(It is an active and ongoing investigation so I cannot comment further about the case.)
I will share that at nightfall donations were still rolling in. As the dogs were cleaned and given food and water, as one worker commented "their personalities began to pop."
Thank you for all of the support and donations of supplies, money and volunteer time. Days like today are hard but seeing the public pitch in makes me proud of my county.
32 comments:
the county and others pitched in on this one.
they also pitched in the massive search for the girl sadly murdered at Christmas a while back.
Delmar is fundraising and pitching in to replenish stolen PTA money.
The world isn't all bad.
This is a monumental task for the states attorney's office. Not only is each dog a victim so to speak but evidence. Both state and county laws are involved. There's the potential for 100's of counts per charge filed.
It is going to be several months before some of these dogs can be adopted.
All 400 of those dogs will have to be fixed that is going to take a long time. If they adopt them without having them fixed someone else could start the ball rolling again. I hope the local vets step up and offer to help spay and neuter them so it wont take so long. The fast they can find homes the better. They have been in cages to long.
2:03 and what does that solve? Get the pitchforks and rifles out. You do not even know the story behind all this, but have already decided their fate via social media.
Hate to tell ya but they won't being going away for life. Animal laws are lax and as sad as this story is, there won't be the electric chair.
Charging them solves nothing. If you had half a brain you would be asking that the previous family member of the board, who was running the Humane Society also be charged with animal cruelty since he neglected or refused to act on YEARS of complaints.
Why aren't you chasing him down????????
I stopped by The Humane Society this morning to take a $50.00 check. It gave me chills to see all of the donations. So proud of the great people that have done so.
I pray each one of those dogs receives a forever home, they deserve nothing less because of what they have lived through. Please make sure they get the best.
Google this
Mike Vick to come to S.U
People need to understand that when they purchase a 'pure bred' dog they are contributing to the horrible puppy mill atrocity exists in our society.
3:00 FYI it is NOT the humane society who investigates animal complaints it is the job of the county's animal control agency so before making uninformed comments it would behoove you to know what you are talking about.
And where may I ask did I say they would be going away for life? I will answer for you since you lack besides other qualities reading comprehension-NO WHERE.
Animal laws aren't lax in MD. While not the strictest in the country (VA and PA win that award) they are still pretty strict and most are felonies now.
This isn't a Who Done It, Einstein. It's clear who is responsible and the pictures of the one dog speaks for itself and if you don't think so don't bother responding back to me because you are beneath me and not worthy of a second more of my time. Do you understand.
As far as charging them yes it does solve something. First of all they committed a crime and just like anyone else must pay their debt to society. Secondly this could possibly act as a deterrent for anyone else who is an unscrupulous breeder.
I disagree 4:23. Sometime pure breeds esp working dogs are needed. The live stock guardian breeds for instance. Dogs such as Great Pyrenees, Anatolian Shepherds etc do a great service for farmers and ranchers. Not all breeds are going to lay docile while a chicken or a calf climbs all over it like a LSG breed will. It's an inherent trait they possess and since becoming illegal to kill predators such as wolves the dogs chase them off if they dare come around with the dog there to begin with. I know of one case where charges were filed because a farmer mistakenly shot a young eagle thinking it was a hawk getting his chickens It's nearly impossible to tell the difference between a yearling eagle and a hawk. The charges were dropped and the farmer solved the problem by getting a LSG dog.
4:25 who the flip do you think is the COUNTY's animal control agency????? The WICOMICO COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY. Who does the sheriff's office send out?? The WICOMICO COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY.
A deterrent?? "I do not think I will do this cuz the animal police will come and get me", say NO ONE EVER
All you have to provide is water, food, shelter to outside dogs. Strict?
Tie your dog up and leave it on a chain 24/7, 365 - strict?
Like shooting fish in a barrel I tell ya.
4:25 ignoramous, boy those laws already in place most certainly deterred this situation. I am sure all those other unscrupulous breeders are scurrying around cleaning their acts up just because of this. They be running scared now.
I totally agree 3.00 pm!
Now he has another overpaid local govt job with a county paid I PHONE on his side as big as 3 ring binder.
I think thats a status figure now the size of your phone.
Extract Gordy, Littleton and Molnar from the situation and the problems will diminish.
The news just reported that the previous director of the HSWC went to the site and said, nothing to see here.. it's all good and that neighbors had been complaining for years that there were issues.
Looks like 3PM has a point, why isn't he being charged with dereliction of duties and putting all those animals in harms way?
Made a donation yesterday and heading back to dollar general tomorrow for more stuff for the dogs. Makes you feel good when you help. And these little guys and gals need all the help they can get.
3:00 pm --You could have lodged a complaint with the State's Attorney if you saw that nothing was being done and animals were being abused. It's sort of on you, too. You.
I totally agree. Specific breeds have specific temperaments and abilities for tasks. They were selected for those qualities and bred to have and pass them on. To think that all dogs are alike and can be trained to do anything is ludicrous.
Nope. The humane society is an independent 501c(3) non-profit organization. It is funded by the county, the city, grants and donations. It has no judicial or investigatory status, nor does it have the staff to do it. The county has two animal control officers. They are the investigators of animal complaints. The humane society can report abuses to the animal control officers, but nothing more.
5:54 You are wrong. The Humane Society is a shelter that is it that is all. They have no power to investigate anything. Refer to the Wicomico county code. The agency tasked with investigating animal complaints is the Wicomico County Animal Control a completely different entity than the Humane Society. The shelter has a contract w/the county (and the city of Sby) to house strays or whatever they may pick up but they have absolutely ZERO power to investigate any complaints.
Prosecuting does act as a deterrent. Lancaster Co's many Amish puppy mills and others closed up in record numbers when they saw the law coming down fast and hard on others. They were calling breed specific rescues nationwide to come and get the dogs.
8:14 wrong. Then why did the previous director do an investigation based on complaints made to them? Give it up. You have no clue, you really don't. All I am hearing is bla bla bla.
8:14 here is a little factoid for you.
David Fitzgerald. the old Director of HSWC WAS animal control.
Because the county has not updated its website it is still listed as such:
http://www.wicomicocounty.org/124/Animal-Control
David A. Fitzgerald
Director
Animal Control
5130 Citation Drive
Salisbury, MD 21804
Ph: 410-749-1070
Fx: 410-543-0756
Office Hours: Mon - Fri 8:00am to 4:00pm
You are a clueless ignorant jerk who continues to spew useless and false information.
They have 2 entities RUN BY THE SAME PEOPLE IN THE SAME BUILDING.
By splitting it into 2 entities they got double the money.
So in your own words back to you: don't bother responding back to me because you are beneath me and not worthy of a second more of my time.
8:14 prosecuting is not a deterrent.
One prime example would be drug dealing and prosecuting does nothing to deter them.
Unless there is a constant pressure to change the status quo, prosecuting one offender does nothing.
I dropped off a $100 check today to help out with the Vet bills. It was a pretty cool feeling. I recommend all of you with jobs to follow, as it is a simple tax deduction and sorely needed by these dogs!
If you ever wanted to go to a place just to put yourself among a whole lot of wonderful, happy, giving people, just go there this week. Watching what's going on there soothes the soul.
Actually it appears that David Fitzgerald and WCHS have a sweet deal going on where David, whos family owns the non profit HS, is working as Director of Animal Control in the same building.
So they pretty much control the money and politics of all things animals in the county.
So back to 3pm's comment.
Yea you are technically correct.
David and family who technically control both the HS and Animal Control, turned a blind eye to this situation for years.
As far as the other idiot commenter who is playing word games and using smoke screens the fact is that David and his family relationship whether thru board association or employment are one and the same as far as Animal control and humane society goes.
It is all connected and to say it is not is just a game.
doesn't surprise me fitzgerald dropped the ball. he's a goofy sob. when he opens his mouth he can't strike anyone as being even of an average iq level.
"David and family who technically control both the HS and Animal Control, turned a blind eye to this situation for years"
Screw them too. May they rot in hell. In the meantime I hope they are real proud. They are no better then the abusers themselves.
The people responsible for this puppy mill need to be indicted. It's ridiculous they were arrested when the pups were taken away. They should have been handcuffed and take to county to wait out further action, not be allowed to possibly run so they can go set up shop somewhere else.
Don't blame purebred dogs. Many breeders are responsible. Our family has had three purebred dogs. All were from responsible breeders who we searched out through AKC and then they interviewed us to see if we would be responsible owners. Unfortunately there are low class breeders out there.
Nothing says low class like Eden. Their claim to fame is at least we are not in Somerset county.
They are all happily spayed and neutered, I presume?
A few years ago a puppy mill bill was introduced in MD. It did not pass. Currently there are no states that completely ban them. Operators can still be charged under animal cruelty law if conditions are bad enough.
You can thank the lack of legislation on agriculture interests who are on the front lines blocking this much needed legislation every time it comes up.
Since Wicomico Co's Animal Control has turned out to be a bunch of useless twits, the Sheriff's Dept should consider something along the lines of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's MASH unit. This stands for Maricopa Co Sheriff's Office Safe Haven. Sheriff Joe created this specialized unit over 10 years ago and it is staffed with investigators who investigate crimes against animals.
Sheriff Joe's Animal Crimes Investigations Unit is constantly asked to consult with other law enforcement agencies throughout the nation which are seeking advice on how to properly conduct successful animal cruelty investigations. This unit is also asked to provide training to other agencies. The Animal Crimes Investigations Unit is proud to lead the way in this field and as such, has been the recipient of numerous accolades and awards.
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