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A Brooklyn pet store sold hundreds of commercially-bred dogs while trying to dodge a state puppy mill ban by falsely posing as a rescue center, according to a new lawsuit from the Attorney General’s office.
Puppy Boutique — also known as Quality Canines Inc. — illegally advertised and sold puppies from their Dyker Heights storefront, despite retail puppy sales being effectively outlawed, the suit alleges.
The operators — who allegedly masqueraded under a dizzying array of online identities like “Maxies Babies,” “NYC Maltese,” and “NYC Yorkies” — claimed their pooches were all rescues from an out-of-state charity, and that they were complying with the puppy mill ban.
Investigators say it was all a ruse to avoid compliance with the law, claiming the supposed non-profits were never registered as animal rescue organizations while they were actually sourcing their puppies from breeders — including known notoriously bad puppy mills.
The lawsuit demands the illegal operation not only be saddled with huge fines, but to also pay back “their ill-gotten gains,” according to court filings.
“Pets are valued members of our families, and anyone who brings a new pet into their home deserves a healthy animal,” said Attorney General Letitia James, who filed the suit in June. “Puppy Boutique illegally sold puppies to New Yorkers, exposing them to heartbreak and exorbitant veterinary bills for animals raised in inhumane conditions.”
The Dyker Heights shop was already slapped with a temporary restraining order that completely freezes the shop’s bank accounts, a gag order on their advertisements, and to stop selling the pooches entirely, according to an order from Brooklyn Supreme Court judge Menachem Mirocznik.
The Puppy Mill Pipeline Act was signed by Gov. Hochel in Dec. 2022 and banned selling dogs from commercial breeding facilities, often known as puppy mills, at retail storefronts.
While effectively outlawing the classic “doggie in the window” shop, the law does not impact rescue organizations or responsible breeders who sell directly to families, and also gave shops until late 2024 to comply with the new law.
But the suit claims that Puppie Boutique ignored repeated orders from state officials to comply with the new law.
The AG’s office found at least 174 dogs listed in vet inspection records “were all puppies,” according to a sworn affirmation by a NYS Dept. of Agriculture veterinarian.
“I know of no legitimate rescue group who only adopts out puppies,” the affirmation reads.
An undercover investigator who poked around the operation was told by co-owner Philip Reinhardt that a fresh “shipment of dogs would arrive soon” and that puppies could be taken home the same day — no appointment necessary, the lawsuit claims.
Financial data sourced from the shop’s payment processor revealed their black-market puppy business was booming, according to court filings, slinging at least 373 puppies in a blistering two-month span between December 2025 and February 2026 alone.
At an average price tag of $1,000 per puppy, that means they allegedly pocketed nearly $400,000 in that short window.
Further bank records show that since the law went into effect, at least 83 checks were made out to puppy breeders — including some flagged as “horrible” by animal welfare groups.
“My office will continue to enforce the Puppy Mill Pipeline Act to ensure that animals across the state are protected, healthy, and free from mistreatment,” James said, “and that abusive breeders are stopped.”
Owners of the store did not respond to requests for comment.
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