The Unites States Department of Agriculture announced new regulations Wednesday mandating minimum care standards for puppies and dogs sold by online retailers.
Videos By Rare
According to the USDA new federal inspections will put teeth into rules aimed at thousands of online puppy mills that have engaged in animal abuse and poor care for decades. The standard will also allow online customers to purchase with confidence from breeders they know to be federally certified.
“Tens of thousands of dogs suffering in substandard, filthy, and overcrowded cages for years on end will finally get the protection they deserve as a result of a rule the U.S. Department of Agriculture will formally adopt today,” president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States Wayne Pacelle said in a statement released Wednesday.
Prior to the rule published in the federal register Wednesday, online puppy mills were allowed to operate without federal oversight due to an exemption for internet retailers in the federal Animal Welfare Act.
“Because large-scale dog breeders who sell animals to pet stores are regulated, but breeders who sell directly to the public are not, there has been a massive migration of breeders to the latter sales strategy within the last decade or so. If they could sell dogs and escape any federal oversight, why not get in on that act and continue to cut corners on animal care?” Pacelle noted.
In addition to the care concerns for the animals themselves, traditional breeders pointed out it was unfair for retailers in the same market to face an entirely different set of regulations.
“Internet sellers of puppies often displayed images of puppies frolicking in open fields. In reality, the dogs were languishing, crammed inside feces-encrusted cages, receiving no protection from the elements and no veterinary care whatever,” Pacelle said.
Despite the USDA’s inspector general finding numerous abuses, the government was unable to step in until the gap in the law between only and traditional breeders was modified.
The HSUS in partnership with the Humane Society Legislative Fund launched a petition with 32,000 signatures in 2011 calling on the Obama administration to tackle the issue of unregulated online puppy mills. HSUS then spearheaded an effort that gained 350,000 signatures urging the USDA to act when it considered modified regulations in 2012.
“It was that OIG report, combined with our advocacy efforts in Congress and with the Obama administration that finally compelled federal action,” Pacelle said.
The new USDA regulations will take effect within 60 days thanks to the Puppy Uniform Protect and Safety Act, which closed the internet loophole in the Animal Welfare Act.
“This rule has the potential to allow federal inspectors to peer behind the closed doors of puppy mills and improve the lives of tens of thousands of animals. That is a change worth celebrating, and we thank our supporters, the USDA, and our allies in Congress for supporting this significant step,” Pacelle said.
Related articles
- U.S. cracks down on Internet pet sales in bid to stop puppy mills (theprovince.com)
- USDA Closes Loophole That Allowed Puppy Mills (mintpressnews.com)
- Feds to close Internet puppy mill loophole, crack down on online dog sellers (pennlive.com)