Animal-control officers found 19 puppies in the back of a pickup Sunday in northwest Denver and cited the dogs’ owner for animal cruelty, neglect and abandonment.
The owner, a breeder from South Dakota, said the dogs were well taken care of and the officers were being overzealous.
“These dogs were not in danger,” he said.
Doug Kelley, director of the Denver Division of Animal Care and Control, could not be reached for comment. Officers at the division’s shelter on South Jason Street declined to comment Sunday.
The incident began about 12:45 p.m. when someone phoned in a tip that several dogs were abandoned in the back of a pickup in the 2900 block of Zuni Street. Officers arrived, broke into the camper shell and took the dogs, leaving a note. Denver police officers also were called but had to handle a more pressing call while en route, police spokeswoman Virginia Quiñones said.
The dogs were mostly young Shih Tzus, Shetland sheepdogs and Shiba Inus. They were in large portable kennels, as many as three per kennel.
According to the citation, Dwight Young of Burke, S.D., was cited with 19 counts each of animal cruelty, neglect and abandonment. The citation said there was a smell of urine coming from the truck and the hot afternoon sun was shining into the closed camper shell.
Young said the dogs had food and water. He had not abandoned the puppies, he said, but was across the street at a sauna.
“What do they expect, that you’re going to sit with them 24 hours a day?” he said. “You have to have time to eat; you have to have time to sleep.”
Young said he drove with the dogs from South Dakota on Friday and spent the night in Brighton. He had been planning to drive back to Brighton to sell the dogs at a truck stop to prospective buyers who had contacted him.
He said he doesn’t sell the dogs to pet stores, and he said the dogs had all the proper medical certifications.
He said the dogs go for about $200 to $450 each.
“If they don’t let me take them tomorrow,” Young said, “I guess I’ll be seeking an attorney.”
Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
