A website called safewise.com ranked 48 states (not all the data was available from Hawaii and Alaska so they were left out) based on pet-friendliness and Montana came in at #47, with only New Mexico ranking below us. This came as a surprise to me. We've got wide open spaces, rivers and lakes, stuff pets love for the most part. So what gives? Let's explore some of the factors that made Montana rank so low.

Pet-Friendly Rentals

Safewise used Zillow rental data to determine the percentage of pet-friendly rentals in each state. Of the 48 states counted, Montana had the third-least percentage of pet-friendly rentals with 9.3%, with only Connecticut (9.1%) and Rhode Island (7.8%) having a smaller percentage than us. I would've guessed a state as wild and as freedom-loving as Montana would have one of the highest percentages of pet-friendly rentals, but that's not the case. I guess it's no wonder that I often see people on Facebook looking for new owners for their pets because their new residence forbids pet ownership.

Hot Cars

According to the Animal Legal and Historical Center, there are 31 states that have laws which protect animals left in cars by either making it illegal to leave them when there are dangerous conditions, or by protecting people who rescue those animals— and Montana isn't one of them. 

Other Laws

Most states have laws that require veterinarians to report signs of cruelty and abuse, but not Montana. We also have no laws against leaving pets tethered for long periods of time or in uncomfortable conditions (according to the Animal Legal and Historical Center) and no laws that address puppy mills, according to The Humane Society of The United States.

Montana Celebrates National Dog Day

LOOK: Here are the pets banned in each state

Because the regulation of exotic animals is left to states, some organizations, including The Humane Society of the United States, advocate for federal, standardized legislation that would ban owning large cats, bears, primates, and large poisonous snakes as pets.

Read on to see which pets are banned in your home state, as well as across the nation.

 

 

 

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