Puppy Mill Dogs Get Medical Attention

Volunteer Veterinarians Battle The Clock To Evaluate Nearly 600 Dogs By Tomorrow

By: Shana Franklin

Volunteer veterinarians today began thoroughly examining and triaging nearly 600 animals seized yesterday from Klassie Kennels in Kaufman County. Volunteer Rosemary Cloud says about a dog with patches of hair loss, "Just look. Look at these eyes. Look at this skin. It needs a doctor."

Cloud came from McKinney to help the effort at a temporary shelter in an undisclosed location. Vets are in a race against time, trying to get all the animals seen and on medication by tomorrow afternoon. Veterinarian, James O'Bryan says, "About all of them have some sort of problem that needs to be treated or requires veterinary attention. Some more severe."

Scotlund Haisley is with the Humane Society of the United States. He showed us a female dog with green discharge coming out of her eyes, saying, she has already improved in one day of getting good care. "Yesterday, her eyes were nearly sealed shut due to the eye infection that was going on."

Haisley says that dog is one of the many dogs found malnourished, mistreated and kept in deplorable conditions at Klassie Kennels on FM 90 in Prairieville. Owner James Boyd is "dumbfounded." That's how he describes having his animals taken by authorities. When I asked him if he would consider these animals well cared for, he answered, "Yes."

Boyd says the 500 plus dogs, some of which were kept in a cement-floored, unconditioned building he showed us, were fed and given water at least once a day. He says all but pregnant dogs and new mothers had indoor outdoor access and none of the adult dogs he knows of are sick. Boyd says his wife will have the final say, but they don't plan to voluntarily surrender the dogs at a hearing Friday. James Boyd says about the dogs, "They're part of our family. You wouldn't not want your kids back and something like that. And that's the way they are."..." More & video

600 Dogs & Cats Seized in Puppy Mill Raid

The Humane Society of the U.S. is Caring for the Animals: Some Critically Sick

Shana Franklin

One by one, workers with the Humane Society of the United States carried sick and malnourished dogs to safety inside an undisclosed location. They are some of the 550 to 600 animals being confiscated from Klassie Kennel in Kaufman County. It's what investigators call a large-scale puppy mill. They say they were pulled from among the worst conditions they've seen.

The Humane Society's Senior Director of Emergency Services Scotlund Haisley said, "these breeding mothers live their entire lives in these cages. Their job is to produce puppies. They are not considered pets. These are factory production machines, so their life is in a cage just to produce litter after litter after litter. We saw mothers in their teens. These mothers are so tired and so worn out. Many of these mothers are emaciated having to produce all of this milk for these puppies."

Investigators says the animals are mostly dogs and about a dozen cats. They say they were kept in five buildings on a few acres. There were several dogs to a cage found covered in feces and urine. Investigators say all of them had medical conditions, some serious. Most were malnourished.

"We've got some newborn animals that aren't doing too well," Haisley said..." More & video