Dogs seized from squalor Dayton, OH (US) Incident Date: Wednesday, Sep 12, 2007 County: Montgomery Local Map: available Disposition: Alleged Abuser names unreleased

Case ID: 12283 Classification: Neglect / Abandonment Animal: dog (non pit-bull), dog (pit-bull) View more cases in OH (US) Login to Watch this Case

As many as 10 dogs were confiscated Wednesday by police from a home at 1543 W. Grand Ave., Dayton police Lt. Randy Beane said.

Police were called to the residence about 5 p.m. after receiving numerous complaints from citizens about dogfighting at the location, Beane said. The complaints were over a period of time, though Beane did not specify a time frame.

Nine of the dogs taken from the home were American pit bull terriers and at least one Shih Tzu, according to Mark Kumpf, director of the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center.

One of the dogs was seen jumping off the roof after exiting a second-story window.

"They also found evidence of dog training," Beane said of police offiers. "Most of the dogs found inside the home were in cages."

Beane said the conditions inside were deplorable. He said the house was in a state of disarray and the "smell wasn't all that pleasant."

A detective in the home said there was dog feces all over the basement. Dog feces also was found all over an upstairs room next to a child's room, police said.

When asked about the behavior of the dogs, Beane said, "I don't believe they were overly aggressive."

Police have made contact with people who claim to live at the address. The self-described occupants of the house were not there when police arrived.

Police also confiscated a treadmill that had the word "Ruff Ryder" written on one side of it. At the entrance to the house, there is a sign above the mailbox that reads, "Never mind the dogs. Beware of the Owner."

The dogs were taken to the resource center and to be examined by a veterinarian, Kumpf said. Animal Resource officers were called to the scene because police reported evidence of animal cruelty. The dogs were confiscated because their living conditions were inadequate, he said.

Donnise Smith, 27, who claimed her male cousin lives at the address, said, "They are not vicious dogs. A dog is what you make it."

The Dayton Daily News also talked to a 25-year-old male who did not want to be identified but said he rents the house.

"Ain't no dogs fighting going on in the house," the man told a reporter by phone from his job in Middletown. The man claimed there was only three dogs and two puppies in the residence.

Mahmud Shafeek, 36, who lives in the same Princeton Park neighborhood, said dogfighting in the neighborhood was a normal activity. People who fight dogs "are trying to make some money. I'm not for it or against it. It's just the way it is," he said.

The police are asking the community to report any signs of what they believe to be dogfighting. Citizens can call police or the animal resource center at (937) 898-4457, ext. 1.

The Humane Society of the United States is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who can give them information leading to the arrest and conviction to a person involved in dogfighting anywhere, Kumpf said.

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References

Dayton Daily News - Sept 13, 2007

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