Proposition B stirs debate in Northeast Missouri

As the November elections approach, a political battle is mounting over the future of Missouri's dog breeding industry. 

Missourians will vote on ballot initiative Proposition B on Nov. 2, which proposes new regulations for large-scale dog breeders in Missouri. Under Proposition B, breeders who violate the new regulations could be charged with a class C misdemeanor.

Missouri has the largest dog-breeding industry of any state in the country, home to one-third of all breeders licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture, according to a report issued in March by the three branches of the Missouri Better Business Bureau. Missouri has four times as many USDA-licensed dog breeders as Nebraska, the next highest state.

Breeders who sell puppies to pet stores must be licensed by the USDA and the state of Missouri, but breeders who sell to individual pet owners have to be licensed only by the state. The Missouri Code of State Regulations currently requires breeders to provide animals with adequate and sanitary food, water, shelter and rest between breeding cycles. The 22-page document of current animal care regulations in Missouri is available for the public to read at sos.mo.gov.  The full version of Prop B is also available there.

Proposition B would add to state regulations by limiting breeders to 50 female dogs for breeding per facility at one time.  It would reinforce the requirements of sufficient food, clean water, living space, veterinary care, regular exercise and adequate rest between breeding cycles by creating a misdemeanor crime of "puppy mill cruelty" for any violations.

"Basically what we're trying to do is have additional boots on the ground, and Proposition B will allow law enforcement to help enforce the standards that we want to set up," Barbara Schmitz, campaign manager for "Yes! on Prop. B" and director of the Humane Society of Missouri, said.

The Adair County Humane Society said it is not taking an official position on Proposition B.

Supporters of Prop. B think new regulations are needed in Missouri to prevent abusive conditions at large-scale breeding facilities in the state. Schmitz said the proposed regulations under Prop. B are modest and reasonable.

"What we are seeking to do is not change that licensing scheme," she said. "We're attempting to layer over that by having humane care standards for the dogs, and those standards would apply under Proposition B regardless of whether you're licensed or not."

The Missouri Pet Breeders Association and others in the agricultural industry in the state oppose the proposition.

"The regulations we already follow are sufficient to eliminate anybody who is not doing it right," Barb York, president of the Missouri Pet Breeders Association, said. "It does absolutely nothing for your unlicensed substandard breeders who are doing it wrong. It does not address that problem at all. It only adds more regulations to the licensed breeders."

Missouri's dog breeding industry is

regulated by the Animal Care Facilities ActProgram in the Missouri Department of Agriculture. The department employs twelve staff members to inspect the more than 1,400 licensed facilities throughout the state and to handle issues with unlicensed breeders, according to the ACFA website.

Diane Fisher runs DogCrazy, a small-scale dog rescue and breeding facility in Unionville, Mo. one hour north of Kirksville. Fisher breeds keeshonds and cockapoos. She said an aid inspector visits her kennel two or three times per year.

"I don't know about how other inspectors are, but I can tell you mine don't play games," she said. "You're either doing it right, or you're not doing it, and they're pretty clear about it."

Fisher said she doesn't think there should be a limit on the number of dogs one breeder can own. 

"Nobody in their right mind would tell somebody that they can only sell 50 real estate properties or tell a bank that it can only have 50 clients," Fisher said. "Yet we are willing to say that to somebody who's running a legally licensed facility. That just seems crazy. It's not the number that you have, it's how you're caring for them."

Under current state and federal regulations, "adequate shelter" means a sanitary facility, protection from extreme weather, proper ventilation and appropriate space depending on the size of the animal. Proposition B defines "adequate shelter" more specifically, as a temperature-controlled indoor space that does not get colder than 45 degrees or hotter than 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Schmitz said the proposed regulations are not unreasonable for breeders to follow.

"The requirements under Proposition B are modest," Schmitz said. "They're common sense, and they're reasonable. What we are talking about is making sure that dogs have cages that allow them to move around, and if you think in terms of size of cages, picture a cage the size of a dining room table, those are the size cages that we're talking about."

York said proposed regulations like larger indoor pens for each animal and heating and air-conditioning would be so cost prohibitive for many licensed breeders across the state that they would go out of business if Proposition B passes.

York said there needs to be a crackdown on unlicensed breeders and more enforcement of laws already in place, not more government regulations for breeders who are responsible and knowledgeable.

"We have regulations for food, water, shelter, exercise, vet care, all of that is already covered," York said. "Most of us are educated. We know how to take care of our animals."

Schmitz said current regulations on dog breeding are not acceptable.

"It is currently legal in Missouri to have dogs at large scale breeding facilities and to treat them in a neglectful or cruel way," Schmitz said. "It is almost up to the individual large-scale breeder to decide how they are going to treat those dogs, and that's not acceptable," she said.  "Some of the breeders are cutting corners to maximize profits, and the dogs are paying the price."