The editorial in The Journal and The Durango Herald on the pet store ordinance that Durango is considering was called a “feel good” ordinance. That isn’t a bad thing, but it is also a step in eliminating the inhumane treatment of our beloved companion animals.
Pet stores buy their animals from puppy mills, where dogs are kept in cages their entire lives, never touching grass, never learning to walk. The dogs above relieve themselves on the ones below. They do not receive proper veterinary care and don’t have interaction with any other dogs or humans.
When they are about 5 years old and no longer of use to the mill, they can be disposed of in any fashion. Further, it’s recommended to not buy from pet stores as parents of the puppies are kept in such horrific conditions that the puppies are often sick, sometimes dying just months after a family spends several thousands on it.
This is a preemptive ordinance; it must be passed before a pet store wants to open and sell puppies. Once that happens, it is too late.
A responsible breeder is not hurt by this and would never sell to a pet store.
There are about 12 cases, both at the state and federal level, which have found the ordinance to be legal and constitutional.
Sometimes, the government has to regulate businesses when there is a moral and ethical reason to do so. This is one of those cases.
Joyce Cohen
Durango
