NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The City of North Myrtle Beach has approved an ordinance that would ban the sale of pets and limits dog tethering.
The new ordinance makes it illegal to sell pets but does allow businesses to provide space for adoption opportunities from area shelters. It also makes it illegal to tether dogs from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. or without the owner present.
Tina Hunter, the Executive Director at the Humane Society of North Myrtle Beach, was behind the initiative pushing for the ordinance.
“The majority of the ordinance was written to ban the sale of puppies and cats in pet shops,” Hunter said. “We want to make sure we don’t have a situation in North Myrtle Beach where a shop opens with puppies bred in a puppy mill.”
Pet stores are not regulated federally or by the state, according to the Humane Society of the United States. Horry County, however, requires Animal Control to inspect stores that sell over 25 dogs and cats yearly.
