For so many who worked long and hard to stop the retail sales of dogs and cats in Sarasota County, the victory is bittersweet as Petland will reopen just a few miles away.
Manatee County Commissioners are meeting on Tuesday, April 23 (address provided below) to discuss whether or not they should move forward and begin drafting an ordinance that addresses the puppy mill to pet store pipeline in Manatee County.
The agenda on Tuesday includes a citizen comment period at the beginning of the meeting, which is when citizens can comment on any item on the agenda.Each citizen can speak for 3 minutes on each agenda item. If a person would like to comment on several of the items, they will have 10 minutes total to speak on all those items.
If you are able to attend the meeting and would like to speak, please arrive at the hearing around 9am.
If you are unable to arrive at 9am, but would like to still come and show your support, please do! The discussion on a pet store ordinance is the last item on the agenda, which is very long, so it could take hours before the item comes up.
If you are unable to attend the meeting on Tuesday, please contact your Manatee County Commissioner and ask them to support a humane pet store ordinance that prohibits the sale of dogs and cats in pet stores. Here is a link to the Manatee County Commissioner’s contact information: https://www.mymanatee.org/
For those who may not already be familiar, Petland Sarasota is moving to Manatee County and there will soon be two Petlands within the county. Why is Sarasota Petland moving to Manatee County? Two years ago, when a Sarasota County law prohibiting the sale of commercially-raised puppies in pet stores went into effect, the Petland owners refused to comply with the law and continued selling puppies. Petland sued the county and asked the judge to allow it to continue selling puppies while the lawsuit was in progress. The judge denied this request for an injunction yet Petland continued to sell puppies in blatant disregard of the law. This lawsuit was recently settled because Petland plans to close its Sarasota store and move just outside the county into Manatee County.
Manatee County
Administration Building
1112 Manatee Avenue West
Bradenton, FL 34205
Jenna Jensen, Public Policy Specialist, Stop Puppy Mills campaign
P 301-258-1506 C 202-689-9621
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