The day Maxie Biggz opened its Fingerlakes Mall store shortly before Thanksgiving, the local chapter of the SPCA was taking complaint calls.

The SPCA inspected the site and found no violations, but that has not made opponents of the pet store chain any happier. That's because the new store at the mall, billed as an upscale puppy shop, has brought with it a national debate.

Do pet store chains - and the brokers and breeders with whom they do business - mistreat animals in their quest for profits?

The local Maxie Biggz is second of parent company Rufus Inc.'s stores in central New York and company president Don Jones aims to have its stores in nearly every mall across the country by 2008.

That has animal rights groups and others who abhor the idea of dogs treated as merchandise worried. Critics believe stores like Maxie Biggz encourage disreputable breeders, prevent adoptions from humane societies, and sell puppies to customers who may not be ready to become a dog owner.

Jones contends the chain is committed to quality. Maxie Biggz' puppies come from the Hunte Corp, a Missouri-based company that buys puppies from breeders and then sells them to pet stores. Hunte doesn't call itself a puppy broker, but it is the largest company of its kind in the world.

And it's one of the most loathed by animal rights activists.

Dr. Don Stettler, one of six full-time veterinarians who work for Hunte, said the company does not deal with so-called "puppy mills," horror-story breeders who constantly cage animals and keep females pregnant all the time.

Hunte Corp. insists it has a "puppy first" policy. "Our puppies are supplied by the best licensed professional breeders in the country," the company's literature states. "Each pup is double-examined by one of our full-time vets, both incoming and prior to delivery. It's also microchipped for lifetime identification and beautifully groomed."

The dogs are transported in special climate-controlled trucks, which are lighted, have their own septic systems, and constantly circulate air and provide food and water for the dogs. The trucks stop every four hours and the four-legged cargo is checked.

When the dogs arrive at their destination, they have their vaccination records, health certificates and pedigree.

Jones said Maxie Biggz obviously wants to sell dogs - and they're not cheap, with some going for $1,500 or more - but not at the expense of the animal's safety.

"You can buy a dog and take it home the same day, but we do not want people to make impulse buys," Jones said. "We ask them if they know about the breed, and what they're getting into. We have turned some customers away. We do not want our puppies to end up in shelters. That's why we have a return policy."

But Carol Russell, executive director of the Finger Lakes Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Cayuga County, isn't convinced. She is philosophically opposed to pet stores that sell animals, particularly puppies. That's why she will not accept offers from Maxie Biggz to partner with the SPCA to promote adoption of its older dogs, something the chain has tried to do in other communities.

Becky Warner, the executive director of the Stevens-Swan Humane Society in Oneida County, is not happy that Maxie Biggz opened a store in New Hartford. Her inspectors have been at the store and reported shivering, lethargic puppies with runny noses and eyes. But those dogs were under a veterinarian's care.

"There have been no violations," she said. "We have also found conditions that weren't dirty to the point of being illegal, but we don't feel that means that's in the best interest of the animals."

Russell won't allow her agency to endorse the practices of stores like Maxie Biggz or Pet Depot. She expressed skepticism that Hunte Corp. can be adequately monitored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture when the federal agency has helped Hunte secure funding for expansion.

USDA spokesman Jim Rogers said Hunte has never been the subject of an investigation because all of the inspections, which are done through unannounced visits, have come back clean. He said that simply means Hunte met the minimum standards for operations of its type.

"That's what the law represents, the minimum," he said.

Sue O'Donnell, owner of Pat's Irish Kennel in Locke, raises American eskimo dogs. She said stores are not selective about who they sell to, and aren't protective of the dogs or their bloodlines.

"No way would I ever sell a litter of puppies to a pet store to be distributed," she said. "I do a lot of testing on my breeding stock, to make sure, genetically, I'm doing the best I can. I want to have control over where my puppies go. I screen my buyers. The puppies are like my children; I'm not just going to hand them over to anyone."

Russell believes stores like Pet Depot and Maxie Biggz contribute to a reduction in the number of people seeking pets from shelters or pet rescue groups.

"The purposeful breeding of animals will displace animals in shelters," she said. "The entire motive is profit. It's just like if you went into Penney's and purchased a coat," she said. "Do you really think they are going to turn down a $900 sale?"

Pet Depot owner Joe Olsian said it is an emotional issue, but that pet shop owners, and the breeders who supply the puppies, have a right to make a living.

"You do have very strong animal activists and groups," he said. "Their objection is that if a pet store doesn't sell puppies, there would be more shelter animals placed.

"That's not true. First of all, everybody doesn't want to get an adult dog, and that's primarily the kind of dogs that come into shelters. And, just 3 percent of puppies come from pet stores like mine."

Olsian said most people get puppies directly from breeders, rescue societies, or shelters when available.

Unlike Maxie Biggz, which gets its puppies through the Hunte Corp., Olsian buys almost all of the puppies for his chain himself. And, he usually buys the dogs in pairs, which serves to increase the puppies' comfort level about going to a new place.

"I pick up the dogs, and they ride in my truck with me," he said. "We don't have a caged environments. The puppies are kept in rooms."

He does use two out-of-state kennels, but the majority come from regional breeders. He said many of them are Mennonite farmers and the dogs are family pets. He's been in business for 21 years, and has long-term relationships with most of the people who supply him dogs. He has refused to deal with breeders who don't meet his standards.

The puppies he gets must be at least eight weeks old and he holds them at least a week so the store's vet, Dr. Dale Ottosen, can check their health.

Ottosen, whose wife, Dr. Marilyn Ottosen, will be involved in veterinary services for Maxie Biggz, said "there are very positive things about their business plan."

Pet Depot deals with about 15 different dog breeds, while Maxie Biggz has about 50. Pet Depot also sells many other kinds of pets, from fish to birds, iguanas and hamsters.

Fingerlakes Mall General Manager Gina Speno realizes there are some who are unhappy about a chain pet store, but she thinks it will enhance the make-up of the mall.

"We are looking forward to having a broad variety of tenants and a pet store certainly adds to the mix," she said.

Staff writer Louise Hoffman Broach can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or louise.hoffman@lee.net