The Post-Dispatch reported in August that the state Department of Agriculture had not referred any dog breeders to the attorney general’s office since November 2015, despite a 2011 law making it easier to send violators of the state’s animal welfare laws to the state’s top law enforcement office.

“If the Department of Agriculture has stopped referring cases to the attorney general’s office, that means they’re basically not doing as much as they can be doing to enforce the law against bad actors,” asserted Jessica Blome, a former assistant attorney general who launched the Canine Cruelty Prevention Unit in the attorney general’s office.

Sami Jo Freeman, spokeswoman for the Department of Agriculture, said Baldwin was referred to the attorney general’s office on June 26, which had not been previously publicized. She added that another breeder, Marilyn Shepherd, of Ava, Mo., was referred to the attorney general’s office on Sept. 24. The attorney general’s office has not yet filed suit against Shepherd.

The 2011 Canine Cruelty Prevention Act — a rewrite of the voter-approved Proposition B in 2010 — increased standards for dog kennels in the state.