Editorial: Listening to all, towns can keep puppy mills out of pet sales

Arlington Heights has given itself 60 days to draw up a set of regulations for pet shops. Naperville is in its fourth month of debating what constitutes a puppy mill and whether it will ban retailers from selling dogs bred by large-scale operations. A Cook County ban on puppy mill dogs goes into effect Oct. 1.

And in March 2015, Chicago will join more than 40 other cities in North America that have enacted their own bans.

Clearly, the drumbeat across the nation is getting louder. People and their governments, disgusted by conditions exposed at so-called puppy mills, are legislating rules prohibiting retail businesses from selling dogs that are bred in filthy and inhumane conditions and by large-scale breeders.

But as reform sweeps the nation, there also are reasons to look at, and make decisions, locally. While no one considers what we think of as puppy mills to be remotely acceptable business practices, Naperville and Arlington Heights - and other communities that will be looking to see what they do - have to take many factors into consideration.

Bottom line, they need ordinances that assure animals are treated properly and healthfully, that give consumers confidence about what they are buying and that also allow retailers the opportunity to do business if they perform up to standards.

The Cook County law forbids dog, cat and rabbit retailers from getting animals from commercial breeders. Instead they may only sell pets from government shelters, rescue agencies, humane societies and federally licensed breeders with no more than five reproducing female animals.

Home rule communities in the county can accept the law as written, amend it, or choose to opt out.

One affected business owner, Ron Berning, says his shop, Happiness is Pets in Arlington Heights, will effectively be shut down by the Cook County law. He and two other pet shop owners in the county got an injunction Thursday to stop the law from going into effect, saying it prevents them from buying animals not only from mills but also from reputable breeders who operate on a commercial scale.

As Naperville is doing, Arlington Heights must give its staff time to talk with the stakeholders - Berning, animal advocates, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, even the owner of the strip mall where the pet store is located - to get all the facts.

Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes has committed to nothing but appropriately keeps the focus on the health and safety of the animals.

"We're going to see if we can't keep this business operating in Arlington Heights, but make sure those dogs are safe and healthy for their eventual owners," he said Monday on video. "We're trying to take our time and investigate all the possibilities."

That is a responsible position, showing the proper concern for a business that has been located in town 16 years, for its landlord, for the rights of dog owners and, especially, for the dogs themselves.