need. The employees take the puppies out to play if they feel they need human contact, and the puppies playfully romp around. They are almost too cute.

The back facilities are not open to the public, but Pryor gave me a behind-the-scenes look at the workings of the store.

It is clean and stocked with whatever the puppy might need. There are even isolation cages for the dogs that are sick so they don’t get the other dogs sick.

Alex Wahba, employee of the Humane Society, does not single out the Lucky Puppy for any reason, he does however talk about puppy stores on a larger level.

“It’s not like the store has done anything abnormal,” Wahba said, “but it’s the same situation. If they loved the dogs they wouldn’t need to sell the dogs. You can get a dog from just about anywhere, so why should we be supporting someone who is trying to sell puppies for profit?”

Pryor recognizes it is a losing fight to argue with people who work for the Humane Society and to try to get them to see her side.

She said they are so rooted in their own beliefs that they refuse to change their mind, even if the store is nothing like the typical pet store.

“They say in general that no good breeder would sell to a pet store, but we are not a typical pet store,” Pryor said.

A few of the things that sets staff members apart is that they do home visits, and the breeders that they showcase have to pass their strict checklist before they will take their dogs.

None of the breeders they deal with are considered puppy mills, and all of their dogs are happy and healthy, they make sure of it.

Still, Pryor and the Lucky Puppy continues to get negative feedback.

“The whole rejection part keeps me up at night,” Pryor said. “I do worry about what people think, I really do and it’s how I’ve always been, Still, our main concern is for the well-being of the puppies, and hopefully we can prove ourselves over time.”