Is a mass downsizing underway in Pennsylvania kennels?

Nearly 400 breeding dogs from Pennsylvania's largest commercial kennels are scheduled be shipped west to be auctioned in Ohio next week, in a move that animal welfare activists say is likely the result of tougher standards under the new state dog law.

Key provisions of new law (Act 119) take effect on the first anniversary of the signing of the legislation on Oct. 9, among them: larger cage sizes, restrictions on cage stacking, access to outdoor exercise and regular veterinary exams for breeding dogs.

The dogs, most of them Yorkshire Terriers, Poodles and Shih Tzus, from 12 licensed kennels are expected to be sold at the Buckeye Dog Auction on Oct. 7 in Farmerstown, according to Mary O'Connor-Shaver of Columbus Top Dogs.

Among the Lancaster County kennels which have listed dogs with the auction are: Glenwood Kennel in Ephrata, Gold Kennels and School Lane Kennel in Gap, R.E.Z Kennels and Conestoga Kennel in New Holland, James S. Zimmerman Kennel in Ephrata, Myer Kennels Inc. in Lititz, John S. Fisher Kennel and S & R Kennel in Gordonville, Nolt Kennel in East Earl.

Also listed selling dogs is Scarlet-Maple Kennel in Ronks. Its owner, Daniel Esh, had his kennel license revoked by the state after repeated unsatisfactory inspections.

A number of the other kennel operators selling dogs at auction have been convicted of violations of the state dog law which would make them ineligible for a waiver to extend construction time for the improved kennels. An attorney who represented commercial kennel operators in their unsuccessful federal lawsuit to stop the law from being implemented, predicted it could take hundreds of thousands of dollars to meet the new standards. But activists point out that breeders are part of a multi-million industry and should be able to handle the costs of compliance. 

Banned in Pennsylvania, dog auctions have taken off in Ohio's dog breeding capital, Holmes County, which is also home to one of the largest Amish populations in the country. Shaver and others - who have witnessed the mistreatment of dogs at auctions where some sickly animals sell for as little as $1 - are waging a ballot referendum initiative and advocating for legislative action to make dog auctions illegal in Ohio.

The video below, produced by the Humane Society of the United States, takes a close-up look at dog auctions.

A 19-year-old faces jail time for body-wrapping a cat in duct tape and tossing her over a North Philadelphia fence into a backyard where it lay for at least 12 hours. Humane agents arrested James Davis who confessed he wrapped the cat on impulse after it wandered into the yard of his home.

The female tabby cat, now affectionately known as Sticky, has been unwrapped and is in the care of the Pennsylvania SPCA where officials report people are pounding down the doors to adopt her [Note to potential adopters: there are plenty more needy, if not sticky, cats that would love a nice lap to curl up on at the PSPCA and other area shelters].

More on Sticky's saga from my colleague Peter Mucha here.

Michael Vick returned to the gridiron for his first regular season NFL game in almost two years today and the New York Times delivers its opinion in an editorial on the still-swirling controversy off the field, the rising number of dog fighting in Philadelphia and what the newspaper called Vick's unconvincing rehabilitation effort.

Meanwhile, anyone following the case of Sticky the duct-taped cat will be pleased to learn that the Pennsylvania SPCA has arrested a 19-year-old for wrapping the little tabby from head to paws and dumping her in a yard, according to local news reports. More details are expected to be released in the morning.

Investigators said they had never seen a case where an animal was completely encased in tape that they could not walk. PSPCA staff members were able to remove the tape and Sticky is doing well. She is not yet ready to be adopted, but the PSPCA is taking names of those interested in giving her a permanent - safe - home.

On a happier note, Francisvale, Chester County's hidden gem of an animal shelter turns 100 this year. Read the fascinating story behind the founding of the shelter and profiles of its dedicated staff and volunteers, by my colleague Art Carey here.

Contrary to Internet reports, the animals are a-ok at the Montgomery County SPCA. A panicked email cut a blazing path through cyberspace earlier this week, stirring up nationwide concern of an alleged mass euthanasia at the three shelters the SPCA runs in Montgomery County. Turns out it was Montgomery County, Texas. But the buzz did have a positive effect for animals in both locations. My colleague Peter Mucha reports.

Murdered over a mouse. Remember the touching scene in "Shawshank Redemption" when the elderly inmate frees his beloved pet rat on the eve of his release? A prisoner at Allenwood federal correctional facility in central Pennsylvania felt the same way about his mouse. Tommy Meeks spent eight months caring for his pet mouse, Amadeus - even building him an exercise wheel - only to find him crushed behind a mattress one day. He concluded his cellmate had committed the crime and bludgeoned him with a rock. For more read the story in the Patriot-News of Harrisburg. 

Looking for something to do tonight while supporting a good cause? Head on over to the Water Works Restaurant where they are throwing a fundraiser for the Pennsylvania SPCA's Second Chance program for homeless and abused pit bulls. The party is being held in honor of River, the feisty female pit bull who was swept over the falls on the Schuylkill right outside the restaurant and saved by officers with the Philadelphia Police Marine Unit. River has found her forever home with Derek Abram, a bartender at Waterworks who witnessed River's brave battle to survive the swirling waters by the dam. The amazing episode was captured by a Channel 6 Action News camera as was the happy uniting of Derek and River after dog was nursed back to health by the PSPCA staff. The event runs from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Water Works Restaurant at 640 Water Works Dr. There will be appetizers, wine, music and dessert. Donation is $25. RSVP at hrussel@pspca.org

Attorney General Tom Corbett and the Humane Society of the United States are hoping a little cash will help crack down on dog fighting in Pennsylvania.

Corbett and several animal welfare groups on Monday will announce a  program to reward tipsters up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone engaging in dog fighting or the fighting of other animals.

A Corbett spokesman said the effort is not specifically related to the arrival of Michael Vick in Philadelphia, but is part of HSUS's national anti-dog fighting campaign. Vick, who admitted to torturing dogs as part of a fighting ring, is working with HSUS as part of his rehabilitation.

The Pennsylvania SPCA says there has been a surge in the number of dog fighting cases in Philadelphia. Last year the Allegheny County District Attorney's office estimated there are as many as 8,000 dog fighting rings throughout Pennsylvania.

The press conference will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at Corbett's Philadelphia office on Essington Ave. Also on hand will be dogs saved from fighting operations.

Lehigh County dog breeder Derbe Eckhart has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty after SPCA agents raided his
kennel last year and found hundreds of dogs crowded together in filthy conditions.

Eckhart, 41, pleaded guilty today in Lehigh County Court to two misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty and five
violations of the state’s dog law, the Associated Press reports. Eckhart faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a maximum fine of $7,500 when he is sentenced Nov. 16. Chief Deputy District Attorney Jay Jenkins says Eckhart treated the dogs with “wanton neglect.”

In June, the state Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement removed 216 dogs from the kennel after Eckhart lost an emergency appeal of his kennel license revocation.

A raid at the Emmaus property last year by the Pennsylvania SPCA exposed horrendous conditions inside the kennel where as many as 800 animals, also including cats, horses, birds and guinea pigs, were found living in filthy, crowded cages and kennels.

The following are some of the recent cases investigated by the Pennsylvania SPCA. Headquartered at 350 E. Erie Avenue in Philadelphia, the PSPCA operates five branches throughout the state. For more information, call 215-426-6300 or visit www.pspca.org. To report animal cruelty call 1-866-601-SPCA.

Reedland St., 6500 block, Sept. 15. A PSPCA humane law enforcement officer responded to a complaint about two pit bulls at the property that appeared to be starving at the property. The officer found the two dogs, both of which were emaciated and flea infested, living in unsanitary conditions in the basement with urine and feces present on the floor and no food or water available. During the investigation, the officer was attacked by the dogs. Police responded and the officer was taken by ambulance to the hospital at the University of Pennsylvania where she was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released the same day. The dogs were transported to the PSPCA for evaluation.

Cambridge St., 2800 block, Sept. 10. Humane law enforcement officers responded to a neighbor’s complaint that the owner a the home had died, leaving 20 cats with no one to care for them. The daughter of the deceased property owner said that she had been taking care of the cats and bringing them food, but did admit that the home was in poor condition. She agreed to surrender the cats to the PSPCA. Officers removed 20 cats that appeared to be feral from the home, which had a strong odor of feces and urine. The cats were signed over and taken to the PSPCA for evaluation.

Haldeman Ave., 9900 block, Sept. 9. Humane law enforcement officers and medical staff responded to a neighbor’s concerns that two dogs had been abandoned by an owner who had moved out approximately a week earlier. The neighbor could see one of the dogs running around, but the other dog appeared to be dead. Officers on the scene found a 1-2-year-old Maltese dead on the living room floor and a Yorkshire terrier, about the same age, living among piles of clothes, trash and feces. There was no food or water available. Both dogs were removed from the home and the Yorkshire terrier was brought to the PSPCA for evaluation. The PSPCA is currently looking for the owner.

Ogontz Ave., 7300 block, Aug. 31. Five adult pit bulls and two pit bull puppies were discovered when Philadelphia Police responded to a shooting at the above location. None of the dogs had access to water. The puppies, who were between three and six months old, were in a pen that did not provide adequate shelter and the adult dogs, which appeared thin, were tethered separate from each other with heavy chains. The shooting suspect who resides at the home had not been apprehended by police. By the time humane law enforcement officers were able to return to the property with a search warrant, three of the adult dogs had been removed from the property. The officers removed the remaining two adult dogs and two puppies from the scene and brought them to the PSPCA for evaluation.

It's a scramble every day for the 14 humane officers of the Pennsylania SPCA to keep up with the sheer volume of dogfighting complaints in Philadelphia.

My Inquirer colleague Troy Graham reports today that the PSPCA is logging 1,000 animal cruelty calls a month, an increasing number of them relate to dogfighting. Graham looks at the intersection of dog fighting, gun trafficking and drug dealing, the role of Michael Vick in raising awareness and the difficulties for prosecutors, who say state law may be tough, but judges often impose only light penalties on offenders.

In New Jersey, a police officer and her husband have been charged with cruelty in the death of a bomb sniffing dog. Agents with the New Jersey SPCA say Mt. Holly officer Kara McIntosh left the five-year-old Golden Retriever, Patton, in her Ford Explorer in mid-July for at least two hours and it died of heat stroke. McIntosh says she left the car running and the air on and that her husband Robert was supposed to pick up the vehicle and the dog.

More from my Inquirer colleague Matthew Spolar here.

Leigh Siegfried is an Associate member of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants and is a Member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers. She conducts private behavior counseling sessions, group training classes in basic and advanced manners and agility, and a variety of workshops. Opportunity Barks classes are held in Philadelphia and Quakertown, PA. Visit www.opbarks.com for more info!