Enhanced Dog Law Forcing Changes

POTTER TOWNSHIP, CENTRE COUNTY - Commercial kennel owners throughout the state are choosing to shut down their opperations rather than adhere to strict new guidelines imposed by the state. In Central Pennsylvania alone there were 59 kennels before Act 119 took effect in late 2008. Today that number is less than half at 24 commercial kennels. 

In April, the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Potter Township believes it got close to 30 dogs from puppy mills.  

“We'll see a lot of stray animals coming in, a lot mixed breeds from puppy mills, and we'll get a lot from Juniata and Mifflin counties,” Troy Klinefelter, Team Leader at PSCPA, said.

That does not surprise one local animal welfare advocate.

“(The law) went into effect in 2008, but we're seeing more of the impact right now because a lot of shelters were given some time to reform themselves. So this is why this is sort of a breaking point -that they either have to reform or shut down,” Local Animal Advocate Mary Miles said.

Those kennels that reform spend thousands of dollars retrofitting their facilities to meet state standards.

“It might cause some work right now, but in the long run term it will create so many much more better conditions for the animals,” Miles said.
She likes the law, but knows there are now a huge population of animals waiting for adoption

“I think this is a good first step, 14,000 animals have been liberated from horrible conditions just in the year that the law's been passed.”

To visit the state's Kennel Inspection Database, click here: https://www.padogs.state.pa.us/PublicKennels/SearchKennelInspections.aspx.