In years past the majority of Breeders/Kennels were not licensed. From this came a wild and varied interpretation as to what quote a “Good” Breeding/kennel was supposed to be. In this mix we had people who had one or two litters per year, Hoarders, Medium sized operations, Show Kennels, Hunting dog kennels, Kennels who raised dogs for sale to brokers and or Pet Stores. Shelters, Dog Pound and Rescues. With all the different types of operations with each wanting to demonstrate why they were “Somehow” better than someone else’s business model it started to get pretty ugly really fast. Even today with the standards having been established and the business models being defined the temptation to discredit others is still a problem in the industry today. Please note I said Industry, anytime someone produces a product and sells that product it is a commercial enterprise. American industry is and always has been based on the Free Enterprise System, Raising dogs no matter the reason is and always has been for profit. Each and every business model listed is a business needing to sell animals and to be compensated to pay employees and various expenses.
Profit is not a bad thing, actually if you are in the market for a puppy or dog you should always look for the most successful breeder- kennel you can find. If they are not being successful with their enterprise financially, they more than likely will not have resources to provide the quality of care, facilities or puppies that are good solid representation of the breeds they raise.
I do not think you would want to go to a Doctor who does not have the facilities, the staff and the equipment needed to treat you successfully would you? The same goes for buying a great happy healthy puppy. Always buy from a successful Breeder/Kennel.
Missouri has had state laws on the books for many, many years we have established the standards for the world to follow have inspections and implemented regulations to ensure the animals are being treated to an excellent standard of care, facility management, cleanliness, administrative process and where animal welfare is and has been the top priority for a very long time. Actually Missouri to my understanding was the first state to adopt Animal Welfare Laws which included inspections and license of all kennels, with some exceptions. We are pleased to report that we are a Missouri State licensed Breeder/Kennel. Today there are still over 21 states that do not have a Animal Welfare Act where standards, are established inspections for compliance are provided, nothing at all. Missouri collectively has the toughest standards to be found anywhere in the world, even exceeding the USDA substantially in many areas of care and facility management. In Summary, a legal licensed Kennel in the state of Missouri is by far one of the best places you can go to find a great healthy dog of your choice.
The USDA/APHIS regulations recently changed, In the past the USDA was only concerned with animals that entered the commercial stream through Brokers (Class B License) or directly to a Retail Pet Store. In November 2013 a new day emerged with huge differences in regulations, standards and administrative requirements from the Obama Administration and his regulatory CZARS. They essentially declared war on small business in America with a stroke of a pen, although objected loudly to by the Show kennels, Breeders of all kinds and sizes The USDA went against over 100,000 objections and implemented a regulatory mandate that has resulted in the loss of roughly 80.0% of all breeders nationwide. Countless dogs have been lost and today several breeds are in danger of being forever lost. The essence of the new regulations is if you have (4) intact female anything on your property you must become licensed and inspected by the USDA, in addition if you ship a puppy or a dog sight unseen again you must be licensed by the USDA. The regulations are far more reaching than these two items, actually the regulations are provided in a book that has 143 pages of line item regulations that must be met without fail with a 100.0% score or face a potential non-recourse (Guilty as Charged with no appeal, no trial, no hearing) fine starting at 10k per infraction. These regulations are so smothering a USDA kennel today is cleaner and operated to a higher state of care than most restaurants in America today. In summary if you are a USDA facility in today’s business environment you are without a doubt one of the few, and one of the best in the world.
USDA kennels have not had the same considerations in the past, times were different, standards were different, it is a new ballgame and a very tough one to participate in.
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So what is the difference today? Essentially the hoarders are not regulated. retail rescues are not regulated (Some of the Worst Places you could ever find a dog is a retail rescue) Shelters escape from being regulated while they slaughter countless animals daily. The ASPCA (Reportedly has 2 facilities) and HSUS (Zero) and PETA (One with a 97.0% kill rate) and local Shelters are not regulated or inspected. Small breeders with few than the required number and those who do not ship are for now not regulated, the USDA concept has essentially hurt the small breeders hope of ever being a large facility due to the tremendous expense it requires for start-up operations.
In our thinking the USDA regulations have not created a better environment for all animals. It is a lot like during prohibition a lot of bootlegging going on with people trying to stay under the radar. So if you want to make sure you are dealing with a legal and licensed breeder always look for a USDA facility.
We are pleased to be among the top breeders in the world with being licensed with both Missouri and the USDA.
