LOS ANGELES, CA – Animal advocates say a large homeless encampment beneath an overpass in Arleta has dogs, cats and kittens living among trash and makeshift shelters, and they allege that puppies are being bred and sold at the site, claims that have not been independently verified.
Members of the animal advocacy group Starts With One Today said they were called to the site this week over reports of alleged illegal puppy sales. The site is in Arleta, a San Fernando Valley neighborhood in Los Angeles City Council District 6, which Councilmember Imelda Padilla represents.
One advocate said a woman at the encampment told her she was selling puppies for $45 to $100 each. The advocates spoke at the site on Thursday, Oct. 22.
Victoriah Bech-Parker, a co-founder of the group, alleged that people at the encampment are breeding and selling dogs directly across from a tiny homes shelter for people experiencing homelessness. She said they are “running a full-on puppy mill down here.”
Living spaces built beneath the roadway
The encampment is visible from above, but the living areas are beneath the roadway, according to initial reports. People there have set up furniture, washing machines, televisions and generators.
At least a dozen people were living under the overpass among piles of trash, copper wire and furniture. Multiple dogs, cats and kittens were seen at the site, and one dog appeared to have recently given birth.
Bech-Parker described the scene in strong terms. “It literally looks like the third world. It’s crazy,” she said.
Resident rejects the puppy mill label
A woman who lives at the encampment said she has been there for nearly two years. She said one dog gave birth about a week earlier and that another dog is pregnant.
Asked whether the site is a puppy mill, she said no. “They just need a nice home,” she said.
She also described how residents get by, saying people share generators so they can watch television and listen to music. A man at the site said people there are “just living” and that the city does not come to pick up the trash.
Parvovirus is highly contagious, county says
Jonathan Parker, another co-founder of Starts With One Today, said the animals’ living conditions are not humane. He said residents told him a couple of dogs got parvo and that puppies died.
Those reported illnesses and deaths have not been independently confirmed. No veterinary or animal-control finding about the animals at the site has been made public.
Canine parvovirus is a viral disease that mainly affects puppies and unvaccinated dogs, according to a 2023 advisory from the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control about cases in the Antelope Valley. That advisory is not about Arleta or this encampment.
The advisory says the most common signs are lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting and diarrhea. They typically appear five to seven days after infection, within a range of two to 14 days.
“Parvovirus is highly contagious and can survive in the environment for months, even years in dark and damp environments,” the county advisory says. The county advises keeping pets up to date on vaccinations, including the parvovirus vaccine, and says puppies should receive a series of vaccinations.
City rules cover breeding and selling animals
The City of Los Angeles regulates breeding through a permit system run by Los Angeles Animal Services. According to the department’s breeder’s permit page, a breeding permit is annual written authorization to breed a dog or cat. A separate permit is required for each owned dog or cat that breeds.
Under the permit terms, no puppies may be sold or transferred until they are eight weeks old. A permit holder who advertises an animal for sale or transfer must display the permit number.
The page also lists a moratorium on new dog breeding permits that took effect May 27, 2024. Cat breeding permits may still be available. Animal Services has not issued a release or response about the allegations at the Arleta encampment.
Advocates say they are waiting for the city to act
The advocates said they have tried to get city officials to respond to concerns about the encampment and its conditions but are still waiting for action.
Joey Tuccio, an animal advocate with Starts With One Today, said the group works in other parts of Los Angeles as well. He named Arleta, Pacoima, Van Nuys, Venice and Skid Row as places affected by the homelessness crisis.
“We go to Skid Row, this is scarier because this is underground,” Tuccio said. “We’re here to just get the city to do something about it.” He called the Arleta site “probably one of the worst I’ve ever seen.”
How city encampment cleanings work
Los Angeles Sanitation and Environment runs the city’s encampment cleaning operations, described on its CARE and CARE+ program page. CARE teams are smaller, mobile crews that patrol council districts daily to clear minor litter and debris.
CARE+ teams are larger crews that deep-clean heavily concentrated areas. Locations are identified through data, street cleanliness indexing or community requests.
Before a CARE+ cleaning, crews post bilingual notices at least 24 hours in advance and up to 72 hours. Residents can request service at any hour through MyLA311. LA Sanitation has not released information about a cleaning or request involving the Arleta overpass.
Unsheltered homelessness rose in the 2026 count
The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority released its 2026 count results July 24. The agency said progress stalled after two consecutive years of drops.
In its 2026 homeless count announcement, the agency reported “a slight 1.2% increase to an estimated 73,040 people in Los Angeles County and a 3.4% increase to 45,194 people in the City of Los Angeles.”
The agency said unsheltered homelessness rose 3.3% in the county to an estimated 49,002 people. In the city, it rose 7.9% to an estimated 29,115 people. The figures cover the county and the city as a whole.
City programs operate elsewhere in the Valley
The mayor’s office has announced housing efforts in other parts of the San Fernando Valley that involve pets. In a release this month, the office said the 144th Inside Safe operation took place in Pacoima, near Louvre Street and Ralston Avenue. It said the operation brought 27 people and their pets into interim housing.
Mayor Karen Bass said in the release that the team made sure people in Pacoima could bring their pets with them. The office says Inside Safe has brought more than 6,200 people inside to date. That operation was in Pacoima, not Arleta.
In Padilla’s district, Bass and Padilla opened a tiny home village with more than 200 homes in Sun Valley. Padilla said the homes represent dignity, stability and a real first step toward permanent housing.
Council District 6 response remains pending
Padilla’s office had not issued a public statement about the Arleta encampment or the puppy-sale allegations as of Friday, Oct. 23. Neither had the mayor’s office.
The allegations of illegal puppy sales and breeding, the reported parvovirus cases and the deaths of puppies remain unverified. The advocates say they are waiting for the city to act on the encampment and its conditions.
