Breeder: Mullet, James & Ruth
Business name: J & R Kennel
City, State Zip: Sugarcreek, OH 44681
Year: 2005
USDA License: 31-A-0132
Date of CAPS Investigation: 2005-04-02
Approximately 80 dogs. Breeds: Sheepdogs, Boxers, Bull Mastiffs, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Dachshunds, West Highland Terriers, Bichon Frises, Yorkshire Terriers,
J & R Kennel had a central indoor kennel, a row of indoor/outdoor cages for small breed dogs, and a row of outdoor pens for the larger breeds. I was able to observe about eight of these pens, each made from chain link walls and treated wire floors. Plastic sheets were placed several inches below the floors, covered in over two weeks of fecal accumulation (3.11(a)-Cleaning of primary enclosures).
Each pen contained two adult dogs of various breeds, including Sheepdogs, Boxers, and Bull Mastiffs. Each pen also had a wooden dog house in it. The dog houses were each about 2.5 feet wide and four feet long. They were made of wood covered in peeling paint and chewed, worn edges (3.1(c)(2)-Surfaces). They had open doggie-doors about two feet from the backs of the pens. The doors, however, lacked windbreaks (3.4(b)(3)-Shelter from the elements). The dog houses were not large enough for both dogs in each pen to be in at once and lie in a normal manner or turn about freely (3.4(b)-Shelter from the elements).
The row of outdoor cages for small breed dogs had doggie-doors to access indoor cages. The outdoor cages were made entirely of treated wire and were about four feet above the ground. Each cage had two dogs in it of various breeds, including Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Dachshunds, West Highland Terriers, Bichon Frises, and Yorkshire Terriers. There was over two weeks of fecal accumulation piled up underneath the cages (3.11(a)-Cleaning of primary enclosures).
The indoor kennel room was visible only through a dingy window that was so encrusted with grime one could only see that inside the room were about 30 to 40 dogs (3.1(c)(2)-Surfaces). A row of cages in the middle of the room held dogs of about 40 pounds in weight. These cages had no tops, and the dogs inside could lift them selves up and get their front legs entirely over the walls which did not secure the animals properly (3.1(a)-Structure; construction). Under elevated cages that contained one to two dogs each were piles of fecal accumulation that appeared to be several days of build-up (3.11(a)-Cleaning of primary enclosures).
Download attachments:Mullet.pdf
