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The AFU and Urban Legend Archive Animals kidnapping research
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The AFU and Urban Legend Archive Animals kidnapping research
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F. Ads for "free pets" are frequently answered by testing labs for specimens.
From: cldavies@silver.sdsmt.edu (Cindy Davies)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.pets.dogs.misc
Subject: Re: Seeing Eye Dog Theft?
Date: 31 Jul 1996 16:36:03 GMT
AUTHOR: Nieves, Evelyn
TITLE: Critics fault federal enforcement of laws regulating animal
trade. (Animal Welfare Act fails to prevent dogs being
sold illegally for research) by Evelyn Nieves
JOURNAL: The New York Times 0362-4331 Feb 5 1996, v145, pB7(L), col
2
DESCRIPTN: ill. (photograph)
NOTE: Length of article: 27 col in
SUBJECT: Animal Welfare Act of 1970
SUBJECT: Animal welfare--Laws, regulations, etc.
SUBJECT: Dogs as laboratory animals--Laws, regulations, etc.
SUBJECT: Pets--Protection
DATE: 960205
REV DATE: 960302
AUTHOR: Burd, Stephen
TITLE: Federal crackdown on pet dealers.(animals for research) by
Stephen Burd
JOURNAL: The Chronicle of Higher Education 0009-5982 July 21 1995,
v41, n45, pA21(2)
DESCRIPTN: ill. (photograph)
ABSTRACT: The US Dept of Agriculture and animal rights-activists have
mounted pressure on animal suppliers to the universities
and research institutes to take proper care of animals
they supply. The Agriculture Dept imposed a fine of
$200,000 on Julian and Anita Toney of Iowa and permanently
revoked their license to sell animal for research. In
Sep 1993, charged Jerry Vance, an animal-control officers
for two Mississippi counties and an animal dealer, was
charged by the department with falsifying documents of
dog identities and made him forgo his license.
SUBJECT: United States. Department of Agriculture--Laws, regulations,
etc.
SUBJECT: Animal welfare--Laws, regulations, etc. SUBJECT: Animal rights--Laws, regulations, etc. DATE: 950721
Reprinted here w/o permission.
Ronney Rainey, of Duck Hill Miss., came home one day in 1993 to find that his black Labrador Retriever, Bogie, was nowhere to be found.
He checked around the neighborhood and at the local pound, and feared that his dog was lost forever. But reports of other missing pets in nearby towns made him suspicious.
Bogie was discovered in a kennel in Slate Springs, Miss., owned by Jerry Vance, who was both an animal -control officer for two Mississippi counties and an animal dealer. Dogs in his kennel regularly were sold for research to Mississippi State University, Texas A&M University, the University of Alabama, and the University of Mississippi.
There were about 400 dogs of all types, including Labradors, German shepherds, and collies, Mr. Rainey says of his trip to Mr. Vances kennel. They were real pitiful, but you could tell they were house dogs.
In September 1993, the U.S. Department of Agriculture found Mr. Vance guilty of purchasing stolen dogs and selling them for research. The department charged him with falsifying documents as to the dogs identities. Last year, he signed an agreement with the department relinquishing his license to sell animals, although he did not admit violating any law. He did not return repeated phone calls.
Mr. Vance is one of a number of animal dealers who have come under tougher government scrutiny in the last two years. Prodded by animal-rights organizations, lawmakers, and media attention, the Agriculture Department is cracking down on those animal dealers who it believes, are dealing in stolen pets or are mistreating animals.
Universities find themselves caught up in the issue. Some lawmakers and animal-rights activists have proposed that research universities should be forbidden to make purchases from dealers who resell animals, and should be punished if they are found knowingly to have bought a stolen pet.
Two classes of animal dealers are licensed by the Agriculture Department: Class A dealers, who breed and raise animals for research, and Class B Dealers, who generally dont breed animals but purchase and sell them to universities usually fro less money than charged by Class A dealers.
Some lawmakers and activists say universities endanger themselves by purchasing research animals from Class B dealers, the source of whose animals may be difficult to trace. And some officials at the Agriculture Department worry that the agency has not done enough to weed out bad dealers.
Pressure from activists
Others, however say universities should continue to purchase animals from Class B dealers. They say the government is caving in to pressure from animal-rights activists, who ultimately want to cut off all sources of animals to researchers.
In the last year, the Agriculture Department has taken the following actions against dealers:
In April, it fined Julian and Anita Toney of Lamoni, Iowa $200,000 -- the largest fine ever against an animal dealer -- an permanently revoked their license to sell animals for research. The Toneys were found to have falsified records of the origins of the animals and to have treated animals improperly. they deny the charges and are appealing. Their buyers include the University of Iowa and the University of Minnesota.
Also in April, the department accused Dave Knight, a dog dealer from Eatonville, Wash., of failing to keep the records necessary to insure that his animals were not stolen. The department also charged him with housing animals in unsanitary kennels and failing to provide adequate veterinary care. Mr. Knight, who sells dogs to the University of Washington, says he is innocent and will fight the charges.
(stuff about mistreated chimps deleted. ...
(stuff about targeting by peta deleted) Alerted to the U.S.D.A.s charges against Buchshire by PETA, Harvard is reconsidering its relationship with the dealer. But the university says it does not want to look as if it is bowing to animal rights groups. Says Ms. Corlette. We didnt consider changing dealers until the Agriculture Department weighed in.Animal-rights activist find such attitudes infuriating. They say universities are guilty of abetting the illegal practices of some animal dealers when they do business with them.... (more stuff omitted)
AUTHOR: Burd, Stephen
TITLE: Pet owner's lawsuit against animal dealer puts spotlight
on U. of Washington. by Stephen Burd
JOURNAL: The Chronicle of Higher Education 0009-5982 July 21 1995,
v41, n45, pA28(1)
DESCRIPTN: ill. (photograph)
ABSTRACT: Donald Johnson, a resident of Bellevue, Washington, became
the first man to win a lawsuit against an animal dealer
when he was granted $8000 compensation by a county court.
His dog, Shasha, was taken by Donald and Judith Peters,
class B animal dealers on the promise of keeping it on
their farm but they later sold it to the university of
Washington for research. They had not revealed their
true identity to Johnson at the time of taking the dog.
The University of Washington continued buying animals
from the dealer even when the case became known according
to Johnson but the university says they stopped once
the evidence was reviewed.
SUBJECT: Washington, University of--Management SUBJECT: Animal welfare--Cases SUBJECT: Animal dealers--Cases DATE: 950721 REV DATE: 950930
Reproduced w/o permission.
Pet owners may feel they have little recourse when they think that their animals have been stolen for research.
but dont tell that to Donald Johnson. The Bellevue, Wash., resident was the first pet owner to win a lawsuit against an animal dealer accused of improperly turning pets over to university researchers.
In 1986, Mr. Johnson had decided that he could no longer care for his pet dog, Sosha, because of his long hours as an engineer at the Boeing Company. He placed an advertisement in a local paper and began interviewing people to take the dog.
When he met Donald and Judith Peters, he thought he had found the perfect home for Sosha. The middle-aged couple promised to raise her on their farm and allow Mr. Johnson to visit regularly.
Three weeks after he left Sosha in their care, the dog was killed in a lung -injury experiment at the University of Washington.
$8,000 in damages
Mr. and Ms. Peters, Mr. Johnson soon learned, were Class B animal dealers. They had sold the dog to the university of Washington, along with a regular shipment of research dogs, a week after getting her. Class B dealers generally are those who buy and sell animals rather than breed them.
A year ago he won $8,000 in damages in Snohomish County Superior Court settlement. The dealers were found to have misrepresented themselves to Mr. Johnson, making false statements, and violating their contract with him.
Ms. Peters has died, Mr. Peters is no longer an animal dealer and could not be reached for comment.
Mr. Johnson, an alumnus of the University of Washington, took no legal action against the institution. But he feels that its conduct was reprehensible.
The university of Washington does not give a rip one way or another whether they are using stolen pets in research, he says. The only time they take any action is when they get their hands stuck in the cookie jar. He says the university should have been able to see that Sosha was a pet. The dog had recently been spayed and that should have made the university researcher suspicious, he explains.
Whats more, he says, the university continued dealing with Mr. and Ms. Peters even after his case became well known.
University of Washington administrators say they are vigilant in insuring that no stolen animals are used in research. Gerald Van Hoosier, professor and chairman of the department of comparative medicine, says the university continuously reviews its animal vendors and takes seriously all complaints.
The university did stop dealing with the couple after examining the evidence collected in the case, he says. We do not jump to conclusions when animal-rights people bring up allegations. We like to do our own inquiries.
Dr. Van Hoosier says animal-rights groups are trying to cut off all sources of research animals to universities.
If we could purchase dogs from the pounds, we would not need to get them from Class B dealers, he adds. In 1986 the King County Council barred the University of Washington from buying dogs at the local pound, in order to prevent pets from being killed.
Animal-rights activists can't be satisfied, says Dr. Van Hoosier
Cindy L. "got to go hug the dog now" Davies
cldavies@silver.sdsmt.edu
cldavies@rapidnet.com http://rapidnet.com/~cldavies/schhome.html
From: warinner@flood.xnet.com (Robert Warinner)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: How much is that doggie in the window?
Date: 23 Jul 1996 19:57:30 GMT
Bo Bradham (bradham@panix.com) wrote:
<interesting cites snipped. Would it be possible to post some
of the specifics of the articles Bo?>
Call me skeptical, but I have my doubts about professional dognapping rings and the uses their victims are put to. A quick search of the Web turned up the following dog's breakfast:
"This "B" class dealer license has propagated the illegal obtainment of animals to fill the demand for laboratories, dissection companies, pit bull fighting, sacrificial purposes, and many other reasons." [1]
"Stebane was not only a corrupt "B" dealer, but shot and butchered dogs for the "dog meat eating" community for profit. A piece from a confidential video camera caught one action and was featured on a "Hard Copy" segment." [2]
("Dog meat eating" community? M*tt*!)
"Using sedatives hidden in meat, females in heat, and nets, they lure or trap dogs and cats. Some thieves pose as animal control officers and comb neighborhoods in vans, "confiscating" animals without tags." [3]
"Bunchers typically clear out entire neighborhoods, then transport the animals several states away to avoid detection, although some animals are sold locally." [3]
"Animals are also stolen during house burglaries, as well as from cars, sidewalks, and shopping areas." [3]
The "B" class dealer refers to a license issued by the U.S.D.A. (see http://www.usda.gov/news/releases/1996/02/0081 and http://www.aphis.usda.gov/REAC/safe.html). Legislation sponsored by Rep. Fox of Pennsylvania is before the U.S. Congress to abolish this category (see http://www.paonline.com/PFDC/hr3393.htm).
For all the dire warnings of pet theft, actual cites of convictions or or arrests seem a little thin on the ground, especially when compared to the figure of 2.5 million pets abducted per year cited in some of the pages (see [4]). Consider the following:
On August 9, 1991 nearly four years after being caught by LCA [Last Chance for Animals], USDA B dealers Barbara Ruggiero and Frederick Spero and buncher Ralf Jacobsen were convicted in Superior Court of CONSPIRACY and FELONY GRAND THEFT OF DOGS. It was the FIRST CONVICTION of its kind in the United States. In January 1988 after years of surveillance and investigation, LCA uncovered a pet theft ring operated by the three. By answering free to good home ads they had collected over 140 dogs and cats and sold them for biomedical experimentation.
(from http://paws.paws.org/companio/theft.htm)
It is interesting to note that the convicted obtained their victims through deception and not through theft by "posing as animal control officers" nor by abducting them from "cars, sidewalks, and shopping areas."
The same page details a number of measures designed to prevent pet theft:
Do keep your pet indoors, especially when you are not at home.
Do properly identify your pet. Use the I leg tattoo as ears can be cut off.
Do keep a collar on your pet.
Do be aware of strangers in the neighborhood. Report anything suspicious to the police.
Do have advertisements in the newspapers for adoptions read No Bunchers.
Do padlock your gate.
Do keep your dog on a leash.
Do make neighbors and friends aware of the problem of PET THEFT. (Do I detect an exhortation to vector here? - AW)
Do Not let your pet roam free in your neighborhood.
Do Not leave your pet unattended at any time.
Do Not tie your pet outside a store to wait for you.
Do Not use Free To Good Home ads to place your pet in a new home.
Do Not place your pet in a new home without checking the new owners references.
Do Not place your pet in a new home without visiting the premises.
Do Not place your pet in a new home without having the new owners sign a pet adoption contract.
Do Not let your pet be visible from the street.
(from http://paws.paws.org/companio/theft.htm)
Most of these measures would be as helpful in preventing pets from going AWOL as in thwarting petnappers or thwarting the men in black helicopters for that matter. It takes no great leap of imagination to see that unattended pets or pets in cars, sidewalks, and shopping areas are particularly vulnerable to getting lost.
The most common use of abducted pets cited as for use in scientific research. Yet is there that great a demand for cats and dogs in scientific institutions? Demand from scientific institutions is limited by:
It seems unlikely that scientific research could account for 2.5 million abducted pets per year.
How about other supposed demands for kidnapped pets? Stolen pets used for animal sacrifice and the "dog meat eating" community are bona fide urban legends. I'd say the "stolen pets used in dog fighting" is made of the same cloth. It has echoes in foreign practices of animal fighting and unease with immigrant communities. While it is possible to argue that pet theft may be ignored by law enforcement authorities, the police may be less inclined to ignore the gambling that accompanies the sport.
For all of you who have made it this far, here is a True Crime dognapping story:
Dognapping charges filed
A man who is accused of stealing a police car with a K-9 dog in it will have to post $3,000 cash to get out of jail.
Zachary C. Mendez, 30, of Rockford [Illinois], made his first court appearance Friday. He is charged with operating a motor vehicle without the owner's consent, felony theft, dognapping and harassment of a police animal.
Court Commissioner James VanDeBogart set a cash bond of $1,000 each for the two felony counts and $500 each for the two misdemeanor counts.
Mendez told Loves Park police that he stole a squad car with K-9 Jurie inside because he felt he had been treated badly by Beloit police, the criminal complaint against Mendez alleges. He told police that he drove the car to Loves Park, let Jurie out, then left the car with the keys inside, according to the complaint.
Mendez's car broke down in Beloit [Wisconsin] early Thursday morning, and a police officer drove him to the police department so he could use the pay phone to call for a ride home. Shortly after Mendez left the police department, Officer John Fahrney discovered that his squad car, with his K-9 partner Jurie in it, was missing. Fahrney had left the car unlocked and running while he was in the building.
Mendez is scheduled to appear again in court on 11 a.m. Sept. 7.
(From the Beloit Daily News, http://www.bossnt.com/995/crct902.html)
To round this all up:
T. Pet theft occurs.
Tb. ... though a lot less than activists would like to believe.
T. Some stolen pets are used in scientific research.
Fb. Some stolen pets are used in meals.
U. Some stolen pets are used in sacrifices.
U. Some stolen pets are used in animal fights.
References:
1. http://www.instanet.com/lca/Pet_Theft.html
2. http://199.171.5.200/cnyentertain/companimaltheft.html
3. http://envirolink.org/arrs/peta/facts/com/fscom07.htm
4. http://paws.paws.org/companio/theft.htm
Andrew "Take my cats, please!" Warinner
warinner@xnet.com
warinner@ttd.teradyne.com
http://www.xnet.com/~warinner
Visit the Sphinx's Nose page: http://www.xnet.com/~warinner/sphinx.html
From: iayork@panix.com (Ian A. York)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.pets.dogs.misc
Subject: Re: Seeing Eye Dog Theft?
Date: 31 Jul 1996 14:17:04 -0400
Note followups. Rationale discussed below.
In article <4to21j$d2@news.sdsmt.edu>,< Cindy Davies <cldavies@silver.sdsmt.edu> wrote: > TITLE: Critics fault federal enforcement of laws regulating animal > trade. (Animal Welfare Act fails to prevent dogs being > sold illegally for research) by Evelyn Nieves > JOURNAL: The New York Times 0362-4331 Feb 5 1996, v145, pB7(L), col [ ... ] > TITLE: Federal crackdown on pet dealers.(animals for research) by > Stephen Burd > JOURNAL: The Chronicle of Higher Education 0009-5982 July 21 1995, > v41, n45, pA21(2) [ ... ] > TITLE: Pet owner's lawsuit against animal dealer puts spotlight > on U. of Washington. by Stephen Burd > JOURNAL: The Chronicle of Higher Education 0009-5982 July 21 1995, > v41, n45, pA28(1)
Cindy, thanks for posting these.
Here's what I think this discussion has led to so far - the points that are generally agreed-on are:
T: Pound dogs and cats are used in research in some areas.
(There has been plenty of documentation for this.)
T: Dogs have been stolen, and taken fraudulently, by dealers for resale to research institutes. (Cindy's cites, and a couple of other documents, showing that some dealers have been convicted of this.)
T: Research institutes themselves don't steal dogs, and are in generally careful that their subjects are not pets. (Partly my own opinion and experience, and partly others; there's been a case cited in which a tattooed animal was returned from a research institute. I just thought this point should be made, is all.)
U,F,Tf,Ft:Dealers commonly steal dogs for resale to research institutes.
(This one's tougher. It depends on your definition of 'common', and it depends on whether you believe there's a significant level of scrutiny of the Class B dealers. My opinion, so far, is that it's false that this is a common occurrence. Of course, once is too often.)
Okay, so I'd say that the last point is the one which needs to be addressed, at least as far as the folklore aspect is concerned. For many on the rec.pet.dogs.*, I think this may be less interesting than the possibility of theft, period. The AFU FAQ has a number of rarely-used categories other than T and F: It says - Key to Listed FAQs:
T = 100% scientific truth
Tb = believed true, but not conclusively proven
F = 100% falsehood
Ft = A legend, mostly untrue, but with a true occurrence or
known origin.
Fb = believed false, but not conclusively proven
U = unanswered and may be unanswerable
P = Maybe it didn't happen, but it's scientifically possible
(used extremely sparingly, where the opposite is expected,
as it could apply to just about every legend)
The middle categories are where we may be in this discussion now - which
makes it harder to resolve, of course. Just to reiterate a point I've
made before, I think the dognapping is very definitely an urban legend and
is appropriate for alt.folklore.urban, and I reiterate that UL's are not
necessarily false. I've set followups to alt.folklore.urban only, because
I think this is now tending slightly away from the main interests of the
rec.pets.dogs.* folks; but please use your own judgement in further posts.
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