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1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Animal Welfare Act is amended by changing
5Section 3.15 as follows:
 
6    (225 ILCS 605/3.15)
7    Sec. 3.15. Disclosures for dogs and cats being sold by pet
8shops.
9    (a) Prior to the time of sale, every pet shop operator
10must, to the best of his or her knowledge, provide to the
11consumer the following information on any dog or cat being
12offered for sale:
13        (1) The retail price of the dog or cat, including any
14    additional fees or charges.
15        (2) The breed, age, date of birth, sex, and color of
16    the dog or cat.
17        (3) The date and description details of any inoculation
18    or medical treatment that the dog or cat received while
19    under the possession of the pet shop operator.
20        (4) The name and business address of both the dog or
21    cat breeder and the facility where the dog or cat was born.
22    If the dog or cat breeder is located in the State, then the
23    breeder's license number. If the dog or cat breeder also

 

 

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1    holds a license issued by the United States Department of
2    Agriculture, the breeder's federal license identification
3    number.
4        (5) (Blank). Any known congenital or hereditary
5    diseases of the parents of the dog or cat, or the parents'
6    other offspring.
7        (6) If eligible for registration with a pedigree
8    registry, then the name and registration numbers of the
9    sire and dam and the address of the pedigree registry where
10    the sire and dam are registered.
11        (7) If the dog or cat was returned by a customer, then
12    the date and reason for the return.
13        (8) The following written statement: "A copy of the pet
14    shop's our policy regarding warranties, refunds, or
15    returns is available upon request." and an explanation of
16    the remedy under subsections (f) through (m) of this
17    Section in addition to any other remedies available at law.
18        (9) The pet shop operator's license number issued by
19    the Illinois Department of Agriculture.
20    (b) The information required in subsection (a) shall be
21provided to the customer in written form by the pet shop
22operator and shall have an acknowledgement of disclosures form,
23which must be signed by the customer and the pet shop operator
24at the time of sale. The acknowledgement of disclosures form
25shall include the following:
26        (1) A blank space for the dated signature and printed

 

 

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1    name of the pet shop operator, which shall be immediately
2    beneath the following statement: "I hereby attest that all
3    of the above information is true and correct to the best of
4    my knowledge.".
5        (2) A blank space for the customer to sign and print
6    his or her name and the date, which shall be immediately
7    beneath the following statement: "I hereby attest that this
8    disclosure was posted on or near the cage of the dog or cat
9    for sale and that I have read all of the disclosures. I
10    further understand that I am entitled to keep a signed copy
11    of this disclosure.".
12    (c) A copy of the disclosures and the signed
13acknowledgement of disclosures form shall be provided to the
14customer at the time of sale and the original copy shall be
15maintained by the pet shop operator for a period of 2 years
16from the date of sale. A copy of the pet store operator's
17policy regarding warranties, refunds, or returns shall be
18provided to the customer.
19    (d) A pet shop operator shall post in a conspicuous place
20in writing on or near the cage of any dog or cat available for
21sale the information required by subsection (a) of this Section
223.15.
23    (e) If there is an outbreak of distemper, parvovirus, or
24any other contagious and potentially life-threatening disease,
25the pet shop operator shall notify the Department immediately
26upon becoming aware of the disease. If the Department issues a

 

 

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1quarantine, the pet shop operator shall notify, in writing and
2within 2 business days of the quarantine, each customer who
3purchased a dog or cat during the 2-week period prior to the
4outbreak and quarantine.
5    (f) A customer who purchased a dog or cat from a pet shop
6is entitled to a remedy under this Section if:
7        (1) within 21 days after the date of sale, a licensed
8    veterinarian states in writing that at the time of sale (A)
9    the dog or cat was unfit for purchase due to illness or
10    disease, the presence of symptoms of a contagious or
11    infectious disease, or obvious signs of severe parasitism
12    that are extreme enough to influence the general health of
13    the animal, excluding fleas or ticks, or (B) the dog or cat
14    has died from a disease that existed in the dog or cat on
15    or before the date of delivery to the customer; or
16        (2) within one year after the date of sale, a licensed
17    veterinarian states in writing that the dog or cat
18    possesses a congenital or hereditary condition that
19    adversely affects the health of the dog or cat or requires
20    either hospitalization or a non-elective surgical
21    procedure or has died of a congenital or hereditary
22    condition. Internal or external parasites may not be
23    considered to adversely affect the health of the dog unless
24    the presence of the parasites makes the dog or cat
25    clinically ill. The veterinarian's statement shall
26    include:

 

 

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1            (A) the customer's name and address;
2            (B) a statement that the veterinarian examined the
3        dog or cat;
4            (C) the date or dates that the dog or cat was
5        examined;
6            (D) the breed and age of the dog or cat, if known;
7            (E) a statement that the dog or cat has or had a
8        disease, illness, or congenital or hereditary
9        condition that is subject to remedy; and
10            (F) the findings of the examination or necropsy,
11        including any lab results or copies of the results.
12    (g) A customer entitled to a remedy under subsection (f) of
13this Section may:
14        (1) return the dog or cat to the pet shop for a full
15    refund of the purchase price;
16        (2) exchange the dog or cat for another dog or cat of
17    comparable value chosen by the customer;
18        (3) retain the dog or cat and be reimbursed for
19    reasonable veterinary fees for diagnosis and treatment of
20    the dog or cat, not to exceed the purchase price of the dog
21    or cat; or
22        (4) if the dog or cat is deceased, be reimbursed for
23    the full purchase price of the dog or cat plus reasonable
24    veterinary fees associated with the diagnosis and
25    treatment of the dog or cat, not to exceed 2 times the
26    purchase price of the dog or cat.

 

 

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1    For the purposes of this subsection (g), veterinary fees
2shall be considered reasonable if (i) the services provided are
3appropriate for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease,
4illness, or congenital or hereditary condition and (ii) the
5cost of the services is comparable to that charged for similar
6services by other licensed veterinarians located in close
7proximity to the treating veterinarian.
8    (h) Unless the pet shop contests a reimbursement required
9under subsection (g) of this Section, the reimbursement shall
10be made to the customer no later than 10 business days after
11the pet shop operator receives the veterinarian's statement
12under subsection (f) of this Section.
13    (i) To obtain a remedy under this Section, a customer
14shall:
15        (1) notify the pet shop as soon as reasonably possible
16    and not to exceed 3 business days after a diagnosis by a
17    licensed veterinarian of a disease, illness, or congenital
18    or hereditary condition of the dog or cat for which the
19    customer is seeking a remedy;
20        (2) provide to the pet shop a written statement
21    provided for under subsection (f) of this Section by a
22    licensed veterinarian within 5 business days after a
23    diagnosis by the veterinarian;
24        (3) upon request of the pet shop, take the dog or cat
25    for an examination by a second licensed veterinarian; the
26    customer may either choose the second licensed

 

 

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1    veterinarian or allow the pet shop to choose the second
2    veterinarian, if the pet shop agrees to do so. The party
3    choosing the second veterinarian shall assume the cost of
4    the resulting examination; and
5        (4) if the customer requests a reimbursement of
6    veterinary fees, provide to the pet shop an itemized bill
7    for the disease, illness, or congenital or hereditary
8    condition of the dog or cat for which the customer is
9    seeking a remedy.
10    (j) A customer is not entitled to a remedy under this
11Section if:
12        (1) the illness or death resulted from: (A)
13    maltreatment or neglect by the customer; (B) an injury
14    sustained after the delivery of the dog or cat to the
15    customer; or (C) an illness or disease contracted after the
16    delivery of the dog or cat to the customer;
17        (2) the customer does not carry out the recommended
18    treatment prescribed by the veterinarian who made the
19    diagnosis; or
20        (3) the customer does not return to the pet shop all
21    documents provided to register the dog or cat, unless the
22    documents have already been sent to the registry
23    organization.
24    (k) A pet shop may contest a remedy under this Section by
25having the dog or cat examined by a second licensed
26veterinarian pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (i) of

 

 

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1this Section if the dog or cat is still living. If the dog or
2cat is deceased, the pet shop may choose to have the second
3veterinarian review any records provided by the veterinarian
4who examined or treated the dog or cat for the customer before
5its death.
6    If the customer and the pet shop have not reached an
7agreement within 10 business days after the examination of the
8medical records and the dog or cat, if alive, or the dog's or
9cat's medical records, if deceased, by the second veterinarian,
10then:
11        (1) the customer may bring suit in a court of competent
12    jurisdiction to resolve the dispute; or
13        (2) if the customer and the pet shop agree in writing,
14    the parties may submit the dispute to binding arbitration.
15    If the court or arbiter finds that either party acted in
16bad faith in seeking or denying the requested remedy, then the
17offending party may be required to pay reasonable attorney's
18fees and court costs of the adverse party.
19    (l) This Section shall not apply to any adoption of dogs or
20cats, including those in which a pet shop or other organization
21rents or donates space to facilitate the adoption.
22    (m) If a pet shop offers its own warranty on a pet, a
23customer may choose to waive the remedies provided under
24subsection (f) of this Section in favor of choosing the
25warranty provided by the pet shop. If a customer waives the
26rights provided by subsection (f), the only remedies available

 

 

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1to the customer are those provided by the pet shop's warranty.
2For the statement to be an effective waiver of the customer's
3right to refund or exchange the animal under subsection (f),
4the pet shop must provide, in writing, a statement of the
5remedy under subsection (f) that the customer is waiving as
6well as a written copy of the pet shop's warranty. For the
7statement to be an effective waiver of the customer's right to
8refund or exchange the animal under subsection (f), it shall be
9substantially similar to the following language:
10        "I have agreed to accept the warranty provided by the
11    pet shop in lieu of the remedies under subsection (f) of
12    Section 3.15 of the Animal Welfare Act. I have received a
13    copy of the pet shop's warranty and a statement of the
14    remedies provided under subsection (f) of Section 3.15 of
15    the Animal Welfare Act. This is a waiver pursuant to
16    subsection (m) of Section 3.15 of the Animal Welfare Act
17    whereby I, the customer, relinquish any and all right to
18    return the animal for congenital and hereditary disorders
19    provided by subsection (f) of Section 3.15 of the Animal
20    Welfare Act. I agree that my exclusive remedy is the
21    warranty provided by the pet shop at the time of sale.".
22(Source: P.A. 96-1470, eff. 1-1-11.)