California AG Issues Consumer Alert on Cruel Puppy Market Schemes

Dogs are fiercely loyal but the people selling them are sometimes real cads.

Finding the right canine companion for your home can be a perilous journey littered with puppy mills and unscrupulous sellers who put profits over dogs’ health, sometimes leaving the buyer stuck with a sick animal and high vet bills, California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned this week in a consumer advisory titled Puppy Buyers Beware.

Bonta’s “Consumer Alert on Cruel Puppy Schemes” urged Californians to be on the lookout for “deceptive and criminal breeders” that  subject animals to” unhygienic and “cruel living conditions,” resulting in consumers saddled with a sick pet and the attendant heartache and financial cost.

Bonta issued a slew of advice on how to find a good breeder and warned against purchasing from  puppy mills that “are commercial dog breeding facilities that disregard dogs’ health and safety to maximize profits.”

Warning against bait and switch tactics, he explained that, “Deceptive breeders will often advertise puppies as having been born to a litter in the breeder’s home when in reality, puppies are born in puppy mills.”

Bonta also delineated the litany of California laws designed to protect consumers purchasing pets and dictate humane breeding conditions.  Although the Golden State’s top litigator tried to nudge people into getting an animal from a shelter,  he went into considerable detail on how to purchase one.

Bonta also talked about his own pets.

“I adopted my dogs, Luna and Solí, from a shelter, and they have become deeply cherished members of our family. While I highly encourage Californians to adopt their pets from animal shelters and rescue organizations, consumers who continue to purchase their dogs from breeders should ensure the person they are buying from is responsible, honest, and credible,” he said. “Tragically and too often, shady breeders only interested in making a profit sell chronically sick, injured, and mistreated puppies to unsuspecting consumers. This is sickening. I urge Californians to be vigilant and watch out for negligent breeders.”

Separately, on Twitter or X, he posted pictures of his furry family members, looking quite plaintive and comfy.

Bonta’s consumer  alert also included a statement from California Animal Welfare Association CEO Jill Tucker touting the virtues of getting pets from shelters because “there has never been a better time to adopt.”

“Consumers greatly underestimate the variety and selection of beautiful, healthy, friendly pets they can find in shelters statewide, and we strongly urge them to check with their local shelters first when ready for a new pet,” Tucker said. “Shelters throughout California are inundated with wonderful puppies, kittens, and adult animals that are ready for new homes, along with knowledgeable staff and volunteers that will help them select the right match.”

The consumer alert then explains at length how to find a “reputable breeder” and the red flags that can help you spot shady sellers.

“A reputable breeder should meet you in person — not sell their puppies or kittens through pet stores or online to people they have not met,” it explains.  “They will show you records and openly share details about how the animal was born and raised, individual records of health tests and veterinary records for the animal and their parents, and the animals’ living conditions. Be suspicious if a breeder doesn’t ask you questions or seem concerned about the well-being of their animals.”

And look out for anyone hawking a pet who urges you to throw caution to the wind. “Deceitful sellers may understand you want to take precautions and try to persuade you that it’s not necessary.”

Bonta then provides a checklist of what people purchasing a pet from a breeder should do.  Among the suggestions:

–”Ask breeders for references, including those of the veterinarians they use.”

–Don’t rely on just online presentations. Make sure to visit the breeder’s home. “Never buy a puppy or kitten without visiting where they and their parents were raised and housed—don’t just trust papers and pictures.”

–Similarly, “Be wary of a seller who sells animals from a parking lot or other location other than their home. Some scammers use this tactic and then disappear.”

–Ensure that the animal you are buying has been to the vet.  “Get copies of all medical records, and confirm the records with the vet directly—if medical records are missing, that is a red flag.”

–Never pay with cash and beware of sellers who only accept cash–”a seller who only accepts cash or won’t provide a receipt is not a reputable seller.”

–”Insist on a written guarantee of good health and find out if the animal can be returned for any reason” because a “seller who agrees to provide a written health guarantee and to accept return of the animal is more likely to care about the animal and have their best interest in mind.”

The consumer alert then recaps various California laws that protect pet parents and animals.  “Understand Your Rights,” it exclaims. “California law allows select small breeders and pet retailers to sell pets if they maintain health and safety standards for their animals and provides for a remedy for consumers who unknowingly purchase sick pets.”

The Lockyer-Polanco-Farr Pet Protection Act, on the books as CA Health & Safety Code § 122125 et seq,  says that “Pet retailers selling more than 50 dogs or cats a year to must have a permit, maintain health and safety standards for their animals, sell only healthy animals, and provide written spay-neuter, health, and animal history disclosures to pet buyers.”

It also guarantees that purchasers are not saddled with sick animals, requiring that if a “dog or cat becomes ill due to a pre-existing illness within 15 days from purchase, or if the pet is adversely affected by a congenital or hereditary condition within one year from purchase, the seller must offer the owner a refund, exchange another puppy or kitten, or reimbursement of veterinary bills up to 150% of the pet’s purchase price.”

The Polanco-Lockyer Pet Breeder Warranty Act, on the books as CA Health & Safety Code § 122045 et seq, has the same provisions as the above statute, but it applies to smaller dog breeders–those who “sold or gave away either three litters or 20 dogs in the previous year.”

And AB 485, enacted in 2019, says pet store retailers can only sell animals that were procured from a government animal control agency, shelter or animal rescue operation. It does, however, allow consumers to purchase animals directly from breeders.

Bonta concludes his missive by saying anybody concerned about a puppy mill in their area can file a complaint with the local humane society and complaints about criminal conduct by puppy mills or breeders can be filed with your local district attorney or his office.

California Animal Welfare Association CEO Jill Tucker told the California Globe that Bonta’s memorandum was prompted by a series of articles in the Los Angeles Times this September about unscrupulous sellers in California importing puppies from Midwest puppy mills but marketing them as locally bred, with many of the dogs ending up sick.

Tucker said her statement for Bonta was part of  her organization’s work to “increase the percentage of the public that choose shelter adoption over other means of acquiring a pet. With shelters facing intense overcrowding, increasing adoptions is essential to their lifesaving efforts.”

She added that, “We also have the best [selection] of pets!!”

Bonta, for his part, has been quite the wokester during his tenure as attorney general.

But by trying to prevent Californians having their dream pet turn into a beast of burden he is definitely barking up the right tree.