Pennsylvania Cracks Down on Puppy Mills - National Humane Education Society

Paws Up! To Pennsylvania lawmakers for proposing improvements to animal cruelty laws in the state.

May 1, 2019

Yesterday, animal welfare advocates were at Pennsylvania’s state capitol promoting more rigid animal cruelty legislation. One such piece of legislation is the Pennsylvania Retail Sales Bill, or Senate Bill 44, which would ban the sale of puppies, kittens, and bunnies from pet shops unless the animals are from shelters and rescues. Nicknamed “Victoria’s Bill” after a dog born in a puppy mill who later succumbed to a genetic disease, this bill would also require all breeders to display their license number on all of their advertisements, according to this article.

Infamous for their disregard for animal welfare in exchange for higher profits, commercial breeding facilities such as puppy mills and kitten factories have a long history of perpetuating animal cruelty. In order to cut back operation costs, many puppy mills keep dogs in stacked crates, forcing the animals to live in their own filth. The females are forced to breed every time they are in heat, causing health problems for the mothers while they give birth to smaller and smaller litters until they cannot breed anymore. Many puppy mills also do not keep the facilities climate-controlled, leading to more unnecessary deaths due to bitter cold in winter and stifling heat in summer. To learn more about puppy mills and how to differentiate a mill from a reputable shelter, click here.

Take Action: Pennsylvania readers, please contact your legislators and ask them to cosponsor Senate Bill 44, “Victoria’s Law.” Click here to find your legislator. Call or email them today!