Photo: Pixabay/SmBerG
California has become the first U.S. state to ban the sale of commercial pets, now that California’s Assembly Bill No. 485 has officially passed.
According to the government: “[As of] January 1, 2019, [the bill prohibits] a pet store operator from selling a live dog, cat, or rabbit in pet stores unless the dog, cat, or rabbit was obtained from a public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group, as defined, that is in a cooperative agreement with at least one private or public shelter, as specified.”
Governor Jerry Brown signed the bill into law Friday, October 13, 2017, The Orange County Register reported. Any pet store owner who violates this law will be fined $500.
This law, however, does not affect people buying pets directly from breeders. It only prohibits pet stores from selling commercially bought pets, whether they come from mills or from breeders.
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), approximately 35 cities have introduced similar policies locally, but this is the first time a whole U.S. state signed this law into place.
“We are overjoyed that Governor Brown signed this historic piece of legislation into law,” Social Compassion in Legislation president and founder, Judie Mancuso, said in a statement. “In banning the sale of mill-bred animals, California took a bold step forward. The deplorable conditions that animals suffer in these high-volume breeding facilities are not a secret and now they have a champion in California.”
In a statement to HuffPost, ASPCA president and CEO Matt Bershadker applauded the law for disrupting “the [cruel] puppy mill supply chain that pushes puppies into California pet stores and has allowed unscrupulous breeders to profit from abusive practices.”
Many animal welfare groups, including ASPCA and The Humane Society, support this bill and hope that it will inspire other states to promote the end of mills and cruel practices towards pets.
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