Moose’s Law, named after a Burlington County dog who was lured away from home by an animal trainer and died after being left in a hot car, passed the state Senate unanimously on June 29.

TRENTON — It may soon be illegal for convicted animal abusers to own or work with pets in New Jersey.

Moose’s Law, named after a Burlington County dog who was lured away from home by an animal trainer and died after being left in a hot car, passed the state Senate unanimously June 29.

“Animal cruelty is egregious and cannot be tolerated,” said state Sen. Troy Singleton, D-7 of Delran, who sponsored the bill. “Through this legislation, we will not allow anyone who has committed such acts to reoffend and put other animals in harm’s way.”

The bill would require animal-related businesses and organizations like zoos and kennels to certify potential employees and volunteers do not have any prior animal cruelty convictions. A list of convicted animal-cruelty offenders would be made public.

The namesake of the bill, Moose, was a family pet from Delran. He was stolen from the family by Pennsylvania animal trainer Jacquelin Lockard, who sold Moose to a different family. While training the dog, Lockard left Moose in a hot car and he died.

Now that the bill has gone through the Senate, it must also be passed by the state Assembly and be signed by the governor in order to become law.

Singleton has pushed for the bill to be passed since 2012.

“What happened to Moose and to this family should never happen again,” Singleton said. “I am hopeful that my colleagues in the Assembly will continue to advance this proposal so that Moose’s Law can finally become a reality here in New Jersey.”

In 2013, Lockard admitted to stealing Moose, selling him to another family and leaving the dog in her car. She plead guilty to theft and inflicting unnecessary animal cruelty in Burlington County Superior Court. She was sentenced to two years of probation and ordered to complete 150 hours of community service.

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