Pet sale ban off the table in Wentzville
Alderman says he’s not giving up on bill that would thwart puppy mills
By Raymond Castile
Friday, September 10, 2010
Proposed legislation to ban the retail sale of dogs and cats in Wentzville will not move forward.
Breaking a tied 3-3 vote by the Board of Aldermen, Wentzville Mayor Paul Lambi on Wednesday voted against giving the bill a first reading. Lambi said he felt neutral toward the ban, proposed by Alderman Nick Guccione, Ward 3, but did not want to proceed with a divided board.
“Because this is such a passionate issue and the board has not reached a consensus, I’m going to vote no,” Lambi said. “On something that has this much impact, it would be nice to see some board solidarity.”
Lambi said he would not be opposed to revisiting the issue if the board reached a consensus.
Guccione said he was “really disappointed.” “I thought I had more aldermen on board with me,” he said after the meeting. Guccione said he would take the proposal to other St. Charles County municipalities, where elected officials have indicated support. I’m not giving up on this,” Guccione said. “I’m going to keep this subject alive. When I get involved in something, I get emotional and passionate about it.”
Guccione’s proposal would have prohibited pet stores from selling dogs and cats. Guccione said most pet stores are supplied by puppy mills. Cutting off their distribution outlets would be a first step toward reducing the number of puppy mills in Missouri, he said.
The ban would have exempted people and businesses that bred and sold animals on the same premises. Pet stores would have been allowed to offer dogs and cats for adoption, if they partnered with nonprofit and rescue organizations.
The board heard public comment from nearly 20 people during the meeting Wednesday, then discussed whether to give the proposed bill its first reading during the Sept. 22 meeting. Ordinarily, bills in Wentzville receive three readings before coming to a vote.
Aldermen Rick Stokes, Ward 3; Vann Sample, Ward 2; and Cheryl Kross, Ward 1, voted against proceeding with the bill. Aldermen Guccione; Peggy Meyer, Ward 2; and Leon Tow, Ward 1, voted to move forward. When the Wentzville board is split 3-3, the mayor casts a tie-breaking vote.
Supporters of Guccione’s proposed ban packed the meeting room. The board spent an hour listening to their concerns.
“We don’t need retail outlets owned by mercenaries whose sole goal is to sell puppy mill puppies at inflated prices, inbred and full of disease,” said Richard Camp, of Kirkwood.
Ron Lares, of Lake Saint Louis, was one of three people who spoke against the ban. He questioned the motives of the ban supporters.
“This is an organized group of people that has been known to go from city to city,” Lares said. “They are organized by the Humane Society of the U.S. The Humane Society of the U.S. does not like animals. Their agenda is to get rid of the animals in the U.S.”
Lares’ comments drew laughter from ban supporters. Several of them, like Leanne Fritsch of University City, said they had no affiliation with the Humane Society of the United States.
“I am not affiliated with anyone,” Fritsch said. “I help organize peaceful protests of pet stores to let people know these animals are treated like livestock. But when one closes, the owner moves to a different city and sets up shop there.”
Shelia Short, of Wright City, said the ban supporters did not differentiate between “licensed, respectable” breeders and unlicensed breeders.
“The majority of licensed breeders abide by regulations and genuinely care for their dogs,” she said. “Anyone who has a show dog they might want to breed someday, you better be concerned. Because someday the bottom line will drop down and affect you.”
Mary Jo Dazey, of St. Peters, said state regulations and inspections are so lax that even licensed breeding operations can be puppy mills.
“There are a lot of great breeders out there, but a good breeder will never sell you a dog without having you come to their facility and see their parent dogs,” Dazey said.
Dazey said she felt optimistic that 50 percent of the aldermen voted in favor of the ban.
“These bans are going on around the country and continue to generate great interest,” she said. “People are opening their eyes to these problems.”
Tow said he believed O’Fallon and St. Peters would pass similar ordinances, forcing puppy mill-supplied pet stores to move west to Wentzville. If the city already had a ban in place, it would head off that migration.
“It is our contribution to an overall effort to shut down puppy mills,” Tow said.
Aldermen Kross and Sample said they were “amazed” that the majority of people speaking in favor of the ban were not Wentzville residents.
“I feel we are being pressured by outside organizations,” Sample said.
Stokes said he “detested” puppy mills and wanted to shut them down, but was also concerned that the ban’s supporters seemed to come from outside the city. Stokes said the proposal seemed like “feel good legislation” and would have little impact on puppy mills or any other businesses.
“If this ordinance does nothing, then why not enact it?” Guccione said.
Guccione said he was going to lobby the community to draw more local residents to the next meeting at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 22 at Wentzville City Hall.
“I am going to pack that room with Wentzville residents to tell the aldermen we want this passed,” he said. “The only way I can get through to these three aldermen is to get the people of Wentzville to come to the next meeting and tell them they support this ordinance.”
Pink attended the Puppy Mill Awareness Day event on Saturday at La Brea Tar Pits in El Lay, which helped raised awareness on the horrors of puppy mills and encouraged potential pet owners to "Adopt, Don't Shop."
