Ricky James Pellegrin
December 17, 2013
Anna Marie Reed
December 26, 2013
A mass killing of dogs in Terrebonne Parish following a drug raid last week has animal advocates questioning whether the law that allows it needs to be changed.
A total of 37 pit bull terriers believed associated with a dog fighting operation – including 10 puppies 4-months-old or younger, along with two 10-year-olds, one toothless and one blind – were euthanized following a Gibson drug raid Dec. 6. Parish officials say the killings were permitted under a law that states fighting dogs are contraband. At the discretion of law enforcement and in the interests of public health and safety they may thus be “humanely euthanized,” the law says.
Parish officials did not confirm the manner of death. But the dogs and puppies were most likely dispatched by lethal injection, since the parish’s gas chamber was decommissioned several years ago. The Tri-Parish Times confirmed ages and other information regarding the dogs from reports furnished in response to a public records request.
The parish animal shelter does not adopt pit bulls out but does turn them over to rescue organizations under normal circumstances when they are picked up as strays or relinquished by owners.
Two of the dogs seized were noted in animal shelter records as being “aggressive,” although all of the dogs destroyed, according to the records, were killed because of their dispositions, including the pups.
Members of Louisiana rescue organizations said over the weekend that options other than euthanasia are available for officials who need to place pit bulls and other dogs. Most who were interviewed said the law as it stands is too broad, particularly since it allows the killing of puppies.
“Networking definitely is the key here,” said Megan Manuel, vice president of Lake Charles Pit Bull Rescue, which has taken dogs from the Terrebonne shelter in the past. “There are people all over that can offer their expertise, there is a giant network.”
Terrebonne Parish Sheriff Jerry Larpenter described the raid during which the dogs were seized as a major bust, yielding more than $2 million worth of marijuana, powdered cocaine and crack cocaine, along with Xanax and Hydrocodone tablets.
Arrested were Isaac Allridge Jr., 55, 5252 N. Bayou Black Drive, Sheila Ruffin, 56, 5290 N. Bayou Drive and Kendrick Ruffin, 23, 115 J.R. Court in Gibson. A fourth suspect, DeQuinton Ruffin, 25, turned himself in to authorities Monday. Sheila is a cousin to DeQuinton and Kendrick, who are brothers.
All are being held in lieu of $3 million bond each. Animal control officers had visited the place where the animals were kept Nov. 21. The investigation into drugs and possible dog fighting continued past that date, till the execution of warrants Dec. 6.
“Fighting dogs are typically animal-aggressive and trained to attack and severely injure or kill other animals,” said Animal Control Director Valerie Robinson. “These are not just a regular pet they are dangerous to society so releasing them would be negligent on our part. It was clear they were fighting dogs, that they were being trained to fight.”
Animal advocates say that even if that was the case with the puppies, there is every reason to believe they could be habilitated and live useful lives with caring owners.
The killing of the dogs struck a chord with local pit bull owners like Rainey Smith of Gray.
“I love my dog and have had her for five years,” Smith said in a telephone interview, one of several in which the Tri-Parish Times sought opinions from pit bull owners. “It makes me sad because I understand an older pit bull or any dog that has been trained to fight, they are hard to rehabilitate. But puppies are very different. They are trainable. And pit bulls are eager to learn and work and be loyal.”
Diane Balkin, a contract attorney with the criminal justice program of the California-based Animal Legal Defense Fund, said she is concerned about the Louisiana statute and its broad wording, as well as an apparent lack of procedural safeguards.
“How would they interpret an 8-week old puppy as a fighting dog?” she said. “Why is puppy number seven a vicious dog and puppy number eight is not? I am all for prosecuting people for animal fighting. But if they can rehabilitate or re-home dogs that have been actively engaged should that not be considered? What if they were bait dogs and not fighting dogs? In most jurisdictions animals are property, but we also try to explain to the public that they feel pain, they suffer and have emotions. This does present an interesting question. What if the dogs were golden labs that had scars. Would they euthanize them and their puppies?”
Jeff Doron of the Louisiana Humane Society said he understands that shelters like Terrebonne’s have space limitations, and that he understands the need for a law that gives enforcers the ability to make tough decisions. But he also questioned whether the killing of young puppies is what legislators envisioned when it was passed.
Daisy Baldwejder, dog-fighting and rescue coalition coordinator for the Humane Society of the United States, shares Doron’s understanding of the need to control animals who might be dangerous.
But she also has experience with pit bulls that tells her the animals – even when trained for fighting – can be transformed into companion animals. And there are many organizations, she said, which aim to do just that.
“It is normally easy to find places for puppies,” she said, noting that the general practice in most places is for dogs to be evaluated individually to see if they are too aggressive for rescue.
The dogs of Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, who served time in federal prison for participation in a dog-fighting ring, are now doing well, she noted.
“This is a tragedy for every single one of these dogs,” she said of the Gibson pit bulls. “How sad that there was nobody to advocate on behalf of them.”
A pit bull is confiscated during a drug-related raid of a Gibson home. Thirty-seven pit bull terriers were euthanized after the raid. Terrebonne Parish’s Animal Shelter does not allow pit bulls to be adopted, and state law says animals involved in dog fighting should be destoryed. However, some animal activists argue these pups may have been killed without cause.
