Less than 10 days since its filing, a petition submitted to the White House asking President Obama to crack down on puppy mills gathered more than 10,600 signatures.
That's double the threshold needed to assure an official response.
The Humane Society of the United States, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and the Humane Society Legislative Fund.
The groups submitted this petition using a new feature on the White House website called "We the People," which allows individuals to seek
federal action.
In turn, the White House promises a response to any petition gathering at least 5,000 signatures within 30 days.
The anti-puppy mill petition met the requirement in less than one week, and as of today has more than 10,600 signatures.
The petition is now the most popular animal-related petition on the White House website, and one of the top 15 overall.
"Thousands of animal lovers across the country are bringing the issue of puppy mills directly to the president's attention," said Melanie Kahn, senior director of the puppy mills campaign for The HSUS.
"The petition asks the president to close a loophole that permits large-scale, commercial breeders who sell puppies online and directly to the public to escape basic oversight and minimal animal care standards.
"The Obama Administration needs to act now and close this loophole to crack down on the worst puppy mill abuses."
Additional signatures are still encouraged to allow the petition to reach the status of "most popular" on the White House website.
Those who wish to sign should go to: wh.gov/gdb.