Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Looking for information...

A reader asked if anyone had heard of/had any experience with a large commercial "dog broker" of sorts by the name of Bonnie Sue Schindler. She lives in Missouri and is quite the largescale operationist.

She and Herman Schindler are the owners/breeders of:
Mettoville Kennel in Mexico, MO,
Teachers Pets of Mexico, MO,
QD Kennels of Frankford, MO,
MO Puppy Expo in Wentzville, MO, and
IL MO Puppy Expo in Quincy, IL.

If anyone has any information on these people or their business, feel free to share. In fact, crossposting to this link on other chatboards may help. I'd like to acquire a fairly large number of readers (or at least contributors!) in order to get more information on the dog's world. I like insight, opinion, snark, and praise in a blog, and the more people who contribute, the better. We're more likely to get answers to our questions that way.

37 comments:

Sarah said...

I don't know them, but I googled a little. I don't know how solid any of the following is, but it's info you can google further, if you want. At face value, it appears depressing.

There's a website, don't know if it was the person on the other thread, about their puppy from the Schindlers.
www.withoutavoice.net/bailey.html

Short version - "Bailey was bred in a puppymill (still in business!!) in Missouri operated by Herman and Bonnie Schindler.
The USDA Class B dealer (Victor Dietz) who sold Bailey to the pet store (and apparently purchased Bailey from the Schindlers) lost his license in 2000."

A site called Pet Shop Puppies has the Schindlers mentioned often:
http://www.petshoppuppies.com/report.asp?ID=PETSHOP7689

They appear to be a non-profit which also allows you to submit a detailed request for a report if you've bought a pet store puppy.
http://www.petshoppuppies.com/request.asp

http://www.petshoppuppies.com/report.asp?ID=PETSHOP7689

A site called No Puppy Mills has a forum on which the Schindlers are apparently mentioned per one thread

Who are Herman and Bonnie Schindler, the name sounds familiar, but didnt think to much to ask more about them.
Try doing a search here. That name has come up lots of times and not in a good way

www.nopuppymills.com/forum/index.php

On an InsiderPages for Skokie, reviews of Puppy Lovers store in Skokie includes a coment from someone who IDs their purportedly purebred Maltese pup’s breeder as being Bonnie Schindler.

http://www.insiderpages.com/b/3714311021

On a site called Pet Store Cruelty, a Hall of Shame includes:
"PETLAND ARBORETUM-NORTH CAROLINA-CHARLOTTE
Milo is a shih tzu/poodle mix purchased at Petland Arboretum in March of 2006. His price was approximately $1,200. 5 days after he was purchased, he developed a cough that worsened throughout the day. Milo's guardians contacted Petland and were advised to take the puppy to the vet affiliated with Petland if it got worse. They were not told what to do in the event that that vet's office was closed. The coughing became "unbearable" late at night. When ….[prolonged and awful story of sick puppy and pet store stonewalling buyers]… Milo was brought to Petland through the Class B dealer QD Kennels of Missouri, owned by Herman Schindler. Milo was born in a breeding facility also located in Missouri."

http://www.petstorecruelty.org/hallofshame.html

Oddly, a woman who appears to be the same Bonnie Schindler also seems to show an AKC Cocker Spaniel legit in obedience, per the website
www.cockerspaniels.com

CH. BENJAMIN HARLAN BAXTER, UD, AX, AXJ, SM814743/01, 08/16/90. Dog. Breeder, Bonnie Schindler. By Mettoville's Ben x Mettoville's Harlan Moon, Jr. Owner, Vivian Hudson.

Pet store names I've seen include: many Petland stores, Grand Prarie Pets in Peoria, New America Store in Des Moines, IA (where the USDA cited them for overcrowding shipments),

Merchants Circle for Frankford, MO has several negative comments about QD Kennels, also apparently run by the Schindlers.
http://www.merchantcircle.com/directory/MO-Frankford-63441

They appear to be members of a group called Iowa Pet Breeders - listed on www.iowapetbreeders.com

I searched the BBB's website (used their phone #) and found a 'satisfactory' listing for their kennel "Teacher’s Pets"

Saw two spellings of their kennel:
Mettodiles Kennel and Mettoville Kennel; also saw a political contribution from Bonnie Sue under the name Schindler Kennels.

Bonnie Sue Schindler and a Cocker for sale in a pet store surface in this IL news story:
http://www.nwitimes.com/articles/2006/08/30/your_saturday/pets/7b97bc63ca83c381862571d30072943a.txt

On www.breederweb.com/dogs/forum/86-japanese-chin-board
"I am hopeing someone can help me. My neighbor is trying to find some information on the breeder of her Japanese Chin (Ginseng)DOB 10/22/1997 and pictures of the parents. I tried a search online and came up with nothing. the sire is Mettoville's Lover Boy(TN454705/02) and the dam is GG's paper Moon (TM846554/01) the breeders name is Bonnie Sue Schindler she is from Frankford,MO any information would help alot.She got him from a couple that could no longer keep him because of a new baby and they had no info on him either. "

noshoes said...

I am the one who is requesting info on these breeders. Thank you so much for helping me out by headlining this. I have googled extensively all the different names these breeders go by and come up with all the sites that Sarah has mentioned above and more. I have noticed that the majority of dirt I have found online is at least 2 years old and some a lot older.
I hope to find some more recent info, and talk to anyone who has also had negative experiences with them, recently or in the past.

DogsDeserveFreedom said...

That's some great information sarah! Great research. I googled their names and came up about the same as what you found.

noshoes - did you purchase a puppy from them?

---------------------------------

dogsdeservefreedom

noshoes said...

Yes last year. He is now almost 16 months old, and about a month ago was diagnosed with hip dysplasia.

Tintlet said...

The problem with Hip Dyspalsia is that its multi gene. What you're (supposed to be) breeding is another form of Conformation. Its like breeding for pretty heads, etc. you can have all types in one litter.
But the most consistent types come from generations of breeding correct to correct.
puppy mills do not do any type of health testing, and have no idea if the dogs are affected.

my3eskies said...

I also bought an American Eskimo Petland Puppy that came from Mettoville (Bonnie Sue Schindler) that was diagnosed with hip dysplasia and medial patellar luxation. He is now 2 years old.

Sara said...

Quick Garage is a source for your portable garage, dog kennels, party tents, boat canopies, motorcycle covers and fabric buildings.

Heather (LMOALM) said...

I am involved with a group that protests their "Mo Puppy Expo" Store in St. Peters, MO every single Sunday from 1-2 pm. We have done extensive research on these stores and also protest "Pampered Pets" in Chesterfield, MO and St. Peters, MO. What we know about Herman and Bonnie is this: they have over 1200 dogs and have had several violations in transportation of animals and confinement issues. They currently don't have USDA (however ridiculous their involvement is) records to show because I have discovered that they are "buddies" with the inspector. Does that make them exempt? Hmm. We are trying to educated the public as much as possible. Trying to get them to either "go rescue or go home". There are so many puppies that need homes. Mostly Mutts in St. Louis is a foster rescue that drives all over picking up pregnant dogs that are about to be euthanized and rescues them, nurses their pups, vets them, spay/neuters them and adopts them out. It makes so much more sense than to continue to breed and buy.

KTFraser said...

Please check the USDA Site, Customer ID 4320. Please read all of the report for March 08, 2010. These people are cold hearted MONSTERS, please watch the news cast on Tuesday July 13th, see below:
Next Tuesday, July 13, following the All Star game, Fox 2 news St. Louis plans to air a story on Herman and Bonnie Schindler, owners of MO Puppy Expo in St Peters, MO which we have been protesting for over a year. The Schindlers puppy mill is located in Mexico, MO and they have over 1000 breeding dogs. (Attached is their most recent inspection report from the USDA for March 2010 which contains pages of violations, most repeat violations from a November 2009 inspection.)

Thanks to investigative reporter Chris Hayes and Fox 2 St. Louis for helping educate their viewers about puppy mills and pet stores. Please spread the word to others to watch this report. If you are unable to watch it, I will send a link to access the story after it airs.

MissyTamias said...

Are you still looking for those with past 'Teacher's Pet' experience? I purchased a chihuahua from them at the New America store in Des Moines, IA 8 years ago. We later found out the dog poses ALL the characteristics of being a mill puppy, including the fear of people. She has been relatively healthy but was not when we first got her. If you want to further discuss, contact me at missytamias@gmail.com

MCB said...

Hello, I bought a Maltese puppy from a Petland in IL last year. She is healthy and didn't have any problems. I did not know that Bonnie ran a puppy mill business. I wonder if the majority of the problems come with the larger breeds. I think informing the public is very important because people like me do not intend to keep feeding such a heartless business... I have two dogs from Petland and they are great (different breaders) but I will not do it again. It seems that all the information I have read about this place and their connections to the pet stores is truly horrendous and they are only hurting innocent puppies.

MeKissableMe said...

This puppy mill is on the humane society's Dirty Dozen list.

http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/pets/puppy_mills/summary_report_on_mos_dirty.pdf

shannon said...

http://www.examiner.com/dogs-in-national/huge-puppy-mill-closing-hundres-of-dogs-going-to-auction

This breeder is shutting down. The article states they have over 800 dogs, and have got a disonorable mention by the hsus. The article also gives a link to missouris dirty dozen which are the 12 most despicable breeders in missouri. It has a lot of info. they are auctioning off all their dogs on the 29 and 30th of this month i think. the article states it for sure. I volunteer with a dog rescue and i think people like this are horrible

lorettaj said...

I just wanted to comment on all of the negative feedback about Bonnie Sue Schindler. I went to Petland in 1996 and purchased a Pomeranian
(I named her Baby). Baby has never really had any issues she has been the absolute best dog I could have ever hoped for. Sadly I have lost her just this past weekend and was hoping to be able to look up Bonnie Sue to see if she was still in the pomeranian breeder business. But I see so many negative things happening at pet stores and with this breeder that I guess I will have to go somewhere else. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Unknown said...

She was so awesome when we bought out puppy. We went to every rescue to find a small dog for our 13 year old as that's what she wanted. Only small ones we could find had been abused and we just didn't know if could recover. finally went to Puppy Expo to peak around and she found her puppy. We were in that store for 3 hours to be sure it was the one. Bonnie cared so much that she made us watch a 15 min video on how to take care of our puppy, esp because it was only 2 pounds. She called us the very next day and the next week and then again. Just asking how the puppy was doing. She really knew her stuff and the puppy you could tell was well cared for. Even in the first few days she'd roll on her back on our laps, herself. I haven't seen where she breeds but just can't imagine from my experience that she would mistreat her animals. she just seemed so loving and passionate.

Unknown said...

I was there at the auction when that mill sold dogs. I saw first hand the pain and suffering those dogs endured. Many of us took what funds we could and bought dogs so that they would end the life of cages and neglect that they were born into. If Bonnie was kind to people she definitely was not to the dogs.

I bought one little Maltese puppy. He did not know what grass was. He was so scared to come out of the cage they used something like a shovel to drag him out.

The saddest phrase on earth was the auctioneer speaking of a young female "she has her whole life ahead of her" (meaning to breed puppies). The sorrow I felt for her took my breath away, life of cages and neglect.

Hearing the puppy millers that were buying dogs to take to their "farms" one spoke of a dog she planned to kill because she went crazy and killed another dog. What anguish did that girl suffer before going crazy?

The laws protect them from pictures because the images are so horrific no one would ever buy from them if they knew the whole truth.

If you can't go to the breeders house and see their pets that they are breeding get a pet from a shelter. Don't keep helping these people make money from the suffering of dogs.

Unknown said...

NEVER go to a breeder! There is a rescue for every breed out there. Someone mentioned wanting a Pom. Try googling Smaller Paws and Poms. I brought 4 dogs back from Schindler's "auction". The oldest, an 8 yr old mini poodle had mats down to his skin, never been brushed, never had his nails trimmed, entire mouth infected and during his dental he lost 14 teeth, paws are permanently stained dark brown from living in his own feces for 8 yrs! THESE PEOPLE ARE HEARTLESS CRUEL SICK INDIVIDUALS!

Anonymous said...

my rescue recieved two of bonnie schindlers "chihuahuas" a few weeks ago. a very nice woman bought them at an auction for $25. fortuanately one has found a home... still searching for the other a permanent home. "chico" has only 3 teeth left and only 4 years old. extremly neurotic with licking and pacing, cant be crated anymore because he licks his fur until discolored and hair loss. the other "cisco" is very head shy, and is apprehencive to get close to people. has snapped out of fear... never felt snow or grass on their feet. but cisco loves the snow now... trying to find out if this monster is still in business.

Unknown said...

I bought a little Pomeranian from a Petland in Arlington Heights Illinois She came from QD Kennel. She had severe Giardia, urinary infection and infected anal glands. She almost didn't make it. They are awful people and I would love to help stop them and Petland.

noshoes said...

@Teri: "they used something like a shovel to drag him out. "

I fostered a dog that was rescued pre-auction from the Schindlers, ended up adopting her about a month ago. She is scared to death and takes off in the other direction if she sees me pick up a shovel, broom, anything with a long handle. I was pretty sure she was abused with something like that, or if they were removed from their pens with a shovel, that would explain why she is terrified of them.

noshoes said...

They sold out in October 2010 and from what I have heard, I don't think they are even allowed to have any dogs anymore.

Also to anyone who says they bought their dog from Schindlers and never had any problems and it is the sweetest thing.... you are LUCKY. So many people and dogs haven't been so lucky. If you figure they had over 2,000 breeding dogs at one time, that's a lot of puppies being produced and yes some are going to turn out ok. A lot of them, most of them, aren't.

Anonymous said...

I purchased a golden retriever puppy from the MO Puppy Expo in Saint Peters which was through the Schindler's operation. I was one of the lucky ones. I am so happy that they are out of business now. My dog is about the most well behaved dog I have ever seen. She trained easily too. The only issue I have seen is her size. She is pretty small for a golden but I haven't had any issues to date. She is a bit over two years old. Wish I would have done my research before I bought from them but my dog is like my child and I thank God that I have her.

Unknown said...

Lyndsey...thank you for caring for your blessed addition. as a golden, she will bring you loyalty, and companionship.
i am so happy that she is doing so well.
please warn your friends of all that you have learned here ;-)

Unknown said...

i am not a "major" breeder but i do have 2 females and 1 male german shepherds, recently i had a litter of czeck/west germans i advertised in the paper...they are gorgeous and i only sell to families...i am very picky about where my pups go, and only breed every other year....anyways this lady called me today...and said she was a broker...she offered me $100 per puppy, and was totally miffed when i said i dont sell to brokers....it wasnt this schindler woman, but it was qd kennels, which is owned by them....i reverse traced the # and came upon this post.....i have no respect for puppy mills....or brokers....or pet shops....buy your dog from a reputable breeder or adopt.

Unknown said...

My "PetLand" dog came from this Schindler breeder and I GUARANTEE she was a puppy mill dog! She has Giardia in the beginning along with seizers and inbreeding and my ex-fiance spend $1,300.00 on her so I agree ADOPT!!!! Sadly those who buy from puppy mills are just supporting the puppy mill, though I understand where you are all coming from as I wouldnt trade my weiner dog Ruby for the world!!!

Tara said...

I am completely overwhelmed. Bonnie should be taken to a field and left there with several starving dogs from her puppy mill. It makes me sick to remember how 'good' she was. She had pictures on the wall of all the dogs and their owners who had sent them in, thanking her for such a wonder dog and experience. Fortunately, I have a great boxer and now that I know where he came from, that explains a lot. I got him in Oct of '06. He was almost 4mo old. They had named him and microchipped him, which they usually did for a fee. I got him at a "discount" because he had been there so long. I looked around at all shelters and just couldn't find a dog right for me. When I learned of the missouri puppy expo in wentzville, I was excited to see many different breeds and such nice people who worked there. Bonnie was involved every step of the way. They also pressured me to neuter him. The vet they partnered with neutered him at 4 months. Later I went to work for a vet and learned that a dog should be fixed at 6 months and not sooner. The reproductive system needs to fully develop. I often wonder if that stunted his growth or if he was just the runt because people would ask me if he was a miniature boxer. I know that boxers are prone to cancer and he has had 3 masses removed. That coulda happened anyway. Other than that, he has been the best dog ever. People all the time comment on how well-behaved and calm and beautiful he is. My heart breaks for all those dogs who weren't as lucky and for their owners. I always say I feel like I rescued him and after learning all of this puppy mill crap of Bonnie Sue Schindler, I truly did. He will turn 5 this week and he has been such a blessing to me.

Tara said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Moe said...

We just purchased a 9 week old Labradoodle and the puppy has tested positive for Parvo. We traced her back to Q D Kennel in Frankford Mo. Im not putting all the blame on them, but after reading these posts I am scared to see what other problems the dog may have if it survives the parvo.

CourtneyS said...

We adopted a mastiff from Petland. I don't frequent the store but had a feeling to go in. Found a mastiff sitting in the corner of one of the kennels. She was about 4 months at the time. She had bounced around from family to family and kept being brought back due to her size. I couldn't leave her there so we took her that day. She's almost 7 now and I couldn't imagine life with out her. We found out she was bred at QD Kennels. It saddens me that there are puppy mills. It's ridiculous and Petland needs to put a stop to it.

~Holly Sue~ said...

http://tailsrescuekc.org/?p=305

Additional links to more information at the bottom of the article. This doesn't look good. My dogs micro-chip is traced back to these people. I just want to know when she was born. And possibly who she was sold to and if she is spade. Does anyone know if I can get this information somewhere else?

Unknown said...

My girlfriend recently got a Pomeranian puppy from Pets-go-round. Normally neither of us would have anything to do with mall-type pet stores because we are both very against any person or entity associated with puppy mills. As it happened, she fell in love, and paid a hefty price for little "Jack." That night when we got him home and noticed he had a chronic cough. I then reluctantly decided to investigate his breeder, hoping to find out he came from a nice place. Sure enough Bonny Sue Schindler's name appeared in the breeder registration page. I did a quick Google search and quickly discovered what monsters had manufactured the poor little guy. I followed a few other blog sites much like this one to discover a cruel trail of Q D Kennel atrocities. The guilt of our purchase has stemmed sadness and anger in the both of us. We plan on spreading the word to as many individuals as we can to attempt to make up for our ill-conceived purchase. Unfortunately the Q D "Concentration Camps" are still in the bloody business, and it is because of this we would like to do our part in bringing down these conglomerates of death. If anyone has any information as to the most effective way to attack these monsters please advise.

Unknown said...

Bonny Sue Schindler should be taken to a public arena and hung. I'll pull it myself.

Unknown said...

Yesterday DQ Kennels contacted me wanting to buy my entire litter of puppies. She said they would ship them all over the US. She didn't ask me a single question about the parents, the quality or even if they had papers. Both my dogs are full breed and have papers, however she didn't even ask for pictures or proof of that. I would not recomend anyone buy a puppy from someone who just buys and resales puppies, she knows nothing about me or my dogs, and didn't care. I care very much what happens to these puppies and will not be selling her any!

Unknown said...

I bought back in June 1992 my beloved Keeshound from a store in Illinois who is a Bonnie Sue Schindler dog.

My dog was never sick a day in her life. She lived to 15 years old and honestly I want to purchase another one from her business that comes from my dogs line. My dog was AKC and I mated her and we kept one from the litter who also lived 15 years and just passed a couple weeks back. I have nothing bad to say about Bonnie Sue's operation!

Anonymous said...

I didn't buy my dog from Bonnie Sue Schindler. I adopted him from Beagles and more who rescued him when Teachers Pets (one of her puppy mills) was forced to sell off over a thousand dogs due to Prop B. He was a Basset Hound who name was Mettoville's Elver and he was adorable and loving. In fact you could tell he was starved for love. When they bought him at the auction he had to have several of his teeth removed because they were impacted. Later they discovered he was mostly deaf because she didn't provide sufficient veterinary care for his ears. Basset's can get ear infections if they are not kept up and cleaned due to the fact that they are so long they can trap bacteria and fungus and it grows. I renamed him Fred and I had him for just under 3 years. Last year he was diagnosed with Melanoma in his jaw. I took him to K-State and they were able to remove it, I then got him the vaccine to help prevent it from coming back however it had spread to his lungs and the vaccine only worked for approx. 6 months before the cancer became to strong. He passed away earlier this week. The cancer had also spread to his skull and he had a large growth on his head which I feared might cause a stroke or seizure. I came home last Sunday and he was just shaking so I called the Vet. I knew the cancer had spread in Sept but I went on and gave him the booster. In October the oncologist said though it had progressed some it looked like it was slowing down though then within a month he was wheezing heavily, had labored breathing and had lost most of his appetite. He would try really hard but the cancer eventually overcame him. I couldn't watch him suffer so the Vet came out and put him to rest. He said its uncommon for a Basset Hound but it is usually caused by the parents of the pup. I think all breeders whether large or small should have to get their dogs genotyped for certain diseases so that it prevents so many dogs from being born genetically challenged. They don't stand a chance. He did end up living 13 years which isn't short but it was to short to me since he only lived 3 of those years in a loving home. I read on Basset Hound .net that one of his children had glaucoma which is definitely genetic. He was a really great dog, my only hope is that I will see him again someday. The woman is over 70 years old and has had cancer herself. You think she would be more compassionate to animals. How could anyone run a puppy mill that had over 1500 breeders at one time. There needs to be a law that prevents this type of abuse. That lazy old woman never worked a real day in her life, she forced her dogs to do it.

Unknown said...

I worked at puppy lovers in skokie Illinois when i was 15 till i was 22 im 38 now and yes they only bought from her for years .. herman wold deliver them to us and the vet down the block would do there check ups and puppy lovers would give u a free check up with the vet amc of skokie for free the vet knew what was going on .. email me leeleemh99@yahoo.com i will tell u tons of facts

Bunny's mom said...

I got a 14 month old chocolate lab about 4 years ago, and it appears that QD kennels (schindlers) were the breeders. He suffered from a lot of illnesses and odd physical ailments for such a young pup. I've spent a small fortune but he's doing well now and is probably the prettiest chocolate lab you'll ever see. Very traumatized when we got him, it took almost a year until he'd allow us to run his tummy. We bred and raised black labs for 15 years, and took him in from my niece when she and her husband found that he had too many issues for them to deal with. They had a one bedroom apartment on the third floor, while we have 100 acres and it's a much better place for an energetic young dog. He's fabulous now, but is still insecure sometimes. Unfortunately some trauma is not easily overcome. If I ever meet his breeders, I will lay them out on behalf of my dog. As well as all the other dogs that have suffered at their hands. I believe God will deal with them in the end.