Puppy Mills

In a letter to the editor published today in The Star Ledger, ASPCA President and CEO Matt Bershadker urges New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to take action on a pending pet purchasing bill.

In a guest blog for The Huffington Post, ASPCA President and CEO Matt Bershadker applauds New York City’s new pet store regulations.

Photo: NYC Council Members Corey Johnson and Elizabeth Crowley, who spearheaded this legislation, flank ASPCA President and CEO Matthew Bershadker as he speaks at this morning's rally in support of stronger pet store regulations.

We couldn’t be more thrilled to share the news that the New York City Council today voted in favor of Introductions 55-A, 136-A and 146-A, legislation to regulate city pet stores that sell puppies. Certain provisions of the bills will take effect as soon as January.

The first time we met Coconut, she was starving, shivering and extremely fearful of people. It was May 2013, and she was being rescued from a puppy mill.

In January 2014, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed milestone legislation to allow local governments to regulate pet dealers for the first time in almost 15 years.

For a one-year-old Shih Tzu named Cosita, life wasn’t always easy. Purchased from a pet store and then neglected for nearly a year, Cosita was suffering from a number of physical and emotional ailments by the time she was rescued by the ASPCA. But despite it all, this petite pup had a lot of love to give—and fortunately, she found the perfect person to give it to. Here is Cosita’s Happy Tail.

Last week, lawmakers in Nassau County, New York—the western portion of Long Island—passed an ordinance to regulate the county’s pet stores and breeders beyond what state law requires. While we’re always glad to see local governments taking the time to address the issue of puppy mill cruelty, the new Nassau ordinance is similar to the one passed recently in neighboring Suffolk County in that it doesn’t do nearly enough to protect animals and consumers.