Sentence:  The undercover investigation of this facility has revealed that its proprietors were aware that some of the companion animals brought to the facility were stolen, and also revealed a list of over 50 “<WSD>bunchers</WSD>,” individuals who obtain animals and sell them to “random source” animal dealers. <WSD>Bunchers</WSD> have a variety of methods for obtaining companion animals, including responding to newspaper ads offering free animals, trespassing on private property to abduct the animals from yards, and house burglaries. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  An illegitimate supplier of laboratory animals who obtains the animals by kidnapping pets or illegally trapping strays.