Last year the USDA and APHIS proposed legislative changes to a current law that would have caused me to hang up my hat and stop breeding dogs. That post can be seen here. Thanks to you and your letters of opposition, the legislative teams did listen and the wording was changed. The reason any change in the current regulation was needed was to cover online puppy sales. Many ‘mills’ use the internet to sell their puppies. You might see a lovely photo of a healthy puppy, but are shipped a puppy that is entirely different and far from vigorous. There was little the government could do to stop these mills from selling their puppies to the uneducated public. The new changes hope to curtail those breeders, however the wording is still extremely vague. The American Kennel Club has issued a statement with FAQ included to help you better understand how this regulatory change will affect breeders and buyers alike. To read the full story, visit the AKC website.
What does this mean for me and you? Not a whole lot. There are exemptions to the ruling that will allow me to operate without needing to get a USDA license or have a USDA regulation ‘Kennel’ for my dogs. I will NEVER subject my pups to being in a kennel, I will stop breeding before that happens. If I am reading this correctly, the following statements exempt me from this law. Here is the important part explained via the AKC website
Are there any exemptions to this rule?
The new definition of dealer subject to USDA licensing and regulation includes “any dog… for research, testing, experimentation, exhibition*, or for use as a pet, or any dog sold at the wholesale level for hunting, security or breeding purposes“. (*exhibition as defined in the AWA excludes purebred cat and dog shows).
The rule seems to indicate that if you are selling a dog as a breeding prospect, to maintain bloodlines, or for hunting, working, or security, you would be exempt. If you are selling the dog as a pet, you would not be exempt. It is important that the seller be able to clearly demonstrate their purpose in selling the dog at the time of sale. However, additional clarification from USDA is needed on this point.
You are also exempt if you sell the dog in a face-to-face transaction.
What does this mean? Pet buyers of my Standard Poodles MUST pick up their puppies in person, face to face. The previous wording said the buyer must visit my house. That wording was changed. I can now meet you part way, which is nice. Last year Summer Horton and I met in Austin, where she picked up Murry to fly him back with her to Alaska. She flew all the way to TX, I wasn’t going to make her drive another 2 hours to my house!
If I sell a puppy to a fellow breeder, I am also exempt from needing a face to face transaction.
If I have less than 5 breeding females, I am exempt. The wording is vague. We are not sure if those females must live with me or not.
My policy in the last 10 years has been to always meet the family who is adopting my pups in person. I might ship them a puppy sight unseen after I have met them, but never the first time. Now I will not be able to ship anyone a puppy sight unseen, even if I already know you unless you are getting a breeding / show dog. The family adopting a pet puppy can fly to an airport near me, pick up their puppy, and fly home. This will increase your purchase cost by about $200.00 if you pick up your puppy at 8 weeks of age and the pup can fly under your seat in a carrier within the cabin.
The wording is vague, no one, not even AKC has a full understanding of this law. Some of my breeder friends are rather panicked by this legislation. I can see both sides of this coin. The government cannot impose the laws already on the books, I’m not at all sure how they propose to hire the staff needed to inspect all the online mills across our country. I do not see why they would waste their time and resourses on someone like me, doing my best to provide healthy pets and ‘hopefully’ satisfied customers. Only time will tell how this will affect breeders in the long run. I feel the ones who will be harmed the most are the rare breeds. Finding good homes locally for a rare breed will be close to impossible. Maybe their best option will be to sell those pups as “breeding quality” and allow the home to decide what they do with those pups. It would be following the letter of the law, rare breeds do need to preserve bloodlines. 🙂
What do you think about this change to the existing law? Comment below.
~Becky