CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A Boston suburb has passed one of the nation’s most extensive restrictions on the retail sale of animals.
The ordinance passed Monday in Cambridge bars the sale of commercially bred dogs and cats and other animals including birds, amphibians, reptiles and rodents.
The city will only allow the sale of animals from shelters or rescue organizations.
Hundreds of U.S. cities have banned some animal sales. But Laura Hagen of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals tells The Boston Globe that Cambridge’s law is “a landmark ordinance” because it goes further.
Only two national chains sell animals in Cambridge, which is home to Harvard University.
The president of the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council says the ordinance damages the stores’ bottom line and penalizes retailers committed to animal welfare.
