6 Del. C. § 4002A: Retail pet stores; brokers; prohibitions [Effective Jan. 23, 2027].

(a) Except as provided under subsection (c) of this section, a retail pet store may not sell, lease, offer to sell, offer to lease, barter, auction, transfer ownership of, or dispose of any cats or dogs.

(b) This section does not prohibit a retail pet store from collaborating with animal shelters or animal rescues to offer space for these entities to showcase cats or dogs for adoption. If a retail pet store collaborates with an animal shelter or animal rescue, the retail pet store owner or operator shall ensure the following:

(1) No animal showcased by the animal shelter or animal rescue has been purchased by the animal shelter or animal rescue.

(2) The retail pet store owner or operator shall have no financial interest in the adoption of the animals from the animal shelter or animal rescue.

(c) Subsection (a) of this section does not apply to a retail pet store if the retail pet store sold, leased, offered for sale, offered for lease, bartered, auctioned, transferred ownership of, or disposed of dogs for at least 1 year before January 23, 2027 and meets all of the following:

(1) Has maintained a retail dog outlet license for at least 1 year before January 23, 2027.

(2) Maintains the same ownership as on January 23, 2027.

(3) On and after January 23, 2027, ensures that a breeder from which the retail pet store obtains a dog meets all of the following, even if the dog was obtained indirectly through a broker:

a. Hold a Class A United States Department of Agriculture license.

b. Has not received a direct or critical violation or 3 or more indirect nonadministrative violations from the United States Department of Agriculture within 3 years before the retail pet store obtains the dog.

(4) On and after January 23, 2027, ensures that a broker from which the retail pet store obtains a dog meets all of the following:

a. Hold a Class B United States Department of Agriculture license.

b. Has not received a direct or critical violation or 3 or more indirect nonadministrative violations from the United States Department of Agriculture within 3 years before the retail pet store obtains the dog.

(5) On and after January 23, 2027, the retail pet store discloses all of the following for each dog offered for sale by the retail pet store:

a. The United States Department of Agriculture license number of the breeder of that dog.

b. If applicable, the United States Department of Agriculture license number of the broker that facilitated the transfer of that dog from the breeder to the retail pet store.

(6) The retail pet store provides the disclosure required under paragraph (c)(5) of this section by doing all of the following:

a. Clearly and conspicuously displaying the disclosure on or near the dog’s enclosure.

b. Providing the disclosure to a consumer before the completion of the sale of the dog to the consumer.

(7) The retail pet store maintains records providing proof of paragraph (c)(3) of this section and, if applicable, paragraph (c)(4) of this section for each dog for at least 3 years after each purchase and provides the records to the Office of Animal Welfare on request during inspections under § 3043F of Title 16.

(8) After January 23, 2027 and on or before June 1 and December 1 of each year, the retail pet store sends to the Office of Animal Welfare a list of all the breeders and brokers the retail pet store obtained a dog from in the 6 months preceding June 1 and December 1.

a. The list must include the full name, address, and United States Department of Agriculture license number of each breeder and broker.

b. The breeder of each dog must be disclosed even if the dog was obtained indirectly through a broker.

c. The Office of Animal Welfare shall post on the Office’s website a list submitted under this paragraph (c)(8) within 14 calendar days of the submission of the list.