Tribune Democrat - St. Bernards

 These are the facts regarding an article that appeared in The Tribune Democrat on August 4th concerning St. Bernards located on a property in Lower Yoder Township and reportedly neglected by their owner:

On the morning of Friday July 31st we received two phone messages, one from the state of Texas and the other from the state of New Hampshire asking if we had seen a video on You Tube posted by Tamara Thayne (formerly Tammy Grimes) which showed two St. Bernards in distress which were located in our area. We told them that we hadn’t, but would look into it. Upon viewing the video, we contacted the West Hills police who had been mentioned on the video as the entity which Ms. Thayne had contacted previously concerning the St. Bernards.The police told us that they had spoken with Ms Thayne and also determined who owned the dogs. They evidently also informed Ms. Thayne that she was trespassing on the property. We were not contacted in the weeks prior to July 31st that Ms. Thayne was aware of the alleged problem with these dogs nor were we contacted by any other person who was aware of the problem, nor were we called by the police concerning this issue on the night they investigated. When we talked to them on Friday the 31st the police informed us that the property was posted no trespassing but we never-the-less dispatched our Humane Officer to the site that same day. When our officer arrived at the property he determined that there were no longer any dogs on the property. Had Ms. Thayne or the person who reported it to her contacted us prior to the dogs being removed, our Officer at that point would have had the benefit of viewing the dog’s condition, ordering a vet exam if necessary and conducting a thorough investigation. He made contact with the few neighbors that surround the secluded property and also was able to make contact with the owner of the dogs. We are aware that one of the St. Bernards, which previously had a stroke, was put down the night before and that the other dogs were moved to other locations. At this point the investigation is not closed and the Humane Officer is checking on the welfare of any other dogs which are in the owners care.

In the same article, Mr. Tom Hickey of Delaware County, who serves on the Pennsylvania Dog Law Advisory Board, chose to comment on the handling of the case. Pennsylvania Dog Law and Humane Law are entirely different and although Mr. Hickey may be well versed in dog law he is sorely misinformed concerning Humane Law. Mr. Hickey stated that the Humane Society of Cambria County gave responsibility for investigating the case to the West Hills Regional police. The fact is that we did not have the case to begin with as we were informed after the fact and not by the parties involved in the incident. Mr. Hickey also says that “by law” the nonprofit humane societies-not the dog warden nor the local or state police-are responsible for investigating claims of animal neglect and cruelty. He also states that “the society-not the police-is the agency empowered to get search warrants and investigate these types of cases.The fact is that code 5511 which is the anti-cruelty law is part of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code and it is the obligation of every police officer to enforce when cruelty is reported.State Dog Wardens, who work for the Bureau of Dog Law are also required under the new Dog Law, for which Mr. Hickey serves as an advisor, to take the Humane Police Officer training classes which are given each year. Mr. Hickey’s position that one part-time Humane Officer should take care of every humane issue in Cambria County as it is happening is ludicrous.The County is 693 square miles with a population at last census of 152,598 people. That’s a density of 222 people per square mile. The majority of the households own at least one animal and many house multiple animals. There are 32 Boroughs and 30 Municipalities in the County, most of those having their own police departments or they are served by the State Police. The police are able to respond more quickly in their own area and can at least assure that an animal is given immediate attention if need be. Our Humane Officer responds to each and every humane complaint received by our Humane Society and last year responded to a total of 232 complaints of neglect or abuse. Many of those investigations take many days to complete and at an average of 20 investigations per month he is already handling as much as he can in a month’s time. That is exactly why the law is written so that enforcement is also the obligation of other law enforcement entities. It is unfortunate that what Mr. Hickey may have accomplished by disseminating this misinformation may be that animals in distress may go without immediate help because citizens or police departments themselves may believe that they are not responsible for enforcing Humane Law.

 UPDATE 8/6/09

Today our Humane Officer, again, made contact with the owner of the St. Bernards to ascertain the welfare of the three dogs still in his possesion.  The pictures, taken by the officer, that accompany this update support the officer's observation that the three dogs are currently in good condition.   We will continue to seek information as to the welfare of the surviving St. Bernard who, according to the owner is in an "undisclosed" location.   The situation will continue to be monitored.

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