From Sunny SoCal to -40° Montana: The Unstoppable Evolution of Confidential Kennels

by Kim Faines
From Sunny SoCal to -40° Montana: The Unstoppable Evolution of Confidential Kennels

Imagine packing up your entire life. Not just your clothes and your toothbrush, but your business, your dreams, and a pack of powerful, 100-pound dogs. Now, imagine moving them to a place where there is no electricity. No city water. No neighbors for miles. And the temperature? It drops to 40 degrees below zero.

Most people would call that crazy. Angela Clark calls it a Tuesday.

If you have been part of the Bully World for a while, you know the name Confidential Kennels. For nearly 20 years, Angela Clark has been a pillar in the Cane Corso community. She has bred some of the most impressive dogs to ever grace a show ring or a family home. But her story is about so much more than just breeding dogs. It is a story of survival. It is a story of taking massive risks to build a dream that is bigger than yourself.

In our latest podcast episode, we sat down with Angela to catch up on her wild journey. From the sunny hills of Southern California to the frozen wilderness of Montana, and now to the humid heat of Georgia where she is revolutionizing international pet transport, Angela is proof that you have to be willing to evolve if you want to stay on top.

So, grab a coffee (or an energy drink), sit back, and let’s dive deep into the life, the struggles, and the massive future plans of the woman behind Confidential Kennels.

Chapter 1: The Foundation of a Legacy

Before we talk about the frozen tundras of Montana or the complex world of customs paperwork, we have to go back to the beginning. Who is Angela Clark?

Angela started Confidential Kennels back in 2007. That is almost two decades of dedication to the Cane Corso breed. In the dog world, 20 years is a lifetime. We see breeders pop up and disappear within two years all the time. They breed a couple of litters, realize how hard the work is, and they quit. But Angela stuck with it.

She started her journey in Southern California. It was a good setup. She built a reputation for having dogs with stable temperaments, incredible structure, and that signature protective instinct that makes the Cane Corso such a special breed. Eventually, she moved her operation to Pala, California.

This wasn't just a backyard kennel. This was a 200-acre paradise.

"We had a military trainer on the grounds in Pala," Angela told us. "We had a fabulous time. It was amazing. It was a beautiful property, and I loved it."

By all accounts, she had "made it." She had the land. She had the dogs. She had the reputation. Life was good. But for entrepreneurs like Angela, "good" is the enemy of "great." She started to feel an itch. A feeling in her gut that said she was meant for something more. She wanted a challenge. She wanted to build a legacy that went beyond just selling puppies.

And that feeling led her to make one of the boldest moves we have ever heard of.

Chapter 2: The Call of the Wild

"I kept getting this feeling that I needed to do something bigger," Angela explained.

That "something bigger" turned out to be 200 acres of raw, untamed land in Montana. Now, when we say raw, we mean raw. This wasn't a property with a nice farmhouse and a paved driveway. This was off-grid living in its most extreme form.

Angela packed up her dogs and moved north. She traded the California sunshine for a life of solar panels, generators, and wood-burning stoves.

The Reality of Off-Grid Living

We see "homesteading" on Instagram and TikTok all the time. It looks romantic, right? You see cute videos of people baking bread in a rustic kitchen while their dogs frolic in the tall grass.

The reality is much harsher.

Angela described living off the grid for two years, and it was intense. "We had a lot of heartache, and we had a lot of wins, but more a lot of trouble," she admitted.

The biggest enemy? The weather. In Montana, the cold isn't just uncomfortable; it is deadly. Temperatures would plummet to 40 degrees below zero. At that temperature, machinery breaks. Water freezes instantly. Simple tasks like feeding the dogs or cleaning the kennels become battles for survival.

And then, there was the water issue.

Water is life. You cannot run a kennel without it. You can't even live without it. Angela spent $50,000 drilling for water on her property. Fifty. Thousand. Dollars.

And they found nothing.

"Anytime you put a drill down, you're spending money," Angela said. "When we didn't hit water... that was a setback."

Imagine watching that much money disappear into a hole in the ground and having nothing to show for it. It’s enough to make anyone quit. It’s enough to make you pack up the truck, drive back to civilization, and say, "I tried."

But Angela Clark is made of tougher stuff. Her dogs are tough, and she had to be tougher. They survived on hauled water. They kept the wood stoves burning. They kept the dogs healthy and exercised in the snow. They proved that Confidential Kennels could survive anything.

Chapter 3: The Pivot to Georgia

After two years of battling the elements, Angela decided she needed a reset. She wasn't giving up on the Montana dream—not by a long shot. But she needed to regroup, generate some capital, and help her family with a new venture.

So, she headed south to Georgia.

Her sister and brother-in-law were launching a business focused on pet logistics. This wasn't a random choice. Years ago, Angela and her sister had started a company called Feathers and Fur Express. Back then, it was a response to a crisis. Domestic airlines had started banning certain breeds (including many Bully breeds) from flying. Breeders were panicked. How do you get a puppy from New York to California if United and Delta won't let them on the plane?

Angela and her sister stepped in with ground transport. They drove dogs across the country, ensuring they got to their new homes safely.

"My heart was always with the kennel," Angela said. "But my little sister was going more towards international exporting and importing."

Now, Angela is back in that world, and the timing couldn't be better. Because right now, the dog world is facing another crisis.

Chapter 4: The Nightmare of Shipping Dogs

If you are a breeder reading this, you probably already know the headache we are talking about. Shipping dogs overseas has become a nightmare.

The rules have changed. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) has cracked down hard on importing dogs into the United States, especially from countries they consider "high-risk" for rabies. This includes a lot of countries where breeders source top-tier genetics.

"Breeders from the United Kingdom, breeders from South Africa trying to ship in... it’s challenging," Angela explained.

Here is the scary part: If you mess up the paperwork, your dog pays the price.

We have heard horror stories of dogs landing at JFK or LAX and being rejected by customs. Sometimes they are held in a crate for days. Sometimes they are immediately put on a plane back to where they came from (at the owner's expense). In the worst-case scenarios, like in some strict countries, the dog could be euthanized.

The Paperwork Minefield

Angela broke down exactly why this happens. It usually comes down to small details.

"Vaccines need to be done on time," she warned. "And they need to be done by a vet."

A lot of breeders like to save money by administering their own vaccines. We get it. Vet bills are expensive. But if you are planning to export a puppy, do not do this. International customs agents do not care about your kennel records. They want to see a licensed veterinarian’s signature and stamp.

Another huge mistake? The microchip.

"Some of the microchipping needs to be done before certain vaccines," Angela noted. "So even if you had all these vaccines done by a veterinarian, but you microchipped the dog after the rabies shot... those vaccines basically don't exist."

Why? Because there is no proof that this specific dog (identified by the chip) is the one that got the shot. For all the government knows, you vaccinated a different dog.

These are the kinds of details that ruin deals and break hearts.

Chapter 5: The Solution – ATL Pet Stop

This is where Angela’s new mission comes in. She is currently helping to run ATL Pet Stop and Feathers and Fur Express in Georgia.

They aren't just booking flights. They are building a fortress for dog travel.

They have established a facility that is bonded and working toward full CDC approval as a dog quarantine facility. This is a game-changer for the industry.

"We can have animals come in through customs and stay with us as if they haven't cleared customs yet," Angela said.

This means if a flight comes in late at night, the dog doesn't have to sit in a cold warehouse at the airport. Angela’s team can pick the dog up, bring it to their facility, care for it, and then handle the final clearance in the morning.

For imports from those high-risk rabies countries, this facility is a lifeline. Once they get full CDC approval, they will be able to handle the mandatory quarantine periods on-site. They can have the CDC come out, do the vaccinations, and clear the dog for entry.

"It hasn't been able to be done most of the time because there are not very many CDC kennels in the USA, period," Angela told us.

She is filling a massive gap in the market. Whether you are a breeder importing a new stud, a military family moving overseas, or just a pet owner who wants to travel, Angela’s team handles the A-to-Z.

"We’ve been known to pull rabbits out of our hat," she laughed. "But we prefer if you give us a few weeks of notice!"

Chapter 6: A Sanctuary for Veterans

While the logistics business is booming, Angela hasn't forgotten her property in Montana. In fact, her time in Georgia is all about funding the ultimate dream for that land.

She wants to turn her Montana ranch into a sanctuary for veterans.

This part of the interview really hit home. Angela has a deep respect for the men and women who serve our country. She knows that many of them come home carrying invisible burdens. Combat trauma, PTSD, and the struggle to readjust to civilian life can be overwhelming.

Her vision? Use the dogs and the land to heal them.

"We want to set up a facility where veterans can come after combat," she said. "They can work with dogs like Corsos. These are guardian breeds, but they can also do herding."

Imagine a veteran who feels isolated and on edge. Now, imagine putting them on a horse in the middle of the beautiful Montana wilderness. Imagine giving them a job to do—wrangling cattle, fixing fences, caring for the pigs and goats. And imagine pairing them with a Cane Corso—a dog that is naturally intuitive, loyal, and protective.

"You can really let your guard down when you're around animals because they're not judging you," Angela said. "It helps to heal your soul."

She used a phrase that stuck with us: "You lose your mind to find your soul."

When you are out in the wild, when the wind is blowing and the work is hard, the noise of the modern world fades away. You stop overthinking. You stop worrying about what people think of you. You just are. And for a veteran struggling with the chaos of their own thoughts, that silence can be the greatest gift.

It’s a beautiful vision, and it shows the heart behind the Confidential Kennels brand. Angela isn't just producing dogs; she wants to use those dogs to save lives.

Chapter 7: The Confidential Standard Today

With all of these projects—the shipping business, the Montana ranch, the veteran program—you might be wondering: What about the dogs? Is she still breeding?

The answer is yes. But the program has evolved.

"I had over 30 dogs," Angela said. "I'm probably down to a select 18. I've really streamlined my breeding program and got very, very picky."

This is a lesson for every aspiring breeder out there. Quality over quantity.

When you have too many dogs, it becomes impossible to give every single one of them the attention they deserve. It becomes harder to track their genetics, their temperaments, and their development. By sizing down, Angela has actually leveled up.

"It's a lot harder to get one of my puppies right now," she admitted. "I'm only doing three to four litters a year. But it's very specific genetics that I have kept and held back."

She has people on the ground in Montana taking care of the dogs, ensuring they get plenty of exercise and love. She is preserving the bloodlines that made her famous, keeping a tight circle of genetics that she can expand later when the time is right.

How to Get a Puppy

If you want a dog from Confidential Kennels, you have to be patient. You can't just click "add to cart."

"You want to reach out," Angela advised. "Text me. Hit me up on social media. I'm pretty good about reaching back out."

But here is a tip from us: Be professional. Don't just send a text saying, "How much?" Introduce yourself. Explain what you are looking for. Show her that you are serious and that you understand the value of what she is offering.

Angela mentioned that the waitlist is usually around six months. Sometimes you get lucky and there is availability sooner, but generally, you are waiting for quality. And trust us, a dog from this program is worth the wait.

Chapter 8: The Road Ahead

So, what does the next year look like for Angela Clark?

"Phase Three," she calls it.

The immediate goal is water. She is going back to Montana to conquer that well. "If we cannot get water in the next 12 months... well, the first stage is just getting water. Period."

Once the water is flowing, she can bring in electricity. She can finish building the kennels. She can open the doors to the veterans.

It is a massive undertaking. It is expensive, it is physically exhausting, and it is risky. But Angela Clark has never been one to shy away from a fight. She fought the stigma of "dangerous breeds" by producing stable dogs. She fought the elements in -40 degree weather. She is fighting the bureaucracy of international shipping to help breeders move their dogs.

She is a force of nature.

Conclusion: Why This Matters to You

Why should you care about Angela’s story?

Because it proves that there is no single path to success in the dog world. You don't have to stay in one lane. You can be a breeder and a homesteader. You can be a dog trainer and a logistics expert. You can be a business owner and a humanitarian.

Angela Clark challenges us to think bigger.

Are you just breeding dogs, or are you building a legacy? Are you just selling puppies, or are you solving problems for your community?

If you are struggling right now—whether it’s with a difficult litter, a financial setback, or just the stress of life—take a page out of Angela’s book. When the well runs dry, you keep drilling. When the cold sets in, you stoke the fire. When the rules change, you adapt and build a new business.

The Bully World is full of resilient people, but Angela is leading the pack. We can’t wait to see what she builds next.

🚀 Take Action Today!

Do you need to ship a dog? Don't risk your puppy getting stuck at the airport. If you are importing or exporting, you need a team that knows the rules inside and out. Reach out to Angela for a quote on your next transport.

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