Canine Cruelty Prevention Act- What A Difference !!!

The Canine Cruelty Prevention Act (CCPA) enacted in 2011 as a result of the Prop B campaign, is fortunately making a dramatic difference in our long-running battle against puppy mills and is yielding significant results. This legislation, for the first time ever, established humane standards of care for dogs housed in puppy mills, including a significant increase in living space, the elimination of wire flooring, constant and unfettered access to the outdoors for fresh air and exercise, and mandatory veterinary care, including an annual hands-on physical exam for each breeding dog.

Most notably, the CCPA granted authority to the Attorney General's office to prosecute substandard breeders.

In the past, only local prosecutors had such authority and too often rural county prosecutors were reluctant to initiate legal actions against a puppy miller who was also a constituent. As a result, many puppy mills operated with impunity in the state. In stark contrast, the Canine Cruelty Prevention Unit, established by the Attorney General's office due to the new authority contained in the CCPA, aggressively sought out substandard breeders and dramatically increased the frequency of prosecutions. In the past two years alone, this increased regulatory muscle has resulted in legal action against 39 commercial dog breeders and, most heartening, the Attorney General's office has had a 100% success rate in their prosecution of these cruel puppy mills. Subsequently, hundreds of breeders have chosen to shut down their breeders have chosen to shut down their breeding operations rather than face stiff penalties as they now realized that there are consequences for their non-compliance.

The passage of the CCPA also resulted in a substantial increase in funding for enforcement and oversight to ensure that the new standards of care were fully and adequately implemented. This increase in funding has resulted in more than doubling the number of inspectors and the hiring of veterinary inspectors and even two full time investigators to focus solely on substandard breeders and unlicensed breeding operations. As a result, the number of inspections of dog breeders performed annually by the Department of Agriculture has more than tripled.