A large pit in a field was filled with the carcasses of rotting dogs, slaughtered by their breeders after they stopped birthing puppies. Other dogs were kept in cages and rarely let out to stretch their legs or socialize with people. So alleges Debbie Faulkner of the rescue group Citizens for Animal Welfare and Shelter. She’s even seen dead puppies in buckets, writes the Rocky Mountain News.

Now Representative Beth McCann, a Denver Democrat, wants to put a leash on the so-called “puppy mill” business by limiting the number of breeding dogs at facilities to 25 in an effort to prevent abuses. The bill would allow Colorado Agriculture Department inspectors to conduct surprise inspections as well as require that veterinarians certify the health of breeder dogs.

Similar bills to improve the lives of dogs were introduced elsewhere in the nation recently, including in Illinois, according to The Chicago Tribune, and Nebraska, as The Associated Press reports.