The fur is flying in Pompano Beach as the city looks to change the rules when it comes to local pet stores.
Animal advocates say these proposed changes are a no brainer when it comes to protecting puppies, but one local business owner said the change could destroy her livelihood.
The store, Paradise Puppies, is located off Federal Highway in Pompano Beach. They’ve been in business for about a year-and-a-half and said business has been good.
But when they got word on new regulations that could be in the works, they feared it could be bad news for business.
Paradise Puppies has dog breeds of all kinds. And operators say they’re careful to get their dogs from ethical breeders.
But just as the city of Pompano Beach was ready to vote on Tuesday on a new ordinance that would increase restrictions on the source, the manager of the pet store said it would put them out of business.
The city of Pompano Beach is trying to prevent stores from getting dogs from puppy mills, unethical over breeders.
Hallandale Beach Vice Mayor Michelle Lazarow, who is also president of an animal welfare organization, advocates for cities to tighten their regulations.
She said she became an advocate after buying a dog from a pet store in Hollywood.
“The dog got sick, I did some research, I found out that the dog was from a puppy mill,” she said. “But it was also a USDA licensed store. And then I did research and found that cities across the United States were passing this ordinance, that in effect banned the sales.”
Pompano Beach Commissioner Audrey Fesik said the city would try to work with Paradise Puppies to protect the dogs and the business.
“We are going to work with her and the city attorneys to make sure that we will legally vet any ordinance change that would ideally grandfather her business in and allow her to operate as long as she adheres to certain standards or without any violations,” Fesik said.
So, where do things go from here? It seems as they everyone is back to the drawing board and the business is trying to work with city attorneys to try and protect Paradise Puppies but also protect the animals.
Lazarow said her push for the regulations has led to about 30 cities in South Florida to change their rules when it comes to puppy mills and pet stores.
