A bill that would regulate commercial animal breeders is awaiting the 2025 legislative session — though its sponsor predicts pushback from pet stores and large agriculture operations.
State Rep. Doug Clemens, a Democrat from St. Ann, filed the bill last year and unsuccessfully tried to attach it as an amendment to legislation that would’ve forbidden municipalities from banning pet stores that sell dogs .
“Let’s just take care of it so Missouri consumers can be assured that they’re not buying an animal that has been exposed to horrible conditions and is genetically messed up from inbreeding,” he told The Independent in an interview this month.
The bill would have barred municipalities from placing restrictions on pet stores, which often sell dogs bred from high-volume commercial breeders. Clemens’s legislation would put regulations on the treatment of breeding animals, such as requiring veterinary care and photographing the animals’ enclosures quarterly. Information on the health of animals’ parents would also be required to be shared with purchasers.