This Thursday, Dec. 19, the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation (SAF) will present oral arguments in support of its request to preliminarily enjoin recent dog-import restrictions imposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

SAF sued CDC in August 2024 to rescind a rule restricting the importation of dogs into the United States. Shortly after suing CDC, SAF filed a motion for preliminary injunction. The CDC opposed that motion, and SAF answered with additional arguments and a reaffirmed commitment to holding CDC accountable for its overreach.

The CDC rule illegally restricts the import of puppies from countries that have been determined to be free of dog rabies or those that are at low risk of introducing dog rabies. Specifically, the rule requires a puppy to be at least six months of age and microchipped to enter (or reenter) the United States.

If granted, the preliminary injunction would pause implementation of the rule’s restrictions on puppy imports and reentries from rabies-free or low-risk countries until the court makes a final decision on the lawfulness of the rulemaking. A preliminary injunction is just the first, but necessary, step in protecting the interests of our members. Hunters and sporting dog owners are harmed by the rule’s restrictions – our members are having hunts, trials and plans for welcoming new puppies into their families interrupted or stopped altogether because of the CDC’s overreach.

“We’re looking forward to presenting our case,” said Michael Jean, Litigation Counsel at the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation. “We’re confident the court will agree with our briefings that CDC’s restrictions are too broad, unnecessary and an overreach of the agency’s statutory authority.”

The Sportsmen’s Alliance guarantees hunting, fishing and trapping for the American sportsman now and forever. We’re there when sportsmen need us most. We are the only organization specifically created to protect the individual hunter, angler and trapper – no matter the threat. We will never compromise when it comes to defending our way of life in the courts, in the legislatures, in the public square and at the ballot box. We make this promise to the American sportsman: we will never give up and never give in while proudly securing our future against those seeking to destroy our values, beliefs, and traditions. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance: Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.