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Updated News on the Baird Case. Posted September 8th 2003
125 canines, 1 cat seized from kennel
BY LINDA SATTER ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Federal agents last week seized 125 dogs and one cat from a Sharp County kennel that is the focus of an investigation into violations of the national Animal Welfare Act, U.S. Attorney Bud Cummins announced Thursday.
Bending his usual policy of refusing to comment on a current investigation, Cummins spoke to reporters outside the Arkansas State Fairgrounds’ swine barn while dogs barked in the background.
Later he let reporters go into the barn and look at the dogs — mostly beagles, Walkers, hounds and some lab mixes and other mixed breeds — confined one or two deep in roomy swine cages lined with wood-chip bedding. Each dog had a food and water bowl, and many begged to be petted. Some appeared thin, their ribs showing through their skin, and others had obvious eye infections.
The lone cat, a gray short-haired tabby with a bad eye, cowered in a litter box inside a large cat carrier set apart from the dogs.
Cummins said all the animals are under 24-hour armed guard by federal agents and the public will not be permitted to see them. He said they will be relocated by the end of the month before the state fair begins Sept. 27. A federal judge will determine the location of their next move.
"If they become property of the federal government, they will be put up for adoption," Cummins said. He noted that the animals could be returned to the kennel.
Cummins did not identify the kennel or its owner, nor did he say how many animals remained there.
"We haven’t made any arrests or shut down anybody’s business," he said.
However, Sharp County Sheriff Dale Weaver and Chris DeRose, the founder and president of a national nonprofit animal-advocacy organization based in Los Angeles called Last Chance for Animals, confirmed that the kennel is Martin Creek Kennels, owned by C.C. Baird, who lives on the premises near Williford.
About 600 animals, mostly dogs, probably remain in the kennel, Weaver and DeRose said.
Cummins said federal agents did not seize all the animals "for a variety of legal reasons."
Although he released few details, Cummins said he held a news conference to address repeated inquiries from news organizations about the raid. Besides, he said, he may soon need the public’s help in finding homes for the seized animals.
He said the animals in the barn were in "reasonably good condition," according to veterinarians.
Cummins acknowledged that "there is some question whether some of these dogs were pets that were stolen."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has posted a notice on its Web site for anyone who has lost a dog and suspects the animal might be at the kennel to submit the dog’s breed, age, sex, weight, name and any distinguishing marks or characteristics, along with the date of disappearance and a recent photo, if available, to the agency by e-mail, regular mail or fax.
The Web address is www.aphis.usda.gov/ac/alert.html and the mailing address is USDA /APHIS/Animal Care, Arkansas Dogs, 2150 Center Ave., Building B, Mailstop, 3W11, Fort Collins, Colo. 80526.
Cummins noted that it is a crime to steal pets, but he would not comment on what charges could result from the investigation.
Baird could not be reached for comment Wednesday or Thursday. His wife, Jeanette, answered the telephone both days but said her husband "is not speaking to reporters." She would not give a reporter the name of an attorney to speak to on her husband’s behalf.
According to the USDA, the Bairds are federally licensed Class B animal dealers. The Animal Welfare Act permits anyone with a Class B license to operate a business that includes buying and reselling animals, including sales at auctions.
The animals are legally sold for medical research, said DeRose, who directed an investigation that he said lasted 15 years and culminated in his agency’s turning over its findings to federal authorities about 10 months ago.
Cummins said he "couldn’t confirm or deny" whether the federal investigation resulted from the animal organization’s investigation, in which DeRose said that "we documented tons of stuff inside. We had somebody working on the inside for almost five months."
Federal investigating agencies included the agriculture agency’s Office of the Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Inspector’s office.
DeRose said his evidence, turned over to the government, includes a videotape of a beagle being punched in the face and a terrier mix being dragged outside and casually shot in the head because the dog had "snapped" and was not considered good for research.
The Web site for DeRose’s organization calls Baird "America’s largest and most notorious Class B dealer."
Weaver said sheriff’s deputies and Arkansas State Police assisted with traffic control and security while federal agents searched buildings housing the animals for six days beginning Aug. 26 and ending Sunday. Weaver said that coincidentally, Baird went into the hospital on the day of the search for previously scheduled heart surgery.
"Mr. Baird’s had a business going there for several years," the sheriff said. "When I was an investigator with the county several years ago, we’d have an occasional call from someone who thought he’d stolen their dog. ... I remember one occasion several years ago when we recovered one dog that was lost or stolen."
DeRose said Baird sells animals to nearly 50 research facilities across the country. He said Class B dealers often buy animals, including stolen pets, from people who know the dealers and approach them at auctions. The animals are bought for about $15 a piece and sold to research labs for between $250 and $800 apiece, he said.
This story was published Friday, September 05, 2003
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