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Case #12759 Rating: 3.4 out of 5
Dog breeding facility fails inspection
Olathe, CO (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Nov 27, 2007
County: Montrose
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 1 files available
Defendant/Suspect: Anita Smith
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
Colorow Kennels failed a facilities inspection, the Colorado Department of Agriculture said.
The Montrose County Sheriff's Office is also looking into complaints, according to Undersheriff Kevin Walters, but local charges have not been filed.
The dog-breeding facility is reportedly operated by Nita Smith of Olathe, who did not return calls made to her listed phone number and cell phone number.
The state is not closing the kennel at this time, AG department spokeswoman Christi Lightcap said. Smith must correct the problems and the facility will undergo a follow-up inspection to ensure compliance.
"There's a process to shutting down a facility. They need to fail three consecutive inspections before any action can be taken against their license," Lightcap said Monday.
Those three inspections have to follow the original failed inspection, Kate Anderson, the veterinarian in charge of the state's Pet Animal Care Facilities Program, clarified.
She said the inspection was prompted by citizen complaints. "We always inspect on complaints. It doesn't matter the type of complaint, we will investigate."
An investigator with her program found numerous violations of the Pet Animal Care Facilities Act during a Nov. 5 inspection.
Inspector Chris Thompson said in a report furnished to the Daily Press Monday that he observed one rat near where puppies were being whelped, as well as fecal matter elsewhere in the facility, including in the dog pens, and debris.
The report later made mention of a puppy found dead the day before the inspection.
Thompson called for immediate action on a black Pomeranian with an ulcerated eye. "An employee states that the facility owner, Nita Smith, was fully aware of this injury before she went out of town for a week," the report stated.
"Photographic evidence supports this claim. The dog has received no treatment for the injury. This dog is to receive medical attention no later than Nov. 5, 2007, or fines may be levied."
Thompson's report also alleged three other dogs were matted to the point of "potential health or comfort problems." These dogs included a cocker spaniel and Yorkshire terrier who were deemed " badly matted," and a red Pomeranian with fecal matter balled up in its coat. The report also noted dogs with badly overgrown toenails.
Smith was given until Dec. 5 to correct the reported animal-care violations.
Thompson also found violations of the act's pest-control, cleaning/sanitation and runs/pens requirements.
Under pest control, he noted "a large amount of rodent feces" in buildings, as well as the rat mentioned above. Thompson also listed trash and "potential rodent harborage" near the whelping area under general requirements.
Smith has until Dec. 10 to correct both the pest control and general violations.
Thompson listed two different violations of the PACFA's cleaning and sanitation requirements, noting a wagon with several buckets of feces.
"It was clear this material has been on the property for an extended period of time. The facility smelled strongly of feces and organic matter," the report read.
Colorow Kennels was given until Dec. 7 to correct this reported problem. The facility must additionally correct by Dec. 5 another violation of sanitary rules that requires all surfaces of primary enclosures to be cleaned and sanitized.
At Colorow Kennels, Thompson wrote, the enclosures were only cleaned mechanically. "According to an employee, no sanitizing agents are routinely used. At the time of inspection, there was a layer of smeared feces on many pen floors."
Thompson's report also said Smith was in violation of rules requiring whelping areas and nurseries to be kept clean and sanitized in order to prevent the spread of disease.
"At the time of inspection, boxer puppies were being whelped on the bare ground," the report read. "This is an unacceptable whelping surface, as it cannot be sanitized. An employee stated that a boxer puppy from this litter was found dead the day before the present inspection."
That sanitary violation is to be remedied by Dec. 6.
"We're definitely going to follow up," Anderson said. "We need to have our pet care facilities following the rules."
Case UpdatesAnita Smith, owner of Colorow Kennels in Olathe, pleaded guilty last week to animal cruelty and neglect and is no longer operating what some of her critics claimed was a puppy mill.
Smith's penalty was a $382 fine.
Vee Stockdale, president of Citizens for Animal Welfare and Shelter of Paonia, led protests at several of Smith's court appearances in Montrose during the past year. She said she was satisfied with the sentence because Smith was found guilty and no longer has a state license to operate a breeding kennel.
"It feels like a victory in a lot of ways, and we're very glad she's closed down," she said. "It's one less puppy mill breeder."
Smith's home phone was disconnected, and she did not return messages left on her cell phone Friday.
Stockdale said she would like to know what happened to about 100 dogs that were housed at Smith's kennel.
Messages left for Department of Agriculture state inspector Chris Thompson were not returned Friday. Thompson failed Smith's kennel after a November 2007 inspection, and a month later the Montrose County Sheriff's Department cited her for cruelty to animals and neglect.
The Sheriff's Department referred questions about the dogs at Smith's kennel to the Montrose Animal Shelter.
Shelter spokesman Mike Duncan said he'd also like to know where the dogs are because none was brought to his facility.
Court records show there were no orders concerning the dogs.
Stockdale said the usual practice in animal cruelty cases is for the county to remove the animals from the premises, but an e-mail from Dr. Kate Anderson, who oversees state inspections of dog breeders for the state Department of Agriculture, shows otherwise. Neither the state nor the county removed the abused animals from Smith's property.
"It is our understanding that breeders from other parts of the state stepped in to help Ms. Smith move the dogs out," Anderson wrote.
Anderson added that Smith's conviction would "seriously inhibit her ability to qualify," if she applied for another license. | Source: GJ Seninel - July 19, 2008
Update posted on Jul 19, 2008 - 8:46AM |
A phalanx of animal-rights activists awaited the arrival of dog breeder Nita Smith at court Tuesday.
Though it was the second time Citizens for Animal Welfare and Shelter and their supporters lined up to protest the continued operation of Colorow Kennels in Olathe, participants said the message they were trying to send needed to be kept in the public eye.
"We're not saying we want anyone incarcerated. Our concern is the safety of animals," protester Robert Burns said.
He said CAWS intended to show up every time Smith, who is charged with misdemeanor cruelty to animals-neglect-mistreat, comes to court.
"We need to remind people it's still an issue," Burns said. "It's not over and done with."
Smith was charged locally last December, over a Pomeranian in her care that had an ulcerated eye. The Montrose County Sheriff's Office alleged the dog suffered from neglect and cited Smith into court.
Smith's attorney, Brent Martin, said he could not comment on the case right away. "We're still awaiting a considerable amount of discovery. We're still in negotiations," he told the Daily Press on his way into court Tuesday.
Martin said after court the DA had provided copies of relevant reports, after the judge set a hearing to review outstanding discovery issues. Smith's case was then re-set for entry of plea at 2 p.m. March 11.
Smith came to authorities' attention after the Colorado Department of Agriculture found her in violation of the Pet Animal Care Facilities Act in November 2007. State agents conducting a surprise inspection flagged several areas of concern, including the presence of fecal matter, rodent droppings, rats and reports of a dead puppy.
Debbie Faulkner of CAWS said she triggered the state's inspection after an anonymous tip alerted her to the allegedly poor conditions at Colorow Kennels. She said she posed as a breeder and received seven beagles from Smith.
"She let me, in person, into her kennel. This is what it looked like," Faulkner said, indicating several bright-yellow posters showing pictures of animals in bad shape.
"She picked up the dogs by the backs of their necks and ran them through their poop to give them to me," Faulkner alleged.
"These are not pets. These are a commodity. This is her (Smith's) business."
Colorow Kennels has since complied with what the state ag department ordered it to do last year, communications director Christi Lightcap said in January.
The ag department investigates all complaints received about pet-breeding facilities.
After an initial failed inspection, a facility must fail three more times in a row before the state can step in and order closure. But closure is also possible if Smith is found or pleads guilty to her current charges, Lightcap said.
"That's what we're hoping for," Faulkner said Tuesday.
Smith's file from the ag department shows numerous previous violations of PCFA, as well as warning tickets and a civil penalty, but also included favorable veterinary records and correspondence.
According to Montrose Municipal Court records, Smith was convicted of misdemeanor animal cruelty in 2005, over a cat that was thrown from her vehicle. She was ordered to pay a fine and have no further violations of municipal animal codes.
The state ag department decided against taking action against her at the time, stating in a letter contained in her file that it believed the cat had escaped accidentally and was not injured. | Source: Montrose Daily Press - March 5, 2008
Update posted on Mar 7, 2008 - 1:02AM |
A dog breeder and kennel owner in Olathe is expected to answer charges of animal cruelty and neglect during a court hearing next month.
Nita Smith is accused of having dirty conditions and rats at Colorow Kennels, which she owns. Department of Agriculture inspector Chris Thompson also noted sick animals at the facility.
Smith has blamed employees for the conditions, but a Montrose County sheriff's deputy issued a summons to Smith last week.
Thompson's report indicates that Smith said an employee failed to apply ointment to a dog's ulcerated eye, and also failed to keep the kennels clean.
Smith says all of her kennel records were stolen during a burglary at her home while she was out of town.
She never reported the alleged crime. | Source: KJCT - Dec 18, 2007
Update posted on Dec 18, 2007 - 3:04PM |
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