



I'm Kelly D., the breeder behind Moongate Cavaliers located in Las Cruces, NM. My dogs have OFA and DNA clearances. They get these updated regularly. I also strive to keep my adults well socialized in the community and often take local classes with them. I want each adult to be a pet first and then a parent. My program is a little different in that I ask buyers to wait to finalize their choice of puppy at 7-8 weeks. That is when we do a temperament test. This helps you know the energy level and budding personality of your new family member. I send videos once or twice a week so you can see them blossom, as well as videos of the Volhard Puppy Aptitude test when we do it.

Why did you start breeding?
What makes your program special?
What are the different breed sizes in your program?
What are the different breed coat colors in your program?
Where do your breeding dogs live?

These dogs are already reserved or have gone home.

Truckee
Male

Telluride
Male

Tahoe
Male

Brighton
Female

Whistler
Male

Aspen
Male

Lacy
Female

Kojac
Male

McCloud
Male

Columbo
Male

Quincy
Male

Manhatten
Male

Cosmo
Male

Mimosa
Female

Tom Collins
Male

Mint Julep
Female

Boy 1
Male
Girl 3
Female
Girl 4
Female
Girl 2
Female
Girl 1
Female
Boy 2
Male

Basil
Male

Dill
Male

Nutmeg
Female

Clove
Male

Thyme
Female

Parsley
Male

Rosemary
Female
Sage
Female

Sheba
Female

Abby
Female
Kelly has been certified by Good Dog's screening team for responsible and trusted breeding practices. When you're ready to reach out, feel free to ask any questions about the breed, their program, or specific puppies.
Kelly partners with buyers to find the best match as the puppies develop and their personalities take shape. Typically, matches are finalized when the puppies reach about 7 weeks old.
"Buyerschoose their pups in order of deposits received. But final decisions always happen after 7wks"

"Puppies have a 2 year health guarantee on such things as heart murmur, patellas and hips. They are AKC registered on LIMITED papers but I will work with select buyers for OPEN papers. $200 deposit to be received toward puppy purchase. Can also be transferred to future litters."
Kelly may provide a written contract or health guarantee when you purchase a puppy. This helps protect both you and your breeder, ensuring that you both have a clear understanding of the terms of your puppy purchase. If Kelly offers a contract or guarantee, the details will be personalized by them. If you have any questions or want to know more, don't hesitate to reach out to Kelly directly.
You can drive or fly to pick up your puppy from Kelly.
Meet in Las Cruces, NM
Meet at El Paso Airport
Meet in Tucson, AZ
Club memberships
Kelly is a member of Mesilla Valley Kennel Club.
Certifications & recognitions
Whelping and Medical Intervention Course Completed (AKC), American Kennel Club Canine College, Avidog Transformational Puppy Rearing, Puppy Culture Breeder, AKC Breeder with H.E.A.R.T..
Kelly has been a member of Good Dog for about 6 years
Kelly was screened for responsible practices and has been a member since 2020.
Kelly’s links

Moongate Cavaliers meets or exceeds our community standards in these areas:

Kelly D.
Learning a good Watch Me and sitting for a treat. He is great for nail trims too!

Kelly D.
Leash walking is going great!

Kelly D.
Truckee had a trip around Lowes and Home Depot. He met lots of the nicest people and started leash work on the empty isles. He was calm and confident. He is gonna love outings!




Kelly D.
4 Rascally Boys!


Toby and Tanzi's litter

Kelly D.
Sit pretty at feeding time!

Kelly D.
Quiet Sunday morning exploring


Toby and Elsie's litter

Kelly D.
Home from the Vet!


Toby and Elsie's litter

Kelly D.
Goodies Bags!


Tanner and Zoe's litter

Kelly D.
More silly pics








Tanner and Zoe's litter

Kelly D.
Silly pics!








Chauncey and Lula's litter

All breeds

Cavapoo

Poodle

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Cavapoo
About Maeve
Maeve is our little rock star!! She has an affable, easy going temperament. Quick to learn and happy to obey. She was a breeze to housebreak and loves to go out and about. Her coat is so soft and full. She is health tested and fun sized!
Great health testing

Poodle
About Toby
Toby is a super example of a calm, much quieter than usual poodle. Perhaps because he grew up with 5 Cavaliers that are not prone to barking. He is friendly with strangers and behaves great in public. We have taken him on trips and he is a super travel buddy! He has a heart, patella and eye clearance.
Excellent health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
About Rue
Rue is retired and a beloved family member. She has the BEST manners of any dog I have ever met. I took her to classes for almost a year and it convinced me of the value of ongoing obedience classes. I love taking her with me on vacations as she is super easy to travel with. She passes her sweet temperament to her puppies. She has her Canine Good Citizen award and her CHIC Clearance from OFA. Heart ECHO done Oct 2021. Still clear heart currently at 7yrs
Great health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
About Tanner
Update! Tanner got his 4th major on 9/3/23 and is now a CHAMPION!! He also has his ATT, Temperament Title. Tanner has been such a great boy. Thank you to Marion Schuessler at Shady Oaks Cavaliers for letting me add him to my family. His dam is a Russian import from great lines. He has the most calm and quiet demeanor of all my current and past dogs. He is everyone's favorite for his sweet expression and low key personality. OFA for heart (by Cardio vet), OFA patella, OFA eyes, DNA clear
Great health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
About Tanzi
Tanzi is a fifth generation Moongate girl so I know all her family history. She is just the right blend of fun loving and calm, quiet. She won a major at her second dog show so she is quite a fancy girl too. I am so excited to see her babies! They will be awesome no doubt! Poppy is her mom and Cosmo is her sire. OFA tested for heart, patella and eyes. DNA clear by parentage. She also has her temperament title, the AKC ATT and has had fun at Fast Cat a couple of times.
Great health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
About Lula
Lula is definitely my most velcro dog. She is addicted to me! I love her too but wow, I never need to worry about her recall! HA! She is by my side all the time and I love her energy. She is super athletic outside, but a cuddle bunny on the couch! Lula has her ATT, temperament title, and is having a ball at Fast Cat. She caught on at the first trial and loves it!! OFA for heart,( Cardio Vet), patella, eyes, DNA
Great health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
About Elsie
Elsie is a very calm, low key, quiet Cavalier. She is a 5th generation Moongate girl! She is my smallest dog, loves everyone and loves to travel. Elsie has OFA clearances for heart and patella and is DNA clear by parentage.
Great health testing

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Cavapoo
Excellent level
Moongate Cavaliers reports to performing the health tests below on their breeding dogs. Ask your breeder about the tests performed on the parents of your litter. Learn more about health testing for Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.
Hip Dysplasia
Hip testing reduces the chance of passing down hip dysplasia, which is primarily found in large breed dogs and can cause hip pain and the eventual loss of the function of the hip joint.
Eye Certification (CAER, registered with OFA)
Eye testing reduces the chance of passing down a wide range of hereditary eye illnesses including retinal dysplasia, lens luxation, and glaucoma, which can cause impared vision or blindness.
Cardiac Evaluation (registered with OFA)
Heart testing reduces the chance of passing down congenital heart disease, which can cause a range of symptoms ranging from trouble exercising to heart failure.
Patellar Luxation
Knee testing reduces the chance of passing down Patellar Luxation, which results in the kneecap becoming displaced or dislocated and can cause mild to severe joint pain.
OFA/CHIC DNA Repository, Dry Eye Curly Coat Syndrome (CKSID), Episodic Falling Syndrome (EFS)
Genetic testing reduces the chance of passing down a wide variety of hereditary diseases of differing prevalence and severity such as Progressive Retinal Atrophy (an eye disease) and Von Willebrand's Disease (a blood disease).
Hear what other owners say about working with Kelly to bring home their puppies.

Debra M.
Verified owner · Mar. 2026







We recently got our precious Cavapoo from Kelly and couldn't be happier! Kelly is super knowledgeable about the breeds and patiently answered all my questions regarding puppy care for a wonderful outcome. Due to my own circumstances she even gladly kept our Chloe a month longer. During that time she was socialized, potty trained and learned good manners. We are so impressed with how smart Chloe is and of course she is so sweet. She gets along great with our elderly cat and dog and has settled in to our family perfectly. Kelly is a top notch breeder and it was a pleasure getting our puppy from her.

Cynthia H.
Verified owner · Dec. 2025


There is nothing Kelly didn't know. She was very quick to respond to questions and did so in a friendly manner. We were able to visit twice, plus the pick up. The house was so clean and did not smell of dogs at all. Kelly keeps a very clean, professional, fun home for the puppies. And ours came partially potty trained! We're going back to Kelly next year for a second dog. Such a wonderful experience.

Randy K.
Verified owner · June 2025




I can’t say enough good things about Kelly! She was great through the whole process with answering any questions about health, temperament testing, how the dogs in the litter that we had interest in were doing etc. She was very welcome to us visiting her home, showing us all around and letting us meet the pups we were interested in as well as their mother. The documentation we got was very impressive, our vet said it was the best she had seen. It’s obvious how much she cares not only for her own dogs, but for the health and longevity of the breed as a whole. We got numerous updates on the pups as they grew and after we made our decision and told her what we would name our new pup she started calling him by his new name for us. He showed up to the pickup and already knew his name and was almost 100% house trained. His health checks went very well and he has acclimated to our home very quickly. We would 100% adopt from Kelly again, in fact, we wouldn’t go to anyone else!

Noel R.
Verified owner · Mar. 2026






Our experience with Kelly has been the best from day one! She is an excellent breeder and truly loves all her pups. Jonah boy has been a perfect addition to our family. He came home at 10 weeks and was completely used to the kennel, sleeping through the night, and was pretty much potty trained. He’s never met a stranger, loves to be out and about, and is my little one’s best friend. We highly recommend Kelly and her pups. She’s not your average breeder. Kelly goes above and beyond and is always willing to help with the transition in anyway. It’s clear that she is very knowledgeable about life with our new dog. The best choice we ever made was choosing Kelly and Jonah for the newest addition to our family ~Romero’s

Malia P.
Verified owner · Aug. 2025
Getting my puppy from Kelly was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! She was incredibly transparent throughout the entire process and made me feel confident and informed every step of the way - always quick to answer any questions I had. I’ve had Maple for two months now, and she’s the sweetest, most playful, and confident little pup. I couldn’t recommend Kelly more!

Ely H.
Verified owner · May 2025






Kelly is, by all accounts, an amazing breeder. Our boy, George, has been home with us now for 6 weeks and he is happy, healthy, well adjusted, and maybe most impressively he came pretty well housetrained. Kelly was communicative, helpful, and most importantly caring during our process to pick George. It is clear from the health records that she provides that she cares deeply for the dogs that she breeds. The vet even remarked on how rare it was to see a dog with it’s mother’s immunology tests. We feel incredibly lucky to have been able to get one of Kelly’s dogs.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.
Health testing is one key piece of responsible breeding and is performed on breeding dogs to prevent the presence of heritable conditions in their puppies.