Virginia Code 3.2-6512: Sale without pet dealer’s animal history certificate violation of Consumer Protection Act; contents of certificate
It shall be a violation of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act (§ 59.1-196 et seq.) for any pet dealer to sell a dog or cat within the Commonwealth stating, promising, or representing that the animal is registered or capable of being registered with any animal pedigree registry organization, without providing the consumer with a pet dealer’s animal history certificate at the time the consumer takes possession of the dog or cat. The pet dealer’s animal history certificate shall be signed by the pet dealer or his agent or employee and shall contain the following information:
Terms Used In Virginia Code 3.2-6512
- Animal: means any nonhuman vertebrate species except fish. See Virginia Code 3.2-6500
- City: means an independent incorporated community which became a city as provided by law before noon on July 1, 1971, or which has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more and which has become a city as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-208
- Consumer: means any natural person purchasing an animal from a dealer or pet shop or hiring the services of a boarding establishment. See Virginia Code 3.2-6500
- Dealer: means any person who in the regular course of business for compensation or profit buys, sells, transfers, exchanges, or barters companion animals. See Virginia Code 3.2-6500
- Pet shop: means a retail establishment where companion animals are bought, sold, exchanged, or offered for sale or exchange to the general public. See Virginia Code 3.2-6500
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
1. The animal’s breed, sex, age, color, and birth date;
2. The name and address of the person from whom the pet dealer purchased the animal;
3. The breeder’s name and address;
4. The name and registration number of the animal’s parents;
5. If the animal has been so examined, the date on which the animal has been examined by a licensed veterinarian, the name and address of such veterinarian, and a brief statement of any findings made; and
6. A statement of all vaccinations administered to the animal, including the identity and quantity of the vaccine, and the name and address of the person or licensed veterinarian administering or supervising the vaccinations.
The information contained in the pet dealer’s animal history certificate required herein shall be informative only, and the pet dealer shall not be responsible in any manner for the accuracy of such information unless he knows or has reason to know that such information is erroneous.
A copy of the pet dealer’s animal history certificate signed by the consumer shall be maintained by the pet dealer for a period of two years following the date of sale.
A pet shop operating in the Commonwealth shall post in a conspicuous place on or near the cage of any dog or cat available for sale the breeder’s name, city, state, and USDA license number. A pet shop or a USDA licensed dealer who advertises any dog or cat for sale in the Commonwealth, including by Internet advertisement, shall provide prior to the time of sale the breeder’s name, city, state, and USDA license number.
1984, c. 492, § 29-213.48; 1987, c. 488, § 3.1-796.78; 2008, c. 860; 2014, c. 448; 2019, c. 566.