World Famous Puppies
Formerly Puppy Store at Doral
7870 NW 52nd St
Doral, FL 33166
(786) 558-9265
Date and time of CAPS investigation: 08/22/21; 1708
Approximate number of puppies observed at time of investigation:
The store had 10 enclosures for puppies, made with solid walls and floorings, with cage doors at their backs for workers to access puppies. Breeder information, including names, USDA numbers, and phone numbers of breeders, was on cards by puppy enclosures. I asked an employee (Asian male, about 30 years old, 5’4″, 150 lbs, with short black hair and black-rimmed glasses) about the store’s breeders, and he told me, “I know they are all USDA, so they don’t get them from puppy mills.” He said USDA means puppies are “pure strain” and licensed, reiterating, “No, we don’t get them from puppy mills. We get them from licensed breeders.”
The employee said he didn’t know specifics about breeders, and so he called his boss (man who identified himself as Erik [Torres], with the phone having “Erik The Puppy Boss” written on the caller ID), and handed me the phone. I then told Erik I was putting him on speakerphone, and he and his employee spoke to me. I told Erik I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting a puppy from a puppy mill, which I described as a place commercially breeding puppies. He then said, “Let me cut you off real quick. Okay? So, puppy mills, for us pet stores, us in the industry, are people who overbreed dogs and mistreat dogs as they breed them. Most of them, the majority are not USDA. So, USDA breeders, okay, which all of our dogs are USDA bred, come from facilities. Yes, they have a lot of dogs. But the way that they raise these dogs, is to a professional point. They’re just not being bred in a cage. I mean when I tell you the way these dogs are raise, we’re talking about seven, eight million facilities. Now, when you talk about females, people that breed dogs and just put them in cages and don’t care, I don’t buy dogs from puppy mills. ‘Cause those dogs are scared. Those dogs’ upbringing are horrible. They tend to be sick, and they’re not USDA.”
I then asked, “Now do you know like how many, do you know like how long your breeders breed their dogs for or how many they might have? That kind of thing?” He responded, “Our breeders, okay, so we deal with one company. They deal with all the breeders. This is the largest company in the country. So, they are the biggest distributor for puppies. And what they do is, there are, what they do is, they work with other small breeders that breed for them. So, they don’t breed the dogs specifically, but what they are is a broker company. That what they do is they go ahead and sell the dogs for all the small breeders. They’re all USDA bred dogs.” I asked him what company he purchases puppies from, and he said, “Well, we don’t provide that information. We don’t provide, ’cause it’s just, it’s something that we can’t disclose. It’s a store policy.”
Erik told me, “And when you’re a USDA bred dog, your facility is being inspected, your dogs have to be genetically tested, the overbites. There’s a lot of factors that have to come into place to buy a dog from a USDA licensed breeder. You’re not buying from a guy who’s breeding dogs in his backyard. I mean if you don’t have a million dollars invested in your kennel, you’re not gonna’ be a USDA breeder.” I then asked if dogs are kept in cages at breeding facilities, and he said, “The dogs are not, all the dogs are not caged in. They actually have, they have a sleeping area. They also have a flap that lets them go outside and play. So, they’re never locked in. I mean, I have videos of one of the USDA facilities that we buy dogs from. Which I go and visit to make sure that the dogs have a very good upbringing. If they don’t have a good upbringing, then we’re in a bad situation.” He added, “And that’s what we consider puppy mills. Like I said, when you’re running a million-dollar operation, these guys are on a whole different level. All the dogs are like, this is a whole different scale then buying from a backyard breeder, or puppy millers, or stuff like that.”
Erik also claimed, “Dogs that are not being able to sell, they actually give them away. They give them up for adoption. Because they’re not being able to be sold in stores. And especially in Miami-Dade County, we have a lot of regulations from who we can and cannot buy from.”
Evidence of false statements and misrepresentations of breeders by store
CAPS has investigated more than 1,000 puppy and kitten mills, most of them USDA-licensed. In my 18 years with CAPS, I have been to more than 800 of these facilities, worked at the Hunte Corp., then the largest dog brokerage facility in the country, and brought down Kathy Bauck, one of the most notorious dog brokers and breeders in the country with an undercover employment investigation. Bauck had around 900 adult dogs and 400 puppies when I worked at her horrific facility. I also worked undercover at a Petland in Columbus, OH.
From my experience, it is clear that the owners’ claim that those who overbreed and mistreat breeding dogs “are not USDA,” is false, as are his claims that USDA breeders don’t keep dogs in cages, don’t have sick dogs, have “million-dollar facilities,” and all have access to play areas to all times. I have been to hundreds of USDA facilities with dogs in wire cages that are bred for years, and which have sick/injured dogs in facilities that are dilapidated.
It is extremely rare for a facility to have a dog play area, and I have never seen one with open access for the dogs. For example, in 2018, I was afforded the rare opportunity to rescue a dog from a USDA-licensed puppy mill, Wanda’s Lil’ Stars in Nebraska. Despite being only three years old, she had 18 rotten teeth which had caused an infection in her skull and heart arrhythmia. That facility, like Gayle Baker’s (USDA license 48-A-1989), Roger and Marla Campbell’s (USDA license 48-A-1549), both of which I documented while investigating Kansa puppy mills in 2021, had no open play area for dogs. The dogs at Wanda’s Lil’ Stars and Gayle Baker’s puppy mills dogs were kept in concrete and rock dog runs, while the Campbells had dogs in elevated wire cages.
The owner’s claim that they use the largest puppy broker in the country, who works with small breeders, may not be true since there are other facilities, such as J.A.K.’s Puppies in Iowa which we believe are larger. Erik stated that store policy prevented him from disclosing the broker’s name. Miami-Dade Code 5-10(c) requires pet stores to disclose the source of puppies. This law applies to breeder and broker names.
Also, the owner’s claim that USDA breeders “give away” dogs they can’t sell is usually false. Breeders often sell dogs at auctions rather than give them to rescues. Emma, the dog I rescued from Wanda’s Lil’ Stars because, would not be given away despite her not breeding. The breeders sold her to me for $100.
Breeder information obtained during store investigation
Lee Miller, 31-B-0193, (740) 502-4789; cannot find on USDA dealer list
Daniel Schlabach, 31-B-0193, (740) 502-6974; there is a Daniel Schlabach listed on the USDA dealer list as being in Millersburg, OH, 31-A-0734; he had 43 dogs and 11 puppies at 8/13/19 USDA inspection (most recent).
The USDA number 31-B-0193 belongs to Golden Seal Puppies, a USDA-licensed broker in Ohio. Miller and Schlabach appear to be breeders who sell to Golden Seal.
Golden Seal Puppies, LLC, PO Box 467, Sugarcreek, OH, 31-B-0193; physical address: 29939 CR 10, Fresno. (listed as a commercial property under county records); this property appears to be next door to Preferred Canine. Amishdogbreeders.com lists a John Yoder as the person associated with this address. We suspect that Yoder is a manager for Abe Miller, who owns Preferred Canine, 31-B-0197.
Both businesses had filing dates of 2/4/19 by the same registered agent with the Ohio Secretary of State. Both had a pre-license inspection on 2/12/19 and subsequent inspections on 2/10/19 and 1/8/20. We don’t believe this is a coincidence.
Preferred Canine LLC, PO Box 336, Sugarcreek, OH, 31-B-0197; physical address: 29952 CR 10, Fresno, OH (residence of Abe Miller, which is listed as an agricultural property under county tax records)
The owner of Preferred Canine is Abe Miller in Fresno, Ohio. Miller has a long history of selling sick puppies, violating the Animal Welfare Act, and being the subject of lawsuits. https://tinyurl.com/y5c26kqz
Every time, Miller is in trouble, he changes the name of his facility. When Sarasota County held a hearing for the ordinance banning the retail sale of dogs and cats in January 2016, he testified against the ordinance, using the kennel name of Quail Creek. Certificates of Veterinary Inspections over the last few years showed him using the names, Comfort Canines and Holmes for Canines. Miller hired a bus to transport at least 30 of his Amish breeders to testify against the ordinance, which passed in January 2016.
The dogs he brokered included those with the campylobacter virus that made dogs and people ill in the outbreak at numerous Petland stores.
https://www.cdc.gov/campylobacter/outbreaks/puppies-12-19/index.html
Breeder and broker information obtained from 2017 Certificates of Veterinary Inspection
Marie Doherty, Fulton, KS, 48-A-0321
Valente Rios, Osgood, MO, 43-A-4542
Lorilee Thomas (Puppies Extraordinaire)., Whiting, KS 48-B-0329, 679 dogs and 379 puppies at 10/18/19 USDA inspection (most recent listed).
https://www.dropbox.com/s/335l2l3snxtiwrt/Thomas%2C%20Lorilee.pdf?dl=0
USDA photos of Thomas’ facility in 2013
Lack of USDA violations
The fact that few breeders and brokers have USDA violations does not mean that none exist. During our undercover investigation of USDA-licensed facilities, we document violations. USDA has made it very easy for licenses not to have violations. In response to regulatory ordinances, USDA started using teachable moments, self-inspections and a trial announced inspection program. Their recent guidelines also instructed inspectors not to cite ear, eye and dental diseases as veterinary care violations (this requirement was recently changed back). It is for these reasons that USDA Animal Welfare Act violations have significantly decreased.
