Breeder: Angela Shubert
Business name: A-1 Puppy
Address: 155 C W White Dr.
City, State Zip: Morris Chapel, TN 38361
Year: 2015
USDA License: 63-B-0175
Date of CAPS Investigation: 09/12/15
Time of CAPS Investigation: 11:38am
CAPS investigation: 9/12/15; kennel visited at 11:38
Weather at time of investigation: 70 degrees Fahrenheit and partly cloudy
Breeds: Yorkshire Terriers, West Highland Terriers, Miniature Poodles, Chihuahuas, Shih Tzus, Boston Terriers, English Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Maltese
Approximate number of dogs observed at time of investigation: about 600 dogs and 120 puppies
Angela Shubert (Caucasian female, about 45 years old, 5’8”, 140 lbs., with long blonde hair and skin that appeared to be reddened around her face, neck and arms) spoke to me about her breeding business and showed me her facility.
There appeared to be four breeder buildings and three whelping buildings on her property. Breeder buildings were Sundowner designs, with each building having two rows of indoor/outdoor cages on each of two sides and four to eight cages of different sizes, per row. Indoor and outdoor cages were made of treated wire. The cages with smaller dogs and puppies had plastic mats with small holes in them. These mats were on top of the wire floorings. Plastic and stainless-steel sheeting under the cages caught feces and fed drain pipes. Cages had automatic water-nipples and self-feeders. There were two to three dogs per breeder cage, depending on the size of the dog.
Angela explains she has more kennel sites
Angela told me, “See this ain’t all my kennels. I got three or four more that are satellite kennels.” She added, “I had the public. I had the puppy ranch. And people are so fucking stupid. I hate dealing with the public.” Regarding the euthanasia of breeders, she said that she will adopt out friendly dogs, but added, “if the dog will bite a kid,” she won’t adopt the dog out and instead pays a veterinarian to euthanize the animal.
Statements contradicting pet stores
Angela told me that she sells to a broker (CAPS in-store investigation of Pups N Stuff in Suffolk County indicated the broker for Angela was JH & TC Holdings) and two individuals. She mentioned having puppies that she ships to Florida and Chicago in a “box truck.” She added, “… and Thursday, I’m at the broker.” She said the broker is Platinum (Platinum Puppies in West Point, Iowa, is owned by JH & TC Holdings and goes by both names). She said she can transport the dogs herself, but added, “A box truck can haul up to a hundred.” She said the buyer in the Chicago area (see update below) gets 80 puppies every two weeks. I asked, “And they’ll move them for you, though, right?” She said, “Yeah.” This could contradict a statement by Pups N Stuff in Suffolk County that their brokers only transport puppies, since Shubert breeds, transports, and has other people transport her puppies as well.
Angela said that she has French and English Bulldogs and has a veterinarian do the cesareans and artificial inseminations for them. This contradicts a statement by Pups N Stuff in Suffolk that they don’t buy from puppy mills because puppy millers wouldn’t do AIs and C-sections on dogs.
Angela gave me an edited version of the Animal Welfare Act she said she personalized for people to easily understand for breeding dogs.
Update 7/18/16
https://www.facebook.com/Bandcpups/reviews
B&C Kennels in Clare, Illinois, is one of the sellers to whom Shubert ships. Buyers stated on B&C’s Facebook page that they didn’t realize that their puppy was bred by A1 Puppy or that the facility had a large number of dogs. The owners of B&C are Christie Hardt and her husband, Bob DeCosta. According to reviews, Christie told these customers, who looked at their paperwork after their purchase, that A1 is owned by her cousin. When some of them questioned her about having a “cousin” in Tennessee, she stated that she has family there. Internet research does not reveal any ties between Christie and Tennessee. She and her husband both grew up in Illinois.
Here is one of the Facebook review comments:
I sent my concern about the TN birthplace to Christie and this was her response: “I guarantee it is not a puppy mill. It is my cousin’s kennel. My whole family lives in Tennessee and I try my best to always mention that the papers will come with a Tennessee address. I have never tried to mislead anyone about where the pups are born. She has as clean if not cleaner kennel than I have and we work together.” Thank you for your response, Christie!
