‘That’s the federal government’s job.’ Manatee declines to ban sale of cats and dogs
The retail sale of pets in Manatee County will continue after the Board of County Commissioners debated both sides of implementing a ban on the practice Thursday.
Local animal advocates have attended several public meetings to voice their opposition to Petland’s operations within the county. They say the store purposefully sources its pets from “puppy mills” that don’t provide enough care for young animals.
“A complete ban is the only solution,” said Cynthia Kahn, an outspoken critic of Petland’s business model.
Brad Parker, a managing partner of Petland, disputed those claims and told commissioners his company works exclusively with United States Department of Agriculture-approved breeders.
“I really appreciate everyone’s passion,” Parker said. “I think everybody has the same goal. They love puppies and pets and they want them to come from good breeders. Unfortunately, that passion keeps us really divided.”
“We do the best that we can do and work with the best breeders we can find. It’s painful to hear people speak against the breeders we work with when they’ve never met them,” he added.
The issue, board members agree, is that the USDA is understaffed and can’t provide breeder inspections often enough. There are also loopholes that allow breeders to continue operating even after their license had been revoked.
In April, board members directed the County Attorney’s Office to review similar retail pet sale bans in other Florida counties and bring back a draft ordinance of their own. Assistant County Attorney Anne Morris presented a series of options for commissioners to consider.
According to Morris, Manatee could either ban the retail sale of cats and dogs outright, allow existing businesses to continue the retail sale of cats and dogs through a grandfather clause or create a county-licensing system that subjects pet stores to random inspections by county staff.
Sarasota County’s Board of County Commissioners opted to approve a full ban of retail pet sales in January 2016. A legal challenge from Petland delayed the ordinance from going into effect until July 2019, by which point Petland had moved its Sarasota shop into Manatee.
Now, some board members say they would have an issue approving an ordinance that would impact Petland’s business model. Morris also warned that Manatee County could become the first county in the state to ban retail pet sales while a business that operates in that manner exists within county limits, thrusting the legal department’s defense of a ban into uncharted territory.
Commissioner Carol Whitmore, who first suggested that the county do something about alleged puppy mills, spoke in favor of the ban.
“I support free enterprise and being able to make a living. I don’t support a product where living creatures are sold in documented mass large amounts of puppies and kittens in questionable living conditions. There’s too much documentation of where these animals are bred that cannot be denied,” she said.
Whitmore found support from Commissioner Misty Servia, who said a ban would be “the right thing to do.”
“I see holes in this business model where we’re selling animals that are so under-cared for. I don’t like it and I’m uncomfortable that we’re a part of that,” Servia argued. “If we’re not part of the change, then we’re part of the problem.”
But Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said she felt the scope of a ban on retail sale alone would be too narrow, and any action by the county should also hold animal rescue organizations to a higher standard in the sake of fairness.
“I don’t think what we’re looking at really solves the problem. All we’ve talked about today is Petland, but it’s bigger than that,” Baugh said. “We do have rescues that don’t do a great job. I’m not so sure we’re totally looking at this the way we should.”
Most board members said they felt that the ban of retail pet sales should be enacted on a statewide or nationwide level and felt uneasy about leading the charge on the issue in Florida.
“Pioneers are the ones that get killed,” Commissioner Stephen Jonsson said. “I just can’t buy into doing an ordinance that’s going to ban pet sales, specifically dogs, at this point. That’s the federal government’s job.”
In conversations with Elizabeth Goldentyre, a USDA regional director, Commissioner Betsy Benac said she was told that federal officials are aware of issues with puppy mills, but don’t have the resources to tackle them. Moving forward, she suggested Manatee County include improved funding for USDA’s animal inspections programs.
“This should not be politics. We should put some teeth in it, and the only way that’s going to happen is through the state or the federal government,” Baugh said.
Commissioners decided not to direct the County Attorney’s Office to draft a new ordinance. Whitmore, however, vowed to keep pushing for the retail ban of pet sales in Manatee County.
This story was originally published October 31, 2019 at 7:02 PM.
