Hi! I apologize for necro-ing an old thread but I had a reason. I joined this forum for two reasons: to respond to this thread and to enjoy the unadulterated pleasure of chatting with Yorkie people. The best dog I ever had was my Tank...who lived up to his name and died 3 months short of his 20th birthday. (Please, don't get me started on "Tank stories"; I'll never shut up!)
Returning to this thread -
I knew Pat Walters from 1965 until around 1968. At the time, I was young and naive but I'm pretty quick to learn and I went from admiring a "respected breeder" to being horrified at her practices in three years. I completely severed contact with her and never saw her again.
I'm writing because the newspaper articles all seemed to act as if this latest case was a one-off or the product of a bad economy. Nonsense! While it's true that Pat kept her kennels cleaner in the 60's than described (she had a wealthy partner who paid for kennel help), her breeding practices (Chihuahuas, then) were horrific and when I learned about them I turned her in to AKC. I even spoke to the local AKC rep in person, for hours! Nothing was done.
Over the years, Pat was cited for multiple health and dog abuse violations, none of which resulted in more than a fine. This isn't anything new for her.
I only stumbled across this case by accident on Google but I think that all of us, those who truly care about dogs, must try to get the animal abuse laws changed in our respective cities, counties and states. In most cases, the most horrific abuse is a misdemeanor. Usually it's ignored, pled down, or results in a small fine. In this case, Pat's bail was listed at $42,000 which should have cost her $4,200 from a bondsman but it ended up being reduced to $1,000. This means she could pay it with a hundred dollar bill and walk away.
Pat was a collector in the '60's and she's a collector now. If she still lives, I'd bet serious money those 7 "spayed and neutered" pets have magically reproduced and she's living knee-deep in dog poo once more.
Sorry to sound like a crusader...I'm not. I'm just getting really tired of people acting as if a tiny little Yorkie can only feel tiny little pain and "so what".