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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 58th Legislature (2021)
HOUSE BILL 1581 By: Dollens
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to animals; prohibiting the sale or
display of cats or dogs in a pet store under certain
circumstances; defining terms; providing for
codification; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 33 of Title 4, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. An owner, manager or employee of a pet store may not
knowingly display, offer for sale, deliver, barter, auction, broker,
give away, transfer or sell any live cat or dog from a pet store to
a person unless the cat or dog was obtained from one of the
following sources:
1. An animal rescue;
2. An animal shelter;
3. A cat or dog wholesaler, provided that the cat or dog
wholesaler originally obtained the animal from a qualified breeder;
or
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4. A qualified breeder.
B. This section does not apply to any cat or dog that is being
sold, delivered, bartered, auctioned, given away, brokered or
transferred from the premises where the cat or dog was bred and
raised.
C. As used in this section:
1. "Animal rescue" means an individual or organization that
houses and maintains cats or dogs and that is dedicated to the
welfare, health, safety and protection of animals, provided that the
individual or organization does not operate for profit, does not
sell animals for a profit and does not breed animals. The term
shall include an individual or organization that offers spayed or
neutered cats or dogs for adoption and charges reasonable adoption
fees to cover the costs of the individual or organization,
including, but not limited to, costs related to spaying or neutering
cats or dogs;
2. "Animal shelter" shall have the same meaning as provided in
Section 30.2 of Title 4 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
3. "Commercial breeder" and "commercial pet breeder " shall have
the same meaning as provided in Section 30.2 of Title 4 of the
Oklahoma Statutes;
4. "Cat or dog wholesaler " means a person who buys, sells or
offers to sell cats or dogs to another at wholesale for resale or
who sells or gives one or more cats or dogs to a pet store annually.
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The term does not include an animal rescue, an animal shelter, a
humane society, a medical kennel, a research kennel, a pet store or
a veterinarian;
5. "High volume registered breeder " means an out-of-state
breeder that:
a. is licensed by the United States Department of
Agriculture under 7 U.S.C. , Section 2133,
b. if required, is licensed by the state where the
breeder is located,
c. has not been issued a report of a direct noncompliance
violation by the United States Department of
Agriculture under the federal Animal Welfare Act for a
period of three (3) years prior to offering for sale,
delivering, bartering, auctioning, brokering, giving
away, transferring or selling a cat or dog, and
d. has not had three or more noncompliance violation s
documented in any report issued by the United States
Department of Agriculture under the federal Animal
Welfare Act for a period of twelve (12) months prior
to offering for sale, delivering, bartering,
auctioning, brokering, giving away, transferring or
selling a cat or dog;
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6. "Medical kennel" means a facility that is maintained by a
licensed veterinarian and operated primarily for the treatment of
sick or injured cats or dogs;
7. "Noncommercial breeder " shall have the same meaning as
provided in Section 30.2 of Title 4 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
8. "Pet store" means an individual retail store that meets the
following conditions:
a. the store sells cats or dogs to the public, and
b. with regard to the sale of a cat or dog from the
store, the salesperson , the buyer of a cat or dog and
the cat or dog for sale are physically present during
the sales transaction so that the buyer may personally
observe the cat or dog and ensure its health prior to
taking custody.
The term does not include an animal rescue , an animal shelter, a
humane society, a medical kennel or a research kennel;
9. "Qualified breeder" means the following:
a. a noncommercial breeder,
b. a licensed commercial pet breeder located in this
state, or
c. a high volume registered breeder;
10. "Research kennel" means a facility housing cats or dogs
that is maintained exclusively for research purposes; and
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11. "Veterinarian" means either a veterinarian licensed to
practice under the laws of this state or the laws of another state.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2021.
58-1-5703 AMM 01/15/21