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Shopping Malls to Stop Selling Animals

A company that owns 74 shopping malls across the country has said it will ban the sale of pets in any stores on its properties.

Shopping center developer Macerich said they will not renew the leases of existing pet stores that sell animals and, in their place, are opening humane stores offering adoptions of rescued pets.

The change in policy comes as a result of one person, Jennifer Peterson, who bought a “designer” pet from a Barkworks pet store in Westside Pavilion, a Macerich mall. The puppy became sick, and Peterson learned more about how dogs are treated at puppy mills. So she contacted a friend, Randy Brant, who is VP of Leasing for Macerich, and he in turn contacted other officers of the company.

Peterson, Brant and his wife, Dahli, then worked for a year to help Macerich develop the companywide pet sale ban in their malls.

Once again: one person can make a big difference.

More of the story is on Global Animal.