The national movement to end puppy mills has come to a halt in Tempe after the recent passage of an Arizona bill that restricts cities from limiting the sourcing of pet stores to just rescue animals.
Tempe and Phoenix passed ordinances in the spring in an effort to stop the puppy mill problem which said that pet stores could only sell animals that were rescued. However, Gov. Doug Ducey signed SB1248 in August, which made the ordinance no longer valid.
“As a tax-paying Tempe resident, it was really sad to see what they had put into action, being overturned at the state level,” said Founder and Director of Ohana Animal Rescue Deanna Arroyo.
Arroyo and others who opposed SB1248 find it frustrating that the bill undid the work put into getting the ordinance passed. It banned the use of puppy mills and commercial breeding. Supporters of SB1248, however, argue that commercial breeding done in the right way is necessary.
“If you put pet stores out of business, you’re going to fuel the black market,” said Linda Nofer, director of marketing for an Arizona chain pet store called Animal Kingdom.
Animal rights activists such as Tempe City Councilwoman Lauren Kuby, however, disagree.
“I thought it was an attack on the authority of charter cities.” Kuby said about SB1248 overturning the Phoenix and Tempe ordinances. “To me, this bill reflected the core values of our community.”
Animal Kingdom is a popular pet store in Arizona. It has been a target for people who are against commercial breeding and puppy mills. Some people protest outside of the store at Arizona Mills every weekend, according to Arroyo.
Nofer, however, assured that Animal Kingdom does not purchase from puppy mills.
“The people who say we buy our puppies from puppy mills don’t know the facts,” Nofer said. “We are not an organization of people who wouldn’t support anything or anyone who would hurt an animal.”
Nofer said that Animal Kingdom knows who its breeders are and have met most of them in person.
People like Kuby have a hard time believing the word of pet stores, however. Kuby said she believes places like Animal Kingdom buy from breeders who have many USDA violations.
“They have an economic interest in saying that,” Kuby said. “I don’t have an economic interest here at stake. I’m trying to represent my constituents.”
SB1248 put new restrictions on pet stores, requiring all kennels in every store to show the name of the breeder, USDA license number, and state in which the breeder operates, according to Nofer.
“There’s no hiding where you get your puppies from,” Nofer said.
According to Arroyo, Animal Kingdom is the reason SB1248 was signed.
“They were the ones who came up with the shooter bill, better known as SB1248,” said Arroyo.
Nofer doesn’t agree that Animal Kingdom was the reason for the passage of the bill.
“He did it so that he could regulate breed specific pet stores like ours,” Nofer said, referring to Gov. Doug Ducey.
As for the topic of commercial breeding, Arroyo wants it to end.
“I’m very much against commercial breeding,” Arroyo said. “Your responsible breeders are not your breeders breeding for profit.”
According to Nofer, Animal Kingdom owns a shop in Scottsdale called Homes for Life which only sells rescue dogs. However, she said selling only rescue dogs wouldn’t work for all of their shops.
“You can’t stay in business as a pet store and not sell purebred pets,” Nofer said.
However, Kuby doesn’t believe that’s true.
“It’s a complete myth that you can’t get a purebred at a shelter,” Kuby said.
Kuby said that the Humane Society has made a petition to raise USDA standards. Many people think their standards are too low. As for the movement in Tempe, activists continue to protest and push for more legislation.
“A lot of people are really engaged in this issue,” Kuby said.
