The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) and three Pennsylvania residents/dog owners/ALDF members – Barbara Keith, Andrea Shatto, and Margaret Ehmann- won their lawsuit with a panel of three judges against the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture over the allowable exemptions to Pennsylvania’s new Dog Law, Act 119, made in 2010 which weakened the minimum standards that animal advocates fought so hard to get passed for dogs in commercial kennels aka puppy mills. The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture allowed the amendments to create regulatory exemptions for nursing mothers and their puppies which has forced them to live on wire strand flooring most of the year. Pennsylvania puppy mills house more than 100,000 dogs.
The commonwealth court ruled that the Department of Agriculture eviscerated key elements of the law by issuing two exemptions for puppy mills. The Department of Agriculture is in charge of enforcing the Dog Law. These exemptions allowed puppy mill owners to shirk the law. The Animal Legal Defense Fund sued to have them struck down. The ruling restores the integrity of the law, a comprehensive set of requirements for commercial dog breeders.
On July 31, 2014 the ALDF along with the three Pennsylvania residents sued the Department of Agriculture alleging illegal expenditure of state dollars on unlawful regulatory activity. In 2008 the Pennsylvania General Assembly amended the Dog Law to strengthen standards for dogs in puppy mills. In 2010, the Department of Agriculture weakened those minimum standards by creating exemptions for nursing mothers and their puppies. I attended the Independent Regulatory Review Committee in Harrisburg where/when the law was watered down.
The Pennsylvania Dog Law banned wire strand flooring in primary enclosures for dogs over 12 weeks of age, and required “unfettered access” to an outside exercise area for dogs over 12 weeks of age. Bowing to pressure from the puppy mill owners, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture passed a regulation allowing puppy mills to keep nursing mothers with puppies in enclosures with up to 50% metal wirestrand flooring. The Dep’t issued a “policy statement” that the agency would not enforce the exercise requirement against puppy mills if they provided nursing mothers with puppies access to an exercise area at least once a day.
“Being confined to wire strand flooring,” charged ALDF spokesperson, Natalia Lima, “is akin to exclusively walking on a suspended cage,” like the wire cages long used for egg-laying hens and other poultry. “Puppy mills use this as flooring so dog waste falls through the wire making cleaning easier,” explained Lima. “It causes serious paw injuries and deformations.” One deformation is splaying which causes the toes to spread as a result of standing on the wire flooring. Other injuries include painful abrasions and cysts on paws.
splayed foot on a dog
The 2008 Pennsylvania Dog Law “banned wire strand flooring in primary enclosures for dogs over 12 weeks of age, and required ‘unfettered access’ to an outside exercise area for dogs over 12 weeks of age,” Lima said.
The panel of three appellate judges agreed with the ALDF and held that the Department’s regulation on wirestrand flooring and its “daily exercise” policy were both contrary to the clear purpose and intent of the Pennsylvania Dog Law and therefore were unlawful. Today’s decision struck down both exemptions.
ALDF Executive Director, Stephen Wells says “The Animal Legal Defense Fund will continue to champion the Pennsylvania Dog Law and other legal methods of protecting dogs until the inhumane puppy mill industry shuts down.”
Pennsylvania is known as the Puppy Mill Capital of the East [Coast.] Many puppy mills went “out of business” after the new law took effect in 2008. However, the number is misleading because a large percentage of puppy mills went underground. According to my source, 75% of kennels are hidden away without being regulated. There is a proliferation of unlicensed kennels in Pennsylvania.
The new Dog Law was designed to make dogs’ lives better in a puppy mill which animal advocates celebrated in 2008. Act 119 covered the bare minimum standards for the canines but it was a foundation on which to build. When the law was weakened, it basically reverted the new law into the old one allowing puppy mill owners to create cruel and inhumane conditions by confining dogs 24/7 on wire flooring without any exercise or the ability to have access to the outdoors. Act 119’s original short-lived victory was making these two important changes.
Eight years later, Pennsylvania’s new Dog Law will finally go into effect! While this is a victory, a true win will occur when puppy mills will be obsolete and dogs will never live a life of misery inside one of them ever again.
Tina Evangelista-Eppenstein is a television talk show host, speaker, writer and animal advocate. She hosts the show, ” A Close-Up Look at Animal Welfare Issues.” Have a story, please email Tina at tevangelistaepp@yahoo. Like my tv page at https://www.facebook.com/ACloseUpLookAtAnimalWelfareIssues and check out AnimalWelfareIssues.com for all the tv shows you may have missed!
Finally the regulations are going to be put in place. It’s about time. 8 years after we fought so hard to get this law passed needs dogs and puppies will no longer have to stand on wire flooring. Nepali new owners were also have to allow their dogs outside to get exercise. Finally finally something has been done about this. The puppy mill owners fought so hard not to have to do this and the department of agricultural gave into them. What does that say about the department of agricultural? Dogs and puppies and all that shouldn’t be under the jurisdiction of the Department of agricultural to start.. animals are not plants or crops. I won’t be satisfied until all puppy mills are closed. It’s still a victory though. I think the animal legal defense fund for winning this one.
I agree that the Dep’t of Ag should not be in charge of overseeing dogs in Pennsylvania. Dogs are living, breathing beings and not crops, as you say. This needs to change in Pennsylvania. Thanks.
I agree 100%! It’s absurd the Department of Agriculture is in charge of puppy mills. Absurd! This state is backwards in its thinking and needs to adjust t the way people feel about animals. What’s it going to take for that change to happen?
The Department of Agriculture is for AGRICULTURE not pet dogs, cats and other domesticated animals. I’m so angry and sick that this still exists in this day and age!! It’s bizarre to me. When will it change??
And another thing these dogs will still live a life of Hell could find in panels for their entire lives. This Victory doesn’t stop the hell for these dogs.
I also agree with your statement. It is still hell to be confined in cages for their entire lives to breed repeatedly and their only motive is making money off of the dogs. Thanks again.
That’s right. The changes won’t stop the dogs from living in the disgusting cages and kennels and from being abused or mistreated. The law can’t change a mindset.
Abolish puppy mills. Make puppy mills illegal. People need to ask why the AKC bsucks puppy mills and why they give puppy no owners papers for their puppies. making all of this illegal will solve this problem of dogs being forced to live in puppy mills.
Yes, yes, yes and yes! Make them illegal! That’s the answer but it’s not going to happen anytime soon. The AKC DOES support puppy mills which dirties the waters even deeper in the world of puppy mills. It’s a sick cycle which the American public don’t understand. The public thinks the AKC is a good organization watching out for dogs when they’re supporting the puppy mill industry by handing out “AKC papers” to any puppy mill who will pay them. They are a joke and should be dismantled immediately.
There’s your answer! Make them illegal. No-brainer.
I definitely agree that puppy mills to be illegal in every state in the nation! Thanks.
Make puppy mills illegal, but we must find and expose the underground mills and clues them too. It’s a life of misery so let’s work together and get it done. #Harleysdream
It’s a tough job to find all of these underground mills but it does have to be done to eliminate them. How do we find them, Julie Edgerton, if we don’t where they’re at?
Stop buying puppies from pet stores. Plus, commercial kennel owners are savvy and sell puppies over the internet despite them saying they don’t want modern conveniences. They’ll do whatever it takes to make the money. Don’t buy from them. Period. Exclamation point!!!!!
yeah, baby. Fantastic news!
good!