Senate Votes to Shut Down Abusive Puppy Mills

(SALEM, Ore.) - Coming on the heels of yet another high-profile puppy mill bust in the Northwest, the Senate voted this morning in support of House Bill 2470, a bill that limits breeders to owning no more that 50 sexually intact dogs 2 years or older.

“Passing this bill will create one of the most effective and comprehensive puppy mill laws in the nation,” said Senator Diane Rosenbuam (D-Portland), who carried the bill on the floor.

“We’ve seen story after story describing deplorable conditions in these puppy mills. This legislation will give us the ability to crack down on the inhumane treatment of animals.”

HB 2470 also specifies conditions under which pet dealers must provide refunds, replacement, or reimbursement if a dog is found to suffer from certain diseases or birth defects. This will offer recourse to purchasers who learn that their puppy has serious emotional or health problems. In many cases owners find themselves overwhelmed and the distressed dogs are given up to local humane societies.

“By targeting both large-scale breeding facilities and unscrupulous retail pet stores, this bill will end the cruel cycle of events that leads to the abuse and neglect we see repeatedly in Oregon and around the country,” said Senator Vicki Walker (D-Eugene), a chief sponsor in the Senate.

“Nationwide, approximately 25 percent of dogs entering shelters are purebred dogs. Given that number, it seems clear that puppy mill dogs are a significant contributor to the overpopulation of animals.”

Puppy mills are generally defined as large-scale commercial dog breeding operations that function solely for the purpose of turning a profit. Oftentimes the dogs are kept in filthy and crowded conditions where they receive little to no socialization, affection, or exercise.

“I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for animals,” said Senate President Peter Courtney (D-Salem). “It is heartbreaking to think about innocent puppies beginning their lives in such cruel and horrible circumstances. This bill is another step toward eliminating animal abuse in Oregon.”

House Bill 2470 was chief sponsored in the House by Representative Paul Holvey (D-Eugene) and Representative Sara Gelser (D-Corvallis). The bill will now go to the Governor’s desk for his signature.

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dequane j December 21, 2011 7:55 pm (Pacific time)

wow i think this is real cruelty because i'm a dog lover i grew up with dogs and i wouldn't want my dog treated like that because i love my dog animals need love cause these so called humans that are doing this wouldn't want to be treated this way themselves so why do this to innocent dogs that did nothing too them.This is why i don't let my dog go outside because of people doing that to other dogs.

nikki October 27, 2009 2:55 pm (Pacific time)

If you can live with out breeding animals and making a profit off of there young then you need to go back to school and learn how to become a useful person in society. Does no one see that there is a MASSIVE overpopulation of dogs? Yet they still think they can make money off of dogs. If you reall think about it puppies actually will end up costing you more in the long run, you have to get a permit, pay for vet bills, shots, spay/nueter, food, pregnancy, housing, toys, treats, they are alot of work. Now let me think didnt we see blacks as animals and property? Things to help us make money? seams to me that the way those dogs are being treated is alot similar. Now I know humans and dogs arents the same, but a life is a life. it feel, it crys, it screams. Who the hell are you to controle it and deny it a real life? What God given right do you have to say that "oh this is just a business I need to make money and I dont care about anyone or anything but me". how selfish are you?

ddoggonetruth June 3, 2009 12:03 pm (Pacific time)

This bill once in effect will be shutting down legitimate business due to the poor language used. Look at the bill - how do they define a ‘breeding dog’. THEY DONT except by the definition of a dog being 'intact'. So, a training facility - which they refused to put in with the exemptions – is subject to the full bill. If you don’t believe me, listen to the audio of the house and senate floor and committee hearings. Well, comments have been made through this whole legislation that this will only affect the bad breeders and not the good breeders, or that there needs to be more regulations. Oregon has some of toughest animal laws on record in the nation. There is jail time involved; it is a felony in specific cases, fines applied along with banning from owning again. The ‘puppy mills’ are busted and prosecuted as they are found. If the prosecution was not tough enough in specific cases that you have heard about, then you need to look at the details and why they were prosecuted in that way. There is usually a mental health issue involved called hoarding. This bill will do nothing to ‘find’ the puppy mills either. They still have to be reported by the public, or found by our animal enforcement officials. There is no more funding being given to these government departments, if anything, they will be cut in the near future. The people against this are upstanding law abiding citizens and business owners. They are the ones that educate the community, are the largest supporters of the research in the promotion of animal health, and some of the largest support in communities towards donations and volunteer time to shelters. These are the people in whom many go to for help with their dogs so that they can become or stay successful family members and stay out of the shelters. This bill will shut down some of the best training facilities and / or limit the revenue of those businesses thus rendering them in-operateable. Why? Because they fail to define what a breeding dog is the only definition in this bill is that the dog is intact. They also state in testimony that no one person can take care of that many dogs. Well this is because the people with this amount of dogs don’t; they hire people to accommodate their business needs. Can a training facility can have over this many ‘intact’ dogs? The answer is yes, and I would bet to venture that even the ‘Dog Whisper’ can have more than this at his facility. This bill will also be shutting down businesses which are already heavily regulated, by the county, and federal governments. They pay yearly permits to both governments along with any fines etc in accordance with the inspections' that they receive yearly. So, with this being said, let me ask you some questions to answer for yourself. Before you commented or contacted your government representatives to support this bill: Did you educate yourself on the total effects of this bill – the pros and cons from both sides? Did you read the bill in full and know the subject well enough to know if the written language is written well enough to become a law? We need laws and regulations, but we need good laws without unintended consequences. We do not need to be limiting revenue of successful businesses, shutting down family businesses or putting more people on the unemployment line when we already have laws in place which just need to be enforced.

shannon June 2, 2009 8:14 pm (Pacific time)

i love animals too, they are protected, and our rights as americans ACL should come above these issues to side track the american people into voting for bogus issues/ while we do without the issues that protect us. it's our rights. not just theirs. the federal and state officials. truth!

Daniel Johnson June 2, 2009 4:32 pm (Pacific time)

This is something I have never understood: why owners of a so-called puppy mill treat their charges poorly to the point of criminality. They are in the business to make a profit but every healthy dog is an asset. If they end up with too many, a responsible thing would be to have them put down. Not something very nice, but certainly better than having them die of mistreatment. One effective punishment for the owners would be, if convicted, a ban, perhaps a lifetime ban, on being in the business of breeding and selling animals of any type. If a breeder knew that he was at risk of losing that form of livelihood, he might be a more responsible business person.

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