Wuanita Swedlund ran a licensed dog breeding operation in Van Buren County for years. Since 2023, inspectors filed nearly two dozen violations against her property. Despite that record, she was able to keep operating and kept turning inspectors away — until an emergency search this June finally got officials through the door. What they found was heartbreaking: dogs living without clean water, food, or sanitary shelter, many suffering from untreated injuries, fleas, and dental disease. Thirty-two dogs, a cat, and a rabbit had to be removed from the property before anyone could stop the neglect.

This should never have taken three years and an emergency order. Iowa's current system lets licensed breeders rack up violation after violation with no real consequence, as long as they can keep the door shut on inspectors. Swedlund isn't an isolated case — she was named to the Humane Society's 2024 "Horrible Hundred" list of the nation's worst breeders, meaning Iowa regulators already had reason for concern well before this year.

We're calling on the Iowa Legislature, Governor Kim Reynolds, and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) to close this gap: give inspectors real enforcement authority after repeated violations, set a clear violation threshold that triggers automatic license suspension, and remove the ability of a breeder to simply refuse entry without immediate consequences. Animals shouldn't have to wait years — and an emergency order — to be protected from suffering that regulators already knew about.

Sign the petition to demand Iowa close the enforcement gap that let this go on for years — before more animals pay the price.