Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Neglect of tigers, leopards, bears

Cruelty Database » Case Details

Case Snapshot

Case ID: 5597

Classification: Neglect / Abandonment

Animal: captive exotic

More cases in Shelby County, IN

More cases in IN

Login to Watch this Case

Images for this Case

all 9 media files »

Neglect of tigers, leopards, bears
Flat Rock, IN (US)

Incident Date: Friday, Sep 23, 2005
County: Shelby

Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 9 files available

Alleged: Dennis Hill

Case Updates: 4 update(s) available

State wildlife officials found dozens of exotic animals, including Bengal tigers, spotted leopards and black bears, living in "horrific" conditions and said on Sept 23 they were removing them from the unlicensed facility.

The Department of Natural Resources said it was taking action because the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently revoked its license for the facility owned by Dennis Hill near the town of Flat Rock, about 30 miles south of Indianapolis.

The tigers were found living in a six-inch deep mixture of mud, feces and urine, some cages were not properly secured and there were holes in the perimeter fence, the agency said.

"The living conditions of the animals are horrific," DNR Director Kyle Hupfer said. "No reasonable person could stand by and watch these creatures suffering in not only filthy quarters, but unsafe ones."

Hill said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press that he was hopeful that the DNR would not remove the animals.

"It's basically a permit dispute," he said.

Hill said his attorney was seeking an injunction to prevent removal of the animals.

Conservation officers were working to remove 11 adult and eight juvenile Bengal tigers, five white tigers, three spotted leopards, three black leopards, four black bears, one mountain lion, and one ring-tail lemur, the agency said.

A message on Hill's answering machine said, "If you're looking for any tigers or big cats for rock band performances, please leave a message."

The DNR said all the animals would be examined by a veterinarian before being taken to a licensed facility.

Hill has had problems with the Agriculture Department since at least 1999, when the agency cited his facility for improper shelter, cleaning, sanitation, feeding and watering. Hill settled out of court in 1999 for $2,500 and a 75-day license suspension, agency spokesman Jim Rogers said

The Agriculture Department last year charged Hill with general compliance problems with the Animal Welfare Act. The agency revoked his license and charged him $20,000, but that has been under appeal.

Case Updates

A Shelby County man has received permission to keep three tigers at his rural home where wildlife officers removed several wild animals more than a year ago.

But one of Dennis Hill's neighbors continues to fight the return of the big cats.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources last week restored permits allowing Hill to keep the three tigers after he revised plans on how to recapture the animals if they escaped. The revised plan provides for the use of a tranquilizer gun with a lethal drug dose and the hiring of three hunters who live within three minutes of Hill's tiger compound.

However, Thomas Winterrowd, who owns the land next to Hill's property, is contesting Hill's permit, said Linnea Petercheff, operations staff specialist with the DNR's Division of Fish and Wildlife.

Hill agreed to give away most of his animals after a Sept. 23 DNR raid. Wildlife officials said Hill's 27 animals were living in squalor amid a six-inch-deep mixture of mud, feces and urine.

Since the raid, Hill said he has spent thousands of dollars of his own money and donations on improvements, including an 8-foot-tall chain-link fence around the animal pens.

Hill said that he hopes to get approval to bring back more of his animals.

Source: News-Sentinel - Dec 5, 2006
Update posted on Dec 5, 2006 - 11:17PM

Back to Top

At a public hearing January 3, 2006 on the wild animal permits, Dennis Hill sought to keep a mountain lion and two tigers on his Shelby County property. He also drew supporters who said they felt safe. Hill said that since state Department of Natural Resources officers raided his farm about 30 miles south of Indianapolis in September he has spent $15,000 of his own and donated money to make improvements. That work included installing an 8-foot-tall chain-link fence around the animal pens and putting 18 inches of gravel inside each cage.

"We put 120 pairs of heavy duty clamps on all five cages here," he said. "Totally reinforced them, to the hilt."
Despite Hill's work, more than 30 people signed a petition seeking the state hearing on whether to approve his permit request. Hill gave the hearing officer a petition that he said had at least 700 signatures from supporters.
Ron Hamilton, who has farmed the property next to Hill's for more than 20 years, and has worried for years about the possibility of the tigers escaping and threatening his wife and two children. "If one of these animals gets loose, does the guy asking for this permit have means of stopping this animal?" Hamilton said during the DNR hearing.

Hill agreed to give away most of his animals after the Sept. 23, 2005 DNR raid. Wildlife officials said Hill's 27 animals were living in squalor amid a six-inch-deep mixture of mud, feces and urine. Hill, who now has three tigers on his property, said he did not want to have more than 10 exotic animals at any given time.
"I hand-raised every tiger, every cat I had from one-day-old. I gave my life to them," he said. "I've lived and died and begged, borrowed and stole for them. It's my compassion; it's what I do.
DNR officials said a decision on Hill's permit request was expected in January 2006.

Source: The Indy Channel - January 4, 2006
Update posted on Jan 4, 2006 - 10:55PM

Back to Top

A Shelby County judge last week stopped Department of Natural Resources officers from taking most of the animals from Dennis Hill's property near the town of Flat Rock.

DNR spokeswoman Kim Brant said the agency was working with Hill to reach an agreement on the animals outside court.

"They're still working on the negotiations," she said Thursday.

She said officials planned a news conference Friday about the issue.

State conservation officers raided Hill's farm about 30 miles south of Indianapolis on Sept. 23, saying it had a letter from the U.S. Agriculture Department stating that Hill no longer had a permit to keep exotic animals.

Hill said then that his federal permit was suspended, but that he had an agreement with federal officials allowing him to keep animals on the property without acquiring new ones.

A hearing scheduled for Friday in Shelby Superior Court was canceled after Hill withdrew his complaint. The Associated Press left a telephone message for Hill seeking comment.

DNR officials said after last week's raid that the animals appeared generally healthy, but were kept in filthy living spaces. The tigers were found living in a 6-inch-deep mixture of mud, feces and urine, conservation officers said.

Source: The Indy Channel - Sept 29, 2005
Update posted on Sep 30, 2005 - 8:11AM

Back to Top

Dennis Hill, owner of the Willow Hill Center for Rare and Endangered Tigers, agreed to let about a dozen animals go hours after a Shelby County judge blocked state efforts to remove them.

"I'm going to shuffle cats to some good homes," Hill said.

The Department of Natural Resources raided the facility about 30 miles south of Indianapolis Friday morning, saying it had a letter from the federal Agriculture Department stating that Hill no longer had a license for the facility. But an Agriculture Department spokesman said records showed efforts to revoke Hill's exotic animal license had been put on hold while he appealed a case filed last year.

Hill said Friday his permit was suspended on Aug. 18 but that he had an agreement with federal officials allowing him to keep animals on the property but not acquire new ones.

The state said the animals appeared generally healthy, if a little underweight. But "the living conditions of the animals are horrific," said Kyle Hupfer, head of the state Department of Natural Resources.

The tigers were found living in a six-inch-deep mixture of mud, feces and urine, conservation officers said. Two tigers weighing between 200 and 300 pounds were in dog kennels in a barn loft.

Another tiger was found dead on the property, and crews were searching for a missing tiger cub.

Other animals were found inside a dilapidated house that had missing windows and holes in the siding. Hupfer said some had no water.

"None of us have seen anything like this," DNR Sgt. Dean Shadley said. "They're just standing in their own filth. It's just urine and feces and mud and filth. The stench is awful."

Hill said the animals were healthy and described the situation as a "manageability issue." He said he and his girlfriend take care of the menagerie, which DNR officials said included 11 adult and eight juvenile Bengal tigers, five white tigers, three spotted leopards, three black leopards, four black bears, one mountain lion and one ringtail lemur.

Hill, who got his first tiger 22 years ago, said he had kept the animals because he had not found anyone he trusted to care for them.

"It's like trying to find a baby sitter for your kids," Hill said.

The agreement to permanently remove some of the animals came despite an order from Superior Court Judge Jack Tandy, who granted Hill's request to stop the state from loading up the animals. The judge scheduled a Sept. 30 hearing in the case.

Hupfer said the state began investigating Hill's facility in August and that officers first visited the property three weeks ago.

The agency delayed taking action until Friday while it arranged agreements with certified rescue facilities across the state to accept the animals, Hupfer said.

Joe Taft, director of the Exotic Feline Rescue Center outside Terre Haute, waited Friday to take several leopards from the site. He took two tigers from Hill's facility in 2002, and said conditions were bad then.

"I have no idea why federal authorities didn't take action then," Taft said. "They were in very bad shape."

Hill said he has provided tigers to circuses and other entertainers. A message on his home answering machine said, "If you're looking for any tigers or big cats for rock band performances, please leave a message."

Hill has had problems with the Agriculture Department since at least 1999, when the agency cited his facility for improper shelter, cleaning, sanitation, feeding and watering. Hill settled out of court in 1999 for $2,500 and a 75-day license suspension, Agriculture Department spokesman Jim Rogers said.

The Agriculture Department last year charged Hill with violating the Animal Welfare Act. The agency moved to revoke his license and fine him $20,000, but that has been under appeal.

Source: The Indy Channel - Sept 23, 2005
Update posted on Sep 23, 2005 - 6:24PM

Back to Top

References

« More cases in Shelby County, IN
Not sure what these icons mean? Click here.

Note: Classifications and other fields should not be used to determine what specific charges the suspect is facing or was convicted of - they are for research and statistical purposes only. The case report and subsequent updates outline the specific charges. Charges referenced in the original case report may be modified throughout the course of the investigation or trial, so case updates, when available, should always be considered the most accurate reflection of charges.

For more information regarding classifications and usage of this database, please visit the database notes and disclaimer.

Site Map ¤ Disclaimer ¤ Privacy Policy

Neglect of tigers, leopards, bearsFlat Rock, IN (US)

Case Updates

References

Neglect of tigers, leopards, bears
Flat Rock, IN (US)