Jill and Joe Biden just purchased a German Shepherd puppy from a Pennsylvania kennel. But what do you know of their breeder? Would you be surprised if I told you that the Bidens bought the newest member of their family from a high-volume commercial facility, aka a puppy mill?
JANUARY 11, 2011 UPDATE: State Bars Breeder of Biden Dog
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Monday that Senator Biden arrived at Linda Brown's kennels "in a seven-car convoy" where the newest member of his family lay waiting on a piece of carpet, surrounded by stuffed animals and his litter mates.
"Many of [my] adult dogs live inside [my] ranch house," said Brown, as she showed a reporter around her property, which includes two indoor dog pools. Several dozen dogs live in outside pens surrounding the house with access to utility sheds or dog houses. [Emphasis mine]
Please read the following, and decide for yourself if you'd purchase a puppy from this woman.
Linda Brown owns Wolf Den Kennel, a commercial breeding facility that is licensed for 250+ dogs a year. Linda Brown sells her dogs under the business name of Jolindy's German Shepherds, which is where the Bidens purchased their puppy.
On December 10, 2008, when Linda Brown/Wolf Den Kennel had her last Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture kennel inspection, she had 85 dogs on the premises. Her Kennel Inspection Report cites her with inadequate ventilation, poor maintenance and sanitation of the facilities, and missing vaccination and sale records.
On April 10, 2006, Linda Brown was suspended by the American Kennel Club (AKC) for submitting three litter registrations containing information regarding the dam and/or sire that she "she knew, should have known, or had a duty to know" were false. The AKC suspended Linda Brown for one year and fined her $1000. There is no mention on her website of any current registry for the puppies she offers for sale.
Another glaring omission from Jolindy's GSDs is something that is stressed when one considers buying a purebred animal from an ethical breeder: look for the CERF and OFA certifications. A dear friend from the rescue world wrote to me regarding this matter:
Responsible breeders test dogs prior to breeding, OFA (www.offa.org) does not evaluate dogs under 24 months (they do have a "prelimary" evaluation for younger dogs, but it is not considered a definitive evaluation).
CERF for eyes should be repeated ANNUALLY. PRA can sneak up on you and can occur at almost any time in a dog's life. And if a dog does develop PRA, that means their littermates are almost certainly carriers, just as littermates of a vWD dog would be carriers.
Thus it is crucial for each of these tests that not only sire and dam but three generations back and littermates to both the sire and dam also have evaluations.
A responsible breeder will not only conduct these test but will make sure they are part of the OPEN OFA database. If they are proud of their dogs and the health of their lines, they WANT the rest of the world to know. Even if one or two dogs have less than perfect results (and it would be astonishing if that were not the case), any breeder who is unwilling to have their lines evaluated openly and honestly must be more closely scrutinized.
Jolindy's German Shepherds is not listed in the database of either organization.
A comment left on Abby's K-9 blog notes that:
Most people don't realize that Linda Brown has a partner, Laurie Huzzard (whose phone number is listed on the Jolindy website) who is also a PA-licensed kennel, located just down the road from Linda Brown’s Wolf Den Kennel. Apparently the female breeding dogs are kept at Von Wampfler Shepherds.
VON WAMPFLER SHEPHERDS
472 Saylor's Mill Road
Spring City, PA 19475
610-495-7021 (Business)
LAURIE A. HUZZARD
Dogs sold from Von Wampfler Shepherds, according to PA Kennel inspection reports:
- 20
- 18
- 38
- 32
- 16
- 13
Dogs Sold from Wolf Den Kennel:
Total dogs sold, according to PA kennel inspection reports:
- (as of July 08): 128
- 228
- 287
- 199
- 166
- 61
One hundred and twenty-eight puppies were sold in this past year (as of July; in December the number had gone up to 192). One hundred and ninety two puppies!
Adding a new member to one's family is a highly personal choice, whether it is an animal or a human. Many here seem to support the purchase of a puppy from an ethical breeder, instead of adopting from a shelter or a rescue organization. The breeder that my fellow Kossacks have in mind might be someone who has a few cherished indoor dogs, who breeds a litter or two a year. Potential families are screened, with references thoroughly checked. The puppies are socialized, vaccinated, cleared for good health, and either altered before adoption or were sold with a spay/neuter contract.
This is not Linda Brown. Perhaps a few lucky dogs do get to enter her home, as she states to the news reporters. But she is a high-volume commercial breeder, with 85 dogs currently on her property. The dogs are kenneled full-time in pens, not curled up on the couch. According to her kennel inspection report, the kennels are not maintained or cleaned as well as they should be and there was a heavy odor of ammonia (urine) in her home. The vaccination reports for the puppies were missing, and they are not cleared for future health issues.
It is a disappointment that the Bidens chose to purchase a dog from a high-volume commercial breeder, instead of purchasing from a reputable small breeder OR adopting from a shelter or a GSD rescue organization. All would have been a much better choice, and brought more awareness to the plight of the desperate animals locked away in America's puppy mills.
A website has been set up specifically around this issue, which you can visit at Biden Dog. For additional information on puppy mills, please visit Pet Shop Puppies. If you have purchased a puppy from a pet store and you are curious of its origins, please visit Pet Shop Puppies where you can order a free puppy report to learn more about your puppy's breeder.
(My deepest thanks to Kim Townsend, owner of Pet Shop Puppies, for verifying that statements made here were correct and true. Thanks as well to my dear friend L. who clarified the OFA and CERF information for me.)
An addendum, with thanks to Montco PA Dem who notes that the Bidens were referred to Jolindy's German Shepherds by Mark Tobin, who "who also owns and operates a police K-9 camp, does personal dog training and police dog training, running 32 canine units in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania," according to the Pottstown (Pennsylvania) Mercury. Mr. Tobin said, "I searched the kennels in the area and (Brown) has a decent history with the German blood line and her paperwork was in line."
Based on her current total of 85 dogs, her poor Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture inspection reports, her suspension from the AKC, and her total absence of health certification for any of her dogs, I respectfully disagree with Mr. Tobin's assessment.