Bill targeting Missouri’s ‘puppy mill problem’ returns ahead of 2025 legislative session

JEFFERSON CITY — A Democrat from St. Ann once again is pushing for legislation to place more restrictions on commercial dog breeders, though he concedes the measure faces long odds because of resistance from pet stores and large agricultural operations.

The bill would regulate the treatment of breeding animals, such as requiring veterinary care and photographing the animals’ enclosures quarterly. Information on the health of animals’ parents would also be required to be shared with purchasers.

Rep. Doug Clemens, the sponsor, said the goal is to assure Missouri consumers “that they’re not buying an animal that has been exposed to horrible conditions and is genetically messed up from inbreeding.”

Clemens sought unsuccessfully last year to attach the measure as an amendment to legislation that would have prevented municipalities from banning pet stores that sell dogs. Some retailers sell dogs bred from high-volume commercial breeders.

Clemens’ amendment was shot down, and the pet store bill never made it to the governor’s desk. The stand-alone bill Clemens filed never received a committee hearing.

The biggest hurdle for his bill, Clemens contends, is opposition from those who worry it could impact livestock operations. More specifically, that it may set up hurdles for concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs.

“We support and encourage (CAFOs) in Missouri, and those have everything but kindness to animals about them,” he said.

In March 2023, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that it was unlawful for municipalities to restrict the operations.

Clemens’ bill does not explicitly name cats and dogs as the target of the legislation but specifies it applies to “animals used for breeding.”

Cody Atkinson, Missouri state director for the Humane Society of the United States, told The Independent that lawmakers seem receptive to animal welfare laws as long as it doesn’t affect livestock.

“Everybody understands that there is a problem with puppy mills,” he said. “The real hang-up is making sure the language is appropriate to toll these dog-breeding operations and keeping it wholly separate from other livestock within the state.”

Atkinson said the bill “finally recognizes the need for greater transparency in the state of Missouri when it comes to breeding dogs.”

Missouri ranks 37th in animal-welfare legislation, according to advocacy group the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

Missouri’s record

The Humane Society of the United States annually publishes a list of the hundred worst dog breeders identified through inspections. For 12 years, Missouri has topped the list for the most breeders on the “Horrible Hundred“ list.

Missouri remains a hot spot for large commercial breeding operations even after reforms in 2010 and 2011 that sought to crack down on the problem.

Voters passed a ballot measure in 2010 called the “Puppy Mill Cruelty and Prevention Act” that specified appropriate living conditions for breeding operations with at least 10 female breeding dogs. It also capped the number of animals that a business could use for breeding at 50.

In 2011, lawmakers passed a bill sponsored by then-state-senator Mike Parson, a Republican who is finishing up his final year as governor, that peeled back parts of the new law — including the cap on the number of breeding dogs. At the time, Parson declared: “No one has a right to take away our God-given right to raise animals in this country.” Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, signed the bill, calling it a compromise.

The change was widely criticized by advocates as a political move inspired by large agricultural interests.

Atkinson said he frequently sees breeders violate the law, keeping dogs suspended on wire floors and in unsafe climates.

“It really all comes down to the lack of funding and support for inspections and prosecution whenever these shortcomings are found,” he said.

The Missouri Department of Agriculture has 15 inspectors in its animal care division.

Atkinson said the annual inspection currently prescribed by law is “not frequent enough.”

Clemens’ legislation adds requirements for female breeding dogs to be examined by a veterinarian each breeding cycle, or about every six months.

The legislation protecting pet stores has yet to be filed. Clemens said he plans to offer his bill as an amendment if it is filed.

The Post-Dispatch contributed to this report. Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors.