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/d/93 <br />MEMORANDUM <br />TO: Board of County Commissioners <br />FROM: William K. DeBraal, Deputy County Attorney <br />DATE: June 11, 2019 <br />SUBJECT: - Public Hearing: Ordinance Prohibiting the Retail Sale of Dogs and Cats <br />In October 2018, under Public Discussion Items, the Board of County Commissioners heard a <br />presentation from Nicole Capobiaco seeking to ban the retail sale of puppies at pet stores that were <br />born in "puppy mills". The Board also heard from Doherty, Inc. who spoke in opposition of the ban <br />of the sale of puppy mill puppies. Doherty, Inc. is the operator of Pets Around the World II, located <br />at the corner of US Highway 1 and 8th Street (former Cindi's Pet Store location). Pets Around the <br />World II offered puppies and kittens for sale at retail. On May 14, 2019, staff presented a proposed <br />ordinance that would prohibit the sale of puppies and kittens at retail unless they were offered by a <br />not -for profit rescue organization, an animal shelter or the Humane Society of Vero Beach Indian <br />River County. The ordinance would also allow the sale of puppies or kittens from a family breeder <br />or a hobby breeder but not animals from a broker or puppy mill. The Board directed staff to advertise <br />the ordinance and schedule a public hearing. The advertisement appeared in the Press Journal on <br />June 7, 2019. <br />Since the initial discussion last October, Pets Around the World II has stopped selling puppies and <br />kittens at retail and closed their business. Staff is not aware of any other businesses or pet store <br />offering puppies and kittens at retail, except puppies and kittens from local shelters. There was also <br />a failed attempt this legislative session at state regulation of puppies and kittens at retail. One bill <br />would have provided for Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services regulation of the <br />sale of puppies at retail. Another bill would have provided for state regulation of the sale of puppies <br />at retail while pre-empting local govemments from enacting ordinances banning retail sales and <br />striking down existing ordinances that banned the sale of puppies at retail. Neither bill was <br />successful. <br />7 <br />Staff communicated with several outside sources on this issue including the US Humane Society, <br />Sarasota County and Brevard County. Staff has also reviewed the various lawsuits that were filed <br />in Florida and nationally, challenging the constitutionality of ordinances that banned the retail sale of <br />puppies at retail. The lawsuits were filed by owners of pet stores that actively sold puppies at their <br />retail stores, challenging the validity of newly enacted ordinances that either banned the sale of <br />puppies at retail immediately or the ban on retail sales was phased in over time. The Florida lawsuits <br />all came from pet stores that were actively selling puppies and kittens at retail. As there are no active <br />businesses in Indian River County that are actively selling puppies and kittens at retail, staff feels <br />that the risk in enacting this ordinance amendment has been significantly reduced and the chance <br />of a plaintiff prevailing on the suit is also greatly reduced. <br />138 <br />