Last week’s seizure of 131 dogs at a rural Iowa breeding operation has prompted one state lawmaker to name for adjustments in the best way the state oversees puppy mills, canine breeders and brokers.
Rep. Dave Jacoby, D-Coralville, wrote to Gov. Kim Reynolds this week asking for her cooperation in holding unscrupulous breeders accountable.
In his letter, Jacoby wrote, “It’s time for us to work together to fix this problem. I look forward to a strong and immediate bipartisan effort to end this wrong. It is as simple as inspection and enforcement. We need to stop unscrupulous puppy mill owners by strengthening the laws that govern commercial breeders, increase inspections, and penalize those who violate the law.”
Jacoby’s letter to the governor comes one week after the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship inspected Sunset Valley Farm, a industrial dog-breeding operation within the city of Riverside.
An IDALS inspector reported discovering 131 dogs on the property, lots of which have been discovered to be in misery. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office eliminated the dogs from the property, though one of many dogs subsequently died, reportedly from heatstroke. The dogs at the moment are within the custody of the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center.
Jacoby stated Tuesday he’s conscious that Iowa typically leads the nation in violations cited by animal-welfare inspectors, however stated he’s assured lawmakers can give you bipartisan options that may handle puppy mills that function exterior the regulation with out harming respected canine breeders.
He stated he suspects the issue in Iowa seems to be one among weak regulation and a scarcity of enforcement by means of well timed inspections.
“Why do we wait until the heat index is 124 degrees before we check on the dogs inside a whelping barn?” he requested. “From my point of view, this situation in Riverside could have been cut off months or years before.”
The governor’s workplace, which has but to answer Jacoby’s letter, didn’t instantly reply to the Iowa Capital Dispatch’s questions concerning the subject Tuesday afternoon.
The proprietor of Sunset Valley Farm is Loren Yoder of Riverside. After being cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for violations within the first, second and third quarters of 2022, Yoder was issued an official warning from the USDA for violations discovered throughout a September 2022 go to. Yoder then canceled his USDA license in an obvious effort to keep away from further inspections by the USDA.
However, the business continued to function on the similar property on 540th Street in Riverside, and remained topic to state oversight and continued to be inspected by IDALS.
The state report for IDALS’ Aug. 24 inspection of the property cites a number of deficiencies:
Whelping barn — In the business’ whelping barn, the place feminine dogs are confined with puppies for the primary few weeks after they’re born, the inspector famous the temperature was within the 90s and there weren’t sufficient followers “to remove sweltering heat” from the realm. Roughly 16 moms have been in warmth misery, the inspector reported.
“Numerous mothers, adolescents, pups in state of distress,” the inspector reported. “Animals dirty and matted. One pregnant female excessively lethargic … Whelping floors and walls (of the) primary enclosures for mothers and pups were not routinely cleaned or kept sanitary.” The whelping building additionally had an “over-abundance of flies, both living and deceased,” she said.
Outdoor runs — In the outside runs, there was an extreme variety of weeds and holes within the floor weren’t being crammed to stop harm. “Outdoor dog runs and exercise areas are not kept in good repair so as to safely contain the animals therein without injury,” the inspector reported. “One golden retriever was loose at the time of inspection.”
The outside canine enclosures have been geared up with self-feeder mechanisms and whereas they have been stored full, there was no plan in place to manage vermin infestations, with the inspector noting the “heavy presence of flies indoors and out, dead and not.”
Staffing ranges — The variety of personnel employed by the kennel was “insufficient” for the variety of dogs available, the inspector reported. “By their own admission Loren, Lloyd, and Uncle David Lee have been providing all 131 animals with less than minimal supervision or care,” the inspector wrote in her report.
In January 2023, Loren Yoder was cited by IDALS for a number of violations, though the printed report gives few particulars of circumstances inside the power.
“Bedding must be provided at all times to your outdoor population during inclement weather!” the inspector reported. Her report additionally included a bold-faced warning that IDALS may “limit the number of animals allowed in any housing facility … If unable to maintain viable pups, manage breeding population, then downsizing may be implemented,” however the report didn’t immediately state why that warning was issued.
The report additionally said that “all animals pictured” – no photos have been printed with the report — wanted “medical attention and written resolution, what was done to treat the animal.”
Yoder surrendered USDA license after citations
During a February 2022 inspection, USDA officers cited Loren Yoder for six violations pertaining to housing amenities; cleansing, sanitizing and pest management; and veterinary look after the dogs. The inspector famous there was one outside enclosure containing 5 grownup dogs that had a plywood ground.
“The plywood floor is buried beneath a thick layer of dirt and gravel,” the inspector wrote. “In the enclosure, rodents have dug holes beneath the shelter and up through the plywood floor.”
In addition, the inspector reported the enclosure had “a heavy buildup of old and new feces. Piles of feces are scattered across the ground in the enclosure, and they consist of a mix of fresh and old feces which appear dry and white in color.”
The USDA inspector additionally said that “the facility is not maintaining medical records for the dogs. The facility had the dogs physically examined by the attending veterinarian, but there are no records containing the dogs’ identities, date of the exam, or the results of the examination.”
During a September 2022 go to, a USDA official cited Yoder for one direct violation and 6 noncritical violations pertaining to the attending veterinarian and insufficient veterinary care, the tactic of animal identification, recordkeeping, animal housing amenities, main enclosures, and feeding of the animals.
The inspector famous that three dogs seemed to be significantly underweight, and but Yoder was unaware of two of the dogs’ situation and not one of the three had been evaluated by a veterinarian. The inspector additionally famous that solely 4 dogs have been listed on Yoder’s USDA kind that paperwork the acquisition of each animal, however there have been 91 dogs on website.
In addition, three outside enclosures housing 12 grownup dogs had giant holes within the floor slightly below the flooring. The holes have been giant sufficient for even the bigger dogs to “fit their head and front legs below the flooring,” the inspector reported, creating the danger of harm ought to the ground collapse. During the inspection, 4 grownup poodles have been noticed working free on the property and needed to be rounded up and returned to their enclosure.
Also, three outside enclosures that housed 14 grownup dogs had caked pet food contained in the self-feeding mechanisms. One of the self-feeders had cobwebs and lifeless bugs inside it, and a beetle was present in chunk of pet food. Yoder was additionally cited for violations within the first and second quarters of 2022.
At the conclusion of the September go to, Yoder “cancelled his USDA license, in writing, effective immediately,” the inspector reported.
Iowa a pacesetter in puppy-mill violations
Over the previous few years, Iowa has typically led the nation with both the variety of breeders cited for violations, or the full variety of violations cited by inspectors.
In 2022, Iowa’s dog breeders had the nation’s worst record of compliance with federal laws, accounting for 36% of all violations cited nationally. The U.S. Department of Agriculture cited canine and cat breeders and brokers for 795 violations in 2022, a complete that excludes citations for “missed” inspections ensuing from USDA officers not getting access to the operations.
Of the 795 cited violations, Iowa breeders have been answerable for 286 violations. In addition, six Iowa breeders obtained official warnings from the USDA in 2022.
In early 2023, Iowa continued to lead the nation within the variety of regulatory violations dedicated by puppy mills. During the primary quarter of the yr, federal inspectors cited the nation’s licensed canine breeders for 303 violations. Of these, 107 have been dedicated by Iowa breeders.
The 107 violations have been dedicated by 26 totally different Iowa breeders, which meant that Iowa additionally led the nation within the variety of puppy mills that have been cited by regulators throughout the first three months of 2023. The No. 2 state, Missouri, had 31% fewer puppy mills cited for violations than did Iowa.
The evaluation of violations in Iowa and across the nation is carried out by Bailing Out Benji, a nationwide animal-welfare organization that’s primarily based in Iowa. The organization periodically compiles and analyzes inspection and gross sales knowledge from the USDA.
