Many people ave asked me to report on the two ferrets rescued from a
snake dealer's home in late June early July as well as the rescue of
dozens of other animals and the subsequent investigation, arrest, and
final disposition of the accused.
The pair of ferrets I "bought" from the man who "admitted" that he
was going to feed to snakes during a 4th of July exhibition have been
placed in a foster home and will probably be adopted by that family
at the conclusion of the cases. They cannot be placed into a "forever
home" until the conclusion of both the state and federal cases as they
are material evidence and still remain wards of the court, so to speak.
But the fuzzies are doing very well and are healthy, happy ferrets!
The state has concluded its investigation and, at the urging of the
local groups who participated in the rescue and seizure of the animals
discovered at both the city and county houses, the prosecutors have
leveled multiple felony animal abuse and aggravated animal cruelty
charges against each of these four men.
The federal charges against these men are numerous now that Fish &
Wildlife have entered into the fray leveling their own set of charges
against these individuals. Very stiff penalties with substantial
imprisonment await these guys should they be convicted and it's pretty
much a slam-dunk as they admitted to several crimes and were caught
with the evidence. Their cases have been continued for trial dates yet
to be determined as the state and federal courts are moving forward
with their own prosecution and each man will stand trial in both
federal and state courts.
Among the numerous state and federal charges, these men were operating
a snake dealership enterprise without proper permits and licensing and
some of the snakes in their possession included species illegal in the
United States. These men were obtaining small animals through
Craigslist, local newspapers, and by other means and using them as
live bait for their snakes - thus the multiple counts of animal abuse
and aggravated animal cruelty charges. And, they were releasing some
unsold, unruly snakes into the environment - enter Fish & Wildlife.
And, these people don't play.
All of this came to light from a single phone call from a teenager who
overheard her boyfriend's cell phone conversation about two ferrets
being thrown into an arena of sort with large snakes for the purpose
of seeing how long it would take for the snakes to attack and eat the
ferrets! She is a hero in my eyes. She saved not only the two ferrets
but numerous other potential victims of this evil enterprise and
brought these creeps to justice!
On this post, I will not bore you will all of the legalese of the
state's construction of charges of animal abuse and aggravated animal
cruelty. But I will say this - using any live animal as either food to
another or as bait for "blood sport" is cruelty on its face and the
prosecutors agreed. And further to "grow your own food" by having dogs
and cats serve as perpetual breeders for the purpose of using the
puppies and kittens as food for these snakes is not only cruel, but
sick. And, again, the state agreed. This is an important case for our
animal rights movement and we hope the outcome will set precedent for
future cases.
And, now in Mississippi. On Sunday, August 16th at about 5:30 in the
afternoon, we received a call from the sheriff's office about a large
cage with six ferrets left outside in a residential carport since the
previous Friday night. Now this is mid-August in Mississippi. It's hot,
really hot, even in the shade! One of the neighbors had reported a
cage of ferrets and the sheriff's office subsequently investigated the
situation and determined that the ferrets had been abandoned by their
owners. This kind-hearted gentleman cared more for these ferrets than
their owners did. He made sure the ferrets had food (cat food) and
water, and checked on them every few hours - moving the cage around the
carport to keep the sun from hitting the ferrets and keeping them as
cool as he could. He found them in the carport while walking his dog
Saturday morning and thought that surely the owners would return for
their pets - alas, no they did not. Word of mouth ensued between the
sheriff and local police officers and we were contacted about the
ferrets. The sheriff's office allowed us to take in the ferrets, have
them evaluated by our vet, and take care of them while they pursued
their investigation. There is a mandatory 30-day hold on stray animals
in this area.
By late Wednesday that week, the owners had been tracked down and were
arrested and charges were filed against the couple. Sad...another
casualty of foreclosure. But, as the court ruled, they had the
responsibility of finding a suitable place for their pets and
abandonment is illegal and fully punishable by statute. They claimed
they had no choice. Yes, they did....and abandoning your pets is not
one of them.
Alas, the ferrets are old and appear neglected over a period of many
months. Malnourished and in great need of medical attention. We have
six ferrets ranging in ages of approximately 5 to 7 years. One with a
huge growth on her head and all have severe hair loss and three have
dental issues. All of these are being addressed at this time.
On Monday, the court awarded custody of the ferrets to the shelter,
ordered the couple to pay restitution to the shelter for the veterinary
bills for the immediate care of the ferrets they abandoned, and further
ordered the couple to pay additional monies to the shelter for future
medical expenses. I have serious doubts this will ever materialize but
the court did render the traditional 11 months 29 days suspended
sentence with time served WITH community service to the couple
individually. I suggested to the court that the community service be
complied with at a local animal shelter or rescue. The judge thought
it was a fabulous idea and so ruled.
The "party of six" is in a foster home now and making slow progress.
At least they are safe.....
On a more uplifting note, the sheriff's deputies that responded to the
initial call took up a collection for the ferrets and together with
some of the local police officers, raised some money for food and vet
bills. As it turns out, one of the deputies is a volunteer for one of
the local rescue groups here and is a bigtime animal lover and has 3
dogs, 3 cats, and some guinea pigs. Now he needs some fuzzits....!
It's encouraging that the ferrets are winning a few here and
there......
Respectfully submitted,
Maren Doshier
Founder/President
Raisins From Heaven Ferret Rescue & Sanctuary
Hernando, MS
[Posted in FML 6457]
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