N.Y. Agriculture & Markets Law § 379: Prohibition of the selling of fur, hair, skin or flesh of a dog or cat

§ 379. Prohibition of the selling of fur, hair, skin or flesh of a dog

or cat. 1. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, partnership or

corporation to knowingly import, sell, offer for sale, manufacture,

distribute, transport or otherwise market or trade in the fur, hair,

skin or flesh of a domesticated dog (canis familiaris) or domesticated

cat (felis catus or domesticus), whether domestically raised or imported

from another country, or any product or item containing or comprised of

the fur, hair, skin or flesh of a dog or cat. As used in this section

the term "domesticated dog or cat" shall not mean or include coyote

(ranis latrans), fox (vulpes volpes, vulpes cinereoargenteus), lynx

(felis lynx) or bobcat (felis rufus).

2. Manufacturers or suppliers shall provide certification to each

retailer that any fur, hair, skin or flesh contained in such items is

not derived from domesticated dog or domesticated cat.

3. The commissioner shall establish a standard for the certification

required by the provisions of subdivision two of this section on the

effective date of this section.

4. A violation of this section shall be punishable by a civil penalty

of up to one thousand dollars for an individual and up to five thousand

dollars for a corporation for the first violation. Any subsequent

violation shall be punishable by a civil penalty of up to twenty-five

thousand dollars.

5. Any civil penalties collected pursuant to this section of law are

payable to the animal population control fund established pursuant to

section ninety-seven-xx of the state finance law.

6. (a) No provision of this section shall be construed to prohibit or

interfere with any properly conducted scientific tests, experiments or

investigations involving the use of dog or cat fur or flesh, performed

or conducted in laboratories or institutions, which are approved for

these purposes by the state commissioner of health in accordance with

section three hundred fifty-three of this article.

(b) No provision of this section shall be construed to prohibit any

person, firm, partnership or corporation from importing, selling,

offering for sale, manufacturing, distributing, transporting, or

otherwise marketing or trading in the fur, hair, skin, or flesh of a

domesticated dog or cat for the purposes of conducting scientific tests,

experiments or investigations that are to be performed or conducted in

laboratories or institutions, which are approved for these purposes by

the state commissioner of health in accordance with section three

hundred fifty-three of this article.