Effort targeting sales from ‘puppy mills’ expected again at Texas Legislature

AUSTIN – The Dallas Morning News reports a proposal targeting puppy mills — places that breed puppies for sale, often in inhumane conditions — is expected to come before the Texas Legislature next year for the third consecutive session. Animal advocates say there’s a pipeline of puppy mills outside of Texas that ship pups across state lines to supply pet stores with young animals that are often transported in poor conditions, sometimes for thousands of miles. Dallas in 2022 became the 18th city in Texas to ban the sale of dogs and cats at pet stores, resulting in the closure of a local Petland, according to the Texas Humane Legislation Network, an advocacy group for the humane treatment of animals.

Gov. Greg Abbott last year signed into law a bill blocking cities and counties from passing ordinances inconsistent with state laws regulating business and commerce. With no state law regulating sales from pet stores, at least 10 new pet stores have since opened in Texas, with others set to open in Mansfield and North Richland Hills. “Now these stores are popping up everywhere, and that is why this legislation is critical,” said Shelby Bobosky, executive director of the Texas Humane Legislation Network. “In Texas, you can’t sell puppies in Dallas, but you can sell them next door in Carrollton.” California, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, New York, Oregon and Washington have laws regulating humane pet sales, according to Best Friends Animal Society. Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, introduced legislation in 2021 that would have banned the sale of dogs and cats from pet stores unless the animals came from an animal control agency, animal shelter, animal rescue organization or licensed breeder. Like the Dallas ordinance, a violation of Patterson’s bill would have been a civil penalty of up to $500 for each dog or cat unlawfully sold. Versions of Patterson’s legislation passed the House in April 2021 and Senate a month later, but differences in the bills weren’t reconciled in time to become law.