New York law banning retail sale of dogs, cats and rabbits goes into effect today

NEW YORK — Pet stores in New York state are no longer allowed to sell dogs, cats and rabbits, effective Sunday.

Home breeders are exempt from the retail sale ban.

NYC business closes physical store due to pet sale ban

Emilio Ortiz, longtime manager of the Chelsea pet store Citipups, says because of the ban, they will be closing.

"We have 35 employees. That means 35 families that we're supporting, and all of those people have to lose their livelihood right before the holidays," he said.

Protesters outside the store pointed to conditions at commercial breeding operations. Video shared by the Humane Society showed dogs locked up in outdoor cages at one such operation in Missouri.

"This is exploitation. This is cruelty. This is inhumane," a protester named Marilyn said.

Ortiz says Citipups' dogs come from breeders he knows and trusts.

"They just say the most outrageous things. They've never lived a mile in our shoes, and they honestly, they wouldn't know what a puppy mill was if it slapped them right in the face," he said.

While they're closing their physical location, Citipups will continue selling dogs online, with some puppies costing north of $3,000.

Animal shelters overflowing with adoptable pets

Meanwhile, at New York City's largest shelter system, the adoption fees are just a fraction of that, and shelters nationwide are overflowing.

"We need people to adopt. We need people to foster right now. This is the biggest homeless animal crisis ever nationwide, and in some shelters, they're killing animals as soon as they come in," Marilyn said.

New York is not the first to ban retail pet sales; California did it in 2017 but is now dealing with a puppy mill black market, with the Better Business Bureau reporting a surge in online pet scams.