Petition for Rulemaking: Animal Rescuers for Change Requests FTC Action on Online Animal Sales Practices
Summary
The Federal Trade Commission has published a petition for rulemaking filed by Animal Rescuers for Change requesting that the agency initiate rulemaking to address unfair and deceptive practices in online animal sales. The petition has been assigned docket number FTC-2026-0529 and File No. R607003. The FTC is soliciting public comments on the petition for a 30-day period ending May 26, 2026. The Commission will not evaluate the petition's merits until after the comment period closes and may grant, deny, or deem the petition insufficient to warrant commencement of a rulemaking proceeding.
“This petition requests that the Commission initiate rulemaking to address unfair and deceptive practices in online animal sales.”
Businesses engaged in online animal sales and advertising should monitor the outcome of this petition. If the FTC eventually initiates rulemaking on this topic, it would establish specific standards for online animal sales practices. Companies with animal sales operations should review their current marketing and sales disclosures to ensure they can demonstrate compliance with FTC Act Section 5 standards if rulemaking proceeds.
About this source
GovPing monitors FR: Federal Trade Commission for new trade & sanctions regulatory changes. Every update since tracking began is archived, classified, and available as free RSS or email alerts — 15 changes logged to date.
What changed
The FTC has published for public comment a petition for rulemaking submitted by Animal Rescuers for Change. The petition requests that the Commission initiate rulemaking to address unfair and deceptive practices in online animal sales. This document does not itself constitute a proposed rule; it merely places the petition on the public record for a 30-day comment period pursuant to section 18(a)(1)(B) of the FTC Act and FTC Rule 1.31(f). The Commission will not consider the petition's merits until after the comment period closes.
Affected parties include businesses engaged in online animal sales, breeders, pet retailers, and others advertising animals for sale to consumers. These entities should monitor the petition's progress and consider submitting comments if they have information relevant to the FTC's evaluation of whether rulemaking on online animal sales practices is warranted.
Archived snapshot
Apr 24, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Proposed Rule
Petition for Rulemaking of Animal Rescuers for Change
A Proposed Rule by the Federal Trade Commission on 04/24/2026
This document has a comment period that ends in 32 days.
(05/26/2026) View Comment InstructionsPDF
Document Details
Document Dates
- Table of Contents
- Public Comments
- Regulations.gov Data
- Sharing
- Other Formats
- Public Inspection Published Document: 2026-07997 (91 FR 22075) Document Headings ###### Federal Trade Commission
- 16 CFR Part 1
- [File No. R607003]
AGENCY:
Federal Trade Commission.
ACTION:
Receipt of petition; request for comment.
SUMMARY:
Please take notice that the Federal Trade Commission (“Commission”) received a petition for rulemaking from Animal Rescuers for Change and has published that petition online at https://www.regulations.gov. The Commission invites written comments concerning the petition. Publication of this petition is pursuant to the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure and does not affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.
DATES:
Comments must identify the petition docket number and be filed by May 26, 2026.
ADDRESSES:
You may view the petition, identified by docket number FTC-2026-0529, and submit written comments concerning its merits by using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit sensitive or confidential information. You may read background documents or comments received at https://www.regulations.gov at any time.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Office of the Secretary (phone: 202-326-2514, email: ElectronicFilings@ftc.gov), Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Pursuant to section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 57a(1)(B), and FTC Rule 1.31(f), 16 CFR 1.31(f), notice is hereby given that the above-captioned petition has been filed with the Secretary of the Commission and has been placed on the public record for a period of 30 days. Any person may submit comments in support of or in opposition to the petition. All timely and responsive comments submitted in connection with this petition will become part of the public record.
This petition requests that the Commission initiate rulemaking to address unfair and deceptive practices in online animal sales. The Commission will not consider the petition's merits until after the comment period closes. It may grant or deny the petition in whole or in part, and it may deem the petition insufficient to warrant commencement of a rulemaking proceeding. The purpose of this document is to facilitate public comment on the petition to aid the Commission in determining what, if any, action to take regarding the request contained in the petition. This document is not intended to start, stop, cancel, or otherwise affect rulemaking proceedings in any way.
Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible website at https://www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for making sure your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential information. In particular, your comment should not include any sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else's Social Security number; date of birth; driver's license number or other state identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number; financial account number; or credit or debit card number. You are also solely responsible for making sure your comment does not include any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment should not include any “trade secret or any commercial or financial information which . . . is privileged or confidential”—as provided by section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2).
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 46; 15 U.S.C. 57a; 5 U.S.C. 601 note.
April J. Tabor,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2026-07997 Filed 4-23-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P
Published Document: 2026-07997 (91 FR 22075)
CFR references
Named provisions
Mentioned entities
Citations
Parties
Related changes
Get daily alerts for FR: Federal Trade Commission
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Source
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from Federal Trade Commission.
The summary, classification, recommended actions, deadlines, and penalty information are AI-generated from the original text and may contain errors. Always verify against the source document.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when FR: Federal Trade Commission publishes new changes.
Subscribed!
Optional. Filters your digest to exactly the updates that matter to you.