NYAG Gets Court Order To Stop LI Pet Store From Getting Dogs

HICKSVILLE, NY — New York Attorney General Letitia James has secured an injunction against Long Island pet shop Shake A Paw prohibiting it from buying or taking in any new animals.

James's office filed a lawsuit last week against Shake A Paw, which has locations in Hicksville and Lynbrook, alleging that the stores knowingly sold sick puppies it had purchased from puppy mills, and also falsified documents to present them as healthy. People who bought dogs from the stores saw the puppies were sick within days, and were faced with steep veterinary bills as a result.

The injunction that was approved today stops Shake A Paw from purchasing or adopting any new animals for sale, but allows the stores to sell the animals it already has.

“As a result of this court order, Shake A Paw will no longer be able to defraud consumers into purchasing sick or injured puppies,” said James. “No family should ever experience the pain of bringing home a sick puppy, and no puppy should endure mistreatment and neglect, which is why we are shutting down the puppy mill pipeline to Shake A Paw. New Yorkers can trust that my office will always fight to protect their wallets and the innocent animals they are trying to bring home.”

In addition, the court order also mandates that all animals sold at Shake A Paw must first be examined by a veterinarian, which will be appointed by James's office. It also orders the stores' accounts frozen to potentially pay restitution for families who purchased sick puppies.

According to the attorney general, Shake A Paw purchased dogs from known puppy mills and knowingly sold sick canines to customers. James said that the stores advertised the sick dogs as healthy, faked health certificates, didn't disclose the dogs' medical issues, misrepresented puppies' breeds and then refused to reimburse people when they complained.