PSPCA chief executive officer Howard Nelson said the wardens who repeatedly inspected Limestone Kennel in Cochranville overlooked many dogs with infected and missing eyes, bad skin conditions, abscesses, and missing ears.

John S. Blank, 54, an Amish farmer, is facing at least 23 counts of animal cruelty, PSPCA officials said. Because of the timing of the raid, the PSPCA will not file the charges until Monday.

Blank, who has operated a kennel with more than 100 dogs since at least 2003, was handcuffed and detained during the raid because he became "combative" toward humane-society agents and Pennsylvania State Police troopers who were assisting the PSPCA, said George Bengal, the PSPCA's director of law enforcement.

Blank did not return a phone message left at his home yesterday.

The PSPCA obtained the search warrant after nine dogs with obvious medical conditions were given away by Blank on July 3 to what turned out to be an animal rescue group. Also, a three-week-old puppy that later died from dehydration was illegally sold last week to an undercover agent. Under state law, dogs must be seven weeks old before they are sold.

Nelson said he could not believe that wardens with the Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement had allowed the medical conditions to go unchecked for so long.

In 2006, Blank pleaded guilty to two citations for broken wire in his kennel and paid $150 in fines.

The last inspection, conducted Jan. 31 by Warden Maureen Siddons and her supervisor, Richard Martrich, found no unsatisfactory conditions.

In an e-mail letter to Jessie Smith, special deputy secretary for the Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement, Nelson wrote that the conditions his agents found "could not have gone unnoticed by even the most untrained or uncaring professional."

"Many dogs have suffered from visible, horrifying eye conditions . . . many of which were painful for the animals for at least several years before their eyes fell out," he wrote.

Chris Ryder, a spokesman for the bureau, said the department would be "investigating all aspects of this situation.

"We will follow up on anything involving the wardens," he said.

The wardens declined to comment, Ryder said.

He said Blank's kennel license would be revoked if he was convicted of animal cruelty.

Rachel Lee, the PSPCA's investigative veterinarian, said that of the 23 dogs seized Thursday from Blank - which included Labrador retrievers, Yorkshire terriers, cocker spaniels, and shiba inus of various ages - the one with the most serious condition had an abscess caused by an untreated dog bite on her neck.

Several dogs were being treated for conjunctivitis, a noncontagious eye infection, and two shiba inus were underweight. Two of the 17 puppies were found to have an upper-respiratory infection, Lee said.

Gov. Rendell, who has proposed overhauling the state's dog laws to improve conditions in large commercial breeding kennels, said through a spokesman that he would reserve judgment on the situation until the review process was completed.

The kennel is about a mile from the district office of State Rep. Art Hershey (R., Chester), one of the leading opponents of Rendell's animal-welfare legislation. Hershey said he was concerned that Blank had received no citations during the last inspection, but added that no new laws were needed.

"I maintain my position that further regulations and restrictions would not help in such cases," Hershey said. "Those few individuals who tarnish the reputations of good and respectable dog breeders will always find ways to get around the system."