Kennel Owners Shoot 80 Dogs -- And It’s Legal
Description
Pet Pulse Staff Reports
August 14, 2008
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Two eastern Pennsylvania kennel operators shot 80 dogs after wardens ordered some of the animals examined by veterinarians, according to dog law enforcement officials.
Chris Ryder, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement, told Pet Pulse that he has not heard of a report of that many dogs being euthanized at one time.
“I have not personally heard of another situation where between two farms at once there were 80 dogs that were shot,” Ryder said.
Wardens had ordered 39 dogs checked for flea and fly bites. They also issued citations for extreme heat, insufficient bedding and floors dogs' feet could fall through.
Elmer Zimmerman of Kutztown shot 70 dogs after a July 24 inspection, officials of the state Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement said. His brother, Ammon Zimmerman, operator of a kennel next door, shot 10 dogs, officials said.
Elmer Zimmerman told The Philadelphia Inquirer he feared the state was trying to close his kennel, and said a veterinarian recommended destroying the dogs.
"They were old, and we were hearing that they don't want kennels anymore," he said. "The best thing to do was get rid of them."
Ammon Zimmerman told a reporter the decision to destroy the dogs was "none of your business."
State law allows owners to put dogs down by shooting them, though Gov. Ed Rendell is trying to change that. He backs pending state legislation that would only allow veterinarians to euthanize dogs in commercial kennels.
“Unfortunately in Pennsylvania, that isn’t really news,” Ryder said of the dogs being destroyed by kennel owners. “It is legal. So just be because it happens doesn’t mean than anybody necessarily finds out about it.”
Ken Brandt, lobbyist for the Pennsylvania Professional Dog Breeders' Association, said the group didn't support the operators' actions. He said there were other ways to resolve the situation, "like in a court."
“It’s evil,” Elaine Skypala, the Pennsylvania SPCA’s director of programs, told Pet Pulse. “That’s exactly what it is, it’s evil. And to me, this is exactly what people need to know a puppy mill is all about. It’s strictly about the money that they have to spend and the money that they get back in.
“And as soon as it starts to cost them anything, they don’t care about the animals at all.”
The two men surrendered their kennel licenses. Elmer Zimmerman pleaded guilty to four charges of violating the dog law, Smith said.
“All the problems that they addressed were very fixable,” Skypala said of the wardens’ evaluation. “Things that were very simple for them to fix.
They could have given them to any of the rescue groups, any of the humane societies, and any one of those groups would have been happy to take those dogs, make sure they were cleaned up and adopt them out.”
The measure that would prohibit kennel owners from euthanizing dogs, House Bill 2525, would also enact a crackdown on dog kennels overall, Skypala says.
“All these dogs have to have kennels that are double the size of what the dog law says they have to have now,” she said of the bill’s proposed requirements. “They have to always have access to water. They can’t be on these wire-bottom crates that they’re all on.
“This law says they can’t have one crate sitting on top of another one,” Skypala said of setups that enable urine and feces to drip from one crate into another.
While the practice of shooting dogs to death is legal in Pennsylvania, the method is nevertheless inhumane, Skypala says.
“Who’s to say how they shot these dogs?” Skypala asked. “Did they just go through and shoot one, while the one right next to it saw it all happen? And how many times did they have to shoot it in order for these animals to die?”
August 14, 2008
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Two eastern Pennsylvania kennel operators shot 80 dogs after wardens ordered some of the animals examined by veterinarians, according to dog law enforcement officials.
Chris Ryder, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement, told Pet Pulse that he has not heard of a report of that many dogs being euthanized at one time.
“I have not personally heard of another situation where between two farms at once there were 80 dogs that were shot,” Ryder said.
Wardens had ordered 39 dogs checked for flea and fly bites. They also issued citations for extreme heat, insufficient bedding and floors dogs' feet could fall through.
Elmer Zimmerman of Kutztown shot 70 dogs after a July 24 inspection, officials of the state Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement said. His brother, Ammon Zimmerman, operator of a kennel next door, shot 10 dogs, officials said.
Elmer Zimmerman told The Philadelphia Inquirer he feared the state was trying to close his kennel, and said a veterinarian recommended destroying the dogs.
"They were old, and we were hearing that they don't want kennels anymore," he said. "The best thing to do was get rid of them."
Ammon Zimmerman told a reporter the decision to destroy the dogs was "none of your business."
State law allows owners to put dogs down by shooting them, though Gov. Ed Rendell is trying to change that. He backs pending state legislation that would only allow veterinarians to euthanize dogs in commercial kennels.
“Unfortunately in Pennsylvania, that isn’t really news,” Ryder said of the dogs being destroyed by kennel owners. “It is legal. So just be because it happens doesn’t mean than anybody necessarily finds out about it.”
Ken Brandt, lobbyist for the Pennsylvania Professional Dog Breeders' Association, said the group didn't support the operators' actions. He said there were other ways to resolve the situation, "like in a court."
“It’s evil,” Elaine Skypala, the Pennsylvania SPCA’s director of programs, told Pet Pulse. “That’s exactly what it is, it’s evil. And to me, this is exactly what people need to know a puppy mill is all about. It’s strictly about the money that they have to spend and the money that they get back in.
“And as soon as it starts to cost them anything, they don’t care about the animals at all.”
The two men surrendered their kennel licenses. Elmer Zimmerman pleaded guilty to four charges of violating the dog law, Smith said.
“All the problems that they addressed were very fixable,” Skypala said of the wardens’ evaluation. “Things that were very simple for them to fix.
They could have given them to any of the rescue groups, any of the humane societies, and any one of those groups would have been happy to take those dogs, make sure they were cleaned up and adopt them out.”
The measure that would prohibit kennel owners from euthanizing dogs, House Bill 2525, would also enact a crackdown on dog kennels overall, Skypala says.
“All these dogs have to have kennels that are double the size of what the dog law says they have to have now,” she said of the bill’s proposed requirements. “They have to always have access to water. They can’t be on these wire-bottom crates that they’re all on.
“This law says they can’t have one crate sitting on top of another one,” Skypala said of setups that enable urine and feces to drip from one crate into another.
While the practice of shooting dogs to death is legal in Pennsylvania, the method is nevertheless inhumane, Skypala says.
“Who’s to say how they shot these dogs?” Skypala asked. “Did they just go through and shoot one, while the one right next to it saw it all happen? And how many times did they have to shoot it in order for these animals to die?”
