By Chris Hayes FOX2now.com
6:29 PM CDT, July 13, 2010
Related links
USDA Inspection Report From Mettoville Kennels
Document Disputing The Phrase "Puppy Mill"
Read Chris Hayes' Blog
MEXICO, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com) - Do you think you could take care of 100 dogs by yourself? Bonnie and Herman Schindler apparently think so. When we tried to visit their breeding facility, the Schindlers pulled up -- then struck our camera with their car. Herman Schindler said, "Get out of here." Investigator Chris Hayes said, "We're on public easement right now. You can't run over a camera." Schindler pointed out the window saying "This is mine." Hayes contended. "This is a county road right here." Both Schindlers shouted. "This is private property."
The Schindlers were warning us to stay away from their puppy breeding ground. A former employee described it as a puppymill. The former worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, said, "If you didn't walk out of there with a tear in your eye you're not a human."
A Federal inspection documents what the former worker told us, but you won't hear a hint about it at the St. Peters pet store where the puppies are sold.
Sign Up For Daily Newsletters From FOX 2
Former customer Kelly Marcellino said, "I did not want a puppy ha ha."
Marcellino said a sign for "puppies" caught her teenage daughter's eye. Soon after visiting the Puppy Expo near Mid Rivers Mall, they walked out with Jeffrey. "He's not the warm fuzzy cuddly dog we thought we were getting." Marcellino showed us her finger she said Jeffrey bit before we arrived, "He got me good."
She says Jeffrey's so aggressive that she spent more than $1,000 dollars in behavioral training. Marcellino asked, "Does that make his temperament what it is today because he wasn't cuddled and loved as a baby?
She says she got the feeling he was cuddled and loved when she visited Puppy Expo. She explained how owner Bonnie Schindler gave her personal service -- "Grandmotherly, talking about her baby and kissed him goodbye. You wouldn't think they would be puppy millers."
After further research, she now knows about the USDA investigation. A veterinarian and medical officer inspector documented 14 pages about the conditions. They noted dogs with "matted hair" covered in "fecal material" -- sometimes up to 75% of their bodies. Inspectors noted "deep mud and water" with a "strong fecal odor." Many notations document "repeat offenses." We went to Mexico, Missouri to see if we could see it for ourselves. Signs on County road leading to the breeders long driveway read "Stop. Disease free control area "No trespassing, violators will be prosecuted." We wanted to know what it looks like to have 10 employees caring for a thousand dogs. That's documented in the recent USDA report and it means each employee cares for 100 dogs every day."
As we were filming from County Road 841, Herman and Bonnie Schindler drove up. It's not the conversation we expected to have with an elderly couple.
I leaned toward the passenger window and said, "We're with Fox2 in St. Louis, can we come in and take a look? Herman Schindler turned his front wheel axle toward our camera. When he hit it, I said, "I wouldn't... that's a big mistake. Schindler said, "Get out of here." Hayes "We're on public easement right now. You can't run over a camera." Schindler, "This is mine." Hayes, "This is a County Road right here." Schindler "This is private property."
A former employee explains why they didn't want us to see inside the animal warehouses. The anonymous former employee described "dogs stacked on top of dogs. The smell alone would make you sick."
Bottom line -- the former worker told us they did not have enough help and added, "I knew if I didn't get out of there, there was going to be problems and I don't mean just law problems. I was probably going to whoop somebody."
Every week, new puppies are stacked inside a van and driven two hours into St. Peters. We watched as the Schindlers and another worker backed up to the Puppy Expo and unloaded. We could see the cages through the front van window and a worker who unloaded the pups by the armful. He carried them inside for display. We counted more than 30 puppies unloaded -- two at a time -- sometimes three at a time. Around front, a sign on the door warns 'no cameras.' The Schindlers called Police when they saw us on the street.
Barbara Schmitz, with the U.S. Humane Society said "These anemic laws allow the kinds of place we're talking about to flourish." Schmitz is is working on getting a November ballot initiative that would limit breeders to 50 dogs. She added, "We would be creating a crime of puppy mill cruelty." It would also give inspectors more power to act. The USDA inspection on the Schindlers noted many offenses as "repeat offenses." Yet they remain in business with no apparent penalty.
Schmitz said, "It's almost up to the individual breeder to decide how good or poor care they're going to give those breeding dogs."
It's a side of puppy sales Marcellino never saw until researching her own experience. Now she's decided the next pet she gets, will come from a rescue.
Go to the channel 2 website to see the video of the story that run last night and please take a minute and add a comment to the article.
Pet Store Puppies Come From Puppy Mills
No comments:
Post a Comment