Last year, the Pinellas County Commission decided to allow retail pet stores to remain in our community. This decision, I believe, led to a unique partnership that ensures the health and safety of puppies in our community’s pet stores — and transparency about how they were raised.
Local families deserve options and accurate information to decide how and where to find a pet. Research from the American Pet Product Association shows that half of American families seek out a pet store or breeder to find their next pet. They decide to go this route because they have a specific idea of their perfect family pet — a certain breed or a specific life stage (like a puppy) — or because they want background information like the pet’s genetic history or medical information.
Only breeders and pet stores can provide specific breeds, guarantee that a puppy will be available and provide assurances about a pet’s genetic or medical history. Sunshine Puppies, which owns two of the county’s six pet stores, is providing confidence to families who want to know that a puppy was humanely bred and raised with care.
It’s placing a priority on working with breeders who have received Canine Care Certification, a voluntary set of care standards for breeders that are rooted in science and backed by research. Managed by Purdue University, the care standards address everything from housing and socialization to veterinary care and genetics for puppies.
Canine Care Certification also mandates that breeders have an adoption program in place for the puppies’ parents. Currently, the science-based guidelines call for retiring the puppy’s parents at 4 to 7 years old, depending on a number of factors.
It’s not enough to promise that a pet was bred by a compassionate breeder. Sunshine Puppies is now partnering with SPCA Tampa Bay, a Largo-based animal welfare organization that had previously supported the pet store ban, for veterinary care. Acting as a watchdog for puppies in the stores, SPCA Tampa Bay’s veterinarians are visiting Sunshine Puppies’ two stores each week to keep an eye on puppies who are awaiting homes. They’re examining puppies’ physical condition, reviewing their health histories and completing the documentation that Florida law requires for puppies to be sold.
SPCA Tampa Bay is also testing a pilot program to rehome the puppy parents through its shelter. This collaboration between private businesses provides transparency about pets’ origins and health and accountability to do the right thing for the animals. If successful, it could be a new approach to preserving residents’ choice about their next pet while addressing concerns about how pets in stores are being raised.
Kathleen Peters is vice chairperson of the Pinellas County Commission.
