Closing a loophole
WITH BELLA’S ACT, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR SAVES PETS, HELPS BUSINESSES AND SLAMS THE DOOR ON PUPPY MILLS
You might think puppy mill legislation wouldn’t be possible during a global pandemic. But chalk one up for the relentless advocates in California who fought for it anyway — and won. Assembly Bill 2152, known as Bella’s Act and introduced by assembly member Todd Gloria, finally puts an end to the retail sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in California, cracking down on the puppy mill industry in that state once and for all.
Wait, didn’t we do that already? Well, yes and no. In 2017, California became the first state in the country to prohibit the sale of commercially bred dogs, cats and rabbits in retail stores, allowing certain exceptions. It was a huge victory for animal lovers and advocates. However, when the law went into effect, unethical breeders and retail pet store operators began exploiting a loophole in the law.
They established sham 501(c)(3) rescue organizations, hiding the real source of their animals, lying about partnerships with animal shelters and deceiving people who thought they were adopting rescued pets. Despite these bad actors operating in a wildly unethical fashion, what they were doing was technically legal. So, a new bill was authored and introduced into the assembly in early 2020 to address the problem.
Then COVID-19 arrived and bills not essential or related to safeguarding California’s people and infrastructure were put on hold. This is where the story gets interesting. The new bill actually was relevant to the health and wellness of people, essential businesses and services, and animals in the state. The people who formed those fake rescue
The new bill passed with nearly unanimous bipartisan support, and on the eve of National Puppy Mill Awareness Day, Governor Newsom signed it into law.
groups were bringing in puppies from mills in Missouri. Because many mill-bred animals come with health problems and can carry transmittable viruses, bringing sick puppies into California not only put humans and other animals at increased risk, it threatened to increase the burden on veterinary offices, animal shelters and animal protection officers already stretched thin and operating under emergency restrictions.
Then, of course, there’s the sobering reality that California is the state with the highest number of dogs and cats killed in shelters. More than 100,000 of the 710,000 pets who entered the state’s shelters in 2019 were killed. So, a loophole that allows unethical businesses to import and sell sick pets (for as much as $5,000) is clearly unacceptable.
Together, a group of animal advocates and organizations (including Best Friends, San Diego Humane Society, the ASPCA and the Humane Society of the United States, along with Jennifer Fearing of Fearless Advocacy, Inc., and assembly member Todd Gloria) led a whirlwind of research, strategic planning and collaborative conversations to shut down unethical retailers, protect legitimate businesses and ultimately save the lives of thousands of at-risk pets. The new bill passed with nearly unanimous bipartisan support, and on the eve of National Puppy Mill Awareness Day, Governor Newsom signed it into law.
Life is now much brighter for pets and people in California, and we’re one step closer to stopping puppy mills for good nationwide.
We all want to live our best lives, unapologetically chasing our dreams. And if that dream involves cats, even better! The title character of FOX’s new comedy, Call Me Kat, does just that. In the show, based on the British series
Miranda, Mayim Bialik (a longtime Best Friends supporter and enthusiastic cat person) stars as a woman who struggles every day against society and her mom to prove that she can live a happy and fulfilling life, despite still being single at 39. To live her dream, she spends her entire life savings to open a cat café in Louisville, Kentucky.
On top of the fantastic cast and hilarious story, another reason you should watch the show is because FOX has partnered with Best Friends to help homeless cats in need. FOX donated $25,000 to the animals at Best Friends and will be highlighting adoptable cats starting in December. While the show celebrates living your best life — plus cats — there’s really no better way to watch it than with a furry friend or two purring on your lap. That’s what we’ll be doing.