House panel OKs puppy mills bill
INDIANAPOLIS Pet stores would be required to provide customers with more information about the dogs and cats they sell including the original breeder and medical history under a bill that passed a House committee Wednesday.
The bill, aimed partly at raising awareness of large-scale breeding operations known as puppy mills, also would make it a felony to attend a dog fight.
Supporters said the information given to pet buyers under the bill would help them make better decisions when choosing an animal.
Indiana residents have the right to know about what type of environment their puppy or kitten came from prior to its arrival to the pet store, just as they have a right to know the food ingredients they will consume or not, said Candice Staub, a Terre Haute animal health technician.
But opponents said the proposed rules are burdensome and unnecessary.
The Courts and Criminal Code Committee approved House Bill 1258 unanimously. it now moves to the full House for consideration.
Under HB 1258, pet stores would be required to reveal the name of a dog or cat’s breeder and information about how many litters that breeder produced each year. Some of the information would be posted on the pet’s case. Some would be available upon request.
If pet stores are telling the truth that they’re not buying animals from puppy mills, then they should have no problems with the proposed regulations, said Sarah Hayes, president of the Indiana Alliance of Animal Control and Welfare Organizations.
She said reputable breeders would not sell to pet stores.
Pet store owners testified that they already give most of the information required by the bill to customers after they buy a cat or dog.
Craig Curry, special projects manager for Uncle Bill’s pet stores, said the store doesn’t reveal breeding information before a sale because animal-rights activists sometimes harass breeders.
People are terrorized over animals, he said. We are so terrified that somebody is going to get hurt.
Brian Winslow, director of animal welfare and education for the Petland chain, said providing the information before a sale gives customers an opportunity to bypass pet stores and go straight to the breeder.
House panel OKs puppy mills bill
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