Puppy Mill in northern MN

[JohnnieWalker]

Please check out this petition and help shut down a local puppy mill. I'm surprised how few Minnesotans have signed this so far, so I'm putting this out there for people to know. There will be a public hearing on Sep.22 at 1pm at the Fergus Falls court house for anybody who's interested or lives nearby. I was trying to post this on the front page of YT but couldn't. There is plenty of information on Kathy Jo Bauck and her kennel "Pick of the litter" on the internet, not any of it good though. It makes me sick to know that people like her are virtually in my back yard and getting away with animal cruelty, etc. The laws need to be changed that's the ONLY way to shut down puppy mills. Please help!
Puppy Mill Busted in Central Minn., Owner Charged - The Petition Site

[dogbert]

I just saw this, the court date has passed. Do you know how it went?

[JohnnieWalker]

Originally Posted by dogbert

I just saw this, the court date has passed. Do you know how it went?

Here is a link to the local news story:
[url=http://www.in-forum.com/News/articles/215761

I can't believe the USDA lets her keep a breeder's license after all this. Who cares how the evidence was dug up? Matter of fact is she is STILL practising veterinary medicine without a license, even on probation. She's got her slap on the wrist and it didn't do any good. When is a judge or the court system going to actually punish her? Boo-hoo, her business is hurting because of the pending court case! I hope she will NEVER sell another puppy to anybody! Sorry, I'm just so mad that this kind of stuff is going on in my own backyard!

[JohnnieWalker]

FERGUS FALLS, Minn. – If Zenas Baer has his way, animal abuse charges pending against a New York Mills, Minn., dog breeder will go away.

“The charges are based on self-serving information,” the defense attorney said Monday as he left a hearing in Otter Tail County District Court for Kathy Bauck.

Bauck faces five counts of cruelty to animals, two counts of torture and two counts of practicing veterinary medicine without a license.

The charges stem from claims made by an animal welfare advocate who, among other things, told authorities he saw Bauck pull the leg off a puppy during a difficult birthing when he worked at Bauck’s kennel, Pick of the Litter, earlier this year.

Baer, who has described the episode as an attempt to save the life of a puppy that was otherwise certain to die, has filed papers asking that all charges be dismissed.


Kathy Jo Bauck
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Dave Olson Archive
Bauck, who is a licensed breeder with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was found to be in noncompliance with her license after USDA inspections in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, according to records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.

In the pending court case, Jason Smith, a member of the Companion Animal Protection Society, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit, went to the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Department in May, according to a court complaint.

Smith claimed Bauck was mistreating animals, including submerging dogs in a tub filled with an insecticide called Prolate/Lintox, which according to the complaint is supposed to be used on cattle and swine.

“Animals are not to be submerged in this kind of solution. The young and the immune-suppressed are more likely to get toxic exposure,” the complaint states.

Baer told Judge Wally Senyk the charges are not proper and are causing Bauck’s business, which she has operated for more than 20 years, great hardship because potential buyers will not do business with her while the case is pending.

In recent years, the kennel purchased between 800 and 1,000 animals annually and sold between 3,000 and 4,000 animals a year, according to USDA documents.

Baer said if the Otter Tail County charges are not dismissed, he wants the judge to suppress any evidence acquired through “law enforcement using Smith as a clandestine undercover officer,” including video Smith shot at the kennel.

Senyk is expected to rule on the requests on Oct. 9.

Also at issue is a case from earlier this year when Bauck entered a guilty plea to one count of practicing veterinary medicine without a license.

In that case, Bauck was sentenced to 120 days in jail with 110 days stayed on condition she have no similar violations. Prosecutors have asked the court to impose the remaining jail time.




Readers can reach Forum reporter Dave Olson at (701) 241-5555

[dogbert]

UPDATE -

" The verdict came in today on Kathy Bauck, owner of Pick of the Litter Kennel, or I should say previous owner because she transferred ownership to her husband and daughter and is listed only as an employee now. She was acquitted on the two most serious charges, two felony animal abuse charges but she was convicted of the four misdemeanor charges, one animal cruelty and three counts of torture."

Go to this link for a full story.
The Verdict on Kathy Bauck - MN Puppy Miller | For the Love of the Dog

Mixed Verdict For Breeder Accused Of Animal Abuse - wcco.com

[dogbert]

1. ASPCA Experts Help Secure Puppy Mill Conviction


This past March, Dr. Melinda Merck, ASPCA Senior Director of Veterinary Forensics, helped secure an animal cruelty conviction by testifying in the trial of Kathy Bauck, operator of Pick of the Litter Kennels. The New York Mills, MN, breeder sells animals to pet stores and online—and has at times housed more than 1,300 dogs of at least 32 different breeds. Bauck was arrested in August 2008 and charged with several counts of felony animal cruelty, torture and practicing veterinary medicine without a license. On March 24, after a 4½-day trial and six hours of deliberation, a jury cleared Bauck of felony charges but found her guilty of four misdemeanors (one count of animal cruelty and three counts of torture).

In early 2008, a freelance animal cruelty investigator, Jason Smith, began working at Pick of the Litter to gather evidence against Bauck. Smith submitted testimony and videos of alleged abuse to Otter Tail County sheriff’s detectives last May. The videos included footage of injured, ill and emaciated dogs, as well as of Bauck dunking dogs in vats of insecticide. “The veterinarian working with the prosecution contacted me about one month before the trial started,” recalls Dr. Merck. “I was asked by the prosecutor to review all the video and case files and provide expert opinion.”

With a history of complaints and citations against her—including a 2006 cease-and-desist order from the Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine for performing surgery on animals without a veterinary license—Bauck is well known to ASPCA investigators. “Kathy Bauck has been a chronic problem,” states Bob Baker, ASPCA Anti-Cruelty Initiatives Investigator. “I visited her facility in 1998 and reported her to the USDA for violations of the Animal Welfare Act—but as far as I know, there was no follow-up on the part of USDA.”

At her sentencing hearing last Friday, May 1, Bauck was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 20 days to be served right away. The other 70 days were “stayed,” meaning they will be served only if she violates her probation. The judge also sentenced Bauck to 80 hours of community service and ruled that if she plans to continue participating in operating the kennel, she must allow unscheduled inspections—and that inspectors must be allowed entry into ALL areas.

[cncproscott]

Did she also sell under pets on wheels on the internet?

[spiritwings1202]

It sickens me to hear of this woman and her darn mill. I think when they catch a puppy mill owner that they should be treated in the same way that they treated these poor dogs!
It just breaks my hear!!
I own a puppy mill dog, bc my daughter bought her at a pet store and we were no in tuned to it. It breaks my heart to think that my Daisy's life started out that way.

[dogbert]

Originally Posted by cncproscott

Did she also sell under pets on wheels on the internet?

I am not sure I can try to find out. What I do know is in the last few weeks Wisconsin passed harsher laws for puppy mills. That's the good news, the bad news is that means more mills will open in Minnesota now as they move across the state line.

[JohnnieWalker]

Originally Posted by spiritwings1202

It sickens me to hear of this woman and her darn mill. I think when they catch a puppy mill owner that they should be treated in the same way that they treated these poor dogs!
It just breaks my hear!!
I own a puppy mill dog, bc my daughter bought her at a pet store and we were no in tuned to it. It breaks my heart to think that my Daisy's life started out that way.

Here's a link to one of the latest updates in the case "Bauck Puppy Mill in MN
USDA Shuts Down Puppy Mill - Team 5 Investigates News Story - WCVB Boston
Hope, this link works.
It's a step in the right direction...

[cncproscott]

I can not beleive the let her keep any dogs let alone all of them! I hope more people hear about her because she will still be able to sell online, THATS HOW I FOUND THIS DUMB _SS!

[dogbert]

Originally Posted by JohnnieWalker

Here's a link to one of the latest updates in the case "Bauck Puppy Mill in MN
USDA Shuts Down Puppy Mill - Team 5 Investigates News Story - WCVB Boston
Hope, this link works.
It's a step in the right direction...

Thanks, sadly she did sell "puppies On Wheels". I was trying to find a post I made awhile back that listed several names and places she sold to.

[dogbert]

Originally Posted by cncproscott

I can not beleive the let her keep any dogs let alone all of them! I hope more people hear about her because she will still be able to sell online, THATS HOW I FOUND THIS DUMB _SS!

Websites: puppysonwheels.com and potlpuppys.info (both removed); other websites unknown but possible. Online sales also through: Chicago.kiji.com, Hoobly.com, Puppyfind.com, Mypetlisting.com

I think she an still sell to pet stores too.