Bailing Out Benji is a national nonprofit organization that exists to provide transparency into the puppy mill industry. We forensically audit government health records and inspection reports in order to connect puppy mills and commercial dog breeders to the various outlets in which they sell. We pay for many of these documents and then make them available for free on our website and to the public in order to provide the transparency that the public deserves before buying a puppy.
To see our pet store and online broker research, click here.
To read more about our methodology and see the most recent audits performed on the USDA, click here.
Our methodology:
According to the USDA: An inspection report documents an inspector’s observations and professional assessments of compliance at facilities regulated under the AWA. Below we have compiled a list of all of the USDA dog breeders and brokers that have had violations in Quarter 4 of 2024.
This time period is from October 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024.
Editors note: USDA inspectors have 5 days to give a copy of their inspection to the licensee and 30 days to publish their reports online. There may be additional facilities we add to this list once more inspection reports are added to the database.
Omitted from these violations are missed inspections, unless those missed inspections are habitual. The list below also only reflects dog and cat breeders and brokers (licenses A and B).
This list of violations below was obtained from the USDA APHIS search engine. Any pet store connections were obtained from various state departments of agriculture.
You can view our previous Quarterly Violation Reports here.
If you have any questions about the breeders listed on this report or our methodology for obtaining this information, please email our research analyst: Alexis Bell, research@bailingoutbenji.com
This time period is from October 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024.
Official USDA Warnings, Complaints, and Decisions
Christian Lapp (B), Busy Bee Farm. Fort Plain, New York- Lapp received an Official USDA Warning November 7, 2024 after receiving a direct violation July 16, 2024 pertaining to sheltered housing facilities. This facility also received violations in 2023. USDA Official Warning Christian Lapp (B) 11.7.24
Crist Miller (R), CS Mini Poodles. Coshocton, Ohio- Miller received an Official USDA Warning October 10, 2024 after receiving a direct violation July 9, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Miller also received a critical violation during this inspection which is not addressed in this Official Warning. Miller has since cancelled their USDA license and has not procured another, though they appear to still be state licensed at the time of this report being released. USDA Official Warning Crist Miller (R) 10.10.24
Daniel Schrock (A). Hillsboro, Wisconsin- Schrock received an Official USDA Warning December 12, 2024 after receiving a direct violation October 16, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Schrock is listed below for non-critical violations and the direct violation he received this quarter and is listed in our 2024 Quarter 1 and 2 reports for other violations he received. Schrock has since cancelled their USDA license and has not procured another, they may still be state licensed but the most recent list of Wisconsin state licensed breeders is from August 2024. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in New York. Daniel Schrock (A) 10.10.24 Daniel Schrock (A) 10.16.24 USDA Official Warning Daniel Schrock (A) 12.12.24
Joseph Schrock (J) & Randy Handly of My Florida Puppies LLC. Cadott, Wisconsin- Schrock received an Official USDA Warning November 7, 2024 after receiving a direct violation September 24, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Schrock also received 2 non-critical violations in 2022, state violations and an Official State Warning in 2022. From his state inspections, it is known that Joseph Schrock is the caretaker at his facility for the adult dogs and litters owned by My Florida Puppies LLC/Ryan Handly. USDA Official Warning Joseph Schrock (J) 11.7.24
Lorna Dismang & Kimberly Ireland (Co-owner), Indian Ridge Kennel AKA I-R Kennels. Pleasant Hope, Missouri- Indian Ridge Kennel received an Official USDA Warning October 3, 2024 after receiving a direct violation August 1, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. After this violation, Indian Ridge Kennel cancelled the USDA license with this direct violation, and procured another license under Lorna Dismang’s name and as I-R Kennels. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Florida and Kansas. USDA Official Warning Indian Ridge Kennel 10.3.24
Mary Winkler, Twin Oaks Kennel. Seneca, Kansas- Winkler received an Official USDA Warning November 14, 2024 after receiving a direct violation September 19, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Winkler received no violations during her September 20, 2024 Focused Inspection, but has since cancelled her USDA license and has not procured another at the time of this report being released. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Florida and Connecticut. USDA Official Warning Mary Winkler 11.14.24
Nelson Hochstetler & Matthew Hochstetler, Treeline Farm. Arthur, Illinois- Nelson Hochstetler received an Official USDA Warning October 24, 2024 after receiving a direct violation September 11, 2024 pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. After his direct violation, Nelson had a Focused Inspection on September 24, 2024 and received no violations. Sometime after this inspection, Nelson cancelled his USDA license and Matthew Hochstetler acquired a license at the same address after a pre-license inspection September 26, 2024. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Arizona. USDA Official Warning Nelson Hochstetler 10.24.24
Sam Gingerich, Brookview Kennels. Arcola, Illinois- Gingerich received an Official USDA Warning October 24, 2024 after receiving a direct violation August 14, 2024 pertaining to watering. Gingerich is also listed below for violations he received in Quarter 4 of 2024. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Arizona. USDA Official Warning Sam Gingerich 10.24.24
Critical Violations This Quarter:
Antoine Abed. Toledo, Ohio- Abed received 1 repeat non-critical violation for a missed inspection on November 18, 2024. They are noteworthy and put in the Critical section because in 2023 they received 4 Critical, 2 Direct, and 18 Non-critical violations, and then in 2024 they missed all 4 of their inspections leaving them uninspected since their last Critical violation received at their May 2023 inspection. Antoine Abed 11.18.24
K&M Pets LLC. Saginaw, Michigan- K&M Pets LLC also received violations in Quarter 3 of 2024 (which included 3 Critical, 5 Direct, and 11 non-critical violations) and in 2023 (which included 3 Direct). K&M Pets LLC received 3 non-critical violations this quarter on November 11, 2024, November 20, 2024, and December 11, 2024 for attempted inspections. On December 11, 2024, they received a Critical repeat violation for an attempted inspection at their Site 1 location. This facility has puppies and exotic animals. K&M Pets LLC 12.11.24 K&M Pets LLC 12.11.24 (1) K&M Pets LLC 11.20.24 K&M Pets LLC 11.7.24
Direct Violations This Quarter:
Daniel Schrock (A). Hillsboro, Wisconsin- Schrock also received violations in Quarters 1 and 2 of 2024. At the time of their October 10, 2024, routine inspection, Schrock received 5 non-critical violations pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care, records, housing facilities, and veterinary care for dogs. At the time of their October 16, 2024, routine inspection, Schrock received 1 direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Schrock has since cancelled their USDA license and has not procured another, they may still be state-licensed but the most recent list of Wisconsin state-licensed breeders is from August 2024. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in New York. Daniel Schrock (A) 10.10.24 Daniel Schrock (A) 10.16.24 USDA Official Warning Daniel Schrock (A) 12.12.24
Heath Meyers, Century Farm Puppies. Grundy Center, Iowa- Meyers also received violations in Quarters 1, 2, and 3 of 2024 and throughout 2023. At the time of their October 22, 2024, routine inspection, Meyers received 1 Direct violation pertaining to primary enclosures and 1 non-critical violation pertaining to time and method of identification. Heath Meyers 10.22.24
Marlin Miller & Marvin Miller, Cuddly Canines. Fresno, Ohio- At the time of their November 20, 2024, routine inspection, Cuddly Canines received 1 direct violation pertaining to watering. Cuddly Canines had a focused inspection November 26, 2024, and received no violations. We have records of this facility selling to a pet store in Arizona. Cuddly Canines 11.20.24
McKenzie Neuroth, Oak Top Farm. Mountain Grove, Missouri- At the time of their December 6, 2024, routine inspection, Neuroth received 1 direct violation pertaining to watering. Neuroth had another routine inspection December 13, 2024, and received no violations. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Arizona. McKenzie Neuroth 12.6.24
Sadie Yoder & Daniel Yoder, Loper Farm Pets. Jasper, New York- The Yoder’s have also received violations in Quarter 2 of 2024, 2023, 2022, and 2021.At the time of their November 26, 2024, routine inspection, this facility received 1 direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. At the time of their November 29, 2024, focused inspection, this facility received 1 repeat Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Sadie Yoder & Daniel Yoder 11.29.24 Sadie Yoder & Daniel Yoder 11.26.24
William Kurtz & Sylvia Kurtz, Barking Valley Kennel AKA Valley Kennel. Augusta, Wisconsin- This facility has also received violations under a prior license in Quarter 3 of 2023 (1 Critical), Quarter 1 of 2022, and in 2021. At the time of their December 11, 2024, routine inspection, this facility received 1 Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care, and 1 non-critical violation pertaining to veterinary care for dogs. On December 30, 2024, they had a focused inspection as a follow up and received no violations. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in New York and Florida. William Kurtz 12.11.24
