The city of Tempe is proposing an ordinance banning the sale of dogs from puppy mills.
According to the Humane Society of the United States, there are an estimated 10,000 puppy mills in the United States.
Lauren Kuby is the city councilwoman proposing the plan. She said after a similar ban in Phoenix was upheld in court, it was time for Tempe to pass a similar ordinance.
“Right now, there’s just currently the one store in Tempe that sells dogs garnered from puppy mills. There could be others that pop up, so this would prohibit that sale. And there’s just not animal welfare concerns, there’s a lot of consumer concerns,” Kuby said.
If approved, Tempe would join the list of 80 other cities across the country that have banned the sale of puppy mill animals. Kuby said since there is no work being done at the national level, it will have to be a city-by-city effort.
