Buying a purebred dog in Naperville could soon be a little more difficult.
The Naperville City Council is considering passing regulations that would increase restriction on the sale of dogs Naperville but has not agreed on what those restrictions might be.
The proposal before council mirrors a state law that prohibits pet stores from purchasing puppies from commercial breeders that have received violations from the USDA.
“Getting something on the books is, I think, a good thing, and it allows us to start with local enforcement,” Mayor Steve Chirico said.
But some council members and community members worry that legislation does not go far enough, saying the USDA guidelines aren’t strong enough.
“The state legislation is kind of fluffy,” said Councilwoman Patty Gustin. “There’s not a lot of teeth to it.”
Moving forward council will also consider a similar ordinance to one recently passed in Chicago requiring pet stores to only sell rescues.
But Councilman John Krummen said that plan is too restrictive.
“The Chicago ordinance says you can only sell rescue dogs. The bad side of that is it takes away choice,” he said.
“If you wan to buy a collie you can go to a breeder. That is the difference between a private ownership and people who do it out of their home,” Councilwoman Becky Anderson said.
Krummen also said adopting that plan could hurt local pet shops, and he suggested a plan that would require local pet store owners to personally inspect breeding sites.
“Then when I go to buy a dog, I know that you the owner, not only you have the USDA, which I don’t have a lot of faith in, but now you have said this commercial breeder meets my qualifications,” Krummen explained.
No decision has been made, but council directed city staff to create two or three options to consider at a later date.
Naperville News 17’s Beth Bria reports.
