Every year Missouri appears at the top of the Horrible Hundred list because breeders with long records of cruelty and negligent care continue to operate. 

Inspections documented dogs with untreated wounds, emaciated nursing mothers, animals kept in filth and freezing conditions, pest-infested food storage, and breeders repeatedly dodging attempts to inspect their kennels. These are not one-off problems — they are patterns that put animals and their owners at risk.

We call on Governor Mike Kehoe, Director Chris Chinn of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, the Missouri House Committee on Agriculture (Chair Doyle Justus), and the Missouri Senate Agriculture, Food Production and Outdoor Resources Committee (Chair Jason Bean) to take immediate, enforceable action:

• Require automatic state license suspension and immediate seizure authority when inspectors document serious repeated animal-care violations or when a federal USDA license is revoked
• Fund unannounced inspections and stronger civil penalties so violators cannot simply continue selling sick puppies to Missouri families

These measures are urgently needed because some of the worst documented cases in the 2025 report show why current enforcement has failed. For example, a breeder whose USDA license was revoked in 2011 still operated with over 300 animals and had new violations as recently as February 2025; another repeat offender appeared in this report ten times and was found keeping dangerously thin nursing mothers and lethargic puppies; inspectors photographed a kennel storing raw carcass parts and rodent droppings while dogs lived amid the filth; and multiple breeders repeatedly evaded inspections or rebadged facilities with new license numbers after warnings. 

Missourians who love animals and responsible breeders who follow the rules want the same thing: a state that enforces its laws and protects families from unknowingly buying sick puppies. Sign if you agree state leaders should immediately adopt enforceable suspension authority, fund unannounced inspections, and increase penalties to stop repeat puppy-mill cruelty.