Legislation banning the sale of puppies and kittens at most retail establishments in Texas has sparked a debate between animal rights advocates and some pet store operators.
The twin pieces of legislation, House Bill 3458 by North Texas Republican state Rep. Jared Patterson and Senate Bill 1652 by South Texas Democratic Sen. Judith Zaffirini, are competing for attention with scores of other measures awaiting action before the 2025 legislative session ends in five weeks.
But both lawmakers say their legislation would curb animal abuse by making it more difficult for so-called puppy mill and kitten mill breeders to operate in the state.
Some dogs at the Austin Animal Center are in kennels outside in a shaded area with fans because of overcrowding at the shelter Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022, in Austin. The shelter is temporarily restricting intake and will only take in animals for emergencies.
“Puppy mills generally are known to promote profit over animal welfare,” Zaffirini told the Senate Business and Commerce Committee on Thursday. “With many of these pets suffering from health problems, this can lead consumers with unexpected high veterinary costs and untold lost income.”
The panel took no action on her bill. But last week, the House Workforce and Economic Development Committee voted 10-1 to send Patterson’s bill to the full chamber for consideration.
“This has been a consistent priority of mine since I came into the Legislature, and I’m happy to fight for pet owners out there and for these pets,” Patterson, R-Frisco, told the committee when he laid out the bill in April. “The goal of this legislation is simple: to restrict predatory pet store businesses from sourcing dogs and cats from inhumane out-of-state puppy mills.”
Much of the testimony during both committee hearings centered on retail chain Petland, which offers young animals for sale. One witness, Carlene Rios, said she purchased a puppy she calls Major at a Petland in March only to discover within a few days that the animal was sick, resulting in $5,000 in veterinary care costs.
The store’s general manager, Jake Patel of Frisco, told the committee he was unfamiliar with Rios’ situation, but he said his store is committed to “full transparency” in all its transactions. He promised to look into complaints.
Katie Fine, who represents an organization called Best Friends Animal Society, said the larger issue is where stores in the Petland chain obtain their dogs and cats.
“The only breeders willing to sell to pet stores are those unscrupulous breeders who reject their own ethical standards,” Fine told the panel. “This legislation is needed to stop these unscrupulous breeders, puppy millers, from taking advantage of our constituents.
“This is not just an animal welfare issue, it’s an issue of public health.”
Several large cities, including Austin, San Antonio and Houston, have ordinances governing the sale of puppies and kittens within their boundaries. Two years ago, legislation that would have imposed pet store regulations across the state stalled.
Instead, a measure that curtailed local governmental entities from enacting a wide range of regulatory ordinances — including those aimed at pet stores — was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott.
The law did not strike down pet store ordinances already on the books, but it prevents other local subdivisions from imposing similar measures.
According to statistics from the Humane World of Animals — formerly the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International — 31 states and more than 500 local political subdivisions have enacted laws to regulate pet stores.
Meanwhile, federal legislation called the Puppy Protection Act of 2025 is awaiting action in Congress. Similar legislation was filed in 2023 but didn’t become law.
Backers of the legislation by Patterson and Zaffirini say statewide action is needed because instead of opening stores in the major cities, retailers that want to sell puppies and kittens are simply moving to suburbs and exurbs.
Elizabeth Kunzelman, Petland’s vice president of legislative and public affairs, said stores in the chain have implemented numerous safeguards to protect both pets and their purchasers. And, she added, the ordinances in Texas cities have had minimal effect on addressing overcrowded animal shelters.
“We have been down this road a couple times before,” Kunzelman said. “But what I want to say is banning the sale of pets in pet stores does not do what supporters claim.”
“We buy them from USDA-licensed breeders that have had no indirect or no direct violations for the previous two years of inspections, and we are committed to fully sourcing from Canine Care Certified, which is the gold standard of breeding programs,” she said.
Petland has agreed to less far-reaching legislation in past legislative sessions that never made it to the finish line, but Kunzelman said the present proposals go too far.
“We are not afraid of regulation,” she said. “We want to do the right thing, and we want to give families a choice.”
Shelby Bobosky, executive director of the Texas Humane Legislation Network, told the American-Statesman that the bills awaiting further action are not seeking to shut down pet stores.
“It ensures collaboration with animal care facilities or rescues to showcase dogs and cats foradoption, instead of for profit,” she said.
Zaffirini said the legislation will provide a much-needed statewide uniform standard.
“After the Legislature preempted local ordinances banning these sales, it became even more important to establish consistent protections that safeguard animal welfare and help families avoid unknowingly purchasing sick or mistreated pets,” she said. If enacted, the legislation “will ensure all Texans are safeguarded from unethical sales practices — regardless of where they live.”
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas legislation would ban retail sales of puppies and kittens
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