Big Win: New York Passes Bill to End the Retail Sale of Dogs, Cats and Rabbits in Pet Stores!

June 3, 2022

Happy dog

Today, the New York State Legislature passed the Puppy Mill Pipeline Bill, groundbreaking legislation that will end the retail sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in New York pet stores.

Championed by Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal (D/WF-Manhattan) and Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris (D-Queens), this bill now heads to the desk of Governor Kathy Hochul. If signed into law, the Puppy Mill Pipeline Bill will end the flow of cruelly bred puppies into New York.

Puppies sold in pet stores come from commercial breeding operations—also known as puppy mills—that are designed to prioritize profit over the well-being of the animals. Breeding dogs in these facilities are often kept in crowded cages their entire lives without adequate shelter, veterinary care, food or socialization. The puppies can suffer severe health and behavioral issues, and families are often unprepared for the financial loss and heartbreak that come with buying a sick puppy.

New York is one of the puppy mill industry’s largest markets, but the state’s efforts to regulate breeders within its own borders cannot, on its own, stop puppy mill cruelty from touching its communities: some of the breeders that supply New York pet stores are 1,000 miles away[PDF]. Shutting down this pipeline of cruelly bred puppies from out-of-state breeders is a huge win for dogs and dog-loving New Yorkers.

Please join us in celebrating the passage of the bill as we await Governor Hochul’s signature for the bill to become law. Thank you to everyone who rallied behind the Puppy Mill Pipeline Bill. This victory could not have happened without your support.