One of the dogs housed at a facility run by former dog breeder Daniel Gingerich of Seymour, Iowa. In 2021, the USDA revoked Gingerich's license to operate as a dog breeder. (Photo from U.S. District Court exhibits)

A federal judge has ruled federal animal-welfare inspectors can no longer conduct “courtesy visits” at dog-breeding operations while allowing violations to go unreported.

The ruling could have major implications for animal-welfare inspections in Iowa, which is home to roughly 265 federally licensed dog breeders and dealers — more than any other state except Missouri, Ohio and Indiana.

The ruling was handed down recently as part of a federal lawsuit filed four years ago in the District of Columbia by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals against the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS.

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The lawsuit questions the legality of the APHIS’ formal “Customer Service Policy” that the ASPCA says treats puppy mills, dog-breeding operations and dealers not as regulated entities but as “customers” of the federal agency.

As part of that policy, one of the rules APHIS put in place instructed inspectors to omit from their reports any violations that were self-reported by breeders or dealers. That particular rule, along with a few others, was rolled back after being challenged in the courts by animal-welfare groups.

APHIS, however, left in place two rules that the ASPCA has fought to have set aside.

The first of those is the Veterinary Care Rule that has enabled APHIS inspectors to find that breeders and dealers are “in compliance” with federal rules even when inspectors have documented current violations of regulations. That particular rule has enabled APHIS to renew the licenses of breeders while concurrently citing them for violations.

In his Oct. 29, 2025, ruling, U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper found the Veterinary Care Rule to be lawful and within APHIS’ policy-making discretion.