Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced on April 5 that multiple Suffolk County businesses have been charged with misdemeanors for selling day-old baby chicks in quantities less than allowable by New York State law.

“Each spring around Easter time, people purchase newly born baby animals, including chicks, ducklings, and rabbits, to use as live decorations or to give as gifts,” said District Attorney Tierney. “Sometimes, these animals are also dyed bright colors which can cause illness and death to the animal. I remind everyone that animals are not toys or merchandise, and my office will continue to protect animals by enforcing the laws regarding their care and sale.”

“The only animal that belongs in an Easter basket is a stuffed animal or one made of chocolate. Ducks, chicks, and bunnies require daily care, safe housing, specialized veterinary care, and a 10- year commitment. Yet, when they’re sold individually to impulsive customers, they first end up in Easter baskets, and next, abandoned in local parks where they’re unable to survive. Without a flock, they often die from lack of warmth or become imprinted on humans, permanently compromising their welfare,” said John Di Leonardo, anthrozoologist and Executive Director of Humane Long Island.

“Humane Long Island thanks the Suffolk County District Attorney and its Biological, Environmental, and Animal Safety Team for their investigation, and urges families to remember that domestic animals are thinking, feeling individuals who need lifelong care.”

“As a former federal prosecutor, I know that a law is only as good as the effort put into its enforcement. The businesses that sell these baby chicks know that they are violating the law and harming animals and they didn’t care, thinking that they would never be caught,” said Bonnie S. Klapper, Esq., counsel for Humane Long Island. “Thanks to the excellent work of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and its investigators, they now know otherwise.”

Restrictions on the sale of baby chicks, ducklings, other fowl, and bunnies are set forth in New York State Agriculture and Markets Law (“AML”) section 354, which states in part that “no person shall sell, offer for sale, barter or give away living baby chicks, ducklings or other fowl or baby rabbits under two months of age in any quantity less than six.”

Additionally, the law prohibits the sale, “offer for sale, barter or display living baby chicks, ducklings or other fowl or baby rabbits which have been dyed, colored or otherwise treated so as to impart to them an artificial color.” Any violation of this law may result in a misdemeanor charge punishable with up to one year in jail and a $500 fine.

For the past several weeks, members of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and the Suffolk County Police Department’s District Attorney Squad investigated businesses that were illegally selling baby chicks, and subsequently made multiple arrests including:

 LONG ISLAND POULTRY – On March 3, 2023, Suffolk County Police Department Detectives entered Long Island Poultry located at 2089 Sound Avenue in Calverton, and purchased four baby chicks which were only a few days old. On April 4, 2023, Long Island Poultry was charged with one count of AML 354(3). They are due to appear in Suffolk County First District Court on April 24, 2023 to be arraigned on the charge.

 RALEIGH POULTRY FARM, INC. – On March 23, 2023, Suffolk County Police Department Detectives entered Raleigh Poultry Farm, Inc. located at 335 Old Indian Head Rd in Kings Park, and purchased three baby chicks which were only a few days old. On April 4, 2023, Raleigh Poultry Farm Inc. was charged with one count of AML 354(3). They are due to appear in Suffolk County First District Court on April 24, 2023 to be arraigned on the charge.

 AGWAY OF PORT JEFFERSON – On April 3, 2023, Suffolk County Police Department Detectives entered Agway of Port Jefferson, located at 295 Route 25A in Mount Sinai, and purchased two baby chicks which were only a few days old. At the same location, minutes later, another Suffolk County Police Department Detective purchased four additional baby chicks which were only a few days old. On April 4, 2023, Agway of Port Jefferson was charged with one count of AML 354(3). They are due to appear in Suffolk County First District Court on April 24, 2023 to be arraigned on the charge.

If you have any information regarding the illegal sale or dying of baby animals, please contact the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office at [email protected].

Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.