BUTLER TWP. — Following an order by Knox County Common Pleas Court Judge Richard Wetzel, more than 50 dogs were seized from the Pittie Paw rescue facility in Butler Township on Wednesday afternoon. Knox County Prosecutor Chip McConville petitioned the court for the order.
According to McConville, Knox County Dog Warden John Carhart visited the facility, 29710 Coshocton Road, yesterday and found a shortage of water. There is no water line to the building and no source of running water. McConville said the water has been trucked in by the people running the facility.
McConville said the focus of today’s efforts is to get all of the dogs out of the facility and into custody. It is not clear where all of the dogs will be taken, although some have been taken to the Knox County Animal Shelter.
McConville said he will talk with Mount Vernon Law Director Rob Broeren regarding possible charges.
“In terms of the next step of this process, it’s not real clear right now,” McConville said.
Several different law enforcement agencies were seen transporting dogs from the facility on Wednesday. Carhart declined to comment.
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Last Wednesday, Knox County Common Pleas Court Judge Richard Wetzel ordered Dog Warden John Carhart to seize all dogs from Pittie Paw dog rescue facility, located in Butler Township, following a petition from County Prosecutor Chip McConville, which stated that the dogs were “being treated inhumanely.”
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Knox County Dog Warden John Carhart (right) comforts a dog seized from Pittie Paw dog rescue in Butler Township on September 19. With help from the Licking County animal warden and Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Carhart pulled 31 dogs from the rescue facility on orders from Common Pleas Court Judge Richard Wetzel.
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Wednesday’s activity came less than a week after McConville and the Prosecutor’s Office issued a statement on Facebook concerning the progress of the situation.
The statement said that Carhart and “a group of Knox County officials” had begun conducting weekly inspections of the property. Carhart, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Knox County Health Department had given the facility owners timelines to remedy several conditions they observed, “beginning with poor ventilation of the dog kennels.”
Carhart conducted a follow-up inspection of the facility on September 12, the statement read, and found that the ventilation issues “had been remedied to provide adequate air flow for the dogs.”
Following the first inspection of the facility, on August 27, officials found that certain issues – including lighting, damaged kennel panels and mold – would need to be addressed within a 30-day timeframe.
While inspections found that none of the dogs appeared to be neglected or abused, the statement read, some dogs were underweight. Most of the underweight dogs (14 in total) were voluntarily surrendered to Carhart, and one had to be euthanized after consultation with a veterinarian.
Last Thursday’s statement said that the county “is prepared to take legal action if the conditions violate Ohio’s animal cruelty laws.”
McConville stated that Ohio animal cruelty laws require specific evidence for charges to be proved.
“Ohio law requires evidence that animals are either actively, or by neglect, suffering needless pain because of lack of food, water, shelter or cruelty,” he said in the statement last week. “While the conditions at ‘Pittie Paws’ are not ones that most of us would want for our pets, the reports I have received from the Dog Warden do not rise to the legal definition of animal cruelty.”
The statement said Carhart believed that “as many as 20 of the dogs have bite histories or histories of aggression against people.”
This is a developing story and we will provide updates as they come.
