Animal Protection Initiative

Fighting animal cruelty is both a consumer protection issue and a public safety issue. The New York State Office of the Attorney General’s Animal Protection Initiative is aimed at shutting down criminal animal fighting rings, protect consumers from unscrupulous pet sellers and prevent cruelty to animals.

The new initiative aims at ensuring compliance with New York State's Pet Lemon Law, designed to safeguard the public and to ensure the humane treatment of dogs and cats by requiring pet dealers to guarantee the good health of any such animal sold by a pet dealer to a consumer. Also, charging those who abuse or neglect animals and cracking down on the abuses of so-called “puppy mills” in order to protect the welfare of the animals being sold and the consumers.

This new initiative will use civil and criminal remedies to target allegations of animal cruelty and unscrupulous sales of pets and other animals. The Initiative is comprised of Investigators and Assistant Attorneys General across the entire state, from the OAG's Regional Offices, the Consumer Fraud Bureau,Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau, the Organized Crime Task Force and the Investigations Bureau, who will work to bring the perpetrators of these and other animal crimes to justice. 

To report consumer complaints or give anonymous tips about potential animal fighting rings, please call the Attorney General’s Helpline at 1-866-697-3444.