Texas' Puppy Mill Regulation Bill Under Fire

The Texas Legislature may vote this year to uphold or abolish two key pieces of animal rights regulations pertaining to the oversight of cat and dog breeding in Texas, and the oversight by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation of those who have completed court-ordered responsible pet ownership courses. 

Cat and dog breeders as well as responsible pet ownership courses must be licensed by TLDR, which oversees these licenses and has the power to revoke the license of pet breeders or declare that a responsible pet ownership class is inadequate. This year, these programs came under fire after the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission, which conducts audits on government agencies to ensure their practices and policies are relevant in an ever-changing world, recommended doing away with the programs. 

Contrary to popular belief, House Bill 1451 does not make puppy mills illegal in the state of Texas but heightens the threshold of care required for cats and dogs used in breeding operations. 

Texas Humane Legislation Network, a 501c4 nonprofit that lobbies on behalf of animal rights, is trying to encourage the legislature to vote against doing away with these programs, especially the dog and cat breeder licensing regulation — a bill they had a hand in passing in 2011. 

"It's been heartbreaking, but we are ready for the fight," THLN executive director Shelby Bobosky said. "This law stops cruelty before it begins and protects taxpayer dollars. If we don't have this law in place, we're back to the wild wild west. We want to see this law upheld and strengthened." 

Texas began regulating cat and dog breeding in 2011, with the passage of House Bill 1451, commonly called "The Puppy Mill Bill." The bill states that persons required to be licensed as a dog or cat breeder are licensed and provide adequate and humane care for the animals they breed, keep them properly sheltered and provide adequate veterinary care. The bill also prevents those who have been convicted of animal cruelty from becoming a licensed breeder and requires TDLR inspectors who witness animal cruelty to report it to local law enforcement.  

The recommendations by the Sunset Commission to eliminate these licenses, and 13 others, would result in a loss of about $520,800 each year. The commission states, however, that this financial loss will be "partially offset by an estimated annual savings of $349,500 in operating expenses, and a reduction of 4.4 full-time staff positions, beginning in the fiscal year 2022." Whenever a governing body goes under Sunset review in Texas, the body has the opportunity to submit a self-evaluation report to the commission containing more details about their mission and their progress with respect to each aspect they oversee.

According to TLDR's self evaluation report submitted in September for Sunset review, TLDR assessed more than $78,000 in administrative penalties to breeders during 2017 and 2018 but has not collected any monies in restitution. Also in 2018, TLDR governed 174 licensed dog breeders. However, breeders who fall under the jurisdiction of the Texas Dog and Cat Breeders Act must have 11 adult intact female dogs in their breeding program and/or sell at least 20 puppies each year in order to be considered a commercial breeder. 

It's in these numbers that organizations like THLN would like to see the law strengthened, not overturned. 

"This law has many shortcomings," Bobosky said. "This is a high threshold compared to other states. It's all too easy for breeders to lie about the number of puppies sold. We argue that there is no legislative intent behind that number and recommend the breeding females be lowered to five because 11 is too high.

"Even five breeding females is high for a hobby breeder," Bobosky added. 

Contrary to popular belief, House Bill 1451 does not make puppy mills illegal in the state of Texas but rather heightens the threshold of care required for these animals. These regulations help ensure that breeders don't let pets live in filth and squalor, or sell sick puppies to unsuspecting pet parents. THLN states that these regulations also help save taxpayer dollars by preventing cruelty before it begins by keeping breeders in check — lowering the number of large-scale animal seizures. 

"Before issuing a license, TDLR inspects a breeding facility to make sure it meets standard of care requirements, TDLR Public Information Officer Tela Goodwin said in a statement. "Agency inspectors then visit breeding facilities at least once every 18 months and other inspections may occur as needed." 

According to TLDR, licensed breeders must adhere to standards of care in these areas:

— indoor or outdoor housing

— enclosures

— compatible grouping of animals

— exercise for dogs

— feeding, watering, cleaning and sanitation

— housekeeping and pest control

— training of onsite personnel

— grooming

— veterinary care

— sales and transfers

— transportation standards

Goodwin states that some of the most common code violations committed by licensed breeders include not allowing females adequate rest time between breeding cycles, not providing sufficient heating or cooling for animal enclosures, not exercising animals daily and not providing veterinary exams for each pet at least once every 12 months. 

After the initial report is completed by the Sunset Commission (the stage the review process was at when this article went to press), the Sunset Commission will hold a public hearing to take testimony on the staff report and agency overall. After this hearing, the Sunset Commission will vote on which changes to recommend to the Texas Legislature — which will ultimately have the final say. The second meeting of the Sunset Commission was scheduled for Aug. 19; however, this meeting was canceled and the Commission website doesn't list any upcoming meetings on this matter at this time. Representatives from The Sunset Commission did not respond to Texas Dog Magazine’s requests for comment before the time of publication. 

"While the Texas Licensed Breeders Program is not perfect, Texas cannot afford to lose the program entirely," Bobosky said. "Puppy mills significantly contribute to the abuse of animals in Texas and large-scale animal seizures. We encourage anyone who is interested in helping us to call the members of the Sunset Commission, especially if they are their State Representative or State Senator. Texans can use their voice to ask our legislators to preserve and strengthen the breeder's license."

Anyone interested in learning more about THLN's efforts to preserve the "Puppy Mill Bill" can visit thln.org where they can sign up for updates, sign petitions and find contact information for their district's lawmakers.