Adopt, don’t shop.
You’ve probably heard this catchy slogan before. It’s meant to encourage people to adopt pets from shelters rather than going to pet stores.
Unfortunately, it can be hard for these adoptable critters to compete with their highly marketed, puppy-mill counterparts.
That, however, will no longer be the case in California.
California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law bill A.B. 485 earlier this month which will soon be implemented as a statewide ban that will bar the sales of animals commercially raised in puppy mills.
The bill will make it illegal for pet stores in California to sell any dogs, cats, or rabbits that come from anywhere other than a rescue group or a shelter.
“The problem is puppy mills, and this law is specifically targeting shutting down and not supporting puppies being manufactured in unsafe, unsociable, and horrific conditions,” Elena Bicker told ABC News.
Bicker is the executive director at Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation and has been an active member of this movement to stop the selling of animals who were bred solely for a commercial purpose.
While this law may seem like a step in the right direction, some people aren’t as excited about it as others.
Even though breeders will still be able to sell animals independently, they’re still speaking out against the new legislation which is expected to go into effect in 2019.
This law is the first of its kind, which means that it brings along a whole new type of argument between people and organizations who support it, and those who don’t think it’s fair.
The American Kennel Club is a well known organization for the registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. They recently released a statement that directly opposes the law.
Their statement is a lengthy one that looks at the history of the animal activist groups that have sought out this new type of legislation on local and national levels. In summary they think that:
“[W]hen governments attempt to limit the legitimate sources from which a person may obtain a pet, it not only interferes with individual freedoms, it also increases the likelihood that a person will obtain a pet that is not a good match for their lifestyle and the likelihood that that animal will end up in a shelter.”
According to the Humane Society of the United States, there’s been an increase in the protection of puppy mill dogs–dogs who come from large-scale breeding facilities that prioritize profit over the well-being of the animals–in over 200 cities and counties thanks to ordinances similar to this new California law.
So, what do you think about this new law? Let us know in the comments below!
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