Owner of puppy mill will turn over dogs

[KatzNK9]

OMG ... over 1,100 puppies. I can't even believe they give licenses to people to have 500 dogs (what is wrong with licensing laws? are they nuts?). At least they're putting one such puppy mill out of business.

Owner of puppy mill will turn over dogs (http://www.wavy.com/Global/story.asp?S=7329809)

The owner of what is believed to be 1 of the largest of Virginia's unlicensed commercial dog breeders is expected to surrender his dogs to Carroll County this morning.

The owner, Junior Horton, surrendered most of his dogs earlier.

Carroll County officials have summoned help from state emergency officials and the Red Cross to help care for the more than 1,100 puppies.

Animal control officers and a veterinarian visited Horton's Pups in Hillsville on Thursday and found 1,080 puppies. That number swelled with births over the weekend.

Horton says he had kennel licenses for around 500 dogs but did not have one for all of them because many were very young puppies.


Continuation of article on link.

[melissa2007]

OMG
im just glad they were rescued
but really who licences 500 dogs

[PomeranianCrazy]

OMG thats alot of dogs! I'm glad there we rescused and hope they all great good homes.

[Sabledog]

one of the best kennels in virginia????? IS HE MAD?!?!?!?!?!?!? i hope they ban him from ever being able to breed or own dogs again!!! there is NO WAY one person can handle THAT many animals and say they are well taken care of, its just disgusting, if i was closer i would foster some in a heart beat!!!! this is awful!

[melissa2007]

Obvously this person shouldn't own a dog, or at least an unaultered one

[happysaz133]

OMG how on earth can any one person care for that many dogs at one time? Imagine how much money he will be getting from selling those? Glad he's not getting to keep them, although how many will they actually be able to find homes for?

[KatzNK9]

OMG how on earth can any one person care for that many dogs at one time? Imagine how much money he will be getting from selling those? Glad he's not getting to keep them, although how many will they actually be able to find homes for?

I can't see how any 100 people could properly care for that many dogs.:mad: I do hope they're able to find homes for so many dogs & puppies. It seems an insurmountable task (and HUGE expense).

[KatzNK9]

Another article about the seizure of these animals:

Carroll ‘puppy mill' to surrender nearly 1,000 dogs (http://www.mtairynews.com/articles/2007/11/08/news/local_news/local01.txt)

Junior Horton, owner of Horton's Pups in Hillsville, has agreed to surrender close to 1,000 animals to authorities after his commercial dog breeding business was named as one of the largest puppy mills in Virginia after an investigation by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

On Thursday, Carroll County Animal Control Authorities were contacted by Virginia Partnership for Animal Welfare and Support (VA PAWS) concerning a “puppy mill” in Hillsville. According to a report on the Humane Society of the United State's Web site, commercial dog breeders in Virginia number close to 1,000.


Junior Horton's father, Lanzie Horton, said local officials should have given his son time to get rid of the animals. Junior Horton said he would have been willing to do that, adding he could have found the animals good homes within a couple of weeks.

“I think I should get money out of it because they are my dogs. I don't think they belong to the Humane Society. I am going to lose between $400,000 to $500,000 because I have some real good dogs that we have handpicked out to breed. Some of them pay $1,000 apiece,” Junior Horton said. “I could have sold every one of them in two or three weeks if they gave me that option, but they didn't. They just wanted to seize them and take them. They wanted to gain the profit. They basically stole them from me. I would rather be a puppy miller than a dog napper.”

Horton also claims the investigation of his dog kennels was videotaped illegally. Shain countered, saying the HSUS is very careful about making sure it complies with the law in any investigative effort it performs. Horton said he has four employees that help him with the business. He said he has four buildings that house the dog kennels.

Timmy Bullion said he was concerned because he was told that officials would euthanize “about 200 healthy animals.”

“That's not right,” Bullion said. “We are going to keep the 100 they said we can keep. We are going to keep Yorkie puppies and breed them.”



Complete article on link.

[Monkey]

Im a bit surprised that they could go in and seize them without a charge. Is that legal? or is puppymills period forbidden?

I feel that there is information lacking somewhere...

[KatzNK9]

He apparently had a license for 500 dogs. Being in default of his licensing might be the reason they were able to shut him down. Conditions of the animals may have also given them the right to take them.

[KatzNK9]

1,000 dogs up for adoption (http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news/policebeat.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2007-11-09-0152.html)

Animal-welfare groups from along the East Coast descended on Hillsville yesterday to help find homes for roughly 1,000 dogs and puppies taken from one of the state's largest "puppy mills."

The Humane Society of the United States, assisted by Carroll County authorities, volunteers and animal-control officers from surrounding counties, worked throughout the day to truck dogs from Horton's Pups to a building more than a mile away.

There, veterinarians examined the dogs and vaccinated them. The animals were then turned over to dog-adoption agencies whose representatives had driven vans to Hillsville from as far as New York and Florida.


County officials persuaded Horton to surrender the dogs last week after learning that his operation was in violation of its permit, which allows it to keep 500 dogs. Officials counted in excess of 1,000 when they visited the site -- 650 breeding females, 70 males and more than 300 puppies.


Horton said he could have sold all the dogs within several weeks if authorities had given him a chance. He said the dogs he surrendered could have brought $4,000 to $5,000. Even though Horton is giving up 1,000 dogs, he has negotiated with the county to keep more than 100.

[lovingpaws]

Horton said he could have sold all the dogs within several weeks if authorities had given him a chance. He said the dogs he surrendered could have brought $4,000 to $5,000. Even though Horton is giving up 1,000 dogs, he has negotiated with the county to keep more than 100.


Keep more than 100.:eek: :mad: Whoever allowed this in that county is plain stupid. He'll just build it back up again. And what no charges for being in violation. :swearing: . :madsmiley: .