Mignarda
Forums Enthusiast
Think of what it costs to keep just a single dog for one year, and multiply that in this instance by sixty-one! Simply unbelievable.
Update on California Rescued Shelties...
- Thread starter dmeyer123
- Start date
Mignarda
Forums Enthusiast
Nothing short of raving lunacy would do it for me. Otherwise I believe this person will have to pay whatever penalty the law affords. I'm not saying that she ought to be bankrupted or ruined for it, but there has to be justice commensurate with the misdeed.
I agree. For me the fact that she was a breeder & a judge means that she, of all people, should know better what it takes to properly care for a sheltie. I do understand that kennel dogs aren't going to have the same amount of attention and care that a family pet will, unless it's a very small breeder. But still they should be kept healthy, clean and once they are past breeding/showing they are entitled to life in a home with people who will love them and do more than just meet their basic food/shelter needs. I'm afraid I have very little tolerance for people who abuse or neglect children or animals.
Ann
Moderator
This article from today's newspaper gives more specific details on the health issues the dogs have, which certainly does constitute neglect, sadly.
Authorities will seek neglect charges in Shetland sheepdog case
BY RICHARD K. De ATLEY / STAFF WRITER
Published: July 25, 2014 Updated: 8:39 p.m.
The head of Riverside County Department of Animal Services said Friday his office will seek animal cruelty charges against a woman who kept 61 Shetland sheepdogs on the property of her Woodcrest home.
The dogs were signed over to animal service officers on July 19 by Ginny Dennis after a small fire at her home in the semi-rural neighborhood outside Riverside city limits.
The announcement was the reverse of early assessments that the dogs appeared to be in reasonably good health.
There had been no history of neighbor complaints, and the dogs recovered from the Pick Place home were not emaciated – the usual sign of mistreatment.
But a week of examinations by veterinarians and work by volunteer groomers revealed a lack of dental care, ingrown toenails and dew claws, tick infestations, and an absence of hygienic grooming for the rough-coated Shelties, which left some of the animals caked with feces.
“The animals were living in filth,” animal services director Robert Miller said in a statement Friday.
“I was appalled,” said Karen Sylva, 66, of Moreno Valley, who was one of 13 to 16 volunteers who spent most of this week cleaning and grooming the dogs at the animal services shelter on Van Buren Boulevard in Riverside.
She said feces had dried on the dogs “like concrete,” and several had to have their hindquarters shaved. “I pulled so many ticks off one dog that it formed a golf-ball sized ball.”
She said the volunteers referred to the Shelties as “the Riverside 61.”
Sylva said she and other volunteers documented what they found, including tumors, skin conditions, ear infections, and untrimmed toenails: “Some were two to three inches long; one looked like a corkscrew. They had grown into the pads of the feet” of some of the animals, she said.
Miller said in his statement that his office would seek animal cruelty charges for neglect, a misdemeanor, from the district attorney’s office. It will take a couple of weeks to collect evidence.
Two phone numbers associated with Dennis or a relative were no longer in service Friday; a third number was not set up to take messages.
“We believe these dogs were never cared for in manner consistent with proper animal husbandry,” said Riverside County Chief Veterinarian Allan Drusys. “There was a complete lack of oral hygiene provided these animals. In some cases there was more tartar than teeth in their mouths ... Basically these dogs were fed – and nothing else was done for them.”
More than 100 people have inquired about adopting dogs since the weekend, but animal services workers said they were proceeding cautiously out of a concern that some of the applicants are actually friends of Dennis who may return the Shelties to her.
There’s a precedent for that from previous cases, animal services spokesman John Welsh said Friday.
“One of our employees did actually hear one of the potential adopters say something to the effect of, ‘Don’t worry baby, we are going to get you back to your mommy,’” Welsh said. “That’s not what we want.”
The department is reserving the right to do a yard check or property inspection as a condition for adoption, which could begin Monday.
Welsh said Friday that the department had previously been reserved in its comments about Dennis and the Shetland sheepdogs found at her home last weekend because the animals had not been fully inspected, and there was no record of complaints from neighbors.
The department had initially agreed to allow Dennis to keep four dogs – the maximum allowed without a kennel permit – but Welsh said after health and care of the dogs was brought into question, none will be returned to Dennis.
Welsh also acknowledged that the count of the dogs had fluctuated while the animals were being sorted out during the week. On Friday, he reaffirmed the number stands at 61.
Dennis was cited a decade ago for a kennel violation at her home for keeping more than four dogs, and animal service officers had been in contact with her over the years, Welsh said.
“It doesn’t appear she was cited again for kennel violations,” Welsh said. “The officers had been working with her over the years, and she was cooperative. She would turn over a few dogs when we visited” when she was suspected of having more than the allotted four.
Neighbors interviewed earlier in the week had expressed surprise after learning 61 dogs had been seized at the home, saying they never saw more than about five in public view.
“She was always cooperating,” Welsh said. “If the neighbors don’t complain, we don’t have a way of knowing how many dogs are there.”
Sylvan, who owns Shelties and belongs to the Southern California Shetland Sheepdog Club and other organizations, said the volunteer groomers, brushed, shampooed and trimmed the nails of the Shelties.
“I don’t want to sound like I am taking any credit – this was a group effort,” she said. “Once they realized they were being cared for, being massaged and given treats, they melted,” she said of the dogs. “They actually started licking everybody; the temperament is always there, they were just craving attention.”
http://www.pe.com/articles/dogs-697984-animal-welsh.html
Authorities will seek neglect charges in Shetland sheepdog case
BY RICHARD K. De ATLEY / STAFF WRITER
Published: July 25, 2014 Updated: 8:39 p.m.
The head of Riverside County Department of Animal Services said Friday his office will seek animal cruelty charges against a woman who kept 61 Shetland sheepdogs on the property of her Woodcrest home.
The dogs were signed over to animal service officers on July 19 by Ginny Dennis after a small fire at her home in the semi-rural neighborhood outside Riverside city limits.
The announcement was the reverse of early assessments that the dogs appeared to be in reasonably good health.
There had been no history of neighbor complaints, and the dogs recovered from the Pick Place home were not emaciated – the usual sign of mistreatment.
But a week of examinations by veterinarians and work by volunteer groomers revealed a lack of dental care, ingrown toenails and dew claws, tick infestations, and an absence of hygienic grooming for the rough-coated Shelties, which left some of the animals caked with feces.
“The animals were living in filth,” animal services director Robert Miller said in a statement Friday.
“I was appalled,” said Karen Sylva, 66, of Moreno Valley, who was one of 13 to 16 volunteers who spent most of this week cleaning and grooming the dogs at the animal services shelter on Van Buren Boulevard in Riverside.
She said feces had dried on the dogs “like concrete,” and several had to have their hindquarters shaved. “I pulled so many ticks off one dog that it formed a golf-ball sized ball.”
She said the volunteers referred to the Shelties as “the Riverside 61.”
Sylva said she and other volunteers documented what they found, including tumors, skin conditions, ear infections, and untrimmed toenails: “Some were two to three inches long; one looked like a corkscrew. They had grown into the pads of the feet” of some of the animals, she said.
Miller said in his statement that his office would seek animal cruelty charges for neglect, a misdemeanor, from the district attorney’s office. It will take a couple of weeks to collect evidence.
Two phone numbers associated with Dennis or a relative were no longer in service Friday; a third number was not set up to take messages.
“We believe these dogs were never cared for in manner consistent with proper animal husbandry,” said Riverside County Chief Veterinarian Allan Drusys. “There was a complete lack of oral hygiene provided these animals. In some cases there was more tartar than teeth in their mouths ... Basically these dogs were fed – and nothing else was done for them.”
More than 100 people have inquired about adopting dogs since the weekend, but animal services workers said they were proceeding cautiously out of a concern that some of the applicants are actually friends of Dennis who may return the Shelties to her.
There’s a precedent for that from previous cases, animal services spokesman John Welsh said Friday.
“One of our employees did actually hear one of the potential adopters say something to the effect of, ‘Don’t worry baby, we are going to get you back to your mommy,’” Welsh said. “That’s not what we want.”
The department is reserving the right to do a yard check or property inspection as a condition for adoption, which could begin Monday.
Welsh said Friday that the department had previously been reserved in its comments about Dennis and the Shetland sheepdogs found at her home last weekend because the animals had not been fully inspected, and there was no record of complaints from neighbors.
The department had initially agreed to allow Dennis to keep four dogs – the maximum allowed without a kennel permit – but Welsh said after health and care of the dogs was brought into question, none will be returned to Dennis.
Welsh also acknowledged that the count of the dogs had fluctuated while the animals were being sorted out during the week. On Friday, he reaffirmed the number stands at 61.
Dennis was cited a decade ago for a kennel violation at her home for keeping more than four dogs, and animal service officers had been in contact with her over the years, Welsh said.
“It doesn’t appear she was cited again for kennel violations,” Welsh said. “The officers had been working with her over the years, and she was cooperative. She would turn over a few dogs when we visited” when she was suspected of having more than the allotted four.
Neighbors interviewed earlier in the week had expressed surprise after learning 61 dogs had been seized at the home, saying they never saw more than about five in public view.
“She was always cooperating,” Welsh said. “If the neighbors don’t complain, we don’t have a way of knowing how many dogs are there.”
Sylvan, who owns Shelties and belongs to the Southern California Shetland Sheepdog Club and other organizations, said the volunteer groomers, brushed, shampooed and trimmed the nails of the Shelties.
“I don’t want to sound like I am taking any credit – this was a group effort,” she said. “Once they realized they were being cared for, being massaged and given treats, they melted,” she said of the dogs. “They actually started licking everybody; the temperament is always there, they were just craving attention.”
http://www.pe.com/articles/dogs-697984-animal-welsh.html
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Not me, Cara - neglect to the point where claws grow into the feet, and there are skin & mouth infections, and enough ticks on one dog to form a golf ball, is knowingly allowing your animal to be in physical and mental pain. Not doing anything about the situation, shows an unbelievable lack of compassion. How is that not cruel? That woman should never ever be allowed to own another animal.
Ann
Moderator
More information on the second page of that link. Just amazing that even after all that these dogs were responding to kindness. I'm a fairly reserved/analytical person who doesn't cry easily but this story just really got to me
I added page 2 of the story. I'm with you...this story got to me too. Those poor dogs...heartbreaking.