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 direct or critical violations in Quarter 2 of 2025, as well as those who have received official warnings or fines. You will also find the statistics on the non-critical violations, but those will no longer be listed out individually in our reports.
This time period is from April 1, 2025, to June 30, 2025.
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.
We also include statistics on missed inspections, so we can monitor those facilities that are habitual offenders. 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
2025 Quarter 1 Violation Breakdown
91.2% of violations this quarter received by dog and cat breeders and dealers were Non-Critical. The USDA defines a non-critical violation as a noncompliance that is not designated as a direct NCI and is something that is not having a serious or severe impact on the welfare of an animal at the time of inspection.
4.8% of violations this quarter received by dog and cat breeders and dealers were critical.
4% of violations this quarter received by dog and cat breeders and dealers were direct.
Non-Critical Violation Breakdown:
There were 76 USDA licensed cat and dog breeders and dealers who received non-critical violations this quarter.
24.6% of of non-critical violations this quarter were for Attempted Inspections.
23.1% of non-critical violations this quarter pertained to Veterinary Care for Dogs.
8.2% of non-critical violations this quarter pertained to Records.
7.5% of non-critical violations this quarter pertained to Attending Veterinarian and Adequate Veterinary Care.
6.7% of non-critical violations this quarter pertained to Cleaning, Sanitization, House Keeping, and Pest Control.
Top violations among the Non-Critical, Direct, and Critical Violations this Quarter:
There were a total of 80 USDA licensed cat and dog breeders and dealers who received violations this quarter.
23.8% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Attempted Inspections.
21.1% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Veterinary Care for Dogs.
10.2% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Attending Veterinarian and Adequate Veterinary Care.
7.4% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Records.
6.1% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Cleaning, Sanitation, House Keeping, and Pest Control.
5.4% of 2025 quarter 2 violations pertained to Primary Enclosures.
Official USDA Warnings, Complaints, and Decisions
Becky Goodman & Leonard Goodman, Goodman’s Good Dogs. Ringling, Oklahoma- The Goodmans received an Official USDA Warning on May 15, 2025, after receiving 2 Direct violations on March 31, 2025, pertaining to cleaning, sanitation, housekeeping, and pest control, and attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. The Goodmans also received violations in Quarter 3 of 2023. We have records of this facility selling on the brokering website, Puppies.com. USDA Official Warning Becky & Leonard Goodman 5.15.25
Charles McGinnis & Debbi McGinnis, Monarchs Kennel. Bolivar, Missouri- The McGinnis’ received an Official USDA Warning on June 12, 2025, after receiving Direct violations on April 8 and April 17, 2025, pertaining to watering and attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. The McGinnis’ also received violations in 2024 and 2023, including another Official USDA Warning in 2023. The McGinnis’ are listed below for the Direct violations they received this quarter. USDA Official Warning Charles & Debbi McGinnis 6.12.25
Jennifer Cervantes & Jose Cervantes, Verified Puppy. New Prague, Minnesota- Verified Puppy received a 5 Day Suspension of their license on June 3, 2025, after receiving a Critical violation on April 30, 2025, for interfering with, threatening, abusing (including verbal abuse), and/or harrassing an APHIS official during the course of them carrying out their duties. They are also listed below for receiving another Critical violation in June. USDA Suspension Verified Puppy 6.3.25
Mabel Yoder (J), Sugar Valley Puppies. Sugarcreek, Ohio- Mabel Yoder received an Official USDA Warning on April 2, 2025, after receiving a Direct violation on February 10, 2025, pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. At the time of this report being released, Yoder has cancelled their USDA license and appears to have gotten another license under the name Sugar Valley Canine LLC. We have records of this facility selling to a pet store in Connecticut. USDA Official Warning Mabel Yoder 4.2.25
Teresa Rauch, Ratepa Kennels. Bolivar, Missouri- Rauch received an Official USDA Warning on June 18, 2025, after receiving a Direct violation on April 24, 2025, pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. Rauch also received a Direct violation in January of this year, which resulted in an Official USDA Warning in March, and received violations in 2024 and 2023. We have records of this facility selling on the websites, Puppies.com and Lancaster Puppies, and to pet stores in Florida and Connecticut. USDA Official Warning Teresa Rauch 6.18.25
Direct Violations this Quarter (violations at the time of inspection having serious or severe adverse effects on the welfare of the animals):
Charles McGinnis & Debbi McGinnis, Monarchs Kennel. Bolivar, Missouri- The McGinnis’s also received violations in 2024 and 2023. At the time of their April 8, 2025, routine inspection, the McGinnis’ received a Direct violation pertaining to watering. At the time of their April 17, 2025, routine inspection, they received a Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care, and a non-critical violation. Charles and Debbi McGinnis Charles and Debbi McGinnis-2
Danny Miller (L), Indian Trail Paws LLC. Dundee, Ohio- Miller also received USDA violations in 2024 and state non-compliance in 2024 and 2022. At the time of their June 25, 2025, routine inspection, Miller received a Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. At the time of this report being released, Miller has cancelled his USDA license and has not procured another. He still appears to be state-licensed. Danny L. Miller
Edna Yoder & Andy Yoder, A&E Kennel. Sugarcreek, Ohio- The Yoders have a history of cancelled licenses, under them, they also received USDA violations in 2024 and 2023 and had state non-compliances in 2022. At the time of their June 10, 2025, routine inspection, Edna Yoder received a Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care, and a non-critical violation. Since this inspection, Edna Yoder has cancelled her USDA license, and a new license has been procured by Andy Yoder for A&E Kennel. Edna Yoder
Sadie Yoder & Daniel Yoder, Loper Farm Pets. Jasper, New York- The Yoders also received violations in Quarter 1 of 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, and 2021. At the time of their June 18, 2025, routine inspection, the Yoders received a Direct violation pertaining to watering and 4 non-critical violations. Sadie and Daniel Yoder
Teresa Rauch, Ratepa Kennels. Bolivar, Missouri- Rauch also received a violation in Quarter 1 of 2025, which warranted an Official Warning in the same Quarter, and violations in 2024 and 2023. At the time of their April 24, 2025, routine inspection, Rauch received a Direct violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care. We have records of this facility selling on the websites Puppies.com and Lancaster Puppies, and to pet stores in Connecticut and Florida.
Critical Violations this Quarter:
Amos Borntreger Jr. (A), Happy Canine Kennel. Augusta, Wisconsin- At the time of their June 16, 2025, routine inspection, Borntreger received a Critical violation pertaining to housing facilities. We have records of this facility selling to pet stores in Connecticut, Nevada, and New Jersey. Amos A Borntreger Jr
Happy Puppy Universe LLC. Charlotte, North Carolina- At the time of their May 1, 2025, routine inspection, Happy Puppy Universe received a Critical violation pertaining to attending veterinarian and adequate veterinary care, and 2 non-critical violations. At the time of this report being released, Happy Puppy Universe has a cancelled USDA license and has not procured another. Note: This facility is a Broker/Pet Store. Happy Puppy Universe LLC 10901
Jennifer Cervantes & Jose Cervantes, Verified Puppy. New Prague, Minnesota- At the time of their April 30, 2025, routine inspection, Verified Puppy received a Critical violation for interfering with an APHIS Official during their inspection. This violation resulted in them getting a 5-Day suspension June 3, 2025. During another routine inspection June 18, 2025, Verified Puppy received another Critical violation after refusing an inspection. Verified Puppy Verified Puppy-2
K&M Pets LLC. Saginaw, Michigan- K&M Pets also received violations in Quarter 1 of 2025 (which included 4 Critical), 2024 (which include Direct and Critical), 2023 (which include Direct), a License Suspension in 2024, and an Official USDA Warning in 2023. K&M Pets received another Critical violation this Quarter for an attempted inspection on June 4, 2025. The USDA has been attempting to inspect this facility since November 2024, assigning them nine violations for attempted inspections since November 7, 2024. This facility has had puppies and exotic animals in the past. K&M Pets LLC
Leroy Miller (C), Glenmont Companion Dogs. Brinkhaven, Ohio- At the time of their April 7, 2025, re-license inspection, Miller received a Critical violation pertaining to primary enclosures, and 2 non-critical violations. This facility also received a state non-compliance in 2024. Leroy C Miller