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Case #11105 Rating: 2.6 out of 5
Sheep neglected, approximately 80 seized
Apex, NC (US)Incident Date: Monday, Mar 26, 2007
County: Wake
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 3 files available
Defendant/Suspect: David Watts
Case Updates: 7 update(s) available
Police and animal control officers removed between 75 and 80 sheep from a property on West Moore Street in downtown Apex on March 26, and officials said they may file charges against the property owner.
Thirty of the sheep were so neglected they had to be euthanized at the Wake County Care, Control and Adoption center, officials said.
"The police department as well as our office has been out there many times to investigate complaints of neglect. We had never found grounds until today for neglect charges," Michael Williams, Wake County animal control director, said.
The smell "was so bad you couldn't sit out there most of the time, and the flies were pretty bad," a neighbor said.
The remaining sheep were taken to the county animal shelter and to a local farm where they will nursed back to health.
Apex detectives said they are waiting until the health of the animals is fully accessed before pressing charges against the owner, whose name they did not disclose. Once the surviving sheep are healthy, they will be put up for adoption.
Case UpdatesDavid A. Watts, the suburban shepherd who lived with 77 sheep in and around his Apex, N.C., house, was found guilty Friday of a single count of cruelty to animals. Watts was also found guilty of a single count of allowing an animal to run at large.
Wake County District Court Judge Joyce Hamilton handed Watts a 45-day suspended sentence with three years of supervised probation during which he will be banned from owning any animals.
Hamilton also ordered Watts to undergo a mental health evaluation within 30 days and comply with any recommendations for treatment.
He will have to pay a $200 fine and make $2,201 in restitution to Wake County for the cost of transporting the sheep and the trash container the shelter rented to dispose of those euthanized because of poor health.
Hamilton threw out another 29 counts of animal cruelty against Watts. He originally was charged by Apex police with 30 counts - one for each sheep put to death.
When Watts surrendered the flock to officials in March, the case made national news and provided fodder for jokes by late-night comedians.
During a daylong trial, two vastly different images of Watts were presented by the prosecution and defense.
State witnesses described a house of horrors in downtown Apex, where animal skulls lined a wall and Watts failed to even bury the sheep that died from his negligence, leaving their carcasses to rot in backyard pens.
"I've never seen anyone who left the dead animals in with the live ones to decompose like that," said Kelli Ferris, a veterinarian at N.C. State University and animal cruelty investigator. "There was overwhelming neglect of the entire flock."
Some sheep were found with hooves so rotted their foot bones were exposed. Unable to walk, sheep were seen dragging themselves on their knees around pens littered with feces, plastic bags, children's shoes, boards with protruding rusty nails and artificial flowers blown in from a neighboring cemetery.
The majority also appeared to be malnourished, Ferris said.
"We had some very, very thin animals in this flock," Ferris testified.
The prosecution's case was bolstered by graphic photographs showing skinny sheep suffering from gruesome and painful infections to their hooves and genitalia.
Watts, who makes his living as a land speculator, showed no emotion as he reviewed the photographs of the suffering animals he called pets.
He took the stand in his own defense, claiming he had provided attentive and loving care to his flock day and night, especially those whom he suggested had become ill despite his exhaustive efforts.
He fed and watered the animals regularly, even giving milk bottles to lambs abandoned by their mothers, Watts testified. Only a handful were too thin, he said, the result of genetic deficiencies.
"The rest of the animals at that location were overweight," he testified. "They were fat."
Hamilton cited Watts' lack of contrition as she set his sentence.
"You still seem to be in a state of denial, sir," the judge said to him.
After the verdict was delivered, Watts and his attorneys left the courtroom without comment.
It was not immediately clear what Watts will do with the dogs, cows, llamas, chickens and scores of sheep he keeps on large tracts of land he owns in Chatham and Lee counties to comply with the judge's order.
Hamilton offered no explanation from the bench for why she dismissed the 29 cruelty counts, but expressed concern about whether the state had presented enough specific evidence to the condition of individual sheep to justify the separate charges.
"It's kind of tricky when sheep don't have names or numbers," Hamilton said as she left the courtroom.
Though Wake animal control officials expressed disappointment Watts wasn't found guilty on more counts, Assistant District Attorney Toby Lathan said he was satisfied with the sentence. "Our main concern was making sure this never happens again," Lathan said. | Source: Myrtle Beach Online - July 22, 2007
Update posted on Jul 22, 2007 - 6:06AM |
Apex leaders have given David Watts two more weeks to come up with a plan. Nearly 80 sheep were confiscated from Watts' house in March and his home was soon after condemned, but town leaders and neighbors believe he will fix the house.
Outside his home, the sheep pens are now gone and so is the smell from sheep feces.
"He's doing the minor repairs he can do on his own," Watts' attorney Josh Hansen said. "He comes from a building background, so it's not terribly hard for him to do the minor improvements."
Apex leaders have given David Watts two more weeks to come up with a plan. Nearly 80 sheep were confiscated from Watts' house in March and his house was condemned.
But major improvements are needed. Beyond the 77 sheep found in March, inspectors also found holes in the ceiling, broken windows, and no running water on the first floor.
Friday, Watts' attorney told town leaders he's working to fix the home but he just needs more time.
"He's committed to repairing it," Hansen added. "It's his home. He's going to repair it to a condition at least so he can live there and then in the future to help them get historical registration designation."
Town leaders gave Watts two more weeks to come up with detailed plans and contracts to repair his house.
"I'm extremely happy with what's been done thus far," Apex Town Manager Bruce Radford said. "We have to give Mr. Watts credit for the phenomenal amount of progress he's made in regard to cleaning up the property."
While there are some neighbors who say they are furious about Watts and what happened to his home, most neighbors say they just want to see him fix it up.
That's because his neighbors have an application with the state to add the neighborhood to the National Historic Registry.
"It's very important," neighbor Trish Creta said. "It's a contributing structure already to downtown area and so that's important to me."
Now it's up to Watts, but town leaders say they want the work done within 90 days. He also faces 30 animal cruelty charges. He's expected back in criminal court next month. | Source: News 14 Carolina - April 20, 2007
Update posted on Apr 21, 2007 - 3:33AM |
The town of Apex has condemned the home of a man after 77 sheep were found living inside.
David Watts is charged with 30 counts of animal cruelty after 30 of the sheep had to be euthanized.
Officials say Watts has old bones, carcasses and animal waste all over his property. Officials are ordering him to clean the property.
On Tuesday, the town council voted unanimously to ban all barnyard animals in the city limits as a result of what happened at Watts' property.
Town officials had let Watts keep the animals because they believed the sheep and chickens were pets. Last week, Wake County animal control officers seized Watts' sheep and charged him.
Watts' next-door neighbor asked why the council members waited years to ban livestock even though residents had complained about the smell. On Tuesday, Mayor Keith Weatherly apologized to Watts' neighbors. The council then enacted the livestock ban, effective June 1. | Source: NBC 17 - April 4, 2007
Update posted on Apr 4, 2007 - 10:52PM |
A man who kept 77 sheep in his suburban home was charged Wednesday with 30 counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty.
David Watts, 47, was being held at the Wake County jail in lieu of $12,000 bail after a court appearance. A judge denied a request by Watts' lawyer to release him pending trial.
Watts surrendered the flock to animal control officers Monday after police found some sheep grazing on artificial flowers in the town cemetery in Apex, a suburb of Raleigh.
Thirty of the sheep were euthanized because of various health problems. In addition, sheep bones and carcasses were found in Watts' yard.
Veterinarian Kelli Ferris, who examined the flock, said some of the animals' hooves had never been trimmed, causing infections that led the sheep to walk on their knees.
Watts kept some of the younger sheep on the ground floor of his house and kept the others in pens in the yard, authorities said.
Watts denies abusing the animals. He told The News & Observer of Raleigh on Tuesday that he was overwhelmed by the number of lambs born this year.
Watts, who said he has raised sheep for a decade, called the animals "relaxing to be around."
"It's like in Florida, you can swim with the dolphins. If you can get sheep to follow you, it might be a similar experience."
A high school in western North Carolina adopted 13 lambs. The lambs will live on the school farm, where students will care for them. It was unclear where the rest of the sheep went. | Source: CNN.Com - March 29, 2007
Update posted on Mar 29, 2007 - 3:03PM |
The suburban shepherd who shared his downtown Apex house with 77 sheep said that so many lambs were born this year that he was a little overwhelmed, but denied he abused his flock.
"It was just bad timing for me," David Watts said Tuesday. "I just got hit with the extra animals this year that needed extra supervision."
Veterinarian Kelli Ferris, who examined the sheep that Watts surrendered to Wake County animal control officers Monday, said that some in the flock showed signs of serious neglect that had been continuing for many months, probably years.
So far, 30 of the sheep have been euthanized after it was determined they were too sick to recover.
Apex Police Chief Jack Lewis said Tuesday that Watts, 47, will be charged with numerous counts of animal cruelty, the penalty for which can include jail time.
Meanwhile, an investigation was opened in Chatham County, where officials found 60 more sheep owned by Watts, along with a couple of cows and llamas. A veterinarian was expected to give this second flock a closer examination today.
Ferris said the condition of Watts' sheep was among the worst she had ever seen.
The hooves of some in the flock had never been trimmed, allowing them to grow so long they curled back around under the bottoms of the feet -- resulting in open, infected sores that caused the sheep to walk on their knees.
Sheep skulls and bones were scattered in the small backyard pens where the animals apparently died and were left to rot. The decomposing carcasses of several other sheep and newborn lambs were found in a nearby compost pile.
"It was a pretty terrible situation," said Ferris, an assistant professor at N.C. State University's College of Veterinary Medicine. "Many of these sheep had deep infections into the bones of their feet. It is very, very painful. ... Many of the sheep had big, deep abscesses on their chests where they had been down so much, dragging themselves."
John Sauls, the director of Chatham County Animal Control, said Tuesday he noticed that some of Watts' other sheep also appeared to be having problems.
"They seemed not so bad, for us people who don't know a whole heck of a lot about sheep," Sauls said. "It appeared the only problem may be with their hooves."
Records show that since 2000, officials with the town of Apex and Wake County animal control made numerous visits to Watts' in-town house at 205 W. Moore St., following dozens of complaints about flies, noise and the stench of feces. Police say the animals lived downstairs in the house, while Watts stayed upstairs.
Despite the repeated complaints, officials said Tuesday they saw no signs of serious trouble until earlier this month.
"Normally, especially when we go out in a livestock situation, we work with the owner to improve the health there on the property," said Michael Williams, the director of Wake County's Animal Care, Control and Adoption Section. "We're not out looking to take anyone's animals from them. That's the last thing we want to do."
Williams said state law does not allow his officers to seize neglected animals unless they can show they would otherwise die within hours.
Ferris, who spoke with Watts on Monday, said he exhibited classic signs of a person driven to hoard animals.
"Animal hoarding is really one of the worst challenges we face," Ferris said. "Often it is women and cats, but in this case it was a man with sheep. It's OK when it's Barbie dolls, but when it's animals it never turns out well."
On Tuesday evening, Watts retreated from Apex to his land near Moncure to care for his remaining sheep, a couple of cows, three chickens, two llamas and a dog. He said he had planned to relocate the Apex flock to the country.
His arms were covered with bug bites, and his olive green shirt was sweaty as he moved amid his animals' interconnected pens. Sheep bleated now and then as they stomped around the dirt pens as he showed how well all of his sheep were walking.
A hill of scrub land rose in the distance. Watts said he planned to let his sheep graze on it and hoped in a couple of years they would turn it into green pasture.
Watts said he started raising sheep about a decade ago because he wanted them to graze down the land into pasture. His small flock grew, though, as he fell in love with raising sheep.
"They're a lot more connected to their owner and a lot more mannerly than a cow or a goat," he said. "I just enjoy it more each year. They're just great. ... They're relaxing to be around. It's like in Florida, you can swim with the dolphins. If you can get sheep to follow you, it might be a similar experience."
He said he doesn't raise the animals for meat and tries to bottle-feed orphaned lambs himself because they follow him around for the rest of their lives.
"They follow me, the sheep follow them, that's the way it was done in the old days. You read your Bible, that was how it was done. It makes for more happy sheep." | Source: News Observer - March 28, 2007
Update posted on Mar 28, 2007 - 4:30PM |
The owner of dozens of neglected sheep seized from an Apex home got his bond reduced in a brief court appearance Wednesday afternoon.
David Watts was arrested Tuesday night on 30 counts of animal cruelty after 30 of his sheep had to be euthanized because they were found to be severely ill. If convicted, Watts faces up to 45 days in jail on each count.
Animal control officers removed 47 other sheep from the home Monday when they responded to a complaint of sheep running loose in a nearby cemetery.
Numerous sheep carcasses were found on the property Monday, as were skeletal remains of other animals, said Dr. Kelli Ferris, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine.
The surviving animals suffered from severely infected legs and abcesses on their abdomens, which came from dragging themselves on the ground to avoid putting weight on their legs, Ferris said.
Chatham County animal control officers sent a veterinarian Wednesday to a farm Watts owns near Moncure to inspect animals there. The veterinarian determined some of the 60 or so sheep at the farm have foot problems, although they aren't in as bad condition as the Apex sheep, officials said.
Animal control officials said they want to meet with Watts to establish a treatment regimen for the sheep so the problems don't worsen.
Watts is being held in the Wake County Jail on $12,000 bond. His original bond had been set at $30,000. | Source: WRAL - March 28, 2007
Update posted on Mar 28, 2007 - 2:46PM |
Dozens of neglected sheep seized Monday from an Apex home weren't at the home until recently, authorities said Tuesday.
Wake County animal control officers removed 77 sheep from a property on West Moore Street after responding to a complaint about sheep running loose in a nearby cemetery. Thirty of the animals were so neglected that they had to be euthanized, officials said.
David Watts, the owner of the sheep, could face animal cruelty and other charges, Apex Police Chief Jack Lewis said.
Lewis and Michael Williams, director of Wake County Animal Care, Control and Adoption, said Watts usually had about 20 sheep on his property that were in decent health.
"The volume of animals that were there (Monday) was shocking to us," Lewis said. "The number of animals that were there was far more than anyone had seen (before)."
Numerous sheep carcasses were found on the property Monday, as were skeletal remains of other animals, said Dr. Kelli Ferris, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine.
The surviving animals suffered from severely infected legs and abcesses on their abdomens, which came from dragging themselves on the ground to avoid putting weight on their legs, Ferris said.
"We see this with people who profess to love their animals very much but keep them in squalid conditions," she said, calling such people "collectors, not pet owners."
Animal control officers had responded to five sheep-related complaints at the residence since June 2005 and found no problems, Williams said. The most recent visit was in December.
"Until this last visit, the gentleman was taking care of them," Williams said, defending his officers' decisions not to take any action before Monday.
"We try our best to work with the owners of animals to improve their care," he said. "We can't take someone's property unless we feel (an animal's) death is imminent."
Chatham County animal control officers on Tuesday afternoon checked a farm near Moncure owned by Watts and found about 60 sheep there, as well as some llamas and cows. All of the animals had food and water and appeared to be well cared for, authorities said.
Watts told Wake County authorities some of the sheep lived inside his house and on his porch. Authorities said they had never looked inside the house when responding to an animal complaint.
One neighbor said the smell around the residence "was so bad you couldn't sit out there most of the time, and the flies were pretty bad."
Lewis said recent warm temperatures and the sudden jump in the number of sheep probably aggravated the odor problem.
Thirty-five sheep were taken to a local farm where there will be nursed back to health. Fifteen sheep are being watched by a rescue group. After the sheep are healthy, they may be put up for adoption.
Investigators have learned that Watts owns a farm in Chatham County and may have up to 300 sheep there. Animal control officers said they would look at that property. | Source: WRAL - March 27, 2007
Update posted on Mar 27, 2007 - 5:18PM |
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