II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 395 

To amend the Animal Welfare Act to provide further protection for puppies. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2013 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. VITTER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. 

CARDIN, Ms. COLLINS, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. UDALL of Colorado, and Mr. WYDEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

A BILL 

To amend the Animal Welfare Act to provide further 

protection for puppies. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Puppy Uniform Pro5 tection and Safety Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF PUPPIES UNDER THE ANIMAL 

2 WELFARE ACT. 

3 (a) HIGH VOLUME RETAIL BREEDER DEFINED.— 

4 Section 2 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2132) is 

5 amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (l), by striking ‘‘research.’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘research;’’; 

8 (2) in subsection (n), by striking ‘‘section 

9 13(b); and’’ and inserting ‘‘section 13(b);’’; 

10 (3) in subsection (o), by striking ‘‘experimen11 tation.’’ and inserting ‘‘experimentation; and’’; and 

12 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(p) HIGH VOLUME RETAIL BREEDER.— 

14 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

15 ‘‘(A) BREEDING FEMALE DOG.—The term 

16 ‘breeding female dog’ means an intact female 

17 dog aged 4 months or older. 

18 ‘‘(B) HIGH VOLUME RETAIL BREEDER.— 

19 The term ‘high volume retail breeder’ means a 

20 person who, in commerce, for compensation or 

21 profit— 

22 ‘‘(i) has an ownership interest in or 

23 custody of 1 or more breeding female dogs; 

24 and 

25 ‘‘(ii) sells or offers for sale, via any 

26 means of conveyance (including the InterVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:03 Mar 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S395.IS S395

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1 net, telephone, or newspaper), more than 

2 50 of the offspring of such breeding female 

3 dogs for use as pets in any 1-year period. 

4 ‘‘(2) RELATIONSHIP TO DEALERS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

6 Act, a high volume retail breeder shall be con7 sidered to be a dealer and subject to all provi8 sions of this Act applicable to a dealer. 

9 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The retail pet store ex10 emption in subsection (f)(i) shall not apply to 

11 a high volume retail breeder.’’. 

12 (b) LICENSES.—Section 3 of the Animal Welfare Act 

13 (7 U.S.C. 2133) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (a) (as so designated), in the 

17 second proviso of the first sentence, by inserting 

18 ‘‘(other than a high volume retail breeder)’’ after 

19 ‘‘any retail pet store or other person’’; and 

20 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(b) DEALERS.—A dealer (including a high volume 

22 retail breeder) applying for a license under subsection (a) 

23 (including annual renewals) shall include on the license 

24 application the total number of dogs exempted from exerVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:03 Mar 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S395.IS S395

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1 cise on the premises of the dealer in the preceding year 

2 by a licensed veterinarian under section 13(j)(2).’’. 

3 (c) EXERCISE REQUIREMENTS.—Section 13 of the 

4 Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2143) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 

6 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; 

7 (2) by redesignating the second subsection (f) 

8 (as redesignated by section 1752(a)(1) of Public 

9 Law 99–198 (99 Stat. 1645)) as subsection (g); and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(j) EXERCISE REQUIREMENTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

13 the date of enactment of this subsection, the Sec14 retary shall promulgate standards covering dealers 

15 that include requirements for the exercise of dogs at 

16 facilities owned or operated by a dealer, including 

17 exercise regulations that ensure that— 

18 ‘‘(A) each dog that is at least 12 weeks old 

19 (other than a female dog with unweaned pup20 pies) has daily access to exercise that— 

21 ‘‘(i) allows the dog— 

22 ‘‘(I) to move sufficiently to de23 velop or maintain normal muscle tone 

24 and mass as appropriate for the age, 


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1 breed, sex, and reproductive status of 

2 the dog; and 

3 ‘‘(II) the ability to achieve a run4 ning stride; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) is not a forced activity (other 

6 than a forced activity used for veterinary 

7 treatment) or other physical activity that is 

8 repetitive, restrictive of other activities, sol9 itary, and goal-oriented; 

10 ‘‘(B) the provided area for exercise— 

11 ‘‘(i) is separate from the primary en12 closure if the primary enclosure does not 

13 provide sufficient space to achieve a run14 ning stride; 

15 ‘‘(ii) has flooring that— 

16 ‘‘(I) is sufficient to allow for the 

17 type of activity described in subpara18 graph (A); and 

19 ‘‘(II)(aa) is solid flooring; or 

20 ‘‘(bb) is nonsolid, nonwire floor21 ing, if the nonsolid, nonwire floor22 ing— 

23 ‘‘(AA) is safe for the breed, 

24 size, and age of the dog; 


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1 ‘‘(BB) is free from pro2 truding sharp edges; and 

3 ‘‘(CC) is designed so that 

4 the paw of the dog is unable to 

5 extend through or become caught 

6 in the flooring; 

7 ‘‘(iii) is cleaned at least once each 

8 day; 

9 ‘‘(iv) is free of infestation by pests or 

10 vermin; and 

11 ‘‘(v) is designed in a manner to pre12 vent escape of the dogs. 

13 ‘‘(2) EXEMPTION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a licensed veteri15 narian determines that a dog should not exer16 cise because of the health, condition, or well17 being of the dog, this subsection shall not apply 

18 to that dog. 

19 ‘‘(B) DOCUMENTATION.—A determination 

20 described in subparagraph (A) shall be— 

21 ‘‘(i) documented by the veterinarian; 

22 ‘‘(ii) subject to review and approval by 

23 the Secretary; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) unless the basis for the deter25 mination is a permanent condition, reVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:03 Mar 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S395.IS S395

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1 viewed and updated at least once every 30 

2 days by the veterinarian. 

3 ‘‘(C) REPORTS.—A determination de4 scribed in subparagraph (A) shall be main5 tained by the dealer.’’. 

6 SEC. 3. REGULATIONS. 

7 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall promulgate 

9 any regulations that the Secretary determines to be nec10 essary to implement this Act and the amendments made 

11 by this Act. 

12 SEC. 4. EFFECT ON STATE LAW. 

13 Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this 

14 Act preempt any law (including a regulation) of a State, 

15 or a political subdivision of a State, containing require16 ments that provide equivalent or greater protection for 

17 animals than the requirements of this Act or the amend18 ments made by this Act. 

Æ 


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