Nancy Felter, a Franklin County dog breeder, was tried back in March on animal cruelty charges. She was acquitted, although she is scheduled to be tried on additional charges next month.
According to reports, authorities seized more animals this week from her Ferrum home. She has yet to be charged from this latest incident.
Four animals were seized from her home. That includes a dead goat whose head is missing. Three other animals are currently being treated. Felter allegedly tried to euthanize one of the animals in an extremely inhumane way.
According to a search warrant, Felter told an informant on May 12th she was going to kill the poodle, but she didn't have any anti-freeze. The informant then called her back three days later, and according to the search warrant, Felter stated she had crushed 25 pain relief pills and fed them to the poodle in its dog food.
Authorities also confiscated a goat. It has injuries to its neck. The third animal, a Sheltie mix has a skin infection. The vet is still trying to figure out how it got the infection.
Veterinarian Jonathan Amos says the Sheltie mix and the goat should be ok. As for the poodle, her prognosis is unclear. That's because they're waiting for toxicology reports to come back to see exactly what was in the dog's system. Case UpdatesA Franklin County animal breeder found not guilty on five various charges Tuesday picked up her animals today.
The animals that were confiscated from her home were being held at the Franklin County Animal Hospital. After Felter picked up Dasey Mae, the Poodle, she went to another veterinarian and had it euthanized.
Dr. Eric Krauss says his office manager tried to talk the other vet out of putting Daisy down. He says two or three people wanted to adopt her. Krauss says after three months in the animal hospital, Daisy was in "excellent shape."
Dr. Kay Geyer at Brosville Animal Clinic would not discuss it with us. But Dr. Krauss says Felter was adamant about not letting anyone else have the dog, so Daisy was put to sleep. | Source: WDBJ - Aug 30, 2007
Update posted on Aug 31, 2007 - 12:45PM |
A dead baby goat with its face chewed off, placed in a bag atop the clothes dryer. A poodle named Daisy Mae, which authorities claim was starved, dehydrated and poisoned. A pregnant goat named Tilly with dog-bite wounds on its neck. A sheltie puppy named Faith, its face bared by mange.
Franklin County animal control officers seized these animals in a May 16 raid at the Ferrum home of Nancy Ellen Felter. But because a Franklin County jury acquitted Felter of misdemeanor animal neglect charges, the county must now return Daisy Mae, Faith, Tilly and her two kids to Felter's care.
Tuesday, Felter faced trial in Franklin County Circuit Court for the second time in three months over charges of neglecting her animals. The first time, in June, a judge fined her $2,750 for failing to dispose of 10 dogs and a cat found dead in her basement. This time, Felter took her case to a jury, and won.
The seven-member jury acquitted Felter of failing to properly dispose of a pet and three counts of failure to provide adequate veterinary care. Jurors said the evidence did not meet the standard of reasonable doubt, but declined to elaborate.
In a June civil hearing over Daisy Mae's custody, a Franklin County General District judge ordered that Felter, who keeps 51 dogs at her house, not be allowed to own companion animals. Felter appealed, and Tuesday's jury ruled in her favor, meaning the judge's order has been nullified.
According to evidence, a Patrick Springs woman, Angela Ullring, knew Felter by phone as a fellow animal lover. In March, Ullring gave Daisy Mae to Felter. She didn't know about the previous charges against Felter, which stemmed from a Dec. 5 search of her home.
Ullring testified that she went to Felter's home in May and saw the goat with the wounded neck tied outside, and saw the baby goat, still alive but apparently ill, in a cage in Felter's basement. She also found Daisy Mae in a cage, her back covered in sores. Felter told her she intended to kill the poodle but didn't have antifreeze, Ullring said.
In a telephone conversation soon after, Ullring said, Felter told her she tried to poison the poodle with 25 crushed pain pills but that it didn't work. She also told Ullring the baby goat had died and that she put it on the dryer to keep it away from a dog that had eaten part of it, Ullring testified.
She reported what she saw and heard to animal control Capt. Marvin Woods, which triggered the May 16 raid.
But Felter testified that Ullring made up the accusations to get back at her because of a dispute over another dog. She said she had intended to take all the animals to a veterinarian but was prevented by the animal control raid.
Her defense attorney, Perry Harrold, argued that Assistant Franklin County Commonwealth's Attorney Patrick Nix had not proved many of the technical points of the statutes under which Felter was charged. He suggested the pictures presented of Daisy Mae and Tilly showed the animals were healthier than authorities claimed.
After the hearing, as Ullring rode in an elevator with the jurors, she exclaimed in outrage to a companion, "They don't know what they've done!" | Source: Roanoke Herald - Aug 29, 2007
Update posted on Aug 29, 2007 - 9:47AM |
A Franklin County judge has decided that Nancy Felter cannot keep a black poodle and two other animals seized by animal control.
Captain Marvin Woods with Franklin County Animal Control says the poodle found in a cage described as too small with urine soaked newspapers could barely walk when they let it out of the cage.
He says Felter plans to appeal this latest ruling and is scheduled to be in court for several other animal cruelty charges in less than a week.
Woods says those include failing to provide adequate care and not burying dead animals. | Source: WSLS.com - May 31, 2007
Update posted on Jun 2, 2007 - 5:06PM |
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