Pet City Houston
230 Bammel Westfield Rd
Houston, TX 77090(
281) 519-4384
Dates and times of CAPS investigation: 7/27/24, 1331
Approximate number of puppies observed at time of investigation: 35 puppies
Puppies were in enclosures set against a wall. Each enclosure was about 3.5 feet long, 1.5 feet deep, and one or 1.5 feet tall. They had solid walls, coated wire floorings, which had small holes for urine to fall through, and water bottles were attached to enclosures’ rear walls.
There were one to three puppies per enclosure. Two enclosures each held a French Bulldog that were larger than other puppies. An employee told me that the puppies were seven months old and had been at the store since February. The employee said that puppies range in price from $800 to $5,000.
Private, licensed breeders with “plenty of room”
I told the employee that I wanted to make sure the puppies weren’t from puppy mills, and he told me “They are all private, licensed breeders. We go and actually look and see their facilities before we choose to buy them.” When I asked what conditions dogs were kept in, he told me that it varies for different kennels, but that dogs have “indoor/outdoor” faculties with long runs. He explained the run size by saying they would be from where we were standing to the wall of puppies, about 20’ away. He added, “They got plenty of room, plenty of stuff like that. We don’t do like puppy mills and stuff. If I can’t see your facility, I’m not going to buy from you.”
Hand-selected breeders that the store didn’t actually select
I asked what USDA licensing meant, and the employee said, “It’s inspected. They’ll come and see general welfare of the dogs. If they have ample amounts of water, shade if they’re outside and stuff like that. Make sure they’re not chained up and caged up outside.” He claimed that if the USDA can pull licenses from facilities they don’t want selling puppies. He said, “So if they are USDA certified, I would trust it.” He then added that he would want to see a facility to make sure it’s good enough for the store before buying puppies from them. He said that the store buys from a number of breeders he can count on “two hands,” and said, “We don’t really have that many breeders because we don’t really trust that many.” But when I asked him to clarify why the breeders were from outside Texas, he said, “As far as them being out of state, I guess we just found them. Because once the previous owners bought the store, they already had that clientele. So it’s just reoccurring for people that we go to.” This contradicts his claims that the store owner visits breeders known to be trustworthy, and instead explains the store just so happened to have them when it was purchased from a previous owner.
We don’t use puppy mills. We use breeders. Which ones? We won’t tell you.
I spoke to a second employee, and said I wanted to make sure the puppies don’t come from puppy mills. She said, “We get them from breeders.” She said the breeders are “registered” and “keep up with the code and everything,” and said if the breeders “started treating the dogs badly, we wouldn’t get dogs from them anymore.”
I asked her if I could get the name of a specific puppy’s breeders before, and she told me she couldn’t give it to me until I bought the puppy. I asked, “Oh, really? Oh, so I can’t know beforehand?” She said, “They’re like, private. They’re private breeders. We can’t give their names out. I don’t even know their names. So, I open the folder and see that. You could ask the owner of any questions about the breeders because he knows them.” I then asked if the owner was in the store, and she left to look for him in a room she had just come out of. She returned a little while after and asked me to repeat what I wanted. I told her, and she went back into the room. She then reiterated that she can’t give me the name of a breeder unless I buy a puppy.
Evidence contradicting the store’s claims
The employee’s claim that the store uses private breeders is untrue.. Certificates of Veterinary Inspection show that the store bought puppies from Elmer Troyer of Clark, MO (USDA license 43-A-5917), who has had numerous USDA and Missouri Department of Agriculture violations. He had 193 dogs and puppies and puppies at his 2/15/22 USDA inspection. Kevin Street of Bowling Green, MO (43-A-5486), had a total of 262 dogs, puppies, cats and kittens at his 9/22/23 USDA inspection. Such large-scale breeders who sell to pet stores are commercial breeders, not private breeders, and are the definition of a puppy mill.
In addition, Pet City has sourced puppies from large USDA-licensed brokers, such as J.A.K.’s Puppies in Britt Iowa (42-A-, which buys from puppy mills (USDA “A” licensed facilities and unlicensed exempt breeders with fewer than five breeding females). The breeders I investigated who sold to J.A.K.’s were all operating puppy mills.
The employee’s claim that breeders give plenty of space for their dogs is a misrepresentation. In 2013 CAPS investigated Kevin Street, and documented dogs in short concrete runs and wire cages. Satellite imagery shows his facility still has rows of thin dog runs, most under 10’ in length.
The employee’s claim that the USDA revokes licenses of breeders with violations is false/ Having investigated about a thousand puppy mills and worked undercover at USDA-licensed mills, I’ve seen firsthand how inspectors let many violations go unreported so breeders don’t lose business with pet stores. I’ve seen dogs injured, sick, dead and dying dogs at facilities that consistently have clean USDA inspection reports.
Breeder information obtained from 2022 and 2023 Certificates of Veterinary Inspection
Elmer and Edna Troyer, Clark, MO, 43-A-5917, 55 dogs, 60 puppies at 11/28/23 USDA inspection.
The Troyer’s 2/15/22 Missouri Department of Agriculture violations included build-up of dirt and grime on doors and frames, the entire facility requiring a deep cleaning because of an accumulation of dirt, dander, kibble, clipped fur, and grime on walls and wires, plastic feeders with broken sharp edges, a female Golden Doodle living on an unsealed concrete floor, lack of shelter for dogs in outdoor enclosures, fecal build-up in outdoor enclosures, and wrong inventory count records. The 5/5/22 re-inspection indicates that the Troyers corrected the violations.
On 5/15/22, the USDA inspector noted six violations of the animal welfare act: excessive feces, including feces smeared on flooring , doorways and walls, the same Golden Doodle (this time with her six puppies) on an unsealed concrete floor, outdoor enclosures with insufficient space, chewed plastic feeders with sharp edges, dogs without water, and lack of veterinary exam documentation. The Troyers had 71 adult dogs and 122 puppies at their 2/15/22 USDA inspection. The 5/18/22 USDA inspection report noted an excessive amount of flies inside and outside of the facility, including around food, feces and damp areas. At this inspection, the Troyers had 77 adult dogs and 66 puppies.
Kevin Street, Bowling Green, MO, 43-A-5486, 133 dogs, 97 puppies, 14 cats, 18 kittens (total 262 animals) at 9/22/23 USDA inspection.
During an investigation of Street’s facility, a CAPS investigator rescued a 4-year-old Boxer that Street wanted to rehome because he thought she was “dumb.” The dog had an underbite, missing fur, long scars on her neck (Street said they were from ringworm; the rescue with whom CAPS placed the dog believed they were from cattle prod burns), missing rear-end fur, mass on rear leg (vet said it was from the dog lying on an untreated ACL injury), and worn teeth from kennel chewing.
Broker information obtained from 2023 Certificates of Veterinary Inspection
J.A.K.’s Puppies, Britt, IA, 42-B-0271, 76 puppies at 12/16/24 USDA inspection
https://caps-web.org/caps-investigators-journal-the-truth-behind-j-a-k-s-puppies/
https://caps-web.org/caps-investigators-journal-the-truth-behind-puppy-mill-brokers/
