From edmontonsun.com:

By NELSON WYATT, THE CANADIAN PRESS

MONTREAL — The Quebec government should crack down on puppy-mill owners in the wake of a stiff sentence given to a man who operated what was described as the “kennel from hell,” say animal-rights activists.

Nicole Joncas, who runs an animal refuge in Ontario and has long fought against Quebec puppy mills, was unequivocal when she was asked how such operators should be sentenced.

“Jail,” she said in a telephone interview as dogs barked in the background. “Jail time, to send a very powerful message.”

Judge Jean Sirois rendered one of the stiffest sentences possible under current laws Tuesday to Marc-Andre Lapointe who owned a puppy mill in St-Jerome, north of Montreal.

The judge said the attitude of the kennel owner, who wanted the return of his best-producing dogs, played a part in the harsh sentence.

Sirois says Lapointe showed no remorse about his mistreatment of the 97 filthy dogs, mostly fox terriers, that were seized from his bungalow in 2005. Twenty dogs were immediately euthanized. Laporte, who was charged with two counts of animal cruelty after police raided his puppy mill, was ordered to pay a $2,000 fine and do 200 hours of community service, just short of the maximum of 240 hours set out in the law.