Animal rights activists, puppy breeders and Bloomington city officials are at odds over an Indiana bill that would prohibit communities from banning retail pet sales.This bill could prevent local governments from enacting bans on: What Bloomington Passed in 2021.
House Bill 1412; Written by Rep. Beau Baird (R-Greencastle), state-wide regulations for commercial dog breeders, brokers, and retail pet stores, including annual random inspections by the Indiana Animal Health Commission starting July 1, 2025. will be introduced. Pet shops also need to be maintained. Keep a record of where the store got all the dogs it sold and make that list available to the public. Breeders must register with BOAH and be certified in the national Canine Care Standards Program developed by Purdue University researchers.
The bill would require retail pet stores to provide a dog's medical history, vaccination status, pedigree registration, microchip, and, if applicable, information from the dog's breeder.
House Bill 1412 received its first reading in the Senate on February 5 and was referred to the Agriculture Committee.
The House bill was scheduled for third reading on February 5th, and the Senate bill on February 6th.
Dog care standards elicit support
Jonathan Lawler, spokesperson for the Indiana Animal Welfare Council, expressed support for the bill, calling it a first step in eliminating unethical and substandard dog breeding operations. Stated. He said that while breeders could be involved in uninhabitable conditions, poor grooming and overbreeding, a complete ban on dog sales would not eliminate harmful breeding.
“I believe that a responsible breeder, especially if they have a relationship with a pet store, can absolutely sell to a pet store,” Lawlor said.
House Bill 1412 would require pet stores to accept returns of dogs sold for any reason within three days of the sale. Currently, not all pet stores support this policy. Mr Lawlor said this would curb impulse purchases by people who buy pets on a whim and later realize they can't properly care for them, and would allow them to return the pet if needed.
“If someone regrets buying a dog, it could be a welfare issue for the animal,” Lawler said.
Lori Wilson, co-CEO of Uncle Bill's Pet Centers, which has six locations in Indiana, said the bill would ensure pet stores and breeders adhere to the highest standards of animal care. He said it would be done.
National animal welfare laws require wholesale breeders and dealers who supply animals to pet stores and intermediaries to be licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Breeders must meet the minimum standards for humane animal care and treatment set by the AWA. But many animal advocates, including Wilson and animal rights groups, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals — To tell While USDA standards are just survival standards, canine care standards are designed to help dogs thrive.
“100 percent, this is exactly where Indiana should be,” Wilson said. “That standardized approach includes everything an animal needs: physical, mental, mobility, socialization. This program will hopefully be the best of what's to come in the rest of the United States. It will be the front line.”
Dr. Candace Croney is director of the Animal Welfare Science Center at Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine and founder of the Canine Care Certification Program. Croney said she and a group of other researchers developed the dog care program after breeders asked for advice on how best to raise and care for their dogs. She said it became clear that a more scientific and comprehensive approach to animal welfare was needed than required by law.
Croney said she's always happy to teach dog caregivers why it's important to improve their quality of life and ask questions about their dog's health.
“They can see their dogs from us and learn how we evaluate them. Then they can see what we see and do what they need. Adjustments can be made,” Croney said.
Mr. Croney's guidelines include: five pillars of care, — Detailed rules regarding physical health, behavioral health, environment, breeding life and retirement, and breeder expectations.
To receive dog care certification, breeders must enroll in the program online beThen submit the required documents. This is followed by an independent audit by Validus, a nationally recognized third-party certification company, which performs a detailed review and walk-through to ensure the breeder meets each standard.
Clowney said the audits are scheduled to occur annually, but are scheduled with only a few days left until the audit, meaning breeders cannot fabricate humane conditions to pass the audit.
“Dogs don't get the memo that they need to change their physical health or whether they're fat or thin just because an audit is scheduled,” Croney said. “Even if someone thinks they can quickly try to clean up their act before an audit, during records and interviews and what the dog showed, it's really hard to do that.”
Senate Bill 255 would allow parents to send their children to a variety of educational services.
One of the bill's most controversial provisions would prevent communities from enforcing pet sales bans, which are currently enacted in 21 ordinances in the state, including Bloomington. ing. While some say the bill puts regulations in place for safe breeding practices, others criticize the bill for taking away local control and potentially discouraging adoptions.
The Humane Society of the United States statement They opposed the bill and criticized it for allowing procurement from puppy mills. A puppy mill is a facility that breeds puppies for sale, usually under harsh conditions.
The bill would allow stores to sell from breeders who are USDA-licensed and who have not “directly violated” animal welfare laws in the past two years.
“There is no incentive for pet stores to start sourcing puppies from dog care certified breeders, as they can purchase dogs from larger puppy mills and intermediaries who can more easily fill cages.” There is.
Samantha Chapman, Indiana state director for HSUS, said she believes responsible breeders will not sell to commercial pet stores, which often prioritize profit over passion for the breed.
“Ultimately, this bill is intended to preempt local regulations so that pet stores can continue to sell puppy mill dogs in Indiana,” Chapman said. “This standard is secondary and allows pet stores to continue sourcing from inhumane puppy mills.”
Bloomington city officials have expressed concerns about the bill's implementation.
bloomington ordinance A law was passed in 2021 that prohibits the sale of dogs and cats in retail pet stores. City Council District 1 Councilwoman Isabel Piedmont Smith said the ban is an effort to alleviate overcrowding issues at city shelters and encourage people to connect with new pets through adoption. She said state legislatures often enact statewide mandates after local governments pass their own rules, but that feels like an attempt to strip them of power, she said.
“Things like this are a reflection of community values, and local governments know and understand the local values of a city like Bloomington better than the people at the state capitol in Indianapolis. “There is,” she said.
Dr. Piedmont-Smith said he wasn't sure how the Animal Health Board would handle additional testing., That's because the bill provides no additional funding for staffing.
“Our local ordinances do not allow the sale of dogs in the first place, so there is no need for additional testing or follow-up,” she said. “I think that's a much more viable process for achieving what we want, which is reducing animal cruelty.”
Virgil Souder, director of Bloomington Animal Care and Control, acknowledged that House Bill 1412 is an effort to advance animal welfare, but said he also has concerns about funding and whether BOAH will be able to continue testing. Stated.
“There's a difference between a breeder who loves a particular breed, stands behind that particular breed, follows up on the animal after the sale, and takes the animal back if there's a problem,” Souder said. “And there are some individuals who are breeding primarily for money, and there's a different set of ethics there. It can be a very fine line, so this is difficult to enforce. After considering our options locally, we decided to ban pet shops because that was more or less the best thing we could do, and we were working with the utmost care.”
Dennis Deller Spears, director of communications for the Animal Health Committee, said the Animal Health Committee does not comment on the bill and is following discussion in the General Assembly.
