I hope so!
Wild pack of basenjis in rural Florida
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Other than the weather we are currently having, the dogs are probably less stressed than they would be at the shelter with barking dogs all around, their pack all divided, on a concrete floor in a cage. Hope the owner will be forced to spay/neuter and care properly for them. The puppies, at least, need to be removed and homed, though!
I agree too Anne. They are better off there then in concrete cells with the stress of dogs barking and crying 24/7. I agree with Pat as well, no one there watching or supervising and and so any fighting and injuries that may occur do not get attended to. Those 2 guys in the video did not mention they saw any fighting.
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I agree too Anne. They are better off there then in concrete cells with the stress of dogs barking and crying 24/7. I agree with Pat as well, no one there watching or supervising and and so any fighting and injuries that may occur do not get attended to. Those 2 guys in the video did not mention they saw any fighting.
And the dogs don't look like they have been fighting. Could well be that there isn't a lot of fighting, because there isn't a resource control issue. If the guy is feeding them plenty (which he says he is, and their condition indicates he is), fighting (probably) only becomes an issue when there are limited resources…for most of us with multiple dogs, the human attention/status is the most valued resource, so we have fighting occasionally.
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..just saw this on my facebook page…from The Basenji Magazine's page
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/jan/06/062156/dogs-seized-pinellas-wimauma-group-shivers-cold/
Hopefully they are one step closer in getting these dogs the help they need/deserve, whether shelter form the cold or vetting. This man needs to get his day in court, IMO.
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And the dogs don't look like they have been fighting. Could well be that there isn't a lot of fighting, because there isn't a resource control issue. If the guy is feeding them plenty (which he says he is, and their condition indicates he is), fighting (probably) only becomes an issue when there are limited resources…for most of us with multiple dogs, the human attention/status is the most valued resource, so we have fighting occasionally.
And there is plenty of space too. Crowding can cause fighting.
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Anne - please let us know if anything new develops and we can help. Can't help but wonder if our Kona girl may have been part of this pack before she was picked up by the humane society. We are happy to help rehome to prevent them from being killee.
Just send me an e-mail over the weekend if anything new turns up. I will be in Gainesville but Justin will be home.
Let's just hope they can get these pups some shelter from this weather over the next few days. Also if the puppies they confiscated turn up in a shelter hopefully the Tampa group can band together and make sure we can save them.
Keep us posted.
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Will do, Lisa. The local BRAT person is working with the Pinellas SPCA and BRAT will officially help as well. As the dogs are not in any acute distress (according to the Hillsborough animal control person who went there) they can't be confiscated without legal steps, which evidently are in progress. The dogs and pups that WERE confiscated in St. Pete yesterday are not listed yet at the SPCA.
We are trying to find the address of the property and see if food drops are needed. If we could just take a hay bale to insulate the culverts they use for shelter and drop a 40 lb bag of food every few days, I think they will be fine till things are decided…they have been getting along there for years, evidently! I think they must have dug dens somewhere, they have 5 acres! Our local BRAT person says that the dogs of his breeding that she has fostered and homed are very sturdy and socialize well.
Will keep Justin posted if anything changes.
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Be very careful about doing food drops and providing bedding material because you may be preventing the county from making the case they need to get the warrant to seize them.
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Local TV ran an update this evening:
http://www2.tbo.com/video/2010/jan/07/dogs-running-wild–09818/video-news/The dogs (estimated at around 50) are playing, lounging in the sun. Shows a lean-to of sorts and I'm willing to bet there is a den dug in there behind boxes. Animal control was out there again today and is doing it "by the books" so it sticks when they make their case.
It is warmer today but expected to have freezing rain this weekend. Basenjis usually find a way to be dry, I imagine this long established pack has some shelter somewhere on that 5 acres (at least I surely hope so).
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Thanks for the update Anne..
I hope the animal control will do the right thing and seize these dogs and get them vetted. They all seem pretty wellfed so starvation isn't as big of a worry, but shelter and worms and such would be. Even if he feeds the dogs, aren't there laws and such that prevents one man to have taht many dogs on one property?
Here in Houston, depending on where you live it can be from 1 dog allowed to three..never in the 45+ range. I realize all states have different laws, but I am curious as to what goes in Florida.. -
There are probably laws limiting the number of animals but if they use those laws only then he will be allowed to keep up to that number and they will likely have this situation again in a few years. They said he was already cited 2 years ago when he had only 7 dogs on the property. Animal control wants to build a case so none of the dogs have to go back to living in those conditions.
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Yes , you are right, this man needs to loose all his animal owning priviledges..
I was just wondering how it got to where it is..crazy, he even says himself that he has tried to catch them and have them spayed/neutered, but he has been unable to… -
never mind
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He has 2 properties, a home in St. Pete, where the confiscated dogs were living with him, that is where he was cited 2 years ago.
These dogs are on a very rural piece of property in another county. The law says dogs need to be licensed but I don't think there is a limit on the number of dogs way out in the country. I guess we have to be patient.
I am a minimal BRAT member, I do transport, etc., but they are standing by to help this situation, so if anyone wants to contribute money or think about fostering, this is a good time to build the bank balance and participate! I know this is way over the heads of our little dog park group, so I am glad BRAT is standing by to help.
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Just saw the evening news, the dozens of wild basenjis have been caught, including a large litter (or 2) of 2-3 week old pups that were found in a burrow. The dogs were not afraid of people, at least till they started penning some up, then they all started howling and screaming. Tonight's freezing rain predictions evidently spurred the authorities to action. While the dogs are probably frightened and miserable in a shelter, they are warm and safe and fed.
They said it was quite a challenge for the animal control people; heck, catching 2 or 3 that are pets can be a challenge!
That's all I know for now. -
Sorry, here is the link to that video:
http://www2.tbo.com/video/2010/jan/08/wild-dogs-have-warm-shelter–77030/video-news/
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Hopefully the Humane Society has listened to people familiar with Basenji behavior. I did get a chuckle out of the grand howl they set up. Very typical Basenji. They may not be in as bad social condition as originally thought. I heard the phrase "Not afraid of humans" in the report. It may be possible to rehome them. Hopefully BRAT keeps us posted.
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Thanks for the update Anne.
Is there any way to let the authorities know what they are dealing with..not only are these dogs somewhat wild they are also basenjis meaning aloof by nature..they are not necessarily wild and unmanageable, at least they don't come across as that as the police car was driving through the property or as the cop was walking it, they were somewhat running along, not running away or in defense mode..I don't know if that would help in rescue efforts or in capturing them.Again, thanks for the update..and yes I loved the howling..to cool..pretty scary sounding to someone not familiar with the breed though..I bet.
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They are at county Animal Control, but in the past they have worked with rescue. Things will be tied up in legal proceedings for awhile. The owner could conceivably provide shelter, pay for their vetting and sterilization and get them back. No one knows at this time. I feel bad for them, frightened and separated from all they have known. Now we just wait and see.
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Report from BRAT:
Thank you for your concern about the Florida basenjis in the news, including the 12 confiscated from an individual's St. Petersburg property in Pinellas County by the SPCA and the 33 confiscated from his Wimauma property in HillsboroughCounty by Animal Control. BRAT is aware of their situation and has made contact with these organizations through our Florida District Coordinator, Pam Hamilton. All dogs, though in physical custody of these two organizations, are not currently in legal custody of either group. They will have to wait until ownership is determined in custody hearings prior to determining what their future fate will be. They are "evidence" until that time and, as such, cannot be seen by the general public. They can only be handled by veterinarians and authorized staff. If and when the SPCA and Hillsborough Animal Control have legal custody of this group of dogs, BRAT will be available to help. To avoid confusion with the SPCA and Animal Control, we would like to only have one person contact these organizations. We have appointed Pam Hamilton as the official Basenji Rescue and Transport contact. As always, we will continue to cooperate with both the SPCA Hillsborough Animal control, providing assistance whenever they can accept it. Thanks for your concern and offers of assistance. We will let people know when and if help is needed from the Basenji community. I have added to the end of this message a series of links to newspaper article and news videos about this group of Basenjis. Sincerely, Debbi JohnsonBRAT Treasurer & DirectorGermantown, TNdebbijbasenjirescue@comcast.net Here are the links from the first day, second day, then the confiscationday.
http://www2.tbo.com/video/2010/jan/06/dogs-running-wild-fend-frigid-temperatur-42299/video-news/ http://www2.tbo.com/photoalbum/2010/jan/06/two-county-animal-investigation/5/
http://www2.tbo.com/video/2010/jan/07/dogs-running-wild–09818/video-news/ http://www2.tbo.com/video/2010/jan/0…30/video-news/ -
Ms. Newton, your post makes perfect sense. There is no need to confuse things by having everyone contact them separately. I, for one, will watch news releases and wait for BRAT to indicate the next move regarding rescue and rehoming.
