ALBANY, N.Y. — Not-for-profit pet rescue organizations are under new scrutiny in New York, where Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a law this month subjecting them to state regulations.
Animal advocates say the law closes a loophole that exempted non-profit pet adoption groups from the oversight imposed on municipal shelters and licensed dealers.
It cracks down on everything from sloppy health and record-keeping to unscrupulous pet brokers rebranding themselves as non-profit “rescues” and peddling puppies from the same puppy mills adopters seek to avoid.
A spokesman for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says New York joins more than other 35 states with some form of regulation of shelters and rescues, ranging from simple registration to standards of care.