Ohio: Victor Vallejo Sr. facing Animal Cruelty charge after his Pit Bull was found dead on porch, curled up in a ball and "frozen solid"

OHIO -- The Toledo Area Humane Society is investigating the death of a dog in central Toledo that was found outside and “frozen solid.”

The female dog had died after curling up on the front porch of a house at 1057 King Street.

“I don’t know how long she was out there,” Megan Brown, a cruelty investigator with the humane society, said. “She was frozen solid.”

The recorded low temperature the night of Dec 28th in Toledo, Ohio was -8 °F.

Ms. Brown said an underweight male dog was inside the house. She saw him through a window and seized him that afternoon after obtaining a search warrant.

“He was visibly shivering,” Ms. Brown said, adding that his ribs and spine are prominent and the house was very cold.

Contacted by The Blade on Thursday afternoon, Victor Vallejo Sr., 40, said the dogs are his and added he was unaware of any issues. He said he last saw them two or three days ago and left them both inside.

The utilities to the house were recently shut off, he said.

“I wasn’t staying there, but I was going back and forth and feeding them. They had plenty of food and water,” he said. “I’ve been staying here and there at the moment. I kind of fell on some bad times.”

So he locked them inside an unheated house that, based on the looks of it, has 40-year old insulation and 40-year old single-pane windows - the kind you have to put plastic up in the winter to try to keep the cold out. Then he says he only goes by every "two or three days" to bring them food and water. So for "two or three days" at a time they're starving. 

Meanwhile, he looks well-fed and certainly doesn't look like he's been sleeping on the freezing streets.

CAN'T PAY HIS BILLS, WANTS TO BREED PIT BULLS
He said both are American bullies (aka Pit Bulls). The 3-year-old female was named Nanas, while the 4-year-old male is Haze. He said claims he loves his dogs, paid a lot of money for them, and intended to breed them.

Mr. Vallejo said he isn’t sure how Nanas got outside.

“I don’t know how they would have got out,” he said. “Everything was locked up tight.”

Ms. Brown said neither dog had any food or water, and Nanas was in the fenced front yard. There were blankets and a pillow on the porch, which had a roof, but no shelter from the bitter temperatures.

“She didn’t appear to be in poor health, but it’s hard to tell when she’s curled up and frozen,” Ms. Brown said.

Mr. Vallejo said Nanas had gotten loose in August. Records from the Lucas County Canine Care & Control show she was taken to the county shelter by a citizen Sept. 21 as a stray.

 

 

An initial medical evaluation there noted Nanas had fleas and swollen ears but seemed otherwise healthy. Mr. Vallejo reclaimed her the following day and purchased a 2017 license for her.

Mr. Vallejo said claims when he got her back, she had lost weight and was sick. He said he hadn’t yet been able to get her back to full health.

OK so that was in September... three months ago. He just admitted he never took her to the vet despite his allegation that she "had lost weight and was sick" the entire three months.

CITED TO COURT, DIDN'T BOTHER TO SHOW UP
Nanas was seen by a canine control officer Oct. 22 running loose on King Street, but Mr. Vallejo contained her while the officer was there. He was cited for a dog running at large and has a bench warrant from Toledo Municipal Court for failing to appear for a hearing on the citation.

Ms. Brown said other than being underweight, Haze appears OK.

“He looks to be pretty good,” Ms. Brown said. “He’s sweet. He was malnourished and dehydrated, but I think he’ll be fine.”

She said the humane society is pursuing possible animal cruelty charges in Toledo Municipal Court.

(Toledo Blade - Dec 28, 2017)