Authorities confiscate hundreds of animals near Lawtell

LOUISIANA --From the outside, the trailer that serves as Donald James LaFluer’s home in a rural area about three miles south of Lawtell offers an attractive appearance.

Surrounded by flowering trees, it is almost invisible from the road. Closer to the house, there are scores of pots filled with flowers and tropical plants, interspersed with concrete statues.

 

 

But with every step closer, the smell overwhelms the outward appearance of beauty.

On Friday, St. Landry Parish deputies charged LaFleur, 61, of 2572 Louisiana 752, Lawtell, with animal cruelty after officials located hundreds of animals, primarily birds, living in terrible conditions.

(Photo: Freddie Herpin/Gannett Louisiana)

“The conditions are deplorable,” said Brooks Davis, with St. Landry Parish Animal Control, as she and dozens of officers with the parish shelter, the sheriff’s office, Fire District III and other agencies hauled out cage after cage.

Each was filled to the brim with chickens, ducks and geese, as well as exotic birds such as peacocks, parrots, grouse, parakeets and even pheasants.

Most of the workers wore surgical masks because of the overwhelming stench.

“It was gross. It was not good for the animals, but I don’t know how he could stand it himself,” Davis said. She compared the situation in the house to that of a hoarder, with narrow walkways allowing passage through piles of trash and waste.

Davis said about 20 dogs shared the trailer with LaFleur. She said it appeared that nobody had cleaned the animal waste in a long time.

“The floor was like a thick mat of papier-maché,” she said, adding it appeared that LaFleur had spread paper on the floor to catch the animal waste.

But it seemed to her that as each layer had become soaked and saturated, LaFleur would simply add another layer of paper to the top of the pile.

The animal control officer’s main concern was with the birds of all varieties and sizes.

“Those chickens were eating each other. That’s how crowded they were,” said Davis.

She estimated that crews had removed at least 1,000 birds from the property “if you count all the little ones. A lot of chickens have just hatched.”

Parish President Bill Fontenot, who was assisting with the roundup, said he wasn’t sure about that.

“But hundreds for sure,” he said.

Fontenot said selling birds is LaFleur’s business. But the man’s relatives told Fontenot not many were selling, so their numbers just kept increasing.

As soon as officers arrived Friday morning to serve a warrant, Fontenot said LaFleur barricaded himself in the house, but deputies eventually convinced him to come out.

“He has been charged with animal cruelty, but he doesn’t see it as that,” said Fontenot.

Donald LaFleur

 He said LaFleur didn’t understand what all the commotion was about.

[It doesn't matter if he agrees with the law or if he 'doesn't understand' why there are laws to protect animals. It's not a matter of him not comprehending the law. It's a matter of him not agreeing with the laws that protect animals and he refuses to abide by them.]

Although authorities have booked LaFleur into the parish jail, Fontenot said a more appropriate response may be to help him get psychiatric help.

This is not LaFleur’s first animal cruelty charge. He has been arrested multiple times in the past for his alleged treatment of exotic birds and dogs.

In all cases, he was raising the animals for sale.

(Monroe News Star - Aug 17, 2014)