Puppy mill in NC

[shirlblack]

After 5 years a small puppy mill owner in Union County, NC has finally paid what the Judge ordered her to pay even after fleeing to CA. The woman was 77 when convicted, had earned 1.9 million in 10 years and just last week the Humane Society received 38,952.19 from her son in Riverside, CA. The lawyers who handled the case received 50,000 and they donated all of it to HS. This woman lived in the country, had a lot of acres and lived quite a way back off the main road. The conditions were horrible for the dogs. Weeds had grown up around their cages and they went days with very little food. I can't remember exactly how many dogs were rescued but a lot of them had to be put down. She never showed any remorse even after our local TV station confronted her in Riverside, 3 years ago. When you think of how much she earned in 10 years, add the interest to that after all this time and this amount is chicken feed to this family. Tonight when I saw this segment on the news they showed a little Yorkie, soaking wet and shivering from footage 5 years ago.

[robintaff]

Is she selling dogs in Riverside?

[shirlblack]

No, she didn't sell dogs in Riverside. That's where her son lived and she left NC thinking she would never have to pay up. Our reporter from the local news caught her backing out the drive 3 years ago and confronted her. She said then that she didn't think she should have to pay the fine. These people feel like dogs are livestock and it's all about how much money they can make.

[Nancy1999]

Oh, this makes me so sick, there is no doubt there is big money in dog breeding if done like this. They usually don't get the dogs vet care, it's cheaper to let them die. Dogs that are too old to breed are put to death. I don't know how people sleep at night, knowing that these dogs are suffering, do material possessions mean so much to them?

Please don't buy from a website alone, check out the breeder, check out the way the dogs live, we can all stop this if we stop rewarding these horrible people.

Anyone interesting in joining the social club, Yorkies against Puppymills, or YAP, check out the link in my signature, we would love for you all to become members!

[shirlblack]

This is what I found tonight in doing a search on this:

Puppy Mill Trial

There are actually two cases going on at the same time: a criminal case and a civil case filed by Union County's Humane Society.


MONROE, N.C. -- The trial will continue into another day for a Union County woman accused of running an illegal puppy mill out of her home.

Delores Perez is charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty.

The Union County Humane Society said that when it visited Delores Perez's home in April, it found row upon row of dog cages outside and in dimly lit rooms. Officials said the floors reeked of urine and were covered in feces and that there was little or no food or water for the dogs.


Delores Perez is charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty.
“Ocho" is just one of more than 250 dogs found at Perez's home. Foster owner Veronica Kelso said Ocho exhibits a personality that shows neglect.

“He's still terrified of almost everything in life, and it's going to be a long, hard road for him,” Kelso said.

Other foster owners say their dogs act just like Ocho and were in bad health when they were found.

Perez listened Monday as witnesses testified in court about the conditions they saw at her home.

Mitch Helms is an insurance adjuster who came by Perez’s house in 1993.

“I told her she probably had a black snake around there, and she said, ‘That's OK, it only eats one or two puppies a month,’” Helms said.


The Humane Society captured video of Perez's home and played it in court Monday.
The district attorney and the Humane Society want to prove that the conditions found in April were not a one-time occurrence, but a pattern of neglect and a reason Perez should not be allowed to own animals besides her personal pets.

Two sheriff's deputies also testified that they saw similar conditions when they visited Perez's home in 1993 based on Helms' complaint. They deputies said they did not take the animals but they did find drugs used for euthanasia.

It is illegal for anyone who is not a licensed veterinarian or a veterinarian assistant to administer those drugs in North Carolina. The deputies said they did not know if Perez administered them or not.

The district attorney and the Humane Society are trying their cases against Perez at the same time, even though one is for criminal charges and the other is a civil lawsuit. The law says the judge can do that to save the court's time.

[IndianaGirl]

And here I thought at 77 years of age, she be a sweet thing instead of a monster
I have NO compassion for anyone like this. I hope she gets prosecuted to the full extent, and has nightmares of what she has done.

[shirlblack]

Originally Posted by shirlblack

This is what I found tonight in doing a search on this:

Puppy Mill Trial

There are actually two cases going on at the same time: a criminal case and a civil case filed by Union County's Humane Society.


MONROE, N.C. -- The trial will continue into another da

I forgot to stipulate that this is a newspaper article from 5 years ago, during the trial. Sorry.

[Nancy1999]

It makes me angry that these cases take so long to be resolved, with lawyers fighting you can get the trial, and sentencing put off for so long. The story of Teresita Hughes that you see in my signatures is a similar story, and she also is in her 70's. It makes me wonder if she ever does get convicted will she actually have to spend any time in jail, or will the judge be lenient because of her age? I believe jail is where these people belong, for what they have done to these innocent dogs, it seems like a fitting punishment for their crimes.

[shirlblack]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

It makes me angry that these cases take so long to be resolved, with lawyers fighting you can get the trial, and sentencing put off for so long. The story of Teresita Hughes that you see in my signatures is a similar story, and she also is in her 70's. It makes me wonder if she ever does get convicted will she actually have to spend any time in jail, or will the judge be lenient because of her age? I believe jail is where these people belong, for what they have done to these innocent dogs, it seems like a fitting punishment for their crimes.

[Nancy1999]

Here's an update that Harleysmama, posted on the Yorkies Against Puppymills club (YAP). It contains a video, of some of the dogs now. She finally paid up because a lien was placed on the puppymill property.

"The judge eventually allowed the Humane Society to put a lien on Perez's old puppy mill property, and when it moved toward foreclosure, the Perez family agreed to settle and recently mailed the check." Family Of Woman Convicted Of Running Union County Puppy Mill Finally Pays Up - Special Reports News Story - WSOC Charlotte

Way to go judge, and thanks to Eyewitness News for pursuing this case.