SPRINGFIELD – After a new law to prohibit pet stores from using installment contract loans took effect last year, most of the stores affected ended the practice. However, a small group of pet stores have chosen to continue predatory loan practices — and selling puppy mill animals — in spite of these laws.

State Senator Linda Holmes passed House Bill 3236 out of the Senate, which prohibits any sales finance agency from purchasing or making a loan secured by retail pet stores for the sale of a canine or feline. It amends current law to prohibit these transactions and agreements and provides that changes made to each of the amended sections shall apply going forward and not to prior contracts.

“Along with saving pet buyers from predatory loans with exorbitant interest rates, this measure should create a drop in demand for expensive breeds from puppy mills and disreputable breeders,” said Holmes (D-Aurora). “Many of those animals are raised in unhealthy or cruel conditions and sometimes die long before a loan with as much as 200% interest can be paid.”

Holmes also reminds those who may want a specific breed that there are rescues and reputable breeders available based on your preferences.

This bill is an initiative of The Humane Society of the United States in Illinois. House Bill 3236 passed the Senate Thursday.