A controversial bill in Colorado that would ban pet stores from selling dogs and cats tracks with a trend of declining animal sales from pet stores nationwide, and advocates believe it could change mindsets around pet ownership.
Nikki Harrison, director of development and outreach at the Cheyenne Animal Shelter, said she is seeing less interest in pets being bought from pet stores.
“In the grand scheme of things, it has become a less desirable thing to purchase a pet from a pet store,” she told Cowboy State Daily.
Those who support the bill say it will help shut down puppy mills, which is where some pet stores source their puppies.
Critics argue that the bill would push sales underground, creating an unregulated market of puppies and scams.
If the bill is passed the Colorado Legislature, pet stores in that state will be prohibited from selling dogs and cats beginning Jan. 1.
Falling Sales Of Pets In Pet Stores
Sales of dogs and cats in retail pet stores have declined significantly on a national level, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), driven by a surge in state and local legislation banning the sale of commercially bred animals.
The organization reports that nationwide, the number of pet stores selling dogs fell from about 900 in 2016 to 600 in 2023.
A 2017 survey by the American Pet Products Association found that 4% of dog owners bought their dogs from a pet store.
Frontier Pets in Cheyenne sells dogs and cats. The store owner declined to comment for this story.
But according to the store's website, pet stores and breeders are the most regulated sources of pets, and that bans on selling dogs and cats can open underground markets.
"Preventing responsible pet stores, such as ours, from selling pets opens the door to an underground, unregulated markets and scams," the company says. "Blanket pet sale bans do not advance the standards of care for pets."
Adoptions Increasing?
Harrison, with the Cheyenne Animal Shelter, said the practice of buying a dog or cat from a pet store is becoming antiquated.
The Cheyenne shelter already sees a fair number of families coming from Colorado to adopt pets, she said. She is optimistic that a ban on pet store sales of dogs and cats there could lead to more people adopting pets rather than buying them.
The Cheyenne Animal Shelter has what Harrison called “an adopters’ welcome" philosophy.
“It means we cut down barriers to adopting an animal,” she said, like prohibitive cost and extensive background checks.
Harrison said she has seen examples of pet owners ending upside down on a loan to buy a dog from a pet store.
A person could pay up to $6,000 for a dog available for sale in a pet store, she said. Then, if that person is not able to make good on the loan, the pet likely ends up in a shelter anyway.
Bans Across U.S.
Sales of dogs and cats in pet stores are already banned in eight states: California, Maryland, Maine, Washington, Illinois, New York, Oregon and Vermont.
In April 2025, the Humane World Action Fund reported that 500 U.S. localities had passed “humane pet store laws.”
According to the report, cities, towns and counties that have enacted humane pet store laws “span 31 states and represent communities of all political leanings, demographic characteristics and population size.”
The organization is currently urging legislators to enact the Ethical Pet Sales Bill (SB 1652/HB 3458) to stop the sale of puppies in pet stores statewide.
While 26 towns in Colorado ban dog and cat sales in pet stores, only one in Wyoming does — Rock Springs.
Rock Springs Ordinance
In 2018, the city of Rock Springs passed an ordinance prohibiting the sale of commercially bred dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores, retail businesses and other commercial establishments.
It’s an ordinance that Rock Springs Police Chief Bill Erspamer said he has never had to enforce.
“It hasn’t been an issue at all,” Erspamer told Cowboy State Daily.
The ordinance does not protect against people traveling through town and selling puppies at pop-up stops — something Erspamer said happens frequently, especially during the summer.
It also does not protect against breeders selling animals out of their home.
In February 2025, Rock Springs police began receiving calls about a local breeder who was reportedly neglecting and mistreating 13 dogs in her garage.
Animal Control later received information about a high number of animals inside the woman’s home. The woman was charged on December 18, 2025, with animal cruelty.
Dean Ann Knezovich owns Joe’s Pet Place in Rock Springs. She said she didn’t know Rock Springs had an ordinance against the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores. But even if the city allowed pet stores to sell dogs, cats and rabbits, Knezovich said she never would.
“It’s uncalled for,” said Knezovich, who has owned the pet store for about 4 years. “I’m so against it. You don’t overbreed a Great Dane when she’s two years old just to make money.”
The store’s previous owner sold such pets, Knezovich said.
Now, when people ask if the store sells dogs, cats or rabbits, Knezovich said she sends them to the local humane society.
Kate Meadows can be reached at kate@cowboystatedaily.com.
