08/31/2025
🚨 URGENT: New York’s Companion Animal Care Standards Act Endangers Rescues & Shelters 🚨
A well-intentioned law—the Companion Animal Care Standards Act—is set to take effect in December 2025, and while it addresses important animal welfare concerns, it’s poised to cripple smaller, volunteer-based rescues and already-overwhelmed shelters.
What the Law Requires:
• Mandatory licensing for all shelters and rescues, overseen by the Department of Agriculture & Markets.
• Stricter facility standards, including upgrades to infrastructure, sanitation, and emergency systems.
• Personnel training, animal recordkeeping, veterinary protocols, behavioral assessments, and behavioral enrichment.
• Controls on housing capacity, transport, and foster-care agreements.
Real Consequences for Rescues:
Shelter staff and rescue leaders—particularly those at small, volunteer-run organizations—are already raising alarms:
• Maggie Blodgett, Co-VP of Out of the Pitts, warns that many small rescues “absolutely will not survive” these standards, citing unrealistic demands for paperwork, training, and inspections.
• Erin Insinga, Delaware County Humane Society director, initially supported the act but now fears it will force consolidation, stripping away the heart of rescue work and sidelining grassroots organizations.
• The Elmore SPCA has already announced plans to cease services in most of its service region due to the law’s “one-size-fits-all” veterinary mandates that strip local vets of autonomy.
• A statewide petition warns that small volunteer rescues could be forced to shutter, with additional licensing fees, paperwork, and inspections drawing precious dollars—and focus—away from caring for animals.
Meanwhile: Backyard Breeders & Abusers Go Unchecked
While rescues are being buried under this proposed legislation, backyard breeders continue to operate without oversight, animal abusers face no stronger penalties, and adoption procedures are not being addressed. The very systems that contribute to the overpopulation crisis and suffering of animals remain largely unregulated, while licensed rescues — who are saving lives — are the ones being targeted.
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Take Action—Support Rescues, Not Red Tape
If you believe in fair, effective animal welfare:
• Sign and share petitions urging legislators to amend the bill to include exemptions or scaled regulations for small, volunteer-driven organizations.
• Amplify rescue voices like Maggie Blodgett and Erin Insinga. Their firsthand experiences matter. Share your experiences from adopting, fostering, volunteering. Say just how devastating this will be for smaller foster based rescues.
• Push for regulations targeting backyard breeders—mandatory licensing, inspections, and enforcement—not just blanket rules that penalize those doing the lifesaving work.
Until accountability is directed at real offenders—not the rescues saving lives—this law risks harming the very animals it claims to protect.
We support strong animal care regulations—but why burden rescues while backyard breeders stay unregulated? The Companion Animal Care Standards Act will decimate small volunteer rescues. We need reform that protects animals without hurting those who rescue them
