TENNESSEE -- We are headed to ER...Grandson bit in the throat by pit bull... Owner's let dog wander the streets... Exposed flesh next to jugular vein.... Thanking the Lord it didn't get vein.. I am numb!!!
Update! Children's Hospital, has been great!!! They stitched Nekitto up, he has to stay overnight though...He will be seeing Trauma Surgeons, in a.m...
Thank you everyone for the Prayers, and well wishes for him... The wound's were deep, and 1/2 inch from Carotid artery, on one side, and jugular on other...It is not luck but Gods eye's still watching over this family
WEST VIRGINIA -- Two people convicted of animal cruelty in January face similar charges again.
Paul David Sisler, 40, and Brittany Jordan Gump, 27, both of Masontown, pleaded guilty in January to one count each of animal cruelty. They were initially charged in October 2015 with four counts of animal abuse and two counts of failure to register a dog or kennel.
Sisler was also charged in December 2015 with three more counts of animal cruelty/withholding sustenance and medical care necessary to sustain health.
Now each has been charged with 10 new counts of cruelty to animals.
According to the criminal complaint filed by Masontown Police Officer M.E. Hoefler: On Aug. 15, Hoefler, Preston Animal Control Officer Brittaney Shearer and Litter Control Officer Jay Sowers went to the couple’s home on an animal and litter complaint.
Hoefler saw five kittens on the porch of the home, and a plate of “molding food that had bugs all through it” and an empty water bowl. The officers took the kittens to a veterinarian, who diagnosed them as under weight, malnourished, flea infested, had fluid in their chests and infected eyes. One kitten was euthanized because of its condition.
Sisler and Gump’s sentence in the earlier conviction banned them from possessing animals for five years.
INDIANA -- Neglect charges, pertaining to a teenager and 14 dogs and two cats, were filed against a Scottsburg couple whose mobile home was filled with what investigators said were rotting food, bugs and animal feces on July 27.
Charges filed in Scott Superior Court against Marion Anthony Hayes, 39, and Ashly N. Phillips, 33, include one count of neglect of a dependent, a Level 6 felony, and four counts of cruelty to an animal, all Class A misdemeanors. The neglect of a dependent charge was based on the fact that Hayes' 17-year-old son was living there. His 18-year-old son was also a resident.
The situation was discovered when Deputy Rodney Rudder stopped at the couple's mobile home on South Lake Road, near the interchange between I-65 and West McClain Avenue on Wednesday, July 27. He was serving notification papers for possible jury duty in the park and mistakenly went to the Hayes-Phillips residence.
As he approached the trailer and knocked on the door, Deputy Rudder said he smelled a strong odor and that several dogs began barking inside the mobile home. He also found a dog loose outside the home.
The deputy was aware that the number of dogs and cats which can be kept by Scottsburg residents is limited by city ordinance, and pets must be restrained by a leash, fencing or chained at all times when they are outside.
He reported the situation to Animal Control Officer Denny Robbins. Robbins went to the trailer soon afterward and picked up the stray dog. That animal's collar was so tight that it was embedded in the dog's neck, Officer Robbins noted. He also saw several dogs “...hanging out the windows,” the probable cause affidavit related.
The smell of feces from the animals was described as “...so strong you could not get close to the house...” by the animal control officer.
Since no one was at home, Major Richey Barton of the Scottsburg department contacted Marion Hayes by phone at his workplace. Hayes made arrangements to meet the officers at the trailer that afternoon.
Later in the day, Patrolman James Vires and Robbins of Scottsburg Police met with a representative of the Department of Child Services (DCS), Animal Control and District 8 field veterinarian Dr. Jodi Lovejoy from the State Board of Animal Health to inspect the house, with Hayes' permission.
By that time, authorities had learned that Hayes' two sons -- a 17-year-old and an 18-year-old -- were also living in the trailer.
The man allegedly admitted to having seven dogs inside.
The affidavit further describes the scene:
Once the front door to the residence was open, “the strong odor of feces and urine could be smelled while standing out in the roadway approximately 30 feet away.”
From the front porch, I looked into the living room of the residence and took photos. Due to the strong odor and myself having no protective mask, I exited the porch back out to the roadway.
"Entry to the residence could not be made without wearing, at the very minimum, a respiratory mask," the probable cause affidavit states.
Police say the Department of Child Services representative found the inside of the home to be in "complete disarray" with animal feces "covering the floor."
She observed dog feces covering many of the surfaces in the home. She noticed that the floor was covered with dog feces, rotting food and other items, making it difficult for [HER] to walk through the rooms without sliding.
The DCS staffer stated she observed that “...the floor was covered with dog feces, rotting food and other items making it difficult for (her) to walk through the rooms without sliding.” In her opinion, every room was uninhabitable, the affidavit stated.
According to the affidavit, authorities noticed a "very high concentration" of ammonia inside the trailer. A veterinarian who was with the investigators allegedly noticed, "a layer of feces covering the vast majority of the floor throughout the residence and also on one of the beds."
The temperature inside the main living area of the trailer was 90 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the affidavit. Although a back bedroom had an operational window-mounted air conditioner, the door to the bedroom was closed and access was restricted.
That's where Ashly and Marion relaxed in cool comfort while everyone else in the trailer suffered.
Insects, both live and dead, were also found in the residence, including in the refrigerator. Police allegedly found cockroaches inside the refrigerator.
Dr. Lovejoy advised that several dogs had severe flea infestations and significant skin and hair problems, poor body condition (underweight, malnourished and/or emaciated). Ten of the dogs she saw had long nails, and two of the dogs had nails so long they appeared to be growing into their paws.
One of the larger dogs was emaciated and so weak, it had difficulty standing up, Dr. Lovejoy noted. The veterinarian said she observed the dog “...walk only a few feet before laying back down and was observed urinating in the hallway.”
On a scale of 1 to 10, Dr. Lovejoy graded the dog's condition a 1, the worst possible.
According to investigators, 13 dogs and two cats were removed from the trailer.
The animals were taken under the wing of the Scott County Humane Society. Once the larger dog, an apparent Australian shepherd, was bathed, he was kept at the local shelter so that his condition could be monitored. Officer Robbins said the dog's condition and appetite appears to be improving. “He still has a way to go, though,” Robbins related.
Hayes and Phillips were arrested on Wednesday evening, August 3. They appeared for initial hearings in Superior Court on Thursday, August 4, during which preliminary not guilty pleas were entered for them. Each was assigned an initial trial date of November 1 and a public defender.
Bail for each of the defendants was set at $30,000 by corporate surety bond or $3,000 cash.
Name: Ashly Phillips
Sex: Female
Race: White
Arrest age: 33
Arrest Date: 08/03/2016
Agency: Scott County Sheriff's Office, Indiana
Charges:
#1 Neglect of Dependent
#2 Animal Cruelty
#3 Animal Cruelty
#4 Animal Cruelty
#5 Animal Cruelty
Full Name: Ashly Phillips
Block: 500 Folly Rd
City: Charleston, South Carolina 29412
Sex: Female
Race: White
Arrest Age: 33
Arrest Date: 08/03/2016
Arrest Time: 7:48 PM
Arresting Agency: SCOTT CO SHERIFF
Charge
#1 IC 35-44.1-2-9 ~ FAILURE TO APPEAR
Full Name: Marion Hayes
Block: 500 Folly Rd
City: Charleston, South Carolina 29412
Gender: Male
Arrest Age: 39
Arrest Date: 08/03/2016
Arrest Time: 7:31 PM
Arresting Agency: SCOTT CO SHERIFF
Charge
#1 IC 35-44.1-2-9 ~ FAILURE TO APPEAR
SOUTH AFRICA -- A 41-year-old paraplegic was mauled by a vicious dog while he was driving his motorized wheelchair on Equality Road in Croftdene on Friday night.
After receiving over 40 stitches to his right leg and treatment for tetanus, Adrian Nundlall, who is also a diabetic, said he is appalled by the manner in which the owner of the dog reacted to the situation.
Reliving the horrific experience, Nundlall claimed, “I am living in the Cheshire Village for the past nine years and frequent the tuck shop to purchase small items when necessary.
"On the night of the attack, I was on my way back from the tuck shop, which was closed, when I heard the ferocious barking of a dog. I continued to make my way home when the dog jumped at me and viciously attacked me.
"Someone from the home which the dogs belonged to pulled the dog away from me and took it home. I was left to drive back home and did not get any assistance from the owners of the dog.”
PIT BULL HAD ATTACKED SOMEONE ELSE
Angered physically challenged residents said the same dog attacked another paraplegic from the home a while ago and urged the relevant authorities to take action against the reckless and negligent pet owner.
Nundlall reported the incident to Metro Police and said the incident had affected his job as well as his life. “I work at the Greyville Racecourse as a telephone betting call centre agent and if my leave expires, I will not get paid. This will have a negative impact on my finances. I am also a diabetic and my concern is the seriousness of the injury and the fact that it will not heal properly,” he said.
Nundlall previously worked as an armed response security officer and was shot five times during an armed robbery in Kharwastan. He sustained four gunshot wounds to the abdomen and one to his spinal cord, which caused his paraplegia in 2002.
TEXAS -- Today Kleo got attacked by a pit bull! 🐶 Thank goodness that it wasn't a kid because Randy had just got home from school. Kloe is badly hurt her wounds are really deep and I think she has a broken leg...
If people are going to get pets they need to understand that there comes responsibilities as taking care of an animal. Yeah I know it happens to everybody that your dogs get away sometimes but even though they are tied up in a kennel you as a pet owner knows that your dog is aggressive so keep an eye on them. 👀 I know I do 🐕
And I know I'm not one to judge or say anything because Kleo it is overprotective and a little bit aggressive but if your going to have a pit bull as a pet some of you guys should at least pay a little extra money to train the dog! 🐶
Alexandra Martinez: The pit bull was being really aggressive it was like in kill mode or something... It was throwing Kleo around like a chew toy
Alexandra Martinez: Yeah it felt like forever and that it wasn't going to end... the pit bull didn't want to let go of her
Alexandra Martinez: I didn't know what to do Paul was hitting it with a bat and broke the bat on it... And the neighborhood hit it with a shovel on the face and then he finally let her go and then grabbed her again and started throwing her around
MISSOURI -- A Good Samaritan was honored Tuesday night for helping save an animal control officer who was being attacked not by an animal, but by its owner.
It seemed like any other call when Kansas City Animal Control Officer Elizabeth Meyer was called to 57th and Park in May for a dog on a short chain with no food or water.
“There was no one around to speak with, so I went to remove the dog, at that point a gentleman came walking down the street and became very agitated with me,” Officer Meyer said.
Before long, Officer Meyer was in a fight for her life.
“He had pinned me up against my truck, and began to use his hands and choke me,” Officer Meyer said.
Hogan Prep Elementary School maintenance worker David Lyman was on his way to his job, when he spotted the commotion.
“I didn’t know her, but I wasn’t going to let her stand there and 20 people standing around, somebody had to step up.”
So he ran her to aid, pulling the suspect, Ricky Williams, off of her. Then police say the 45-year-old suspect pulled a tire iron from his pocket. What Lyman calls a 10-minute scuffle with the whole family then ensued.
“I finally pinned him down to the ground for the police was coming and his mother came over and started hitting me in the face and his father started hitting me with a cane.”
Williams took off in Lyman’s truck as police arrived and led officers on a low-speed chase before finally returning to his neighborhood and getting stuck in the mud.
Williams is awaiting trial and faces numerous charges in the case. Along with the chase and attacking Officer Meyer, he’s also accused of kicking and spitting on officers once he was finally captured.
Kansas City Police Chief Daryl Forte presented Lyman with a Certificate of Appreciation. Officer Meyer gave him a hug.
“I don’t know what words I would possibly say to him, so thankful that he was there and that there are people like him in the world, so grateful for him.”
PENNSYLVANIA -- Two employees of Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley were injured Monday evening when they were attacked by a dog at the New Kensington animal shelter.
Phyllis Framel, a shelter board director, said the attack happened as the two employees were checking the kennel locks before closing for the night.
When a female employee opened a kennel to give a dog an extra blanket, the dog lunged and bit her leg, Framel said.
The dog also attacked a male employee who came to the woman's aid, biting his arm and legs. Framel said the female employee sprayed the dog with a hose to get it to release the man.
Framel said both employees were treated and released from a hospital Monday night. She said both required stitches. She expected them to be cleared to return to work within a few days.
The employees, whom Framel did not identify, were the only people in the building. She said safety concerns mean no one works alone.
“They did the right thing” in terms of how they handled the incident and contacting 911 to summon medical help, Framel said. “I'm sure it was very scary.”
Framel said the incident was one of the more serious animal attacks she can recall at the shelter. She said cat bites, which can involve deep punctures and the greater potential for bacterial infections, often are bigger concerns.
Framel believed the dog was a pit bull mix that had been in the shelter since early August.
“It was a dog that both of them had handled many times, and there had been no indication of a problem,” she said.
The female employee, who Framel described as an experienced dog handler, told Framel, “I've laid down in the kennel with him and cuddled with him before.”
Since the dog's medical background, including its vaccination history, is unknown, Framel said it must be quarantined for at least 10 days to monitor whether it shows signs of rabies. She said that's not likely since the dog already has been in the shelter's care for at least 10 days and has shown no signs of illness.
Framel was hoping the employees can avoid the intensive and expensive rabies treatment. She said their medical care is covered through the shelter's insurance.
As for the dog, its future is unknown but bleak. Although Animal Protectors is a no-kill shelter, Framel said euthanasia sometimes is necessary for dogs deemed too dangerous for adoption.
“A decision will be made about its future,” Framel said. “It will probably have to be euthanized. Once they bite, that's generally the policy. We will not release what we consider a dangerous dog to the public.”
Framel stressed the incident is a rarity for the shelter, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
She hoped the attack will not generate negative publicity for Animal Protectors as the agency ramps up efforts to raise money for an upcoming move to a new facility at Industrial Boulevard and Church Street in Parnassus.
“This is not going to help our fundraising,” she said.
CALIFORNIA -- Greg Lichau had moved into his Eighth Street apartment in a Petaluma westside neighborhood last Wednesday, appreciating the picket-fenced homes, kids playing outside and young families pushing strollers along the sidewalk.
About 7 p.m. Friday night while finishing dinner with his girlfriend, Lichau, 62, heard dogs barking loudly at a home across the street.
Then it got worse.
“It was gaining in ferocity,” Lichau said. “And then we heard a human voice screaming.”
Lichau ran across the street and barged inside a house to find a woman on the floor, a pit bull attached to her right forearm.
He said there were three other dogs in the home including one other pit bull, but that couldn’t be confirmed Tuesday by Petaluma Animal Services.
The 44-year-old woman, who has not been identified, suffered serious injuries to her right forearm and was taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, the Petaluma Fire Department said. Her condition was unavailable Tuesday.
The pit bull that attacked her — named Clark — has been in quarantine at Petaluma Animal Services since Friday night.
A dog believed to be the woman’s pet, a Lab mix named Mia possibly as old as 10, was injured in the attack, too. She was taken to VCA Animal Care Center of Sonoma County with puncture wounds.
Senior Animal Control Officer Mark Scott, with Petaluma Animal Services, said the woman was fostering Clark through The Tiny Pitbull, a Petaluma-based rescue organization. Clark was in the home a short time.
While Lichau tried to fend Clark off, another dog was trying to nip at the woman’s leg, he said.
“Her arm was so badly tore up that I was doing compression on it,” Lichau recalled. “It was not a scratch, it was a bite and tear. ... It was at least an inch deep that I could see.”
He put a jacket over the first dog’s head and punched the second dog in the face.
It took about 15 seconds, he said, but the dogs finally gave up.
“It was awful,” said Lichau. “It was just instinct. There was not much else to do.”
Of all the neighbors gathered outside because of the commotion, Lichau said, none stepped in to help.
“I realize that people are afraid when a dog attack is going on, but...,” he said.
Scott said the woman was trying to break up a fight between Clark and Mia when the pit bull attacked.
Lichau said Mia ran out of the house and hid under a car for about 30 minutes before she could finally be drawn out.
Scott estimated Clark’s age between 2 and 6. The dog has been in quarantine at Petaluma Animal Services since Friday. After the 10-day quarantine period ends, his fate lies with The Tiny Pitbull, Scott said.
Scott said the incident report would not be made public until Wednesday, and was unable to clarify exactly how many dogs were involved in the incident or their breeds.
Lichau, who’s been nipped before, wasn’t hurt this time.
“But this attack — that pit bull — you could see it in his eyes,” he said. “He had a mission.”
MAINE -- The owners of two dogs that attacked and killed a Boston terrier puppy Tuesday in Winslow are being charged with keeping a dangerous dog, police said.
Danielle Jones and Brandon Ross, co-owners of the pit bulls involved in the attack, were summoned on the charge Wednesday and are scheduled to appear Sept. 20 in Waterville District Court, according to a news release from the Winslow Police Department.
Sharron Carey was wounded and the Boston terrier, Fergie Rose, was killed when dogs Bentley and Kole attacked her at 12:44 p.m. Tuesday, then attacked Carey when she picked her dog up in an attempt to keep it from being harmed.
CROCODILE TEARS
“I’m devastated,” Jones said through tears Wednesday afternoon. “I love all dogs and I never once trained my dogs to do this. I did not get them for protection. This is a horrific nightmare and if I could undo it, I would. I just hope (Carey) can find it in her heart to forgive everything. I know it hurts and if I could bring her dog back, I would.”
If Danielle Jones was REALLY sorry, she would have
this killer dog euthanized. But she's too selfish.
Jones said the attack was a “fluke accident” that was triggered by an unleashed neighborhood dog that had jumped on her backyard fence, prompting her dogs to escape. That dog is not the one that was killed in the attack.
“I’m not trying to deflect blame,” Jones said. “All I can say is they’ve never been loose once in the last year that we’ve lived here. I can’t blame the other dog. People that don’t own a reactive dog don’t know what someone who does goes through.”
Jones’ two Staffordshire Pit Bull terriers — one of the breeds commonly referred to as pit bull — and a third dog, a Labrador mix, were inside her fenced yard Tuesday afternoon when they escaped tore through TWO FENCES and went after Fergie Rose, the 10-month-old Boston terrier that was killed in the mauling.
A charge of keeping a dangerous dog is a civil violation that Winslow Animal Control Officer Chris Martinez said Wednesday can be made against any dog owner whose dog assaults or threatens to assault a person or another domestic animal.
Martinez, who works as an animal control officer in six Central Maine communities, did not have data on how often the charge is levied, but said it comes up “more frequently than you think.”
Martinez said a majority of the time the dog involved is a pit bull, a term that encompasses a variety of bull terriers and is not itself a specific breed. Most complaints about dangerous dogs involve dogs that threaten or hurt a human, but Martinez said he does occasionally deal with fights between dogs.
Danielle Jones and Brandon Ross' killer pit bulls
Hey moron. This was NOT a "fight between dogs". This was an attack. This was a mauling. This was a vicious, horrible death caused by pit bulls. Can he even fathom the terror and pain an animal - or human - experiences while being TORN TO PIECES BY PIT BULLS?
PIT BULLS HAVE ATTACKED BEFORE
According to Winslow police, the same dogs involved in Tuesday’s attack also got loose and fought attacked a neighbor’s dog in May 2015 on Halifax Street, when Jones and Ross lived at a different address.
The owners and police broke up the fight attack before anyone, including the dogs, was seriously injured. Ross was summoned on a charge of keeping an unlicensed dog.
POLICE CONTINUE TO LABEL ATTACKS AS "DOG FIGHTS" Why does the police insist on calling these incidents "dog fights"?? When a woman is attacked and brutally beaten by a man do we call this a "mutual fight" or do we say the woman was attacked and brutally beaten? A Boston Terrier puppy is NOT "fighting" with two 75-lb Pit Bulls. It is being ATTACKED, MAULED, TORN TO PIECES, CRUSHED, AND KILLED.
Jones, who also owns The Muddy Paw, a dog grooming spa and self-service dog wash, said that Bentley, a 3-year-old Staffordshire Pit Bull terrier, was attacked by a German shepherd as a puppy and as a result "does not like" other dogs. Bentley instigated the attack after the neighborhood dog came to their fence and agitated him, she said.
Her other two dogs, a Staffordshire Pit Bull terrier named Kole and a Labrador mix named Tanner that Jones said "is a therapy dog", also escaped from their yard on Lucille Avenue.
Give me a break. That is NOT a therapy dog.
The two pit bulls escaped the double-fenced yard by climbing up the first fence, which broke and fell, then getting through the second fence, which wasn’t secured on the bottom, said Sgt. Josh Veilleux, of the Winslow Police Department.
“A person could crawl through it,” Veilleux said Wednesday of the fence. “They are animals, and sometimes we forget that.”
Martinez took the two dogs to the Humane Society Waterville Area shelter Tuesday, where they are in quarantine.
“I’ve done everything in my power to keep him away from other dogs, not put him in situations that are high anxiety, just be a safe dog owner and make sure he’s not a threat to anyone,” she said, adding that she has taken him to dog trainers who have told her that he could be re-socialized, but it would take a lot of work.
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF VICIOUSNESS OF THEIR PIT BULLS
Jones’ neighbor Krysten Moody said that when she moved in next door about a year ago, Jones and her boyfriend, Ross, warned her that their dogs were dangerous.
“They told us that their dogs would kill another dog,” she said. “I think their exact words were that they would destroy (my dog).”
Moody said her dog, Samson, is the dog that Jones said jumped on her backyard fence, prompting the others to escape. She said she doesn’t leash her dog when it’s in her yard and also doesn’t have a fence, but said Samson, an Australian shepherd, never would jump on the fence next door.
There is no leash ordinance in Winslow, according to Martinez, although state law does require dog owners to maintain control over their pets either via leash or voice commands. He said he does not foresee any charges for Moody and her dog since there have never been complaints about that dog before.
DANIELLE JONES DEFENDS THE INDEFENSIBLE
Jones, meanwhile, said she is still trying to figure out exactly how her dogs escaped after they saw Samson. After Bentley was attacked as a puppy, Jones said, he was never the same and she has taken precautions, including the double chain-link fence and putting security cameras up in her backyard, to keep an eye on him.
“I never felt comfortable re-socializing him with other dogs,” she said. “I knew after I had him evaluated that he got along with (my other dogs). They get along great and all the dogs get along with people. They love kids. It’s just that one dog is reactive and unfortunately, when you own more than one dog, they get something called the pack mentality.”
Excuses, excuses...
Carey, 60, was treated at Inland Hospital in Waterville for multiple injuries after the attack and was released Tuesday night. Her daughter, Jennifer Holt, was with her at the doctor’s office Wednesday for more treatment and said she is not doing well emotionally.
“It was extremely traumatizing,” Holt said. “She witnessed her dog being destroyed.” She said her mother has melanoma, which has disabled her. Fergie Rose was a client at The Muddy Paw but Holt said Wednesday that her family has not spoken to Jones.
KILLER DOGS RARELY ARE EUTHANIZED
Bill Carey, Sharron Carey’s husband, said Tuesday he would like Jones charged by police and the dogs euthanized. Jones said Wednesday that she wasn’t sure what should be done.
“I don’t want to be looked at as somebody that trained these dogs to be this way, because all I did was love them and try to help them,” she said.
Tuesday’s attack was the second reported attack by a pit bull in central Maine in recent months. No charges have been brought in a dog attack in June in Corinna that killed 7-year-old Hunter Bragg, of Bangor. Bragg, 7, died of “blunt and sharp force injuries” to his head and neck, according to the state medical examiner’s report, after an attack by a pit bull.
The dog in that attack was euthanized at the request of its owner, Gary Merchant Jr., who lived at the Moody’s Mill Road home in Corinna and reportedly was given the dog by his daughter, who lives in Vermont, because it had attacked her dogs.
RIP Fergie Rose - killed by two pit bulls before her 1st birthday
Penbobscot County Sheriff Troy Morton said Wednesday that attack still is being investigated. Resolution has been delayed because of information that was released prematurely “by other entities” and then published in the news media, Morton said.
The dog in that attack, identified by law enforcement only as a pit bull, was not licensed in Corinna — a problem that Martinez said Wednesday is common in reports of dangerous dogs. While Jones and Ross did have licensing and vaccination records for their dogs, Martinez said it surprised him and is often not the case.
“People know these dogs have a reputation and they say they’re good dog owners, but then a bite happens and they don’t have paperwork,” he said. “They’re stuck in a predicament because you’re not a good dog owner. It’s like everybody says: It’s not the dog’s fault; it’s the owner.”
WASHINGTON -- County prosecutors have presented sufficient evidence to try a second-degree animal cruelty case, a district court judge ruled Aug. 19.
Visiting from Clallam County, Judge Rick Porter considered the defense's motion to dismiss the charge against Nataliya Ivanovna Nivens, 41, of Sequim, saying the state had met its burden of proof.
“Of course, I'm dismayed by the judge's decision,” defense attorney Tom Brotherton told the Leader. “As far as I'm concerned, there's almost no evidence of animal neglect.”
On June 30, deputies seized 41 animals – 17 dogs, 16 chickens and eight goats – from Nivens' property in the 276000 block of U.S. Highway 101 in Gardiner following a six-week investigation (that she co-owns with her husband Don Nivens).
Defense attorney Brotherton said investigating deputy Bruce Turner did not report seeing animals in pain during any of his four visits to the property prior to executing a warrant June 30.
“Since there was no pain ... there was no crime,” Brotherton insisted in court.
In order to establish that the Defendant inflicted pain on the animals, a prosecutor must rely on circumstantial evidence rather than direct evidence, deputy prosecutor Amanda Wilson said.
“How do you see pain in an animal?” Judge Porter asked, suggesting a witness could only ever infer the existence or degree of pain based on training, experience or direct evidence.
“Ultimately, this is a jury question,” Porter said.
A pretrial hearing is set for Sept. 7, at which time the court would set a date for a jury trial.
Defense attorney Brotherton filed a motion for a bill of particulars, asking the prosecutor to specify which animals felt pain and how Nivens caused that pain.
Center Valley Animal Rescue Director Sara Penhallegon visits some of the older rescued Anatolian shepherds that are now up for adoption. (Cydney McFarland/Peninsula Daily News)
Brotherton also filed a motion for the return of Nivens' animals. That motion is to be heard Sept. 16. Wilson said she would oppose the request.
Early in his investigation, Turner reported that “the dogs appeared to be losing weight” and told Nivens she had too many animals in too small an area.
“This looked like a farmyard with lots of space,” Brotherton said.
Judge Porter asked how does someone see pain in an animal. “There has to be something besides, 'I don't like the amount of space.'”
Upon visiting the property June 29 with deputy Turner, veterinarian Jan Richards of Chimacum reported the seven puppies appeared malnourished.
Sara Penhallegon, director of Center Valley Animal Rescue near Quilcene, received those puppies after their seizure and told the Leader they were initially underweight and some were emaciated.
Wilson said Nivens had direct knowledge of the condition in which the animals were living.
“A reasonable person would've known the animals needed medical attention; a reasonable person would've known the animals needed more space,” Wilson said. “I don't know if she interacted with the animals. That's criminal negligence if she didn't even know what conditions the animals were in.”
Chickens and goats rescued from Nataliya Nivens will not recover entirely from their injuries, but all are happy, healthy and very friendly, according to Center Valley Animal Rescue. (Cydney McFarland/Peninsula Daily News)
Brotherton said Nivens had been in the process of finding a new place for the animals and expected to move them July 1 into rented dog kennel space.
“She said she would move them as soon as she could,” Brotherton said. “The deputy basically gave her a month. On July 1, she showed up with some friends to move the animals and didn't find anything.”
Defense attorney Brotherton said an apparent lack of food is not enough to support the charge, unless the lack of food can be shown to have caused pain.
“They [deputies] probably caused more harm than anyone else through there strong arm tactics,” he said, noting it took several hours to round up the animals. “I'm very confident it's going to go to trial and the jury will look at the evidence and find her innocent.”
KENTUCKY -- Benjamin David Burdette, age 40 of London, is in jail charged with Wanton Endangerment – first-degree and two counts of Cruelty to Animals – second-degree.
Deputies with the Laurel County Sheriff's Office arrested Burdette on Tuesday morning at a home on White Oak Road.
Deputies were dispatched to the home regarding a complaint about an argument. When they arrived, they say they discovered Burdette had been using meth in the presence of a two-year old girl.
In addition, deputies said they found several medications, chemicals, and meth pipes that the toddler could have easily accessed. The little girl was removed from the home by Social Services.
Deputies also found two small dogs in the home. One of them, a terrier, appeared to be in distress. Both dogs were taken to the Cumberland Valley Animal Hospital. One dog died. The other dog had to be euthanized. A veterinarian believes both dogs were fed meth.
"I don't how you get a dog to eat meth. I don't know if it tastes good to a dog," said Susan Smith, with Cumberland Valley Animal Hospital. "No clue how you would get a dog to ingest it unless you hid it in a hot dog or something to poison it with."
PENNSYLVANIA -- A Pennsylvania corrections officer has been charged after a drug-detecting police dog in his care died last month after it was left in a hot vehicle for 2-1/2 hours during a training exercise.
State police said Tuesday that Sgt. Chad Holland has been charged with animal cruelty in the July 7 death of 2-year-old Totti at the state prison at Rockview near Bellefonte in Centre County.
RIP Totti
PennLive.com reports dog handlers tried to cool the yellow Labrador with a water hose and ice after they realized he was locked in the car, but the dog later died.
An online petition urging the Department of Corrections to fire Holland was started after the dog’s death.
It’s unclear if he has an attorney who can comment on the charges.
MAINE -- A woman was wounded and her puppy killed Tuesday when they were attacked by three neighborhood pit bulls, and her family is pressing charges against the attacking dogs’ owner and wants the dogs euthanized.
The three dogs broke past or jumped a fence and escaped from their backyard on Lucille Avenue, where they attacked the 10-month-old Boston terrier, ripping it from Sharron Carey’s arms when she picked it up in an attempt to save it.
Danielle Jones with one of her killer pit bulls
Carey, 60, of Winslow, was taken to Inland Hospital in Waterville for treatment of wounds to her hands, legs and back. Her husband, Bill Carey, said Tuesday evening she was home and “very sedated.”
“She was a complete wreck,” he said. “All three dogs basically grabbed (the Boston terrier) and basically rag-dolled it, ripped it and killed it. It was horrible.”
Carey, whose voice shook with anger at times during the telephone interview, said, “I feel bad for my wife. She’s just about 100 pounds soaking wet and she walks her dog there every day. She had three full-grown pit bulls come and attack her, bite her and kill her dog right in front of her. It was a horrific scene.”
In June, a pit bull killed a 7-year-old Bangor boy who was playing in its owner’s yard in Corinna. A pit bull isn’t a breed, but a term for a variety of terrier.
Tuesday, Sharron Carey was walking the Boston terrier, Fergie Rose, around noon on a route she took every day, when the dogs attacked, her husband said in an account similar to one in an afternoon news release from Lt. Josh Veilleux, of the Winslow Police Department.
After the dogs jumped the fence, Carey said, his wife picked up Fergie Rose, but the dogs continued the attack.
“(The dogs) actually ripped her dog out of her arms and knocked her down,” he said. “They killed (Fergie Rose). We are pressing charges against the owner and we want the dogs put down. It was an unprovoked attack.”
The release said there were two dogs, but a neighbor who saw the attack, as well as Bill Carey, said three dogs attacked. The neighbor, who didn’t want her name used, took Fergie Rose to Garland Small Animal Hospital, where it died. Bill Carey, as well as police, said several people tried to help his wife and their dog. Carey said people tried to beat the dogs away with sticks and get them away from his wife and the puppy.
The pit bulls’ owner, Danielle Jones, also tried to get the dogs away. Police said she had run out of her house when she heard Sharron Carey screaming.
So what? She knowingly kept these vicious dogs. She didn't stop the little dog from being torn apart by her vicious dogs. She didn't do the right thing and euthanize her vicious dogs. She can save her crocodile tears for someone else.
Her boyfriend Brandon Ross is also owner of the vicious pit bulls.
Danielle Jones is co-owner of The Muddy Paw, a grooming spa and self-service dog wash in Winslow, according to the business’s Facebook page. A message left at the business Tuesday evening was not returned immediately.
Carey said a nearby surveillance camera captured the attack on video and he hopes police will release it to the public.
Winslow Animal Control Officer Chris Martinez took the dogs to the Waterville Humane Society, where they were in quarantine Tuesday afternoon.
Carey said Fergie Rose is a hero who died protecting her owner. “She died protecting my wife,” he said. “Those dogs were intent on killing something.”
Martinez said he couldn’t comment further Tuesday afternoon on the attack, and police said no more information would be available on Tuesday. The release said the investigation is still ongoing.
On June 4 in Corinna, Hunter Bragg, 7, died of “blunt and sharp force injuries” to his head and neck, according to the state medical examiner’s report, after an attack by a pit bull.
The investigation into that attack is ongoing, and officials involved haven’t commented on reports, including a reference on the dog bite report by the town’s animal control officer, that the dog previously had attacked other dogs.
The dog in that attack was euthanized at the request of its owner, Gary Merchant Jr., who lived at the Moody’s Mill Road home in Corinna and reportedly was given the dog by his daughter, who lives in Vermont, because it had attacked her dogs.
