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MN fitness influencer breeding dog complaints
FOX 9 first reported on several complaints about concerning dog breeding practices from Minnesota fitness influencer Ali Holman, and her husband, in June. Since then, more than 20 people have come forward with serious complaints. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard tells their story.
(FOX 9) - Complaints about the dog breeding practices of a prominent Minnesota fitness influencer have multiplied since a FOX 9 report in June. In that first report, a few people detailed their allegations against Ali Holman and her husband, which they denied.
But since then, more than 20 people have come forward with serious complaints.
Avalanche of complaints
This avalanche of information hasn’t only come to FOX 9, but also to the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.
Angela Thompson said a French bulldog, Sookie, went into a coma and died at the veterinarian’s office less than a day after picking her up from breeders Ali and Mark Holman. The puppy had bloody stools right away and the vet confirmed giardia was the cause.
"She had become septic from not getting treatment, and it went to the brain," Thompson said. "That's what the necropsy ended up showing."
Videos and photos of sick and dying dogs add up quickly when customers, partners, and neighbors of Bold North Frenchies come together.
Pattern of problems
We talked to 22 of them for a couple of hours recently and noticed a pattern of complaints about the dogs sold by the Holmans.
"I noticed that when she went potty, she had bloody diarrhea," said a buyer who wanted to be identified only by her first name, Hope. "Like, it scared me."
"We tested positive for giardia, coccidia, and parvo," said a North Carolina buyer named Ernesta.
"She was crusted, full of dried poop," said Kacey Anderson. "She had this severe diarrhea."
"She had the massive diarrhea with the giardia," said Shannon McClanahan.
Another woman says she paid the Holmans for a male dog and met Ali Holman for the exchange.
"She brings this dog to me in the parking lot, and it was wrapped in a blanket," said the woman who didn't want to be identified by name. "And she said, 'It's because I just bathed the dog and I just didn't want the dog to be cold.'"
She said the dog was dirty and not bathed, but she took it home and removed the blanket.
"I look at the dog and I called her right away, and I said, 'This dog is female.'"
Legal consequences?
Seven people have now filed lawsuits against the Holmans for their breeding and sales practices. One woman won a judgment. Two cases were dismissed and four are still active and on the road to trial.
We reached out to the Holmans weeks before publishing this story for an interview.
They spoke only through their attorney, who told us "the claims against Bold North appear to be isolated and anecdotal."
Complaints previously silenced
The Holmans threatened to sue people who’ve spoken up, including FOX 9.
Ali Holman posted on social media that our initial reporting was false, though it’s backed up by lawsuits and police records. And she posted that we retracted our June story, which we did not.
The Holmans did follow through with a harassment suit against one of the women who are suing them. A judge dismissed the case for a lack of evidence.
The lawsuit and threats quieted some people, at least temporarily. People who shared their bad experiences tell me they did feel isolated until they realized how many of them there were.
"There is safety in numbers," said a former guardian for the Holmans' dogs who still didn't want to be identified by name. "'Okay, it's not two crazy ladies.'"
Claims like that came from Ali Holman on her social media.
Now, at least 22 are sharing complaints.
Investigating Issues
The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office recently met to discuss a potential investigation with a group representing as many as 50 people who claim to be victims of the Holmans’ bad breeding practices, but the office can’t confirm an investigation is underway.
The state Board of Veterinary Health and the USDA have also received complaints about the Holmans, but don’t discuss investigations.
A spokesperson for the Minnesota Board of Animal Health confirms it has investigated the Holmans’ breeding operation since 2022, but the investigation isn’t complete, largely because "the subject of the complaints is uncooperative."
The City of Dayton’s police chief told FOX 9 in November they still have an active investigation into whether the Holmans have operated as unlicensed breeders, which is a misdemeanor crime.
Minnesota defines commercial breeders as anyone selling dogs or cats, having 10 or more adult intact animals, and producing more than five litters per year.
Breeder or not?
Bold North advertised as a breeder and wrote contracts as a breeder, and some of Ali Holman’s social media posts appear to show more than 10 adult animals at their property.
But through their attorney, David Madgett, the Holmans deny operating as commercial breeders during the time being investigated.
Madgett also says they don’t operate as breeders at all anymore, although social media posts show a company called Bark Avenue selling newborn teacup chihuahuas in the last month.
Arizona state records show the Holmans officially changed the name of Bold North to Bark Avenue this summer.
Some of their accusers also shared emails and texts from last month when the Holmans asked about the heat cycles of bulldogs staying with guardians — the families who usually become owners, but only after breeders finish mating them.
The Holmans’ attorney said the messages gauging heat cycle timing were intended "to discourage other breeders from continuing unethical practices, particularly in breeding dogs with known genetic challenges."
'Ethical players'
Madgett said Bold North was one of the rare ethical players in the industry. Former guardian Katy Holten contradicts that claim.
"You should not breed a dog that has a medical condition like this," she said.
Holten says the Holmans tried to breed Mochi as recently as February, even though she had eyelid entropion, a condition that’s usually genetic where the lower eyelid folded in. She said it caused permanent damage and near blindness in that eye before her vet easily identified the problem, leaving her wondering how many others suffered and for how long.
"These dogs have just been through so much," Hilton said. "And they just don't care."