Courant Staff Writer Janice Podsada reports:
Since 2009, Jan Borreil has been opening her Farmington home to a string of refugees: homeless dogs rescued from high kill animal shelters in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee.
"I feed them at my own expense. I only take in dogs that I know are safe around my children," said Borreil, the mother of three children -- two with special needs. "Instead of sitting in the shelter, they're sitting in my lap."
Borreil is a volunteer for a large-breed dog rescue group that provides foster care for the animals until an adoptive home is found.
Now she and other animal rescuers say their efforts will be crushed by an animal importation bill approved by the state legislature. Under the bill, rescue groups must obtain the same Connecticut veterinary certification as a pet store business, which opponents say will add needless cost to rescuing dogs from other states.
Supporters of the bill say the measure will weed out the profiteers who truck in sick puppies and sell to unsuspecting owners along with well-intentioned dog lovers who hoard or distribute unhealthy animals.