2 charged in illegal breeding operation in N.E. Phila.

Animal-welfare officers have removed 21 dogs from an illegal breeding operation in Northeast Philadelphia and charged two people with cruelty, the Pennsylvania SPCA announced Friday.

The SPCA said its officers removed the dogs Thursday from a rowhouse on the 4300 block of Benner Street in Wissinoming.

Charged with 42 counts of animal cruelty were Kristie Mitchell, 34, and Daniel Carlin, 27, the SPCA said. Mitchell pleaded no contest to animal cruelty in 2009 and guilty to animal cruelty in 2010, court records show.

The rescued dogs included Jack Russell terriers, shih tzus, Labrador retrievers, and a beagle, the SPCA said. Eleven were puppies. The animals were undergoing evaluation and treatment at the SPCA and will be placed with rescue organizations to recuperate and eventually find new homes. - Inquirer staff