South Carolina Senate Bill 720, the South Carolina Humane Dog Breeding Act, seeks to establish state oversight of professional dog breeders, which is defined as a person who possesses ten or more intact adult female dogs for breeding and sale, or who sells more than fifteen puppies or more than two litters in a calendar year, with certain exemptions for working and sporting dogs.
As introduced, S. 720 would:
- Require professional dog breeders to obtain a license from the South Carolina Department of Agriculture and comply with inspection requirements.
- Establish care and housing standards for covered breeders, including requirements related to food, water, sanitation, exercise, veterinary care, and breeding practices.
- Require detailed recordkeeping for each dog kept, including breeding history, veterinary care, and transfer information, with records to be maintained for at least five years.
- Create consumer disclosure requirements at the time of sale, including health history, veterinary treatment, and breeder policies.
- Establish penalties for violations, including potential civil fines, criminal penalties, and authority for enforcement actions.
The bill remains pending in the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.
South Carolina residents concerned with the legislation are encouraged to share concerns with the members of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.
Sen. Wes Climer, Chair – WesClimer@scsenate.gov
Sen. Lee Bright – LeeBright@scsenate.gov
Sen. JD Chaplin – JDChaplin@scsenate.gov
Sen. Thomas “Tom” Corbin – TomCorbin@scsenate.gov
Sen. Jason Elliott – JasonElliott@scsenate.gov
Sen. Michael “Mike” Gambrell – MikeGambrell@scsenate.gov
Sen. Stephen Goldfinch – StephenGoldfinch@scsenate.gov
Sen. Jeffrey Graham – JeffreyGraham@scsenate.gov
Sen. Michael Johnson – MichaelJohnson@scsenate.gov
Sen. Josh Kimbrell – JoshKimbrell@scsenate.gov
Sen. Russell Ott – RussellOtt@scsenate.gov
Sen. Everett Stubbs – EverettStubbs@scsenate.gov
Sen. Ed Sutton – EdSutton@scsenate.gov
Sen. Daniel “Danny” Verdin – DannyVerdin@scsenate.gov
Sen. Kent Williams – KentWilliams@scsenate.gov
Sen. Tom Young, Jr.- TomYoung@scsenate.gov
Sen. Jeff Zell – JeffZell@scsenate.gov
The American Kennel Club (AKC) will continue to monitor S. 720 and will provide updates as the bill progresses.
For more information, contact AKC Government Relations at doglaw@akc.org.