Adoptions for five St. Paul seizure case dogs

April 20, 2009

The five dogs that the Ramsey County District judge determined should be placed with the Animal Humane Society were adopted within one day of being placed in AHS’s Adoption Center.

The five dogs were part of an investigation involving 14 dogs that were seized from a St. Paul residence under a warrant by the City of St. Paul and St. Paul Animal Control (SPAC) on March 25.  Issues associated with the seizure included: the individual’s lack of a permit to house such a large number of animals, lack of licensing to sell animals and the living conditions of the animals.  Animal Humane Society was called to assist and eleven of the dogs were cared for at the Animal Humane Society’s Golden Valley location.  Three were temporarily placed with St. Paul Animal Control.

On April 10 Ramsey County Chief Justice Johnson ruled on the disposition of the dogs.  He directed that five dogs be placed with AHS, two with Second Chance rescue, two with Second Hands rescue, three with Home for Life rescue, one to be returned to the owner who was under investigation, and one dog to be placed with a friend of the owner.

The St. Paul City Attorney's Office has yet to file charges against the individual in this case.  "We're hopeful they will be," says AHS Humane Investigator Wade Hanson. " We want to be able to present the evidence in this case—veterinary reports, third-party reports, and videotape of the way these poor animals were living.  And, we want to prevent other animals from being in a situation we're concerned may be neglectful.  In the meantime, we’re happy that the five animals placed with the Animal Humane Society have found new homes so quickly.”

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