Source: Heraldnet.com, May 8, 2009
GOLD BAR — Prosecutors filed a half-dozen felony animal cruelty charges Thursday against a Gold Bar-area couple believed to be linked to a multimillion-dollar puppy mill.
Jason and Serenna Larsen, both 37, were charged in Snohomish County Superior Court.
Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies and animal control officers on Jan. 16 raided a home outside of Gold Bar and rescued about 160 dogs. Many of the animals were covered with urine and feces.
The conditions were “noxious, overwhelming and utterly disgusting,” according to court papers. The fetid air made some officers ill, burned their eyes and caused breathing problems.
Dead puppies were found in a freezer and a mummified husk of dog, likely a beagle or basset hound, was found in an outbuilding, documents said.
A veterinarian diagnosed several medical problems among the rescued dogs, including dental, cardiovascular, skin, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal and neurological problems.
Investigators say the Larsens lived in the house filled with mistreated dogs. The Larsens said they lived elsewhere.
The investigation expanded to a Mount Vernon-area kennel, where 450 dogs were seized. A Snohomish kennel, Wags ‘n’ Wiggles, operated by Renee Roske, also is under investigation by the sheriff’s office.
Jason Larsen has said the dogs in Gold Bar belonged to Roske. He said Roske told him that keeping the dogs as he did broke no laws. Roske has denied owning the dogs. She hasn’t been charged in connection with the operation. Snohomish County has revoked Roske’s kennel license.
The sheriff’s investigation into Roske and her business continues.
The Larsens are scheduled to be arraigned on May 15.
Source: FoxNews, April 20, 2009
The Supreme Court this week will review a lower court decision striking down a federal animal cruelty law as a violation of the First Amendment.
The court’s decision to take the case, announced Monday, was made without comment but it calls to question the decision of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals which ruled last summer that the animal cruelty law is too broad in scope and covers protected speech.
Robert Stevens, of Pittsville, Va., was convicted in Pennsylvania of selling pit bull fighting videos. He advertised in an underground newsletter called the Sporting Dog Journal which publishes the results of illegal dogfights.
But that conviction was overturned when the Third Circuit concluded Congress lacked compelling interest to pass such a law when all 50 states have laws prohibiting animal cruelty. The judges also found unpersuasive comparisons made between the harm of videos like the ones Stevens had and those showing child pornography. They said the animal pictures weren’t of the same magnitude.
The government has asked the Court to take the case to overturn the Third Circuit’s analysis. It argued anyone profiting from “the intentional infliction of suffering on vulnerable creatures play no essential role in the expression of ideas”
Source: Newsday.com, April 14, 2009
Thomas Bruckner doesn’t want his dog to have died in vain.
On Sept. 11 last year, Bruckner, who lives in Point Lookout and teaches astronomy at Nassau Community College, got a frantic call from his girlfriend, Melissa Makarewicz. They had dropped off Bailey, their 2-year-old pug-beagle mix, at Pampered Pooch Doggie Daycare and Spa in Hicksville for play and a bath.
Around 6 p.m., Bruckner said, the parlor called to say that Bailey had collapsed and was having difficulty breathing. At a vet, they learned she had become comatose after she had been put in a drying cage. She died the next morning.
Dr. Jaipal Rana at Woodbury Road Veterinary Hospital in Plainview said Bailey died of heatstroke. Exactly how it happened, Rana said, “was hard to verify.”
But Bruckner believes it was because she was put in a drying cage – and now he wants to ban them.
A tube or hair dryer blows air – sometimes hot – into a drying cage or crate. Although many groomers use them, they are controversial. At least a half-dozen dogs nationwide have reportedly died in them. Experts say small, short-haired dogs or those with short snouts – which make it harder to breathe – shouldn’t be put in a drying cage or should be closely monitored.
Bruckner said he was dumbfounded. “Why would anyone think it was all right to blow hot air at high speeds on a short-snouted dog?” he said. He sued the groomer and was awarded $1,000 out of court in January.
“To this day, I still feel awful this happened,” said Pampered Pooch manager Carlos Garcia. Garcia said Bailey put up a “lot of resistance” during grooming, which may have caused her to overheat. He said she had been put in the drying cage – into which forced compressed air was pumped, but no heat – for less than five minutes. He said the kennel grooms about 30 dogs a week and has had no other grooming-cage problems.
But Bruckner said he wants to ban them and require groomers to be trained and licensed. No state requires pet groomers to get a vocational license, said Stephen Mart, an industry management consultant.
Bruckner has launched badgroomer.com to publicize his mission. And he supports a bill introduced in January by state Sen. Carl Kruger (D-Brooklyn), who wants to ban drying cages, require groomers to take exams and license grooming parlors.
Jeffrey Reynolds, executive director of the National Dog Groomers Association of America in Clark, Pa., said the association is not against regulation, but opposes banning the cages. “They are very useful and every grooming shop has them, but because of a lack of knowledge or common sense, someone will put a tiny dog in the dryer, answer the phone and forget about it,” he said.
But Bruckner believes drying cages have no place in grooming shops. “They are dealing with living creatures,” he said.
Source: KWCH News, April 16, 2009
The Environmental Protection Agency is investigating a Wichita plant that makes dog treats. Federal agents served a search warrant Thursday morning at TreatCo. According to the plant’s website, it uses by-products from slaughter houses to make dog treats. It processes over 2 million pounds of products per month. EPA officials say its investigation does not concern the dog treats themselves – only possible environmental violations by the company.
KDHE and the City of Wichita are helping with the investigation. On Thursday, investigators appeared to take samples and inspect the property. EPA officials would not say what they were looking for.
The agency’s criminal division is in charge of the investigation. This unit of the EPA often deals with the most serious environmental violations as well as companies which intentionally, willfully or knowingly break the law.
The plant is operated by Ken Thomas, who recently ran for Wichita City Council. He was defeated in the primary.
According to The Associated Press, EPA spokesman Rich Hood said Thursday’s operation involved about a dozen people from the EPA’s criminal investigative division and EPA technical experts along with agents from the state Health Department and Wichita police.
We do know that no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
Source: Tri-StateOnline.co, April 1, 2009
GOLDEN VALLEY – Mohave County Sheriff’s Office began a fraudulent schemes investigation when a local Kingman veterinarian, Darla Wright, of Wright Veterinary Services, and a Veterinarian Clinic out of Las Vegas were victims of forgery.
Health certificates certifying health examinations conducted on dogs sold by K & S Puppy Ranch in Golden Valley were forged using the victims’ business letter heads and falsifying the veterinarian signatures.
The investigation began after a dog was sold to a customer in California from the K & S Puppy Ranch and the dog became sick. The new owner went to a local veterinarian in California with the certified health documents provided by K & S Puppy Ranch. At that time, Wright was contacted and discovered forged documents of her business and her signature were being used.
Karen Grogan and Shirley Williams are owners of K & S Puppy Ranch.
At about 10:15 a.m., search warrants were executed at the business at 4107 Highway 68, at Grogan’s residence in the 3500 block of Maverick Road and at Williams’ residence in the 4900 block of Hoover Road, said MCSO Spokeswoman Trish Carter.
The search warrant at Williams’ residence revealed 32 dogs and five puppies. The search warrant at Grogan’s residence revealed 17 dogs.
Williams and Grogan were given 24 hours to seek veterinarian services for some dogs that needed medical attention. Mohave County Animal Control personnel will follow-up to ensure medical attention is sought.
Both Williams, 74, and Grogan, 57, were charged with animal cruelty, no dog license for each dog and operating a kennel without a license, all misdemeanors, Carter said.
K & S Puppy Ranch business does have a valid operation permit, but Williams and Grogan don’t have permits to operate commercial kennels at their homes.
Mohave County Planning and Zoning and Mohave County Environmental Health will continue with their investigation with violations observed during the execution of the search warrant.
Carter said the fraudulent schemes investigation is continuing with possible charges.
Source: Associated Press, March 21, 2009
CINCINNATI (AP) — Dawn Lewis and her family still miss Cash, the dog she had put to sleep in 2007 after it attacked her son and left him with scars on his face and ear.
She wonders now whether the Akita’s behavior was a result of puppy mill breeding by Petland Inc., which sold her the dog in 2006.
Pet owners nationwide are suing the chain in federal court, questioning their pets’ medical and behavioral problems and accusing the Ohio-based company of selling dogs bred in filthy conditions.
The lawsuit filed this week against Petland, the Hunte Corp. and other unnamed suppliers claims the companies misled thousands of customers into believing sick puppies came from the finest breeders when they really came from puppy mills and brokers. Petland and Hunte have denied the claims.
Puppy mills are high-volume breeding kennels that animal protection groups say harm the animals and lead to sick puppies being sold to consumers.
“This scheme to conceal the origin of these puppy-mill puppies from consumers has left thousands of families in its wake suffering from emotional turmoil and significant monetary losses,” says the suit filed by six Petland customers — including members of The Humane Society of the United States.
“The claims that we conspired to sell sick puppies to consumers are baseless,” Hunte president Steven Rook said Friday. “We only deal with licensed breeders, regulated and inspected by the USDA, and we require that they follow a strict regime. Everything is designed and managed for the health of the puppy.”
Lawyers have asked a judge to certify the case as a class action, meaning others could join it and share any monetary award.
Stephanie Booth, of Flagstaff, Ariz., got her bloodhound Tucker from a Petland store in 2007. She said she thought a lump on his head came from roughhousing with another puppy, but Tucker was diagnosed a few months later with a brain tumor and had to be put to sleep.
Booth, 18, said documents she got from Petland included the dog’s family tree and the breeder’s name and said he was fine. She said her mother researched the breeder and found information suggesting it might be a puppy mill that had faced legal problems.
“I just want people to become aware of the situation with puppy mills and what the dogs go through,” said Booth, who is a plaintiff in the federal suit against Petland.
Petland, which has 131 U.S. stores, has said it is outraged and disappointed by what it calls false accusations and insists it does everything possible to provide customers with healthy, happy and well-socialized pets. The company has not been charged with any crimes.
Petland says it has many satisfied customers like Aric Shock, of Kettering, Ohio, who said his French Bulldog puppy Dozer has been a great pet, and Sandy Voelker, of Fairfield in suburban Cincinnati.
“We’ve had no issues with her other than just being a puppy,” Voelker, 32, said of her English Bulldog, Rosie.
Lewis, who lives in San Diego, said Petland guaranteed her puppy Cash’s health. Even so, she said she found he had ringworm when she bought him. And when she complained about the biting, a store employee told her that Akita’s are sometimes prone to aggressiveness.
“I will never buy another dog from a pet store,” said Lewis, 37, who is not a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Petland warranties cover congenital and hereditary disorders for up to a year after purchase, and at least two licensed veterinarians examine each puppy before it’s sold, said Petland spokeswoman Elizabeth Kunzelman.
“If a pet develops an issue at some point in their lives, this does not in any way indicate that the puppy came from a substandard breeder,” Kunzelman said.
The Humane Society and other animal welfare groups want to outlaw puppy mills. They say legislation is pending in 27 different states to restrict puppy mills and protect consumers who buy puppies that are later diagnosed with health or genetic defects.
Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia have already enacted laws cracking down on puppy mills. A bill setting standards and licensing requirements for large-scale breeders is expected to be introduced this month in Ohio.
An Ohio veterinarian said animals bred in the small, often filthy cages at puppy mills frequently develop behavioral and physical problems.
“Breeders use puppy mills to save money and maximize profits, spending little money on food, shelter and veterinary care,” said veterinarian Matthew Heller, of the All about PetCare clinic in Middletown, about 30 miles north of Cincinnati. “They should be abolished.”
The dogs were inside a kennel in a fenced yard in Salt Lake City when someone jumped the fence and beat them on March 14, according to a Humane Society news release. Echo was badly battered around the face and head, and Tuffy was beaten so savagely that “his eyes burst,” owner Chuck Long said in the release.
Anyone with information about the crime can call Salt Lake City Police at 801-799-3000 or the Humane Society at 801-261-2919, ext. 210.
Source: , March 16, 2009 6:00 AM
MANTECA – An ordinance requiring all dogs be spayed or neutered by the time they are 6 months old will come before the City Council at its meeting Tuesday night.
It is an expansion of a similar ordinance that pertains only to pit bull breed dogs that was passed by the council in September.
At that time, Mayor Willie Weatherford directed the city staff to develop a mandatory spay and neuter ordinance for all dogs.
Police Chief Dave Bricker, in his report to the council, says the goal of the expanded program is to reduce the number of animals that end up in the city’s animal shelter and the resulting euthanasia rate for those animals.
The proposed ordinance provides exceptions for police, livestock, and health service working dogs, as well as licensed show dogs and dogs in whom the procedure could be life threatening because of their age or medical condition, according to Bricker.
Cost for spaying or neutering will be borne by the dog owner. Currently costs range from $60 to $130, depending on the size of the dog, according to his report.
The report notes that other communities that have passed similar ordinances have found the number of dogs being licensed dropped because some owners could not afford the additional cost.
Manteca currently licenses about 3,000 dogs each year.
Bricker said the city will continue to use its police volunteers to contact dog owners who do not renew their licenses, which he feels will minimize any drop locally.
Sacramento and Los Angeles counties have adopted similar ordinances, according to the report.
The council meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the council chambers at City Hall, 1001 W. Center St.
Source: Zootoo.com, Feb 28, 2009
150 Pit Bulls euthanized, new policy follows: Seized from a fighting ring in December, the dogs were recently put down, resulting in a firestorm of debates. Now the HSUS proposes such dogs to be evaluated individually — a standard that other welfare groups have long lobbied.
NEW YORK — After supporting a court decision to euthanize nearly 150 Pit Bulls involved in a fighting ring, the Humane Society of the United States has issued a new policy, calling for all seized fighting dogs to be examined as individuals, and not as a collective lot.
Wilkes County Animal Control, in Wilkesboro, N.C., destroyed 146 Pit Bulls, including 19 puppies, on Tuesday, Feb. 16, at the order of Superior Court Judge Ed Wilson Jr., who ruled the day before that the dogs should be killed.
The dogs were seized from a puppy mill operation run by Ed Faron, 61, owner of Wildside Kennels, on Dec. 10, 2008; the HSUS collaborated with local authorities on the three year investigation leading up to the case.
Faron has since pleaded guilty to 14 felony counts of dogfighting, and was sentenced to eight- to 10-months in prison last week.
Cutting against the recommendations of other animal welfare organizations and Pit Bull rescue groups, the HSUS publicly endorsed the court’s decision to euthanize the dogs, citing the canines’ breeding history and irrevocable nature.
In a press release issued last week, the HSUS said it offered to pay for “an additional professional evaluator to assess the dogs,” but that the county did not “take us up on that offer.”
“Without an affirmative professional evaluation to indicate that the dogs could be safely placed in a new setting, we could not recommend the adoption of these dogs who had been bred for some generations for their instinct to kill,” the release continues.
Other players in the animal welfare community, however, saw the HSUS’ move as disservice to the dogs, which they say should have been evaluated on an individual basis.
“We offered to spay and neuter any of the animals that would have been eligible for adoption and to network the animals through our constituency of animal welfare organizations,” said Francis Battista, a founder of Best Friends Animal Society, the nation’s largest animal sanctuary.
“Had the Humane Society been a strong advocate for individual analysis, rather than a categorical dismissal, there might have been a different outcome to this case.”
According to The Winston Salem Journal, the judge ruled based off North Carolina’s classification of all dogs involved in dog-fighting operations as dangerous; a county ordinance requires all “dangerous” dogs to be destroyed.
Even the puppies born following the ring bust exhibited signs of aggression, according to Wilkes Animal Control Director Junior Simmons.
“They’re not just fighting,” Simmons reportedly said of the puppies. “They’re starting to draw blood.”
Yet Best Friends, as well as other welfare and rescue organizations, say this case has similarities to that of Michael Vick, whose dog fighting ring was busted in 2006. Then, the HSUS recommended all of the Atlanta Falcons’ 48 Pit Bulls be put down for similar reasons.
In the end, a federal court carried out an evaluation of Vick’s dogs; only one deemed extremely aggressive was euthanized, in the end.
“A number of aggressive dogs” were admitted to various sanctuaries, including Best Friends, in Kanab, Utah, says Pamela Reid, vice president of the ASPCA’s Animal Behavior Department.
There, Battista says, the troubled dogs continue to recover and establish themselves as household pets, not bait.
How to Right a Wrong
Reid, a veterinarian, helped conduct evaluations of the Vick dogs two years ago; the animals’ conduct varied, she says, noting the only consistency was their uniform disinterest in playing tug-of-war.
Some appeared fearful of humans, others aggressive toward other dogs; the evaluation process was “complicated,” she says, and remains ongoing.
“It’s a monitoring situation,” Reid said. “We don’t know how they are going to respond to rehabilitative efforts until we try.”
While the ASPCA supports the notion that all fighting dogs should be evaluated individually, Reid says that the initial clearance will not automatically grant the rescued dogs a new shot at life.
“What we want to do and what is actually viable are two different things,” Reid said. “People want these dogs to be saved, but they have to realize that shelters need money to do that, to bring in the professional staff, and you need a place for the dogs to go. Not every facility is set up to provide that kind of service.”
When former fighting dogs find access to such facilities, however, they are sometimes able to thrive, says Marthina McClay, organizer of Our Pack, a Pit Bull rescue, education and training organization in Los Gatos, Calif.
Our Pack is home to several of Vick’s canines, including Leo, who now performs services as a therapy dog.
The organization believes Leo’s success is not an anomaly.
“The Vick case is not a fluke,” McClay said. “Gosh, our ‘bust dogs’ are the best dogs we have had. There is temperament and there is training. When they come to us, we are setting up an environment so that temperament can flourish.
“I understand that some dogs can be damaged from abuse cases, there is no question about that. We are asking that we just look first. Just look and evaluate the dogs as individuals.”
Failing to do so, Battista says, only perpetuates false impressions and stereotypes of the breed.
“While everybody else is out here trying to restore the breed … change the way that they are related to in a lot of communities, we feel the position by the Humane Society, the alleged largest animal welfare organization in the country, tars the whole breed and doesn’t help or support the work that is being done,” Battista said.
Despite repeated attempts, an HSUS representative was not available for comment as of press time.
Yet the organization defended its commitment to eradicating dogfighting in its release, saying, “We’ve probably invested more in combating dogfighting than all other humane groups combined, and to great effect.”
It also echoed Reid’s point that there are “very few good options” for game-bred dogs.
“There are no sanctuaries that exist for the thousands of game-bred dogs confiscated each year, and as a nation, there are hundreds of thousands of Pit Bulls awaiting adoptions in shelters every year,” the release says.
The HSUS expressed hope that the crux of this event — the breakup of Faron’s fighting ring and his subsequent arrest — not be muddled in welfare organizations’ disagreements.
“We understand your concern about the judge’s order to euthanize the dogs, and it is always a tragic outcome when healthy animals meet such a fate,” the release says. “But the blame lies with Mr. Faron, and not with The Humane Society of the United States … Had it not been for our investigation, most of his dogs would have suffered immensely in a fighting pit in the weeks and months ahead.”
Looking Forward
The HSUS and the Best Friends’ coalition may soon again meet on common ground, given the HSUS’ recently announced interim policy, which will call for all fighting dogs to be evaluated on a one-by-one basis.
Wayne Pacelle, CEO and president of HSUS, has called for a meeting of “major stakeholders” in April to discuss the aftermath of dogfighting busts. The meeting — and interim policy — were reportedly both in the works prior to the 147 dogs’ destruction.
“We expect government, corporations, and individuals to constantly re-evaluate how they deal with animal issues. Likewise, we regularly review our own policies and procedures here at HSUS, and we think it is important to talk with professional colleagues in the movement to examine issues related to the disposition of fighting dogs,” Pacelle said in another HSUS release, announced on Feb. 23.
“I am pleased to discuss these issues with personnel from Best Friends and other organizations interested in the welfare of Pit Bulls.”
The altered policy is long overdue, but a welcomed change nonetheless, Battista says.
“This case was a categorizing event,” he said. “It was a loss to everybody that these animals weren’t given the chance to be evaluated, but in the larger picture, it has started a lot of discussion and concern about the policy the Humane Society had in place.”
McClay says she, too, is now looking toward the future, and not on the rift this case has caused between the HSUS and other organizations.
“This is a step in the right direction,” she said. “I see that this is going to change, I am hopeful it will actually change, and I am happy to be a part of helping with this.”
No additional details on the April meeting have been released, but the HSUS did say the event will take place in Las Vegas.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
Source: KOMONews.com, by Casey Norton & KOMO Staff,Feb 24, 2009
SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — Investigators are digging deeper into the alleged puppy mill operations that spanned two counties, trying to find out exactly who’s to blame for the hundreds of dogs found living in deplorable situations.
Last month investigators raided a Gold Bar kennel belonging to Mary Ann Holleman and seized 155 dogs living in ghastly conditions conditions so horrific that it shocked even veteran animal control officers.
Holleman, however, has not been charged. Instead, Jason and Serenna Larsen were in court on Tuesday, each charged with six felony counts of animal cruelty.
Holleman’s sister, Renee Roske, had hired the Larsens to live on site at her kennel and take care of the dogs, according to the search warrant. Roske runs the Wags N Wiggles Pet Shop out of her home in Snohomish.
According to court documents, the Larsens allegedly starved, dehydrated and suffocated at least six animals while on the job.
At the time of the raid, adult dogs and puppies were found living in crates and small pens filled with large accumulations of feces and heavily soiled shavings. Officers said the odor from the feces and urine was so overpowering it could be detected well outside the residence. A large commercial dumpster stood in the yard overflowing with dog waste.
Eighty-seven of the dogs were living in a converted attic.Several dead puppies also were found in a freezer, and two dead dogs were found elsewhere on the premises. Most of the dogs were heavily matted, covered with their own feces and saturated with urine.
Investigators said many dogs had open sores on various parts of their bodies and all were covered with fleas. Several dogs had tumors and other abnormal body conditions. Medications and used syringes, used to treat sick animals, were found scattered in front of pens and in a refrigerator.
In court, Jason Larsen insisted he and his wife were just a small part of a multi-million dollar operation. Larsens also said they would need public defenders to represent them.
In addition to Holleman’s kennel, investigators also raided Holleman’s and Roske’s homes in January. At that time, Roske told them that some of her dogs were at her parents’ kennel in Skagit County.
Roske’s claim led detectives to Marjorie and Richard Sundberg’s Mount Vernon kennel where they seized nearly 450 dogs.
The Sundbergs each face four counts of animal cruelty in the first degree, four counts of animal cruelty in the second degree and one count of transporting or confining in an unsafe manner. The two are due back in court on Friday.
Roske has not been charged as a part of the puppy mill allegation; however, the investigation is ongoing.
Detectives are seeking customers who may have purchased a dog from Roske or Wags N Wiggles. Anyone who thinks they may have done so to e-mail them. Some 110 people have e-mailed with complaints so far.
