Puppy mill law could set standard for rest of nation

A legislative compromise aimed at reining in abuses by high- volume dog breeders, while also heading off a ballot effort to place puppy- mill restrictions in the state’s constitution, is headed to Gov. John Kasich.

Legislation satisfying terms of a deal struck between majority Republicans at the Statehouse and the Humane Society of the United States cleared the Ohio House this past week. It already has cleared the state Senate.

Republican Rep. Brian Hill, of Zanesville, the bill’s sponsor, said the Humane Society has agreed that if the bill becomes law, it will keep further puppymill restrictions off Ohio’s ballot for 10 years.

“One of the major things, I think, that was important for many of us was that there was going to be a ballot issue on this this fall,” he told House colleagues before the vote.

The Humane Society’s push for a constitutional amendment responded in part to a state law passed this past year that had the effect of negating ordinances in Grove City and Toledo that sought to prohibit pet stores and other retailers from acquiring the dogs they sell from “puppy mill” breeders.

That law was championed by Petland, the global pet retailer based in Chillicothe, which had gotten behind the compromise.

John Goodwin, senior director of the Humane Society’s national Stop Puppy Mills Campaign, helped negotiate the deal. He said the hope is that Ohio’s move to tighten requirements on pet stores and their suppliers will set a new national standard.

“We’ll see how it plays out,” he said.

The bill that’s been sent to Kasich would require pet retailers or dog brokers to get a signed document from their suppliers attesting that they’ve complied with Ohio’s standards of care for their animals, which relate to feeding, housing, veterinary care, exercise and human interaction.

“Ohio will be the first state in the nation to say that a sourcing requirement, ( in other words) where sellers get puppies, will be taken into account as well as the conditions in which breeding dogs live,” Goodwin said. “Ohio is one of the most populous states in the nation, and there aren’t a lot of commercial dog breeding kennels in other states that meet these standards.”