(Ames, Iowa) – Eight Iowa dog breeders or kennels were cited for federal regulatory violations during the first quarter of 2024. The Iowa Capital Dispatch reports two of the Iowa operators cited for violations were also the subject of criminal referrals by the Iowa-based animal-welfare group Bailing Out Benji, the organization that compiles quarterly data on violators throughout the nation.

Bailing Out Benji reported that between January and March, eight Iowa breeders or kennels were cited for violations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. During that same period, 16 Wisconsin kennels or breeders — the most of any state — were cited for violations. Other states with a significant number of violators included Missouri, with 11, and Pennsylvania, with nine.

In terms of the number of violations cited, Iowa ranked second with 19 violations in the first quarter. Missouri ranked first with 21 violations, according to Mindi Callison of Bailing Out Benji. She noted that 37% of the violations in Iowa during the quarter pertained to veterinary care, the attending veterinarian or inadequate veterinary care. “That can be compared to the national number of 29.19% for those same violations,” she said.

A dog photographed by offficials from the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service at the Iowa kennel operated by Dennis and Donna Van Wyk in 2017. (USDA photo courtesy of Bailing Out Benji)

Among the Iowa breeders cited for violations in the first three months of 2024, was William Davenport, Afton – During a Feb. 5 USDA inspection, Davenport was cited for one violation pertaining to veterinary care. The inspector reported that for the two most recent litters of puppies, there were no records of internal parasite medications being administered, and vaccination records were missing for one of the litters. At the time of the inspection, Davenport had 29 dogs and three puppies on hand. Davenport was also cited for violations in 2022 and 2023.

Other breeders in the report included:

• Wuanita Swedlund, of Cantril
• Larry Albrecht of Coldwater Kennel, Greene
• Dennis and Donna Van Wyk of Prairie Lane Kennels, of New Sharon
• Ed Van Doorn of Squaw Creek Kennels, of Barnes City
• Heath Meyers of Century Farm Puppies, in Grundy Center
• Helene Hamrick of Wolf Point Kennel, in Ackworth
• Ida and Sarah Kauffman of Sunset Grove Kennels (aka Backyard Kennels), of Hazleton.