©Bailing Out Benji 2021
All research and information was done by the team at Bailing Out Benji and must be cited as such when shared or quoted!
Written by Mindi Callison
The Juxtaposition Between Data and Testimony
Since 2006 advocates across the country have been working hard to pass humane ordinances in their cities, counties and states that prohibit pet stores from partnering with animal mills for puppy, kitten and sometimes rabbit sales. To date, more than 375 localities and 3 states have passed similar language with even more working on the issue in 2021.
The pet store and commercial dog breeding industry regularly attends these council meetings and state bill hearings to defend their business practices and one of their main talking points has been that humane ordinances “haven’t shut down a single puppy mill“. Of course, their definition of puppy mill is vastly different than the definition that advocates use.
The pet industry- which includes employees, owners and lobbyists for pet stores and commercial breeders- always testifies that they believe puppy mills are unlicensed, unregulated breeders, while advocates stick to the definition that a puppy mill is any commercial breeding facility that puts the profit over the welfare of the animals. Clearly, the two definitions are at odds with each other because the pet industry relies heavily on USDA and state licensed breeders, no matter how many breeding animals are kept onsite or how many violations the facilities have.
Definition differences aside, the pet industry isn’t looking at licenses or data when they routinely tell policy makers that none of these humane ordinances have shut down a single puppy mill. If they did, they would be telling a different story.
Before we dig in, we do want to make an editor’s note:
Over the last decade, the public has become increasingly more aware of the puppy mill industry. More families are researching before they buy, they are avoiding puppy-selling stores, they are demanding stronger breeding/licensing laws in their own states, and they are pushing for humane ordinances. Not any one thing can point to the downfall of this industry, but the holistic approach of education, advocacy and policy is a huge part in ending the puppy mill industry once and for all.
The Data on the Decline
In 2008, the USDA issued 4228 class A licenses and 1067 class B license to companion animal breeders- 5,295 licenses total. Comparatively, in 2021 the USDA issued 2035 class A licenses and 762 class B licenses- 3,697 total. This shows a 30% decrease in active USDA licensed breeders and brokers over the last 13 years.
While there is a small fluctuation each year in federal and state licensees, the overall trend is showing that more commercial dog and cat breeders are not only going out of business, but many of the worst puppy mills have either been shut down or downsized greatly.
A few examples are below:
Horrible Hundred puppy mill owner Steve Kruse (Stonehenge Kennels. West Point, Iowa 42-B-0182) had over 940 adult breeding dogs in 2014 and has downsized to 670 adult breeding dogs in 2021. Kruse routinely sells puppies to pet stores and is still in operation.
Kimberly Coleman (TLC Kennels. Clinton, Missouri. 43-A-4973) had over 212 adult breeding dogs in 2014 and was a repeat Horrible Hundred puppy mill offender. After years of violations, public pressure and the inability to partner with many stores due to violations, Coleman auctioned off all of her animals in 2019 and closed her breeding facility. Coleman routinely sold puppies to pet stores in California among other states. California passed a statewide ordinance that went into effect in 2019.
Gary Felts (Black Diamond Kennels. Kingsley, Iowa. 42-A-0757) had over 276 adult breeding dogs in 2014 and had downsized to 153 adult breeding dogs in 2017. After years of Federal violations and public pressure, Felts closed his breeding facility and auctioned off all of his dogs in 2017. Felts routinely sold puppies to pet stores.
We have also seen a decline in licensed dog brokers. As fewer stores are offering puppies and kittens for sale, the need for middle men has decreased as well. A few of the most notable examples include:
David Steffensmeier (Jeannie’s Gems. West Point, Iowa. 42-B-0298) routinely sold puppies and kittens to pet stores all over the country. Steffensmeier cancelled his license in 2019.
Sham rescues Rescue Pets Iowa and Hobo K9 rescue were ordered to shut down by the Iowa Attorney General after our investigation linked them to puppy broker JAKS Puppies (Jolyn Noethe. Britt, Iowa 42-B-0271). These two entities were created to broker puppies to stores in cities and states where it was prohibited; proving that these ordinances do affect the puppy mill industry. California and Chicago were the main targets, as both passed ordinance language that prevented breeders from selling through stores.
In addition to our own findings on this decline in licensed breeders, a 2019 report from the Omaha World Herald echoed our research. According to the article:
“Nebraska Department of Agriculture records show that half of the state’s commercial dog and cat breeders have left the business over the past seven years. The decline was particularly sharp between June 30, 2018, when there were 216 state-licensed breeders, and the same date this year, when the number was down to 138.”
Two USDA and Nebraska state licensed breeders were quoted in the article stating that they “blame rising overhead costs, laws limiting pet store sales and competition from animal rescue organizations.” Clem Disterhaupt (Sandhills Kennels. Stuart, Nebraska. 47-A-0427) also stated that “Midwest breeders were hurt by a California law that banned pet stores from selling commercially bred puppies, kittens and rabbits.”
What does the research say?
Industry leaders also echo this trend. According to a recent report from IBIS World Dog and Pet Breeders Industry:
“The Dog and Pet Breeders industry has been subject to a moderate level of revenue volatility over the past five years. Recent efforts to regulate the industry and fight against puppy mills have contributed to strong revenue declines.”
To Read the full IBIS World report click here.
Thanks to this research and graphic below from the IBIS World Report, you can see the states with the highest concentration of puppy-selling pet stores. This falls in line with the data we have been collecting on stores.
Currently in 2021, humane pet store bills are being heard on the state level in Washington, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania and New York (among others). California’s state ban went into effect in 2019 and was cleaned up in 2020. These states are the ones who are importing the most puppies from Midwest USDA commercial breeders (puppy mills) and are trying to stop this pipeline from happening. Because many of the largest commercial breeders and brokers are selling to these stores, they will have vastly fewer outlets to sell puppies through and will have to either change their business models, downsize their kennels or close.
Throwing data and facts aside allows the pet industry to make the claim that no puppy mills are feeling the effect of these ordinances so they can plant a seed of doubt in the minds of policy makers in order to prevent humane laws from being passed.
In order to correct that narrative, our nonprofit wanted to share our research and industry reports regarding commercial breeder licensing over the last few years. Contrary to what the pet industry is saying, puppy mills are closing down, advocacy efforts are working and the entire industry is on the decline.
We strongly encourage advocates to keep working on humane ordinances, keep working on state bills pertaining to pet stores and continue fighting for more regulation on the commercial dog breeding industry. The trends are in our favor and the future is humane.
©Bailing Out Benji 2021
All research and information was done by the team at Bailing Out Benji and must be cited as such when shared or quoted!
Bailing Out Benji is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that researches and investigates the commercial dog and cat breeding industry and tracks the sale of animals as they move to pet stores and online customers.
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