‘Puppy Mill Bill’ requires pet shops to sell healthy pets

OLYMPIA – If you buy a pet in Washington State, you may get more than you bargained for, including heartbreak.

When Charlene Mathew brought her new puppy, Dolce, home from the local pet store, there were no signs of trouble. But, by the end of the day, the puppy, along with Mathew’s other dog, were both vomiting. At first, she thought it was food poisoning, but Dolce’s vomiting didn’t stop. The puppy was hospitalized, and when the tests came back, Mathew learned that Dolce had Parvo, a highly contagious and disease that can be fatal for puppies.

“We asked our vet if we could visit and were told we could not because we could carry the virus out on our clothes,” said Mathew. Four days later, Dolce died.

While doing online research to learn more about the Parvo virus, Mathew discovered their story wasn’t unique…that this DOES happen all the time. Many friends, colleagues and online reviews told horror stories about places like the pet shop she dealt with. There were incidents of people who returned sick puppies only to find that the shop did not get them the vet care they had promised, and that the animals were either euthanized or re-sold to another unsuspecting customer.

“We maintain a nationwide database that logs these complaints,” said Inga Gibson, Washington State Director of the Human Society of the United States. “And, here in Washington we receive thousands of these complaints every month.”

Currently in Washington State, pet dealers are not required to screen their animals for health problems or provide customers with an animal’s medical history, and they can legally sell animals that are seriously ill.

Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, has sponsored Senate Bill 6408 to make the selling of sick animals a crime. A public hearing is scheduled in the Senate Labor, Commerce, Research & Development Committee on Thursday, Jan. 17, at 3:30 pm in Senate Hearing Room 4 of the John A. Cherberg Building. Gibson will be testifying on behalf of those victimized by shoddy pet dealers. She will also present a written statement by Charlene Mathew who is unable to attend.

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