Toronto to tighten standards for pet stores?
Monday, June 06, 2011The Canadian Federation of Humane Societies (CFHS) is encouraged by a recent recommendation made by the City of Toronto’s Licensing and Standards Committee for the city to restrict the sale of cats and dogs in pet stores to only those animals coming from breeders certified by the City of Toronto. As always, pet stores would continue to be allowed to host animals available for adoption from humane societies, shelters and rescue groups.
The recommendation was passed at the May 31st meeting of the Licensing and Standards Committee, which saw the action as a compromise position between an outright ban on the sale of cats and dogs in pet stores and the status. If the recommendation is approved by city council, the city would develop a certification program for dog and cat breeders. Pet stores would only be permitted to sell puppies and kittens coming from certified breeders. The purpose is to ensure that pets sold in stores are not originating from abusive puppy mills or shoddy breeders.
Supporters of the proposed new regulations point to the fact that consumers will be provided with certification that a dog purchased at a pet store has originated from a rescue group, shelter, or certified breeder. The council also recommended that stores lose their license if they are found buying animals from mills. The requirements and recommendations will be voted on by the City Council later in June.
The CFHS advocates that companion animal stores restrict their sale of live animals to domesticated and captive-bred birds, fish and small mammals other than cats and dogs. The sale of puppies and kittens in stores creates an outlet for puppy and kitten mills, while also promoting impulse buying of pets whose needs are such that they require a long-term, serious commitment from owners. We also have concerns about the ability of pet store staff to properly meet the needs of a young cat or dog in a retail store environment. For these reasons, we want pet stores to stop selling dogs and cats, and to instead use their kennels to display homeless pets in need of adoption from humane societies, SPCAs and animal rescue groups. Many pet stores, including the large chain store PetSmart, operate in this manner as “satellite adoption centres” for animal shelters.
While the CFHS remains concerned about the sale of cats and dogs in pet stores, the physical environment which a pet store provides for animals, and the issue of impulse purchases, we believe that the regulations proposed by City of Toronto’s Licensing and Standards Committee would be a step in the right direction towards animal welfare.
The success of this committee decision hinges on the proposed regulations being passed by city council, and the city developing stringent standards for their certification program that would actually eliminate irresponsible breeders as sources for pet stores.
The CFHS promotes the humane treatment of all animals and supports our members and other like-minded organizations that are committed to this goal. Animal welfare advocacy is a priority of the CFHS. As a founding member of the National Companion Animal Coalition, the CFHS plays a critical role in working towards improved legislation, regulations and standards for the care and humane treatment of pets. The CFHS animal welfare positions can be viewed at: http://cfhs.ca/info/position_statements/
