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Breeding purebred animals for a nationwide market is big business in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma has a bustling business industry that places it among a handful of states supplying the nation with purebred puppies.

While there are scant economic figures on the size of the industry, the profit margin is clear at the kennel level: One purebred puppy such as a Yorkshire terrier can bring $1,000 to $1,500. A litter of Yorkies can bring up to $6,000 for a breeder.

Puppy sales are seasonal with prices soaring during Christmas and decreasing during the summer months. But a litter of registered Yorkies born in August can still bring $1,500 to $2,500 if marketed properly, breeders said.

‘‘There is an incredible amount of money to be made if you do it right,’’ said Gary Phillips, president of the Northeast Chapter of Oklahoma Pet Professionals.

“But it takes money to do it right. You have to have the proper food, facilities and affordable veterinarian care to raise quality animals that you can stand behind.’’

Phillips raises

Oklahoma has 702 commercial breeders and brokers registered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to information obtained by the Freedom of Information Act.

Oklahoma breeders are located throughout the state, but there is a significant concentration of kennels in eastern and southeastern Oklahoma.

The number of registered breeders in Oklahoma has doubled in the past 10 years, which coincides with a radical change in how Oklahoma puppies are marketed across the nation, industry officials said.

Internet sales are fueling the industry, but there are regular dog auctions and dog sales that contribute.

Oklahoma breeders are providing expensive pedigree dogs to markets from New York to California. In addition to Yorkies, popular breeds include Maltese, shih tzus, teacup Chihuahuas, English bulldogs, French bulldogs, Cavalier King Charles spaniels and Rottweilers, to mention a few popular breeds.

Additionally, since the industry is Internet-driven, some breeders are selling directly to the public and avoiding federal regulations that dictate humane treatment of animals. A few unscrupulous breeders are tricking consumers into buying animals that are not purebred.

Jaime Winchell, of Carson City, Nev., said she paid $500 for a registered Rottweiler. She purchased the dog from an unlicensed breeder in Mounds, south of Tulsa. What she received was a ‘‘lovable’’ mutt and veterinary bills to address a life-threatening case of intestinal worms, she said.

‘‘I was supposed to get a pure-bred puppy with registered papers but I never got the papers,’’ Winchell said. ‘‘The breeder lied. The dog I saw on the Internet was not the dog I received.’’

USDA regulations require registered breeders to meet federal standards of treatment and care for commercially bred animals.

However, there are unregistered breeders selling puppies over the Internet, through newspaper classified ads and on street corners, industry officials said.

Many of these individuals run secretive or hidden operations that house up to 100 dogs or more. They are known as backyard breeders or puppy millers.

An Oklahoma puppy mill typically involves small breeds kept in substandard conditions. The small dogs require less space and resources while producing puppies that bring thousands of dollars in profit.

In the worst cases, cramped conditions and inbreeding can create diseases, weakened immune systems and animal defects.

‘‘Some breeders sell sick or defective dogs and I have weeded them out,’’ said Deborah Byrd, who sells puppies for 75 breeders in eastern Oklahoma. ‘‘It is very unethical to do this. It is my reputation on the line when I sell for a breeder.’’

Meanwhile, the proliferation of breeders and Internet sales appear to have crowded out pet stores in the Tulsa area. There are few pet stores and even fewer offering puppies for sale.

Phillips, 53, said he switched from selling cattle to selling puppies professionally about six years ago. With 100 breeding dogs, Phillips’ operation would be considered a medium size kennel by Oklahoma standards.

The size of a breeding kennel in Oklahoma varies from 30 dogs for a smaller operation to more than 600 dogs for a large kennel.

While Oklahoma is the second-largest dog-breeding state in the nation, there are no economic impact figures available from the state Department of Commerce or Department of Agriculture.

The American Pet Product Manufacturers Association estimates the public and industry will spend $1 billion buying dogs in 2007, said Bob Vetere, president of the association.

In 2006, three out of 10 dogs were obtained from breeders, he said.

‘‘Most breeders are conscientious, but it only takes a few bad ones to give a poor image to the industry,’’ Vetere said.

Vetere said the demand for puppies is expected to continue. An association survey of 580 people shows that 63 percent of those surveyed own at least one dog.

Pet transporter Tracy Wiedemann said Oklahoma is the market sought by consumers wanting an affordable, purebred dog.

‘‘I talk to people all over the country and I asked why they buy dogs over the Internet,’’ Wiedemann said. ‘‘They say because it is hard to find puppies and the prices are better here.’’

Wiedemann, of Stigler, owns Pet Stop Transport, which she began in November 2005. She hauls puppies to the airport for Oklahoma breeders selling animals to individuals in other states.

The animals are flown out of Tulsa International Airport, which breeders say is a major shipping hub for puppies from Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Wiedemann said she tried her hand at commercial breeding but decided to get out of the business.

‘‘Breeding dogs is hard work and the work seems never-ending,’’ Wiedemann said. ‘‘You can cross the line very easily into neglecting the animals if you are not careful. I made a decision to get out of the business.’’

‘‘I think this is how puppy mills happen,’’ she said. ‘‘I don’t think people start out to neglect the animals, but it becomes too much for them and they cross the line.’’

As a pet transporter, Wiedemann is licensed by the USDA. She also had to undergo a background check to haul animals to the airport cargo area.

Wiedemann transports puppies for 40 breeders in the eastern Oklahoma counties of LeFlore, Sequoyah and Haskell.

Her late-model van can haul 36 animals at a time. On delivery days, Wiedemann leaves home at 1 a.m. to arrive at Tulsa airport at 4 a.m. to check in the animals.

‘‘The USDA and the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) are strict,’’ Wiedemann said. ‘‘The animals must have the approved crate, and all the paperwork must be in exact order or they will reject the animals.’’

The paperwork includes a veterinarian health check, vaccination records and food and- water records.

During a given week, Wiedemann said she will transport up to 50 puppies to the Tulsa airport to be shipped to customers.

‘‘I have a competitor who hauls twice that many puppies to the airport each week,’’ Wiedemann said.

In addition to the Tulsa airport, breeders in southeast Oklahoma ship thousands of puppies through the Dallas- Fort Worth area. Southeast Oklahoma is the state’s most concentrated area of commercial breeders.

USDA regulations require that an animal be at least eight weeks old before it is taken from its mother.

The effect of an airplane flight on an 8-week-old puppy can be problematic even though the plane’s shipping compartment is climate controlled, said Dr. Melissa Montgomery, a veterinarian for the Tulsa Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Many fragile puppies arrive at their destination with diarrhea, serious coughs or other ailments, Montgomery said. The stress of the flight affects their immune system, she said.

‘‘Think about it. If a plane has a barf bag for humans, what do you think it does to a small animal?’’ Montgomery said. ‘‘If a breeder is really concerned about puppy health, they don’t ship by plane because of the stress it places on the animal.’’

Wiedemann said she won’t transport animals that are not healthy enough for a flight.

‘‘The puppies have to be a certain weight and age before we will transport them,’’ Wiedemann said. ‘‘I have a standard that I ask the breeders to meet and they know what to expect. We don’t do business with puppy mills.’’

In most cases, the puppies must weigh at least two pounds and be eight weeks old before Wiedemann will transport the animal for shipment, she said.

Other shipping routes for Oklahoma puppies include a land route through Goodman, Mo., just across the Oklahoma border in southwest Missouri. Goodman is the home of the Hunte Corp., a giant clearinghouse for puppies being shipped to pet stores across the nation.

Hunte Corp. has a fleet of brightly colored semi-trucks used to haul the puppies. The megabroker buys and sells animals from thousands of breeders in the surrounding states.

In 2005, Hunte bought and sold 88,235 animals, according to USDA records. The company ships an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 puppies in an average week.

Hunte President Steve Rook did not return numerous calls made by the Tulsa World.

In addition to the Internet, thousands of puppies and breeder dogs are sold each year at dog auctions.

Regular dog auctions are held across Oklahoma and typically prohibit cameras to keep out animal rights activists who use such pictures on their Web sites.

Lester and Edith Miller own the Chouteau Auction Co., an auction house that features as many as 150 dogs every two weeks.

Lester Miller said the animals are treated in a humane manner and that his auction is regulated by the USDA. As a licensed broker, he has had no USDA violations in the past three years, records show.

Miller defended his decision to prohibit cameras at the auction.

‘‘We run a clean and honest operation, but we got hurt pretty badly when a news station shot some pictures that placed us in a bad light (by association),’’ Miller said. ‘‘We don’t support bad breeders, and we don’t sell their animals at our auction.’’

Most of the animals auctioned in Chouteau are the top breeds, including Yorkies, English bulldogs, Maltese and French bulldogs. The animals receive a veterinarian check before the auction begins.

Dog breeders and brokers attend the auctions looking for breeding stock and good deals on puppies. Auctions are also a place for selling former breeding dogs, industry officials said.

Many breeding dogs are depleted after five years to seven years of continuous breeding, showing problems with reproductive organs among other ailments, Montgomery said.

A number of the dogs have infections, bad teeth and mammary tumors to name a few problems, Montgomery said.

After a life of producing thousands of dollars in puppies, an old breeder often sells for $1 at auction.

‘‘There is some hope for these animals,’’ Montgomery said. ‘‘But it takes a loving owner who puts in the effort. You will really make a difference with these animals if you do.’’

Omer Gilham 581-8301
omer.gilham@tulsaworld.com

Curtis Killman 581-8471
curtis.killman@tulsaworld.com