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Bland County Limits Breeding Of Puppy Mill Dogs

June 28, 2007, 12:0AM MT

By Laura Allen

A victory for the dogs trapped in a Bland County puppy mill!

A victory for the dogs trapped in a Bland County puppy mill!

by Laura Allen, Best Friends Animal Society

The Bland County, Virginia Board of Supervisors voted this week to add to the restrictions placed on Dogwood Kennels' conditional use permit earlier this month by the county's Planning Commission for the operation of a puppy mill.

It is at this puppy mill that 192 dogs died this past March in a fire started by sparks from a kerosene heater used to keep the puppies warm. Dozens more dogs died last fall from distemper and there was a parvo outbreak as well. Dogwood Kennels' owner has also admitted the mill has not provided proper ventilation in the past.

Indeed, a June 20 inspection revealed several alleged violations of state law including inadequate shelter and inadequate feeding practices.

In an unprecedented move, the Bland County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors has voted to limit the breeding of dogs at Dogwood Kennels' puppy mill. The Board found the puppy mill should not be able to breed female dogs outside of an age range. The recommended range is 1-6 years.

"Best Friends Animal Society had also called for a requirement banning inbreeding and limiting breeding of female dogs to once a year, " explained Russ Mead, Best Friends Animal Society's general counsel. "The Planning Commission wouldn't consider any limits on breeding, so this is remarkable. We congratulate the Board on taking this step that will help stop puppy mills." Typically, there are no restrictions on breeding at puppy mills.

Mead, who along with Best Friends' attorney Peggy Sutton spoke at the Planning Commission hearing, added, "This happened because of the tireless work of Virginia Partnership for Animal Welfare and Support (VA PAWS) and its president, Lila Borge Wills. It shows what people in a community can accomplish when they come together." (For more on VA PAWS, click here: www.vapaws.org/) Best Friends had also urged thousands of its members in the area to write or call the Board and attend the hearing on the puppy mills' application for a conditional use permit.

Wills commented, "There was some good support [at the Board hearing] from as far away as Roanoke, so we were pleased. We were surprised at how much the Board had to struggle with the decision and the conditions. They really did not take [it] lightly and [questioned the puppy mill's owner], Mr.Schmucker, on several issues. We were pleased with the Board's thought and compassion for the animals in this decision."

The Planning Commission had issued a conditional use permit with several restrictions. For more on that, click here:
Best Friends Animal Society Speaks At Hearing On Puppy Mill Permit

The Board of Supervisors now has added the following restrictions:

1) Breeding restrictions for dogs.

2) All dogs must be housed inside in a temperature controlled environment.

3) Though the Planning Commission found the puppy mill must comply with all USDA regulations and state laws for commercial dog breeders, Dogwood Kennels had claimed these were subject to interpretation. Not so, said the Board of Supervisors. Dogwood Kennels will be required, for example, to provide the dogs with solid floors instead of wire cages that allows their feet to poke through and sag under their weight. Dogwood Kennels will also be required per state law to feed the dogs once a day. Apparently, the puppy mill now supplies food twice a week via an outside automatic feeder.

4) Many people had voiced concern about Dogwood Kennels' plan to spray the dog feces as fertilizer on food crops. The Board warned they cannot spread even composted feces on food crops.

5) The buildings must be up to fire code by having fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors, and sprinkler systems in every structure holding animals.

Lila Wills noted, "As always, the difficulty will continue to be enforcement." She and VA PAWS will continue to work with local
authorities to enforce the new restrictions. "However, the restrictions may be so prohibitive (cost or maintenance) so there is a possibility that they will not reopen. We hope this is the case."

Wills also noted the Board has given Dogwood Kennels 120 days to comply with these and the other requirements set by the Planning Commission. The Board allowed the puppy mill to continue operating during that time. Wills is investigating if it is legal to allow a puppy mill that has not been operating legally and has been found in violation of state law, to be allowed to operate for so long without complying with the conditional use permit requirements. Wills explained, "I am working on other angles to stop them from operating in the 120 day 'get into compliance' period, while they are in violation of several state code sections."

Comments

Posted April 23, 2009, 9:11PM by charliem

Registry is a huge cash cow to the AKC. Tens of millions of dollars. Then there are the 'Not Ready For Prime Time' 'registries, CKC, et al, for those who don't even meet the AKC's lax standards. As a breed rescue volunteer, I tear up the 'papers' and leave them in the shelter's trash can. There are responsible breeders. They show, they support rescue, are very knowledgeable about their breed, and their sale of 'pet quality' puppies doesn't come close to covering the testing and litter costs associated with breed fancier programs. In this trying economy, the IRS and state tax officials should also go after BYBs and others in it for the money for tax evasion. That's how they stopped Al Capone.

Posted April 26, 2008, 9:51AM by Churadogs

How many of the dogs turned out by this particular puppy mill had AKC "papers" on them? Why is the/does the AKC put papers on puppy mill dogs? What does that "paper" mean? Several years ago, on ABC World News Tonight, a former AKC investigator estimated that the AKC stud registry was 50% no good. If that's the case, just what is the AKC selling (using the US mails to do it) when they sell those AKC registry "papers." Do people buying puppies at pet stores think that the AKC paper gives more value to that dog? Why?

These are just some of the questions Best Friends needs to be asking. And especially asking of the US Postal Service Fraud divisiion.