The Sheriff's Dept., Animal Control and Code Enforcement entered the property of Betty and Von Arna Keller with a search warrant. The residence smelled of feces and urine. 84 dogs were removed from the property. Arrest warrants were obtained for the mother and son residents for cruelty to animals and unlawful confinement of animals.
In the end 88 Yorkshire terriers and chihuahas, 1 macaw and 2 turtles were seized from 82 Highland in South Walton County, Florida.
When seized, all the dogs were matted to the skin with their own feces and urine, living in tiny rusted urine/feces filled cages, many have mange, many are missing teeth and all were in need of medical attention. A 4-6 week old yorkie's soft spot had not fused properly and it is believed the pup possibly has hydrocephilis and is unable to stand on it's back legs.
The HSUS submitted a request to the Walton County Sheriff's department a year ago to help shut this puppymill down. The Sheriff's office tried to obtain a warrant at that time but Judge Green refused to sign the warrant citing "zoning" issues and a possible grand-father clause which permitted the operation of a kennel at the address.
The dogs were turned over to Walton County in a plea agreement. The civil agreement was that these individuals would never own another dog or cat in Walton County. The Kellers still face more than 160 criminal charges for animal cruelty and unlawful confinement.
The Kellers were released from the Walton County Jail in Defuniak Springs after posting bond.
A special thanks goes to Canine-Rescue who sent a team of volunteers to Chipley and helped bathe and clip the dogs when they were initially rescued.
Also thank you to Dr. Todd Anderson (the veterinarian involved in this case) of Chipley and his staff for all the extra and hard work they put into this case. Dr. Anderson and his wife Lorna as well as Kim Todd went the extra mile and without their assistance this may not have had such a good outcome. They truely bent over backwards to help. Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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